With festival season in full swing, Brits up and down the country are keenly awaiting the UK’s biggest festival, Glastonbury, kicking off on June 21.
However, with over 210,000 people expected to attend the event, and searches for ‘Glastonbury camping tips’ soaring by 300% in the past month, how prepared are festival-goers to tackle the long toilet queues — and just how clean are they?
Speaking to bathroom specialist Sanctuary Bathrooms, an anonymous former Glastonbury toilet cleaner has lifted the lid (ha!) on the best and worst toilets to go to at Glastonbury – as well as how often they’re cleaned, and the ideal time to use the toilets for the nicest experience.
When are the toilets cleaned?
The former cleaner noted that at Glastonbury, when they volunteered, the toilet cleaning shifts were covered over a 6am-12am (18-hour) shift.
They were split up into 6am-12pm, 12pm-6pm and 6pm-12am shifts, they said.
Which were the best, and worst, toilets to clean?
“The best ones are the ones near the main stage (Pyramid stage) as, even though these are busier, they tend to put more people on to keep these cleaner,” said the volunteer.
However, it turns out some toilets are cleaned less than others. “The worst ones I would say are the ones that are further out around the outskirts of the site, as they can sometimes be difficult to find and aren’t cleaned as often,” they added.
Which toilets are the best to go to, and why?
“The compostable toilets are not bad and can also be found in some of the bars so they tend to be a little bit more like what you’d find at home in terms of cleanliness,” said the former festival cleaner.
“If you want the best toilets onsite, then volunteer or work, as the staff toilets were by far the nicest. Or, pay to go into the glamping sites.”
However, the volunteer revealed that the glamping toilets are no nicer than elsewhere, apart from them being generally cleaner.
“The posher camping toilets are better than the ones in the general camping areas, but this is just down to the fact there are fewer people using them,” they explained. Makes sense.
When is the best time to use the toilets at Glastonbury?
“The best, and quietest time to use the toilets is 12am because most of the big acts have finished – although the festival is still busy!” said the former cleaner.
“They’ll also have had 18 hours of cleaning throughout the day, so they’ll be in really good condition.”
They also advised festival-goers to avoid going to the toilets near an act that has just finished their set – as they’ll be “absolutely packed”.
And you might think that creeping up to the toilet block in the early hours of the morning is likely to be your best bet for a cleaner experience, but actually that’s not always the case.
“Don’t go first thing in the morning as no one will have been on shift to upkeep them since 12am, so the first time they’ll be getting cleaned is 6am,” explained the volunteer.
“This is also the busiest time as people are getting ready for the day ahead of them, so if you can hold off a little bit longer, then I’d definitely recommend doing so.”
Well at least now you can enjoy festival season without dealing with the gross toilets. Enjoy!