A former Glastonbury volunteer has opened up on the secrets behind the toilets at the UK’s largest music festival - including how often are they really cleaned. The iconic event is just days away, commencing on June 21, with more than 210,000 people set to attend.
But due to the sheer volume of fans heading their way to Worthy Farm, it inevitably means many festivalgoers will have to tackle long toilet queues during the six day-long Somerset celebration. But just how clean are they, and what toilets should people avoid?
Speaking to bathroom specialist Sanctuary Bathrooms, a former Glastonbury toilet cleaner (who has contributed anonymously) has lifted the lid on the best and worst toilets to go to at the festival. They've also gone into detail on how many times they’re cleaned and the ideal time to use the toilets for the cleanest experience.
What does a typical shift cleaning the toilets at Glastonbury look like?
The former volunteer said: "Everyone that is volunteering to clean the toilets is split up into groups, then each group is assigned an area of toilets to clean. In each of these areas there is a portacabin containing all the cleaning equipment across the site, then you’ll do a six-hour shift circling the toilets in your given area."
They added: "There is actually another team who are there to professionally manage sanitation onsite, whereas our team were more there to ensure the upkeep of the toilets, so we also did a litter pick to tidy up our given areas as part of our shift.
"We just did things to keep them clean and sanitised, such as disinfecting areas that people are touching (i.e., toilet seat and handles), and then if it’s really bad we had a mop to deep clean the toilet cubicle."
When are the toilets cleaned?
"At Glastonbury the shifts were covered over 6am-12am (18 hours), this was split up into 6am-12pm, 12pm-6pm and 6pm-12am." They revealed. "These were the times that the toilets got cleaned."
Subscribe here for the latest news where you live
Which were the best, and worst, toilets to clean?
Explaining the toilets that are cleaned the most, the former volunteer says: "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."
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."
Which toilets are the best to go to, and why?
The ex-volunteer claims: "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. 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, they also said 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 less people using them."
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," the former volunteer continues. "They will also have had 18 hours of cleaning throughout the day, so they’ll be in really good condition.
"My next tip would be: don’t go to toilets near an act that has just finished their set – it will be absolutely packed and will see a lot of use at this time. Finally, 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.
"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."
James Roberts, Director at Sanctuary Bathrooms, who spoke to the former volunteer, commented: "When you’re headed off camping somewhere for a few days, festival or not, it’s handy to have peace of mind on when the toilet facilities are going to be cleaned. Then, you can come prepared with the necessary hygiene items and knowledge of which areas are potentially going to be the most pleasant to use."
