The engines roared to life, smoke began billowing across the track, and I glanced across at Ollie. His face said everything.
We had only been at CarFest for a few hours, and although he had been excited to come, Ollie isn’t always one to give much away at festivals and events. This time was different.
“Thank you so much, Mum. I absolutely love this.”
I looked across at Lillie and Albie and saw exactly the same excitement written across their faces. At that moment, sitting in the grandstand watching our first CarFest Drift Show, I knew we were in for a very special weekend.
What I didn’t know was quite how much we were going to pack into the next three days. There would be Ferraris and McLarens, drifting and doughnuts, Grid Walks and garages, biblical rain and emergency ponchos. We’d dance to some incredible live music, discover that Ollie seemingly has an encyclopaedic knowledge of cars, watch Lillie find herself trackside with a media vest and camera, and I would somehow end up climbing into a McLaren P1 wearing a short denim skirt while suffering from a bad back.
There would be things we’d miss, plenty of things that didn’t quite go to plan and some completely unexpected moments that would become our favourite memories of the weekend. Somewhere amongst all of that, five people who thought they were going to enjoy CarFest became five people already talking about coming back next year.
This was our first CarFest.
It definitely won’t be our last.
What Is CarFest?
CarFest isn’t simply a music festival with a few cars thrown in for good measure. Created by Chris Evans in 2012, it brings together cars, live music, food, wellbeing, family entertainment, celebrities and plenty of unexpected experiences, with fundraising for children’s charities at its heart.
In 2026, CarFest moved to its new home at Silverstone for the first time, which felt like the perfect setting for a festival where cars play such a starring role. Across the weekend, there were more than 1,000 cars to discover, alongside live performances, track action, talks, activities, exhibitors and different festival areas dotted around the site. I’ll come back to CarFest’s impressive charitable impact later, because it deserves far more than a passing mention.
We were invited to attend CarFest Silverstone as press on behalf of Mummy Matters, with our weekend camping and festival tickets provided for review. As always, everything I’m sharing here is based on our own experience — including the things we loved, the things we’d do differently and what we wish we’d known before our first CarFest.
With three nights of camping ahead of us, our first lesson came before we’d even made it onto the campsite.
Arriving at CarFest Silverstone
After spending the journey to Silverstone preparing ourselves for long queues of festival traffic, getting into CarFest was surprisingly easy. We simply followed the signs towards the campsite car park and drove straight in without any delays. Volunteers were on hand to direct us and, by sheer luck, we managed to park really close to the entrance to the camping field — something we were very grateful for when it came to unloading all our camping gear.
I’d made one mistake, though. I’d misread my emails and hadn’t realised that I needed to download the Silverstone Tickets app beforehand to access the tickets we needed to enter the campsite. With mobile data already proving somewhat temperamental, we had to make our way to the Customer Service Centre, use the Wi-Fi there, download the app and finally retrieve our tickets. We’d arrived at around 11.30 am, but by the time I’d sorted everything out, it was approximately 12.15 pm before we were through the gates and looking for somewhere to pitch our tent.
Consider this my first CarFest tip: download your tickets before you leave home!
Once that little hiccup was out of the way, everything felt extremely well organised. Our tickets were checked as we drove into the camping area and then scanned again when we entered the campsite with our equipment, where we were given our CarFest wristbands. Security was also present at the entrances and exits throughout the weekend, which was reassuring.
Setting Up Camp
We chose the camping field on the right-hand side and found ourselves a flat pitch alongside the perimeter fence. It turned out to be a great choice because we were close to the lighting, had easy access in and out of the camping area and didn’t have tents surrounding us on every side. Everyone was naturally pitched fairly close together, but our neighbours were considerate and the atmosphere felt friendly.
One little touch impressed me before we’d even finished setting up. Scouts were walking around asking campers if they needed help pitching their tents. We’re seasoned campers, so we didn’t need to take them up on the offer, but we saw other people gratefully accepting their help. It was such a simple but brilliant idea, particularly for anyone arriving at a festival and discovering that putting up their new tent isn’t quite as easy as the instructions suggested!
We were also pleasantly surprised by the campsite facilities. Rather than the basic setup we’d expected, there were proper flushing toilets and hot showers, along with places to buy food and drinks. I’ll go into much more detail about the campsite later because, having camped at several festivals, there were quite a few things CarFest got right.
The Long Walk to the Arena
With the tent pitched, we were finally ready to explore CarFest — and this was when we discovered our second lesson of the weekend: CarFest at Silverstone is BIG.
To reach the main arena from our campsite, we passed through a bag-check gate and followed a lengthy route towards the circuit. After another entrance where our wristbands were scanned, we continued past the Lando Stand — although we soon discovered a route through the middle that shaved a little time off the journey — before walking from Stowe along Hangar Straight, crossing the bridge and eventually reaching the main CarFest arena.
It took considerably longer than we’d expected, something that caught us out more than once over the weekend. If you’re camping at CarFest, don’t look at the programme and assume you can leave your tent ten minutes before something you really want to see. Give yourself plenty of time to get there.
When we finally reached the main arena, we were blown away by the sheer scale of it. For a few moments it was actually quite overwhelming; there seemed to be something happening everywhere we looked and we had absolutely no idea where to begin. To be fair, we often feel like that when we first arrive at a festival, so we did what we usually do and started walking.
We explored FoodFest, browsed TippleFest, found the fair and merchandise tent and began trying to understand the layout of this enormous festival we’d somehow thought we’d manage to explore in a weekend.
