The ultimate guide to maximising your chances of getting tickets to Glastonbury Festival
Last updated: 1 January
Trying to get tickets to perhaps the most iconic festival in the world often requires the planning of an elite army operation, as getting your hands on the golden ticket snitch is known to be notoriously difficult – but that doesn’t mean you aren’t in with a winning chance.
The fact that tickets must be registered to your name is both a blessing and a curse – it means that tickets can’t be touted for extortionate prices, but that you also only have a few shots at getting a ticket. The pressure is seriously on and is very real.
Introduction
The sale for Glastonbury 2023 tickets was divided into two days, and for the first time ever took place in November (rather than October) of 2022.
Coach ticket packages and general admission tickets went on sale on the 3rd and 6th of November 2022, respectively.
While standard tickets for the 2023 Festival sold out in just over an hour (due to overwhelming demand and some technical issues), tickets packaged with coach travel were all snapped up and sold out in just 22 minutes.
Tickets to Glastonbury 2023 cost £335 + £5 booking fee, of which a £50 deposit (plus coach fare if booking a ticket + coach travel) was payable when booking in November 2022 – with the balance payments on existing deposit bookings payable in the first week of April 2023 (from 09:00 BST Saturday 1st April – 23:59 BST Friday 7th April 2023).
The official website states you can pay the balance for up to 6 tickets in one transaction, provided you have all paid a deposit and they are all the same ticket type.
By grouping your balance payments together you will only pay one postage and packing fee and will need to provide each of their registration numbers and postcodes in order to pay their balances.
Please note that you can only pay the balances together if they are for the same type of ticket, so you can pay the balance on up to 6 tickets + coach travel together, or up to 6 general admission tickets together, but you can’t pay the balance on a mix of general admission and ticket + coach travel bookings in the same transaction.
International tickets will be sent out by registered international post and you may track your international ticket order via www.royalmail.com by entering your Track and Trace number which is available via See Tickets’ order tracker.
To access the order tracker you will require your email address and booking reference number. If it is likely you will set off for the Festival more than 28 days before the event commences, please select the option for ‘Box Office Collection’ when paying your ticket balance.
Please also remember that tickets will be exclusively sold at glastonbury.seetickets.com.
In 2019, over 2.4 million people registered to be in with a chance of bagging Glastonbury tickets to that year’s Festival which saw over 100,000 General Admission tickets sell out in under an hour, or just 36 minutes to be exact!
Tickets for Glastonbury 2022 (which originally went on sale at the beginning of October 2019 prior to the worldwide pandemic) sold out in a mere matter of minutes.
Back then, as with most Glastonbury years, many fans were left ticketless after failing to get a ticket on both the General Admission ticket sale (which sold out in 33 minutes) and the Coach + Ticket Package sale (which sold out in just 27 minutes).
A detailed list of how fast Glastonbury tickets sold out in previous years going all the way back to 2002 can be found here.
Glastonbury Ticket Guide
Now, if Worthy Farm still has your fancy, and you want to be at the best party in the world this summer, here are our top 12 tips & tricks for maximising your chances of getting Glastonbury 2023 tickets.
1
Make sure you have registered!
Sounds obvious, doesn’t it? You would be surprised how many people this catches out every year.
Let us just start off by saying, there is no way you can buy a Glastonbury Festival ticket unless you’ve pre-registered.
That said, registering yourself is very easy, and completely cost-free. One thing to note is that you are required to submit a headshot photo of yourself and can view a list of photos Dos and Don’ts on the registration page, so make sure you check over them before you submit.
If you have yet to register, we would advise you to do so here ASAP, in order to allow enough time for the registration to be processed and resubmitted if need be.
Alternatively, if you are already registered, you can use your existing registration number and do not need to re-register.
Please note that you’ll need the registration number and postcode for each person who wants a ticket, so make sure to check all these details in advance prior to registration closing.
If you are uncertain whether you’re all registered or not, or need to provide any new details – you can check you’re registration details on the Glastonbury Festival official website.
2
Use multiple devices and make sure to charge them all the night before.
There is more than just one way to get on the internet.
