How ÃíÌܤ¹¤ë¡¤¤â¤¯¤í¤à-watering ¡ò470 cost of ¡Ä¤Ë½ÐÀʤ¹¤ëing festivals is pricing out younger music fans
- The cost of Glastonbury Festival tickets has risen by ¡ò75 in just two years?
- Music fans now spend an ÉáÄ̤Ρ¿Ê¿¶Ñ¡Ê¤¹¤ë¡Ë of ¡ò470 on festivals each year?
- Some 50 events have been cancelled this year as people can't afford the tickets?
Last month, 210,000 people descended on Glastonbury Festival for its 52nd year, to see the likes of Coldplay, Dua Lipa and SZA take to the famous Pyramid ¹Ô¤¦¡¿³«ºÅ¤¹¤ë¡¿Ãʳ¬.?
Given the ÌÔÎõ¤Ê¡¿»ÄǦ¤Ê ¶¥Áè to °ÂÁ´¤Ê¡¦Êݾڤ¹¤ë tickets for this and other big musical events, many would assume the festival »º¶È is ±É¤¨¤ëing - but the truth is far from it when you look beyond the biggest »Ø̾¤¹¤ës.
Just two days before the beginning of Glastonbury, Northwich's Geronimo Festival ȯɽ¤¹¤ëd its ¼è¤ê¾Ã¤· for 2024, making it the 50th festival to have been cancelled, ±ä´ü¤¹¤ëd or shut É餫¤¹¡¿·âÄƤ¹¤ë for good this year.
The event's organisers took the ·èÄ꡿ȽÄ꾡¤Á¡Ê¤¹¤ë¡Ë ͽÄê to rising costs coupled with lower festival ticket sales,?which it ÈóÆñ¤¹¤ëd on years of high living costs.?
Giving up: Benny Greenstein was °ÊÁ° able to ¡Ä¤Ë½ÐÀʤ¹¤ë Wireless Festival as he covered the event for a magazine - but says he won't buy his own tickets any more as it's too expensive
°ìÊý¡¿¹ç´Ö, the ¶¨²ñ of ÆÈΩ¤·¤¿¡¦Ìµ½ê° Festivals said it ¿äÄꤹ¤ë¡¿Í½ÁÛ¤¹¤ës more than 100 festivals to ¶ì¤·¤à the same ±¿Ì¿¡¿½ÉÌ¿ in 2024.
¤Ë°ú¤Â³¤¤¤Æ the ¼è¤ê¾Ã¤·, Cheshire's Deva Festival ¿½¤·¹þ¤à¡¿¿½¤·½Ðd a 20 per cent ³ä°ú to festivalgoers who have proof of ¹ØÆþ¡Ê¤¹¤ë¡Ë of tickets for a cancelled festival.
While events like Glastonbury, Reading and ʪ±¢¡¿É÷²¼d and Wireless may not be ɼå¤Êing in ¿Íµ¤, ticket costs have been rising over ºÇ¶á¤Î years - and some young people say they won't be able to afford it if they go any higher.?
Tickets for Glastonbury have risen to ¡ò355, from ¡ò335 last year, and just ¡ò285 in 2022. Ten years ago tickets were ¡ò210, and were just ¡ ò1 when the festival began in 1970.
Even people electing to Ĺ¡¤Î¨¤¤¤ë to Áª¤Ó½Ð¤¹¡¿ÆÈ¿È concerts instead of festivals are likely to ľÌ̤¹¤ë extreme ticket prices. Tickets for Billie Eilish's ¶á¤Å¤¤¤Æ¤¤¤ë ¾®Î¹¹Ô¤¹¤ë dates in London are ¸½ºß¡¿°ìÈÌ¤Ë on sale at more than ¡ò250 for standing tickets, much to the horror of her fans.
Those choosing to ¡Ä¤Ë½ÐÀʤ¹¤ë festivals will spend an ÉáÄ̤Ρ¿Ê¿¶Ñ¡Ê¤¹¤ë¡Ë of ¡ò469.51 each year to do so ´Þ¤àing tickets, travel and food and drink, MoneySupermarket's ǯ£´²ó¤Î À¤ÂÓ money º÷°ú shows.?
This is around 70 per cent of the ÉáÄ̤Ρ¿Ê¿¶Ñ¡Ê¤¹¤ë¡Ë ·îËè¤Î »È¤¤¼Î¤Æ¤Ç¤¤ë income of ¡ò666.53.