Then we heard engines, and any plans for a sensible orientation walk were immediately abandoned.
Cars at CarFest had begun.
The Moment CarFest Won Us Over
The sound of engines was all the encouragement we needed. We made our way towards the grandstands and quickly found seats to watch our first CarFest Drift Show, and this wasn’t motorsport quietly happening somewhere in the distance. It was loud, smoky and completely exhilarating.
The first cars reminded us of something straight out of The Fast and the Furious, flying around the track sideways with huge clouds of tyre smoke pouring out behind them. You could hear the engines roaring and smell the fumes in the air, and within minutes all five of us were completely absorbed. This was the moment I’d described at the beginning of this article, when I glanced across at the kids and realised just how much they were loving it. Any uncertainty we’d had when we first walked into that enormous festival site had disappeared.
Things Got Even Crazier
Just when we thought we’d seen the best of it, out came a mint-green BMW 3 Series Compact driven by a woman who apparently decided that simply drifting the car wasn’t challenging enough.
While performing doughnuts, she climbed out through the window of the moving BMW, manoeuvred herself around the outside of the car and somehow climbed back inside — all while the car was still moving. By the end of the display, she’d also blown a rear tyre and part of the rear bumper had come loose. We later had the opportunity to see the BMW up close and photograph the aftermath, including what remained of the tyre. It was spectacularly bonkers.
The packed grandstands taught us another useful lesson: if there was something on track that we really wanted to see, arriving early would give us a much better chance of getting a good seat. Afterwards, we headed towards the area where some of the cars were being cleaned, checked and repaired beneath their gazebos. Seeing them up close after watching what they’d just been put through gave us a completely different appreciation of both the cars and the people behind them.
There was still music, food, entertainment and goodness knows how many other areas waiting to be explored, but we’d already established what would become our family motto for the weekend: cars in the daytime, partying in the evening.
And that was exactly what we intended to do.
From Drift Cars to Dancing: Our First Night at CarFest
After all the excitement of the Drift Show, we headed back to the campsite to cook our tea and get ready for our first evening of live music. One of the ways we keep the cost of festival weekends under control is by taking food with us and making supermarket trips for lunches and evening meals, usually saving the expense of eating inside the festival for our final day.
Unfortunately, we were still seriously underestimating how long it took to get between the campsite and the main arena, and this time it cost us something we really wanted to see. We’d watched Sophie Ellis-Bextor perform at Wychwood earlier in the summer and absolutely loved her, so she was high on our CarFest must-see list. By the time we reached the main stage, however, she was singing her final song. Gutted doesn’t quite cover it.
Thankfully, we didn’t have much time to feel sorry for ourselves because Gok Wan soon had us dancing and our first CarFest party was officially underway.
Jessie J Was Phenomenal
Friday night’s headliner for us was Jessie J and, quite simply, she was phenomenal. We stood towards the front on the right-hand side of the stage, where it felt busy and cosy rather than uncomfortably packed, with plenty of room further back for anyone who preferred a little more personal space.
One thing we really appreciated was that much of the main dancing area was concrete. Anyone who has spent a festival weekend trying to dance in a churned-up field will understand why that suddenly feels like a luxury! Jessie J’s voice was incredible live, but what surprised me just as much was how funny and likeable she was between songs. She had a brilliant connection with the audience, and by the end of the set we were completely sold.
Heading Back to Camp
When the music finished, I was impressed again by how well CarFest managed such a large crowd leaving the arena. Illuminated signs directed people staying off-site one way and campers another, with further directions as we got closer to the different camping areas.
Naturally, with thousands of people leaving at once, progress wasn’t particularly quick. You also needed to keep an eye on your ankles because plenty of people were pulling cargo trolleys loaded with camping chairs, tables and everything else they’d brought down for the evening. Somewhere amongst the slow procession back to camp came the inevitable cries of “ALAN!” — if you’ve camped at a British festival recently, you’ll probably know exactly what I’m talking about.
There was still plenty of chatting and laughter around the campsite when we reached our tent, but nothing that stopped us sleeping. Unfortunately, my back had other ideas. I went to bed on Friday night tired, happy and excited that we somehow still had two whole days of CarFest ahead of us, but by Saturday morning my camping bed and lower back had declared war on each other.
And then it started raining.
Saturday at CarFest: Cars, Cameras and Biblical Rain
I woke on Saturday morning feeling as though somebody had rearranged my spine overnight. This wasn’t CarFest’s fault; I have lower back problems and, as much as I love camping, my back and a camping bed aren’t particularly good friends. I’d barely slept and woke up in agony, but thankfully a hot shower helped. There were queues that morning and a temporary issue with the generator supplying the ladies’ facilities, but it was soon sorted.
We were going to need our waterproofs because the weather on Saturday can really only be described as biblical. It rained and rained, but we’d been obsessively watching the forecast before CarFest and had arrived prepared with waterproof coats and a box of disposable ponchos to pull over the top. Those ponchos were absolute lifesavers.
One advantage of being at Silverstone was the amount of hardstanding and proper pathways around the site. There were still grassy areas and inevitably plenty of mud, but we pulled on our walking boots, added another layer of waterproofing and got on with it. We hadn’t come to CarFest to sit in a tent.