What we are trying to say is that you should grab any and every device which you have access to, and is capable of connecting to the World Wide Web – i.e. every laptop, tablet and smartphone you own – fire them up, put them to good use and head over to the Glastonbury Festival See Tickets website on ticket sale day.
Often times you’ll find that tablets have a better internet connection due to the fact they aren’t crammed up with as much rubbish as your old tower pc or laptop you bought in 2005, which doesn’t even run without the charger plugged in anymore.
TIP: Make sure you charge these babies up the night before – we don’t want to arrive at the “promised land” just to stay outside at the end of it all.
3
Speaking of the night before: Set an alarm for ticket sale day – and DO NOT GO OUT THE NIGHT BEFORE!
No matter your initial intention of just “popping out for a few” – everyone knows that’s just a lie we all tell ourselves, and before you know it, you’ll be going proper “OUT OUT”.
So no matter how cheap the drinks are, DO NOT GO OUT THE NIGHT BEFORE TICKET SALE DAY – we cannot stress this enough!
TIP: Most years, General Admission tickets go on sale on a Sunday morning, and we’re not trying to run your lives or anything, but you might want to rethink those Saturday evening pub plans and get some shut-eye ahead of that 8:30am wake-up call (you should set for yourself) so you don’t sleep through your alarm.
4
Consider going for the coach ticket package.
As part of Glastonbury’s continued commitment to green travel, the Festival encourages Glasto-goers to reduce audience transport emissions.
Your initial inkling might be to just try and buy the standard weekend ticket and figure out the logistics of getting to the festival later, but we say, why not try for both sales and increase your chances of bagging a ticket?
Getting a random coach at 6:00am can mean you are up against a lot less competition when it comes to tickets.
The thing about coach tickets that might be a bit uneasy is that you don’t get your ticket until you actually get on the coach. You just have to trust the process and that it will all be OK (as it usually is).
Once you get on the bus, the driver reads out the names and hands out the envelopes to everyone – think Christmas morning, but in June, on a coach, in a car park.
Yes, you might not be able to take as many beers with you on the bus as you would if you were travelling by car, but… hey, skipping the drive on that journey back will be well worth it, wouldn’t it?!
Apart from that, you’ll be doing the planet some good by travelling by coach.
5
Work as a team: All for one and one for all.
Generally speaking, one person can normally book up to a maximum of 6 tickets per order. That means you can put each and every one of your team members to work towards bashing those laptop keys in pursuit of the desired golden ticket, and by doing so hopefully increase the likelihood of Glastonbury glory by 6 fold.
Once you’ve got your A-team of Glasto-goers assembled, make sure you are prepared; Set up a Facebook / WhatsApp group or any other instant messenger group chat and make sure you are all a member of the group. That way, you’ll be able to communicate with each other and exchange details (registration number and postcode) in an easy and efficient manner.
IMPORTANT: Do not put yourself in more than ONE group or list, as if you do, and then manage to secure a ticket in one group, any other groups that insert your details will not be able to proceed with the buying process and encounter an error message. The group encountering the error will then have to waste valuable time finding and removing your details, during which they could be kicked off the buying page or the festival could sell out.
SIDE NOTE: If you’re trying for Glastonbury tickets in the spring resale (usually April, but could also be March) it is worth noting that in previous years, rather than being able to purchase 6 tickets per order (like in the first wave of ticket sales), only 4 tickets per transaction were able to be purchased for General Admission tickets, and coach package tickets were limited to 2 tickets per transaction.
6
Make sure you have all your (and your mates’) registration details at the ready.
Create a Google spreadsheet with the finalised registration details divided into groups of 6. Share the spreadsheet with all relevant parties over the Facebook / WhatsApp group you’ve set up earlier. Now you can all have it open simultaneously and view the changes in real time.
IMPORTANT: Make sure all your details are correct and double-check for typos – The last thing you want is to get through and punch in your details, only to see the “Sorry, that reference number is not registered” error pop up in your face.
