Glastonbury 2016: Hiring a Car

It’s festival season in the UK and that means hundreds of thousands of people will be venturing from all across the country to convene on arguably the most popular festival in the country: Glastonbury.

Planning how to make it to Glastonbury can be tough, with lots to think about before you can even start deciding on which acts to see. We’re here to outline the options available to you if you’re curious about hiring a car or van to help you make it to the show.

Requirements

Before you decide to hire, you should make sure you’re aware of the requirements behind hiring a vehicle. These include age restrictions and the changes implemented by the DVLA to how your driving license is presented.

• Age: The minimum age for hiring a car in the UK is 22 years old – drivers must have held their license for at least a year. Some rental companies will require you to be at least 25 years old, and some may implement a surcharge for drivers below 25.
• DVLA licence updates: Some companies will want to verify your driving history. After the abolition of the paper counterpart to the UK driving licence – where information about any penalties was documented – your records are now stored online. The ‘Share Driving License’ system gives you a way to view your own information (your driving record, any penalty points) and to create a license ‘check code’. You can share this code with your chosen rental company so they can verify your driving history and check what vehicles you are qualified to drive. For more information on how to share your driving license, consult this guide.

Parking

You can purchase car park tickets in addition to your general admission festival tickets. These give access to the official car parks designated around the festival zone. However, if you did not order an official parking ticket with your festival tickets, there are third party car parks available to use – located in neighbouring fields. These require pre-booking and are run separately to the festival. They will often provide their own security and amenities, including shuttle bus transit to the main festival site

Think about size

If you’re heading to the festival with a group of friends, you’ll probably have to deal with an intimidating amount of luggage and supplies. You’ll need to account for space, and that might mean hiring a bigger vehicle, like a van or minibus. Doing so will make your job much easier when it comes to storing and organising luggage for large groups, especially if you’re transporting numerous tents and camping equipment. Obviously, parking tickets will be more expensive for bigger vehicles, but having that extra allowance for space could make your festival experience much less stressful.

Guidelines

Before hiring any vehicle, read through the rental company’s guidelines to make yourself aware of any and all required documentation, collection times and general rules and regulations for car hire.

Gatwick Car & Van Rental offer a large fleet of regularly maintained, affordable and high quality vehicles available for hire in Crawley and the surrounding area. We offer full breakdown cover on every car hire, and our low cost rentals will suit any budget. Whether you’re hiring a car, van or minibus, you’re sure to find the vehicle to suit your needs. Don’t hesitate, get in touch with our experienced team today.