One thing we were particularly keen to experience was a Grid Walk, but by the time we tried to get passes on Saturday, the free allocation had already gone. We made a mental note to be much better organised on Sunday and bought the £20 CarFest programme pack to help us plan the rest of the weekend. With so much happening across the site, having the Festival Guide and schedules to hand proved useful — provided, as we’d later discover, somebody actually remembered to read them properly!
For now, we headed back towards Cars at CarFest and spent hours exploring. We watched more track action, wandered amongst the cars and worked our way around the different automotive brands and displays. Many of the manufacturer stands offered free interactive activities and competitions too, so there was much more for the kids to do than simply look at cars.
The boys particularly loved the Vertu Motors stand, where visitors could scan a QR code and join races using their phones. Albie won one of Saturday’s races while wearing his Alpine cap, which couldn’t have been more appropriate, and the team asked to photograph him sitting in the Alpine car afterwards. Ollie returned to the challenge on Sunday and managed to win races too.
It was during all this exploring that we discovered Ollie appears to have been secretly storing an encyclopaedia of car knowledge in his head. Car after car, he knew what he was looking at — models, manufacturers and details I had absolutely no idea he knew. He was completely in his element and repeatedly told us, “This is the best festival I’ve been to.” Considering we’ve taken our children to quite a few festivals over the years, that’s some compliment.
Simon and I had slightly ulterior motives for visiting the manufacturer stands because we’re hoping to replace my BMW 2 Series Gran Tourer Sport. CarFest gave us the opportunity to look at potential replacements without spending a weekend driving between dealerships, and we found ourselves particularly interested in one of MG’s seven-seat plug-in hybrid models alongside plenty of considerably less sensible family-car propositions.
The garages were even more exciting. Rows of incredible cars were lined up inside, and Lillie was particularly happy because she’s the Ferrari fan of the family and has developed a real eye for photography. Seeing Ferraris old and new gave her plenty of subjects to point her camera towards.
The Media Vests Changed Everything
While looking around the garages, I spotted a photographer I recognised from previous events walking through one of the restricted areas and asked how he’d managed to get in there.
“You just need to sign out a media vest.”
You didn’t need to tell me twice.
Lillie and I headed back to the press area, signed for our media vests, and suddenly our CarFest experience gained another dimension. She was thrilled to be able to photograph some of her favourite cars from areas we hadn’t previously been able to access, while Albie was considerably less impressed about watching his mum and sister disappear into places he couldn’t follow. Occasionally having a blogger for a mum has its advantages!
Later, while The Proclaimers were performing, we headed over to RetroFest. The boys disappeared into the gaming tent while Simon, Lillie and I looked around the retro vehicles, although Ollie quickly reappeared when he realised we’d found the Mustangs. American muscle cars are another of his favourites, so apparently retro gaming could wait. We also spotted the DeLorean before moving on to explore more of the festival.
By this point, however, my lack of sleep and bad back had been joined by a horrible migraine, and I knew I needed to stop. I remembered spotting someone offering Shiatsu massage, eventually tracked them down in the camping area and booked myself in.
I’m not entirely sure “relaxing” is the word I’d use to describe the experience; at times it felt more like I’d voluntarily signed myself up for Chinese torture. But it worked. By the time the massage finished, my migraine had eased, and I felt human again.
Unfortunately, while I’d been having my head and back kneaded into working order, the clock had continued ticking — and somewhere down at the main stage, James Morrison had been performing without me.
Saturday Night at CarFest: Sugababes, Sir Tom Jones and More
Missing James Morrison was disappointing, but the Shiatsu had at least done its job, and my headache had eased enough for me to head back to the main arena and enjoy the rest of Saturday evening. Even better, the biblical rain had finally stopped, which seemed to put everyone in a better mood.
We made it back in time for Sugababes, and they were fantastic. I’m not entirely sure what their secret is, but I swear they haven’t aged! Their set was full of songs we recognised, and the atmosphere was brilliant. Our press wristbands also gave us access to the front pit area, so we could get closer to the stage and capture some great photographs while still having plenty of room to enjoy ourselves.
One thing we particularly liked about the main stage setup was the two smaller stages positioned on either side. Rather than leaving the crowd standing around while equipment was changed between the headline acts, they were used for DJs and smaller performances. Over the weekend we saw everything from the Scouts Gang Show to Teddy Swimz and Marty McFly from the touring Back to the Future musical. It kept the atmosphere going between the bigger performances and meant there was nearly always something happening.
Next on our Saturday-night list was Sir Tom Jones. He was a little late coming onto the stage, and there was a point when we began wondering whether everything was OK, but when he finally appeared he was absolutely worth the wait. His voice was still unmistakably Tom Jones; close your eyes and you could easily forget just how many decades he has been performing.
The beginning of his set was surprisingly emotional, with reflective songs that had people around us wiping away tears. For a few moments it almost felt like we were witnessing a goodbye, although the mood soon lifted and the rest of the performance became the celebration everyone had been hoping for. Hearing thousands of people singing along to songs that have spanned generations was one of those moments that reminds you why live music can be so special.
Saturday evening wasn’t only about the main stage. We also made our way over to ClubFest, where Huey Morgan was DJing and playing some brilliant tunes, before taking the opportunity to explore some of the exhibitors we’d been passing throughout the weekend.
I completely fell in love with the automotive art of Alan Reullier, particularly a hand-painted car we were told was going to be displayed at Beaulieu Motor Museum. As much as I loved his work, Alan was also a genuinely lovely person to stop and chat with. We were equally fascinated by PopBangColour and the artwork created using radio-controlled cars. Considering I struggle to drive an RC car backwards and forwards without hitting something, seeing what could be created with one completely blew my mind.