To avoid this, perhaps the best way to go about it would be to get your mates to copy and paste their Glasto details into the spreadsheet, as opposed to them typing them in or reciting them over the phone. In 2019 Glasto organisers have revealed that one wrong letter or number could mean everyone’s registration details are frozen for up to 10 minutes.
TIP: You could also use the Notepad / Notes app to save all your registration details in a small box at the corner of your screen, so when the time comes to enter your details all you have to do is copy and paste them into the correct fields and by doing so with the speed of light, minimising the risk of losing your ticket.
7
Use multiple browsers, not multiple tabs.
In the same way that using lots of different devices will marginally increase your chances of getting through, so will using as many browsers as possible.
Do not make the fatal mistake of trying to book using multiple browser tabs, as this can upset the system. Instead, you’re much better off using multiple (different) browser types, with one tab open per browser.
TIP: Even though having 30 Chrome tabs open and constantly refreshing all of them might seem like the best idea at the time, it is not. On the contrary, this is terrible. Without getting too techie up in here, not only does this not increase your chances by 30, it actually divides your one chance into 30 smaller chances.
Plus, if you have like 30 tabs open at once, you’ll find it hard to keep track of what’s happening on each and every one of them simultaneously. No more than ten is a good number, but the fewer you have, the less likely you are to lose track of what’s going on.
8
Use multiple different internet connections.
Rather than everyone getting together in the same space and using the same internet connection, it would be much better if each member of the group stay in their own house and be the sole user of that internet connection.
Communication between party members can then be done via the Facebook / WhatsApp group set up beforehand.
TIP: Make sure to use the best internet connection you can find. Yes, even this means you have to go in to work on a Sunday because that big office building you work in has super-fast internet, as opposed to your slightly dodgy home internet.
9
Yes, REFRESH (but not too often).
Prior to arriving at the page where you insert your details, in order to maximise your chances of getting to the front of the virtual queue of people also trying their luck, you’ll want to refresh often (but not too often).
ideally, you would try to do this less than 60 times in a minute, and not more than 1 time per second.
There’s no way around it really, just keep smashing that refresh key till you get through.
A limited number of people will be given access to the booking site at any one time.
Whilst you are waiting to access the booking site you will be held on this page until there is a space on the booking site for you to start the booking process.
Whether you do or don’t smash that infamous F5 refresh key, the Glastonbury Holding Page will automatically refresh to look for space on the booking page every 20 seconds.
If the amount of traffic on the website is particularly high, you may see a reduced version of the See Tickets booking site, with a minimal version of the holding page.
This does not mean the site has crashed! (Quite the opposite in fact – this means the site is serving the maximum number of people at the same time.)
TIP: A great way to cover all grounds would be to use one of your devices and tabs to enter the site and progress through the See Tickets queue at its own pace – basically meaning, you will not be manually refreshing that designated page, rather waiting for the site to do the refreshing at its own rate, till it gets through.
Also, Make sure to double-check which keystroke does a “hard refresh” on your browser in advance (F5 on a PC or CMD+R on a Mac).
10
Be persistent, patient and calm: Don’t panic and DO NOT give up!
Trying to buy Glastonbury tickets is quite often known as being a bit of a stressful business, but remain calm.
You want to go to Glastonbury. So does everyone else. This means there will be more people trying to buy Glastonbury tickets than there are tickets available. So, as you can imagine, it is a mathematical certainty that not everyone will be able to book tickets.
REMEMBER: Glastonbury states that “registration numbers will be locked for up to 10 minutes” for the following reasons:
- If your card details are entered incorrectly.
- If an attempt to book has already been held against your registration number.
- If your five minutes on the booking page ends.
With this in mind, try not to get so panicked that you forget how to use a computer – The key is to stay calm throughout the process so you are able to navigate when things go “pear-shaped”.
11
Don’t get carried away and start celebrating just because you’ve gotten through to the next screen.
Once you reach the first page of the booking site, you will be asked to enter the registration number and registered postcode for the lead booker and up to 5 other individuals.
Please keep in mind your ticket is not your ticket yet. Not until the money has come out of your account. Until that point, assume everything will go Pete Tong (wrong).
Getting through to the page where you enter your card details doesn’t mean anything so don’t start dancing and telling your mates you’ve got the tickets.