Festival-goers in À¤Âå Z - mostly adults Ϸǯ¤Î between 16 and 27 - ¡Ä¤Ë½ÐÀʤ¹¤ë three on ÉáÄ̤Ρ¿Ê¿¶Ñ¡Ê¤¹¤ë¡Ë each year and spend ¡ò566 in total.
However, Ĺ¡¤Î¨¤¤¤ëing to a music festival is becoming ¤Þ¤¹¤Þ¤¹ difficult when purse strings are so tight.
For 26-year-old Benny Greenstein, who has ¡Ä¤Ë½ÐÀʤ¹¤ëd more than 40 festivals in the past, this means giving up on one of his passions.
Greenstein, who is a social ¥Þ¥¹¥³¥ß personality who ¾ÇÅÀ¡Ê¤ò¹ç¤ï¤»¤ë¡Ës on music and culture, told This is Money that his opinion of the events has ž´¹d ·àŪ¤Ê in ºÇ¶á¤Î years, and he can't ľÌ̤¹¤ë spending his hard-earned cash on festivals anymore.
Bogged É餫¤¹¡¿·âÄƤ¹¤ë: Greenstein says money spent ¡Ä¤Ë½ÐÀʤ¹¤ëing a festival could be used for a holiday
'As a culture and music fanatic, I used to love festivals ? the atmosphere, the excitement. For my birthday, I'd ask my parents for a ½Ð»ñ¡¿¹×¸¥ to tickets, and every summer used to be centred around which festival me and my friends ¼êÇÛÃæ¤Î¡¤¤ª¿Ò¤Í¼Ô to go to,' Greenstein said.
'But in ºÇ¶á¤Î years, I've grown to hate them, for the simple fact that I could spend the same ÎÌ of money on a summer holiday abroad in the sun, sleeping in a comfy bed.'
He said: 'Tickets alone can be ¾å¸þ¤s of ¡ò300, but then you have to factor in travel, drinks, food for the ½µËö, ¥Æ¥ó¥Ès and other ¡Ê·³¤Î¡ËÌî±ÄÃÏ¡¤¿Ø±Äing gear ? that's hundreds and hundreds of ³¤±¤¶¤Þ¤ËÌԷ⤹¤ës, which people ´Êñ¤Ë do not have in this µ¤¸õ.
'You wouldn't even have enticed me with a ²òÊü¤¹¤ë¡¿¼«Í³¤Ê ticket to Glastonbury. Everything is too expensive regardless.'
A pint of beer at Glastonbury in 2024 cost a Êó¹ð¡Ê¤¹¤ë¡Ë¡¿²±Â¬d ¡ò7, while soft drinks cost up to ¡ò6. Even water was Äê²Á¤Ä¤¤Î at ¡ò2.50 for a can.
'It makes no sense to me anymore why I would spend my money on a hugely pricey ½µËö, the Âç¿¿ô of which might be spent in a we t ¥Æ¥ó¥È,' Greenstein said. 'It's such a shame because when they're good, they're ¹Âç¤Ê¡¿Â¿¿ô¤Î¡¿½ÅÍפÊ. It's just a ´í¸± for the ¾ÃÈñ¼Ô ? almost a °µÎÏ to have fun.'
Greenstein said that the high cost of ¡Ä¤Ë½ÐÀʤ¹¤ëing a big festival means they might soon be »ÙÇÛ¤¹¤ëd by millennials - those Ϸǯ¤Î between 28 and 43 - as they typically have higher incomes.?
He Äɲ乤ëd: 'It feels like festivals have become more of a millennial thing; they still have the ´ê˾¡Ê¤¹¤ë¡Ë to go out and party, but they have more »È¤¤¼Î¤Æ¤Ç¤¤ë income.'
¤Ë¤è¤ì¤Ð MoneySupermarket, millennials spend far more on music festivals than their younger ÁêÅö¤¹¤ë¤â¤Îs.
On ÉáÄ̤Ρ¿Ê¿¶Ñ¡Ê¤¹¤ë¡Ë, millennials Çú·â¤¹¤ë out ¡ò923 each year on festivals, ¡Ä¤Ë½ÐÀʤ¹¤ëing up to four separate events each summer.
'Many older À¤Âås think that we as young people don't want to party as much as they did »Ù±ç¤¹¤ë in their day,' Greenstein said.?
'Are we more health-¾ÇÅÀ¡Ê¤ò¹ç¤ï¤»¤ë¡Ëd? Yes, definitely, but we still love our music and a big night out ? we just can't afford it.'
Have you had enough of rising festival and gig prices? Get in touch: editor@thisismoney.co.uk?