Lillie managed to squeeze in a little pampering when she had her hair styled by Amory London and was very tempted by their steam hair stylers, although her pre-new-job bank balance sensibly persuaded her to leave them behind. Carterknowle Design Studios caught our attention too with their 3D-printed designs: Ollie naturally liked the F1 car, Lillie chose the rose and I had my eye on one of the ladies’ head planters.
By the time we eventually headed back towards the campsite, Saturday had been a very long day. I’d started it exhausted and in pain, we’d spent hours walking around in torrential rain and I’d missed an artist I really wanted to see because of a migraine, yet those weren’t the things dominating my thoughts at the end of the night. We’d watched incredible cars, discovered talented artists, danced to Sugababes and Huey Morgan and seen Sir Tom Jones perform live.
Best of all, we still had Sunday to come — and after missing out on the Grid Walk passes that morning, I was determined we weren’t going to make the same mistake twice.
Sunday at CarFest: The Grid Walk We’d Been Waiting For
I woke on Sunday still sore from the previous day, but ridiculously excited about our final full day at CarFest. After missing the Grid Walk passes on Saturday, I had one mission: get there early enough to secure places this time.
Had I paid slightly more attention to the schedule, I would have realised that the Silverstone circuit was being used for the Festival Dash that morning, which meant the gates into the main arena didn’t open to everyone else until 10am. It was actually great fun watching participants go past because people had really embraced the fancy dress, although I was impatiently waiting for those gates to open.
Unfortunately, it appeared everyone else had also decided Sunday was the day to do a Grid Walk. By the time I reached the queue it stretched right down the road. The passes were free but limited and allocated on a first-come, first-served basis, and we desperately wanted places for the Hypercars and Supercars Grid Walk. I waited and hoped, only to discover that I’d missed out by around 20 people.
This was one occasion when attending CarFest on behalf of Mummy Matters made a huge difference to our experience. Although we’d missed out on the public passes, our press accreditation gave us separate access to the Grid Walk. It’s important to make that distinction because this wasn’t something included with a standard festival ticket, but it gave all five of us an experience we’ll never forget.
Walking Onto the Silverstone Pit Lane
Walking through the tunnel and emerging onto the Silverstone pit lane was something else. We climbed the steps, looked out across the track and saw an incredible collection of cars lined up in front of us. There was so much to take in that we decided to explore at our own pace and meet up again at the end, although in reality we kept bumping into one another as we darted backwards and forwards between cars we’d spotted.
There were Ferraris, Porsches, Lamborghinis, Ginettas, Mercedes, Aston Martins, McLarens and an absolutely stunning Bugatti amongst them. After spending the weekend admiring many of these cars from grandstands and displays, being able to get properly close to them was something special.
Then I found the McLaren P1.
I was chatting to the driver when he asked whether I’d like to sit inside it. There are questions in life that require careful consideration. This was not one of them.
Of course I wanted to sit in a McLaren P1.
What I hadn’t considered when getting dressed that morning was the possibility that I’d be climbing in and out of a supercar. I was wearing a short denim skirt, my lower back was already protesting, and I can confidently say that neither getting into nor extracting myself from the P1 was my most graceful performance of the weekend. I didn’t care. Once I was sitting inside, I felt completely at home and decided the McLaren P1 was definitely a little piece of me. Sadly, I suspect my bank manager may have a different opinion.
What made the experience even better was talking to the people behind the cars rather than simply taking photographs. The gentleman I spoke to from McLaren told me he’d worked for the company for more than ten years and had worked his way up to become Head Technician within the marketing team. He was also the lucky person who would be driving the P1 around Silverstone once the Grid Walk finished.
Chris Evans was lined up in pole position in a stunning Ferrari, and there was a real buzz building as the Grid Walk drew to a close and everyone prepared for the cars to head out onto the circuit.
When Our Press Access Gave Us an Extra Surprise
Once the public Grid Walk finished, visitors were ushered away from the track ready for the cars to begin their laps. At that point, Lillie reminded me that our media vests meant the two of us could remain trackside, while Simon, Ollie and a distinctly unimpressed Albie found themselves a great viewing position on the balcony beside The Wave.
Standing beside the circuit as the engines fired up was completely different from hearing them from the grandstands. Lillie and I were both ridiculously excited and ready with our cameras — which was precisely when disaster struck.
The cars came around on their first lap, and Lillie discovered that her camera battery had died. I lifted mine to start shooting and discovered my SD card was full. After spending the entire weekend photographing everything in sight, we’d somehow reached one of the best photography opportunities of CarFest with one dead camera and one completely full memory card.
Lillie switched to her phone while I frantically deleted old folders to make enough room to continue shooting. Thankfully, we rescued the situation, although “charge every camera and clear every SD card” immediately made it onto my list for next time.
Once the cars began returning from the track, Lillie and I headed back into the garages while they were relatively quiet. Being so close as the cars came back in was incredible; I hadn’t expected to notice the heat coming from the rear of them so strongly, but you could really feel it after their laps. We had time to look around, take photographs and soak up an experience neither of us will forget.
Over the weekend we also spotted some familiar faces climbing out of the cars, including Chris Evans, Richard Hammond and Joe Wicks. For a Ferrari-loving young photographer and her car-mad mum, it was pretty difficult to imagine a better weekend.