Enter all your registration and payment card details as quickly and accurately as you can – this is not the time to go add sugar to your tea!
When you proceed, the details you have provided will be displayed on the next page.
Please check that these are the people you expect to be booking tickets for, as these cannot be changed once you proceed with your booking.
If you are booking a ticket + coach travel option, you will be asked to choose the departure town (and time for towns with multiple departures).
It is only possible to book tickets from one departure town in a single transaction. If the option you have selected is not available, please choose a different town or day that is convenient for you.
Travel on the coach you have selected is mandatory in order to receive your Festival ticket, so please only book on routes that are feasible for you.
Once all your information is correct, please proceed to the payment page.
12
Have your payment card details ready and make sure you have enough money in your account… obviously.
Once you reach the payment page you will have 5 minutes to submit your payment information, so please take your time to enter this information accurately.
The time remaining will be shown on the right-hand side of your screen (as seen in the caption below).
As mentioned above, if you’re trying for Glastonbury tickets in the first waves of ticket sales, you can normally book a maximum of 6 tickets per order, which means you’ll need to pay a £50 deposit for each of the 6 tickets straight away, in one transaction.
Don’t have your payment bounce and your summer ruined because you forgot how broke you are.
TIP: Make sure every group member has enough funds in their account and is able to pay for everyone’s tickets if and when the occasion arises.
Please note that your registration numbers will be locked for up to 10 minutes if your details are entered incorrectly, an attempt to book is already held against your registration number, or your 5 minutes on the booking page ends.
If the transaction fails and tickets are still available, your registration number will be released to give you the chance to try again.
TIP: If any of the pages happen to stall (‘hang’) or you experience any kind of error when filling in the booking form while you’re halfway through the transaction and find that you can’t get any further, don’t panic.
Try pressing ‘back’ once, and then see if you can continue your booking from that point.
If that doesn’t help, just grit your teeth, close your browser and start again.
Please don’t continue to refresh the page more than 10 minutes after entering your details as your access to the page will have expired, and as mentioned, you’ll need to close the browser and start again to gain fresh access to the booking page.
It is known that the longer you try the more likely you are to get a ticket, so don’t give up after the first half an hour – you might just get your hands on the last pair going.
In closing
There are only limited numbers of tickets available in the sales, so once orders are being processed for all the tickets that are available, it will no longer be possible to access the booking page, and you will see a message that ‘All available tickets have now been allocated”.
Once all ticket purchases have been processed, the website will display a ‘SOLD OUT’ message and no more tickets will be released back to the sale.
REMEMBER: Even If you aren’t successful in securing tickets in the ticket sales in November, you will have another chance to book in the Spring of 2023 (around April time), when any returned tickets go back on sale.
In addition to the ticket sales, some other opportunities for getting to Glastonbury include entering competitions, working at the Festival and volunteering – once those options make themselves available.
Disclaimer
Please note that all tips and tricks listed above are of our own recommendation and are not endorsed by Glastonbury Festival.
The official website has advised Glasto-goers that “attempting to book tickets online using multiple browser tabs can confuse the ticket sales process and cause your transaction to fail, and that they “strongly advise that you use just one browser tab when trying to book tickets, in order to avoid possible problems with your transaction.”
Furthermore, Glastonbury organisers explicitly ask people not to use multiple devices, stating that: “running multiple devices simultaneously to attempt to access the website is a waste of valuable resources, and doesn’t reflect the ethos of the Festival.” – so please continue at your own discretion.
Don’t be fooled
Glastonbury Festival would very much like fans to be aware that there are people out there who will try and sell fake Glastonbury tickets to unsuspecting, willing and innocent potential purchasers.
Although Glasto-veterans who have been going to the Festival for quite some time may recognise these scams for what they are, newcomers might not.
Therefore, please remember that tickets are only sold on one site, which is:
glastonbury.seetickets.com –
any other site claiming to sell tickets for the Festival is not authentic.
For more info and the full Terms & Conditions please visit the Glastonbury Festival official website.
Good luck and may the odds be ever in your favour!
