Festival goers spend nearly £400 per event - and keep it in their shoes

Festival goers will spend on average £390 on each festival experience this year, according to a study from the Co-operative Bank.

The expensive price tag includes the cost of the ticket, camping equipment, new clothes, spending money and transport, with food and drinks being the priority spend with people's money, followed by gifts.

Despite the fact that over 40% off those attending a festival worry about the safety of their belongings, the average festival goer packs £230 worth of valuables to take with them - with 30% doing so uninsured and a further 41% only having insurance on some items.
 
83% will take their phone, 23% will wear expensive jewellery, a fifth will take ipods, 17% iPads, and 16% speakers.

But it would seem that music fans this summer have found a less obvious place to hide their valuable items and cash - by storing them in their socks! 20% festival fans will keep cash in their socks, and 21% of females will stash their cash in their bra.

Robin Taylor, Head of Banking at The Co-operative Bank says, "Festival costs have soared to such a figure that their now comparable to a summer holiday abroad.

However there are ways that consumers can save money so they can concentrate on having fun. Share the drive to cut down on petrol, make sure you have sufficient insurance cover, get cash out outside of the venue if possible to avoid ATM charges and take some food if you have space to avoid queues and expensive food outlets."

Food and drink may be the biggest expense at a festival but the spending doesn't stop there, festival fashion has become a trend in itself and this year's participants are dressing to impress. The average festival goer will spend over £60 on new clothes per festival they attend, and 11% claim they will be kitted out in designer threads. Leading the fashion crowd this year is Alexa Chung, who was voted as having the best celebrity festival style, followed by Sienna Miller and Rita Ora.

Topping the list of celebrities who the public would most like to attend a festival with is Glastonbury 2011 headline act, Beyonce, although male respondents would prefer Oasis frontman, Liam Gallagher. However, Patriotic festival fans in the South East, East Anglia, Northern Ireland and Wales would rather party with Prince Harry, whilst the North West would rather rock with Liverpudlian, Paul McCartney.