I’d arrived at CarFest knowing the rest of the family would love the automotive side. I’ve always enjoyed motorsport too, but it isn’t something I’ve regularly had the opportunity to watch. By the time I walked away from the garages on Sunday, I was already wondering when we could come back to Silverstone for more.
From CarFest to a New Interest in Motorsport
The Hypercars and Supercars may have provided some of Sunday’s biggest wow moments, but they weren’t the only cars that caught our attention. We’d also watched the Motor Racing Legends putting on a hugely entertaining display, during which one of the saloon cars spun off into the gravel. Thankfully, the driver managed to accelerate his way back out and continue, unlike another car we’d seen get stuck the previous day.
From the grandstand, the Legends cars had looked surprisingly big and chunky, but when we found them later and saw them up close, they were much smaller — and, dare I say it, rather cute! I got chatting to one of the drivers and asked how expensive it was to get involved in something like this. I’d expected an eye-watering answer, but he told me he’d picked up his car for around £3,000 and that a set of tyres could generally last about a year because they normally race rather than drift.
Conversations like that were one of the unexpected things I loved about Cars at CarFest. Alongside the headline supercars, we discovered forms of motorsport we’d never previously considered watching and met people who were happy to share their knowledge with us. Ollie may have arrived as our resident car expert, but by the end of the weekend he’d managed to bring the rest of us even further into his world.
Eventually, though, five hungry people had to drag themselves away from the cars. We had one final evening at CarFest ahead of us — and a Sunday night music line-up that would deliver one of the biggest surprises of our weekend.
Final Night at CarFest: Pizza, Rickrolling and Nile Rodgers
After spending most of the weekend cooking for ourselves, we’d promised the kids that Sunday would be our treat day and we’d buy dinner inside CarFest. By this point we’d done enough walking to feel we’d earned it, so pizza won the vote.
Five pizzas and five drinks came to £87.50. Festival food is never cheap, so it wasn’t entirely unexpected, but it’s certainly something worth factoring into your budget if you’re planning to buy meals for a family throughout the weekend. The pizzas were good, though, and nobody was complaining once we were sitting down and eating them.
Fed and refuelled, we were ready for our final night of live music.
Rick Astley was brilliant. He sounded fantastic, was funny and engaging with the crowd and, naturally, there was absolutely no chance of him leaving without giving us Never Gonna Give You Up. Being Rickrolled by Rick Astley himself at CarFest felt like a fairly appropriate way to spend a Sunday evening.
Then came Nile Rodgers & CHIC.
I’ve always loved their music, but seeing Nile Rodgers perform live made me appreciate just how many enormous songs he has been involved with over the years. The set was essentially one huge party, moving through CHIC classics and songs connected to his incredible career, and the atmosphere around us was fantastic.
At one point I realised we were dancing alongside Rob Brydon and Ben Miller, which felt wonderfully CarFest — one minute you’re watching supercars on the Silverstone circuit and the next you’re singing and dancing beside people you normally see on television.
We also managed to meet Chris Evans during the weekend. Considering CarFest exists because of the festival he created back in 2012, it was lovely to have the opportunity to say hello after spending three days experiencing what it has become.
As Nile Rodgers & CHIC brought our final night to a close, none of us was ready for it to be over. We’d arrived on Friday excited but with very little idea of what CarFest would actually feel like. By Sunday night, we were already talking about coming back.
Thankfully, we weren’t quite finished with Silverstone yet. Before heading home on Monday, we had one last stop to make.
One Last CarFest Moment
Towards the very end of Sunday night, we were lucky enough to meet Chris Evans again in the pit area. He came over for a quick chat and we had the opportunity to thank him, not only for what had been an incredible weekend for our family but for everything CarFest does to support its charities.
It felt like a fitting way to finish.
On Friday afternoon, I’d sat in the grandstand while Ollie turned to me and thanked me for bringing him to CarFest. Throughout the weekend he’d repeatedly told me it was the best festival we’d been to, and by Sunday night I think he spoke for all five of us.
We’d arrived wondering what our first CarFest would be like. Three days later, tired, muddy around the edges and with far too many photographs between us, we were already talking about how we’d do it all again next year.
There was just one small problem.
We still had to walk all the way back to the tent.
One Last Stop: Silverstone Museum
Monday morning arrived far too quickly. After three days of cars, music, rain, walking, dancing and very little sitting still, it was finally time to pack up the tent and leave CarFest behind.
We weren’t quite ready to leave Silverstone, though.
We’re regular visitors to Silverstone Museum and couldn’t resist one final visit before heading home. After spending the weekend watching cars on the circuit and exploring the garages, it felt even more relevant than usual. Things we’d previously seen in the museum suddenly had more context, particularly for the kids, because we’d just spent three days experiencing Silverstone as a working race circuit rather than simply looking at its history.
It was a lovely way to round off the weekend and gave us a little more time at Silverstone before we finally had to admit that CarFest 2026 was over.
By then, we’d also learned a lot about attending CarFest as a family — particularly when it came to camping, costs, walking and trying to fit everything in. So, if you’re considering CarFest for the first time, these are the practical things I’d want to know before booking.
What Is Camping at CarFest Really Like?
Having camped at several family festivals over the years, we were genuinely impressed by the camping facilities at CarFest. As I’ve already mentioned, there were proper flushing toilets and hot electric showers, rather than the more basic facilities you sometimes expect at a festival. Cleaners were regularly working around the toilet and shower blocks too, which made a noticeable difference over a busy weekend.
There was lighting around the campsite, security at the entrances, drinking water points and places to dispose of rubbish. We also felt comfortable leaving our tent during the day and returning late in the evening after the music had finished.
You don’t necessarily need to take enough food for the entire weekend either. There were several places to buy food and drinks on the camping field, including breakfast options, burgers, toasties, crepes and coffee. As you’d expect at a festival, convenience comes at a price: we saw coffee at around £4.50 and toasties and crepes at roughly £8. We preferred to take most of our own food and save buying festival meals for a treat.
If you’re happy to leave the site for supplies, Towcester is around eight miles away and has supermarkets including Tesco and Aldi, along with B&M. We made use of this during the weekend rather than trying to squeeze three days’ worth of fresh food into our cool boxes before leaving home.
What I’d Take for CarFest Camping
The weather made us particularly grateful for some of the less glamorous things we’d packed. Walking boots and waterproofs are essential if rain is forecast, and our disposable ponchos were brilliant for adding another waterproof layer over our coats. CarFest staff also laid bark over particularly muddy areas, which helped enormously as the rain continued.
I’d strongly recommend taking rock pegs and a decent lump hammer for your tent. The ground at Silverstone can be hard and standard tent pegs may struggle. A cargo trolley would also be useful if you’re taking lots of equipment between your car and tent or planning to carry chairs and other belongings down to the arena each day.
And don’t forget that the campsite-to-arena journey is a proper walk rather than a quick hop back to your tent. Once we’d learned that lesson, we became much better at taking everything we needed with us rather than repeatedly going backwards and forwards.
Would We Camp at CarFest Again?
Yes, absolutely.
Camping meant we could enjoy the evening performances without worrying about driving afterwards, and there was something lovely about returning to the campsite still buzzing from whatever we’d just watched. The facilities were better than we’d expected and, despite Saturday’s weather, the camping experience itself never became something we regretted.
I’d simply arrive next time knowing exactly what to expect: good footwear, proper waterproofs, rock pegs, a comfortable bed and considerably more respect for the distance between my tent and the main arena.
How Expensive Is CarFest?
CarFest isn’t a cheap family weekend, particularly once you factor in tickets, camping, food and any extras you might want to buy. As we attended as press, our festival and camping tickets were provided for review, but the equivalent cost for our family would have been around £880. That’s obviously a significant amount of money, so it’s worth thinking about your spending beyond the ticket price before you go.
The good news is that you don’t have to spend constantly once you’re inside. Much of what we enjoyed over the weekend was included with admission, from the track action and live music to exploring the different festival areas, car displays and many of the activities offered by exhibitors. The Grid Walk passes available to festival visitors in 2026 were also free, although numbers were limited and they needed to be secured on the day.
We bought the £20 CarFest programme pack, which included the Festival Guide and schedules and proved useful for planning our weekend. There was also plenty of official merchandise available. As a rough guide during our visit, adult hoodies were around £55, children’s hoodies £45, adult T-shirts £30 and children’s T-shirts £25.
Food is probably where costs can climb quickly for a family. As I mentioned earlier, our Sunday treat of five pizzas and five drinks cost £87.50. On the campsite, we saw coffee at around £4.50 and toasties and crepes at roughly £8 each. Multiply those sorts of prices by several people and three days and you could easily add hundreds of pounds to the cost of your weekend.
How We Kept Our CarFest Spending Down
Camping made it much easier for us to control our food budget because we took supplies with us and cooked most of our own meals. We also made a supermarket trip during the weekend rather than relying entirely on food stalls, then deliberately chose Sunday as our day to buy dinner inside the festival.
That’s probably the approach we’d use again. Set a budget for merchandise and treats before you arrive, take drinks and snacks where the current festival rules allow, make use of your camping setup if you’re staying on-site and decide which meals you actually want to buy rather than reaching the arena hungry and spending without thinking about it.
There are plenty of opportunities to spend money at CarFest, but there are also hours and hours of entertainment that don’t require you to keep reaching for your wallet once you’re through the gates.
Whether we thought the overall experience was worth that roughly £880 ticket and camping cost, though, is a slightly different question — and I’ll come back to that in my final verdict.
Is CarFest Good for Families and Teenagers?
One of the questions I had before our first visit was whether CarFest would genuinely work for us as a family. We’ve attended plenty of family festivals over the years, but CarFest is quite different from a traditional music festival and I wasn’t sure whether there would be enough to keep everyone interested for three full days.
I needn’t have worried.
What worked particularly well for us was that our three children could enjoy CarFest in completely different ways. Ollie was in his absolute element around the cars and track action, and his enthusiasm throughout the weekend probably tells you everything you need to know about his CarFest experience. He loved the drifting, garages, supercars, manufacturer stands and Motor Racing Legends, and we discovered an enthusiasm and depth of knowledge that even we hadn’t fully appreciated before we arrived.
Lillie’s experience was completely different. She loves Ferraris, but photography became a huge part of her weekend too. Being able to use our press access to photograph cars from trackside and inside the garages made the experience particularly special for her, but even without that additional access there was no shortage of cars, displays and live music for her to enjoy.
Albie gravitated towards the more interactive elements. He loved racing on the Vertu Motors stand, gaming at RetroFest and exploring everything happening around the site. The fact that exhibitors weren’t simply displaying products but were often offering games, competitions and activities made a real difference.
That’s probably the biggest thing I’d say to parents considering CarFest: your children don’t need to be obsessed with cars to enjoy it. Cars are obviously a huge part of the festival, particularly now that it’s held at Silverstone, but they’re only one part of the weekend. There is live music, fairground entertainment, gaming, food, activities, performers, exhibitors and different festival areas to explore.
What About Teenagers?
I actually think CarFest works particularly well for families with older children and teenagers because it doesn’t feel as though everything has been designed specifically to entertain “the kids”. We could experience most of the festival together without our children feeling as though they were being dragged around children’s activities, while they were also old enough to have opinions about which cars, performers and areas they wanted to see.
There were plenty of moments when we split up briefly because somebody wanted to look at one thing while somebody else had spotted something completely different. For us, that flexibility worked really well and meant nobody felt they had to follow the same itinerary all weekend.
Of course, every family is different. CarFest is a large, busy event with crowds, loud engines, live music and a considerable amount of walking, so those are all things to consider if somebody in your family finds noise, crowds or long days particularly difficult. There are quieter areas away from the main stage and track action, but I wouldn’t describe the festival itself as a quiet experience.
For our family, though, it was a huge success. Nobody spent the weekend asking when we were going home or complaining that there was nothing for them to do. Quite the opposite — our problem was persuading everyone to leave one thing because somebody else had spotted something they wanted to see.
And that brings me to one of the practical realities of CarFest at Silverstone: you are going to do a lot of walking.
How Much Walking Is There at CarFest Silverstone?
If you’re planning your first CarFest at Silverstone, don’t underestimate the amount of walking involved. Our watches recorded between 27,000 and 33,000 steps each day, and by the end of the weekend we could certainly feel them.
Part of that was because we wanted to see as much as possible, so we were constantly moving between Cars at CarFest, the main arena, garages, different festival areas and our campsite. You could obviously have a much more relaxed weekend than we did, but Silverstone is a huge venue and some walking is unavoidable.
Comfortable footwear is essential. We wore walking boots for much of the weekend, which turned out to be an excellent decision when Saturday’s rain arrived. Although there is plenty of hardstanding around Silverstone, some festival and camping areas are on grass, and wet weather inevitably creates mud. Staff were laying bark over some of the worst patches during our visit, which helped.
If you’re camping, remember that popping back to the tent isn’t necessarily a five-minute job. Once we’d realised that, we became much better at checking the programme, deciding what we wanted to see and taking everything we might need with us for several hours.
What About Accessibility?
If you or somebody in your family has limited mobility, I’d recommend looking carefully at CarFest’s current accessibility information before booking and planning your days around the size of the site. Distances that look manageable on a map can feel very different after several hours at a festival, particularly when you’re also dealing with crowds or wet weather.
My own lower back problems certainly made me more aware of the distances, although I still managed the weekend by wearing supportive footwear, taking breaks when I needed them and, eventually, admitting defeat and booking that Shiatsu massage!
One other practical issue we encountered was mobile data. Our phones often appeared to have a signal, but data was unreliable for much of the weekend. That made checking information online or messaging each other more difficult than we’d expected, so I’d download tickets, save important information and agree meeting points with your family before splitting up.
The walking didn’t spoil CarFest for us, but it’s one of the things I’d most want a first-time visitor to understand. Silverstone is enormous, so plan accordingly.
There Is So Much More to CarFest
Reading back through everything we managed to fit into three days, it sounds as though we must have seen most of CarFest. We really didn’t.
There were entire areas we only briefly passed through and activities we simply couldn’t fit in because something else had caught our attention. That’s probably one of the hardest things about planning a first visit: you look at the programme and want to do everything, but the reality is that CarFest is far too big for that.
Our weekend naturally became quite car-heavy because that was what the five of us were enjoying most. Another family could attend the same festival and have a completely different experience, spending far more time around food, wellbeing, talks, entertainment or other activities and considerably less time beside the track.
If we return, I don’t think we’d try to “complete” CarFest. We’d simply choose a few things we really didn’t want to miss, allow plenty of time to wander and accept that discovering something unexpected is part of the fun.
In fact, some of our favourite moments weren’t things we’d planned at all.
The Charities Behind CarFest
One thing that sets CarFest apart from many other festivals is that raising money for children’s charities isn’t simply an added extra; it has been part of the festival’s purpose since Chris Evans created it in 2012.
Over the years, CarFest has raised more than £28 million for UK children’s charities, which is an incredible achievement and something I don’t think we fully appreciated before attending.
For CarFest 2026, 10% of the face value of festival tickets was donated to its charity partners, alongside 100% of profits from the festival and additional fundraising that took place throughout the weekend.
What I particularly liked was that the charitable side of CarFest didn’t feel disconnected from the festival itself. You were reminded throughout the weekend that there was a bigger purpose behind the event, while still being able to enjoy everything we’d come for — the cars, music, entertainment and family time.
It adds another dimension when you consider the cost of attending too. CarFest is a significant purchase for a family, but knowing that part of your ticket price directly supports children’s charities makes it rather different from simply paying for another weekend festival.
After experiencing CarFest for ourselves, I can understand why so many people return year after year. We would certainly approach a second visit differently, though — because our first weekend taught us a few lessons.
What We’d Do Differently at CarFest Next Time
For a first CarFest, I actually think we did pretty well. We arrived prepared for the weather, managed to experience an enormous amount and came home with far more favourite moments than regrets. But there are definitely things we’d do differently next time.
The biggest would be to plan less, but plan better. Rather than looking at the programme and mentally adding everything to our must-see list, we’d each choose the handful of things we really didn’t want to miss and build our days around those. We’d also allow much more travelling time between areas — Sophie Ellis-Bextor taught us that lesson on Friday night!
I’d pay particular attention to anything with limited availability. Missing the public Grid Walk passes on both Saturday and Sunday showed us that if something operates on a first-come, first-served basis, you need to know exactly where and when to get it rather than assuming you’ll work it out on the day.
We’d also be more willing to split up occasionally. There were five of us with different interests, and trying to keep everybody together all the time sometimes meant somebody was leaving something they loved because somebody else wanted to be elsewhere. Once we relaxed about separating for a while and arranging where to meet afterwards, it worked much better.
On the practical side, we’d carry what we needed for longer stretches of the day rather than regularly returning to the campsite. We’d make sure every camera battery was fully charged, every memory card had plenty of space and important information was saved to our phones in case mobile data failed again.
As for camping, I’d make one significant change for myself: a better bed. Our Coleman Weathermaster 8XL was absolutely fine, but my camping bed and my lower back are officially no longer on speaking terms. That’s very much a me problem rather than a CarFest problem, but it’s one I won’t be repeating.
Most of all, we’d arrive knowing that we aren’t going to see everything — and that’s OK. Some of our best memories came from abandoning whatever we’d planned because we heard an engine, spotted an interesting car or stumbled across something unexpected.
Our first CarFest taught us how to do CarFest.
The more important question is whether, knowing what it costs and what the weekend actually involves, we’d choose to do it all again.
Is CarFest Worth It? Our Final Verdict
So, after three days at Silverstone, would we recommend CarFest to other families?
Yes — absolutely.
That doesn’t mean it’s a cheap weekend or that everything was perfect. The equivalent cost of our festival tickets and camping would have been around £880, which is a considerable amount of money for any family. Add food, fuel, merchandise and everything else that comes with a weekend away and CarFest becomes something most families would need to budget and save for rather than book on a whim.
Silverstone is also enormous. We walked between 27,000 and 33,000 steps each day, Saturday’s weather was horrendous, mobile data was frustratingly unreliable and we missed several things we’d really wanted to see simply because we couldn’t be everywhere at once.
But none of those things changed how we felt about the weekend.
What impressed me most was just how much CarFest gave us to experience together. It wasn’t a weekend where the children disappeared into a kids’ zone while Simon and I waited for the evening music, nor was it a car event where I spent three days following the boys around pretending to be interested. We all found things we genuinely loved.
Ollie had the cars and track action. Lillie had Ferraris, photography and live music. Albie loved the racing challenges, gaming and interactive activities. Simon and I discovered cars and motorsport we wanted to know more about, while all five of us danced together in front of the main stage at night.
That, for me, is where the value lies.
If we’d paid around £880 for our tickets and camping and come home feeling we’d simply watched a few bands and looked at some nice cars, I’d struggle to justify the price. But that isn’t what CarFest felt like. From morning until night, there was always something happening, and many of our favourite experiences once we were inside didn’t cost anything extra.
Would I spend our own money to return after experiencing it as press?
Yes, I would.
I’d budget for it. I’d keep our spending under control by camping, taking food and choosing our treats carefully, and I’d accept that we weren’t going to experience everything. But CarFest has absolutely joined the list of festivals we’d happily return to.
There are very few events we’ve attended where all five of us have been equally disappointed to leave. CarFest managed it.
Our little weekend motto of cars in the daytime, partying in the evening turned out to describe us rather well, but the moment that sums up CarFest 2026 for me happened right back at the beginning.
We’d barely started exploring when I looked across at Ollie during that first Drift Show and heard him say:
“Thank you so much Mum, I absolutely love this.”
By Sunday night, I knew exactly what he meant.
CarFest had won all five of us over.
FAQs About CarFest Silverstone
Is CarFest worth it for families?
For our family, yes. CarFest isn’t a cheap weekend, but there was enough happening across the cars, live music, activities and different festival areas to keep all five of us entertained for three days. We would happily return and would consider paying for our own tickets after attending as press in 2026.
Is CarFest good for teenagers?
We found CarFest particularly well suited to older children and teenagers because much of the entertainment can be enjoyed together as a family rather than being divided into adult and children’s activities. Our three enjoyed completely different aspects of the festival, including cars, photography, gaming, interactive challenges and live music.
What is camping at CarFest like?
We were impressed with the CarFest camping facilities at Silverstone. Our campsite had proper flushing toilets, hot showers, drinking water, lighting, security and places to buy food and drinks. We’d happily camp at CarFest again.
How much walking is there at CarFest Silverstone?
A lot! Our watches recorded between 27,000 and 33,000 steps per day. Silverstone is a huge site and there can also be a substantial walk between the camping areas and main festival attractions, so comfortable footwear is essential.
Can you take your own food to CarFest?
We took food and camping equipment with us and cooked most of our meals at the campsite, which helped us keep costs down. Festival rules can change, particularly regarding what can be taken into the main arena, so check the current CarFest guidance before your visit.
Can you leave CarFest and come back?
During our 2026 visit, we were able to leave and return to the campsite car park, but re-entry to the festival itself required the correct digital ticket scanning procedure rather than simply showing a wristband. Check the current CarFest re-entry rules before attending, as procedures may change from year to year.