Everything you need to know about GODIVA FESTIVAL
COVENTRY is set for a fabulous weekend of music, entertainment, great food, friends and (hopefully) sunshine!
That’s right, Godiva Festival is finally here albeit slightly later in the year than we are used to.
Now in its 20th year, Godiva is the UK’s biggest free family music festival and last year’s event attracted 179,000 visitors.
We’ve compiled the ultimate guide where you’ll find everything you need to know if you’re planning on heading to the park this weekend.
When is it? This year’s Godiva Festival takes place from today until Sunday. Where is it? The festival is held at War Memorial Park on Kenilworth Road, Coventry. When do gates open? On Friday gates will open at 6pm and the festival finishes at 10.30pm.
On Saturday gates will open at 12 noon and the festival finishes at 10.30pm.
On Sunday gates will open at 12 noon and the festival finishes at 7pm. How do I get there? If you are driving to the festival you will need to head to Leamington Road where the main car park will be.
The postcode to enter into your Sat Nav is CV3 6GF.
There are also a number of public transport options including the X16 and X17 Stagecoach buses which both stop at the War Memorial Park.
The train station is just a 10 minute walk away and West Midlands Railway have confirmed that additional services will be put on for the weekend.
An additional train to Nuneaton will be put on at 10.49pm on Saturday and the 11.30pm service between Coventry and Birmingham New Street will be double the usual length. Where can I park? The main car park off Leamington Road has 2,000 spaces ready to be filled, with signs clearly pointing the way.
The gates to the car park will open one hour before the gates, meaning that Friday will see the car park open from 5pm.
On Saturday and Sunday cars can enter from 11am on both days.
The Park and Ride car park at the War Memorial Park, off Kenilworth
Road, will not be open to the public during the fesitval.
If you’re not lucky enough to get a spot there, you’ll have to look further afield and the next nearest car park is the Virgin Trains car park at Central Six. How do I get to the festival site? There are three public entrances to the actual site, these are: from Kenilworth Road (by Earlsdon Avenue south entrance), Coat of Arms Bridge Road and along the path next to the park’s Visitor Centre. Do I have to buy tickets? Quite simply, no! Entrance to Godiva Festival is free and you will not need a ticket to get in - just show up on the day.
Coventry City Council and their representatives reserve the right to refuse entry to the site, and access will be restricted by conditions of entry.
Who’s playing? Friday night will see headliners Jake Bugg take to the Main Stage and Cradle of Filth head up the Rock Tent.
On Saturday the likes of Professor Green, Gabrielle and Jonas Blue will play the main stage before headliners Editors close the night.
Gaz Coombes will head up the Rhythm tent while a Silent Disco takes place in the Paradise Tent.
Sunday will see Tony Christie, The Neviille Staple Band and headliner Ronan Keating on the main stage while the Rhythm Tent is given a dose of South Asian flavour. What can I eat there? There will be a total of 20 food stall across the site over the weekend.
The food offering covers every corner of the globe with options for all appetites - from the Far East to the Middle East, French desserts, Texmex, burgers and classic fish ‘n’ chips.
You will be able to find food stalls at the back of the site, on both sides of the big wheel.
The main arena will offer Chinese, Carribean, hog roast, German sausages, fried chicken, burritos, paninis and much more.
There will also be a Pick ‘n’ Mix stand and a smaller selection of stalls in the family area.
Can I get drinks? Yes! There are three bars on site which will serve both alcoholic and soft drinks.
There will also be two water points where you can fill up your own reusable
bottle if you wish just make sure it’s empty when you go through the gates. What’s there for families and kids? There will be heaps to keep the whole family entertained this year.
It’s not all about the music as festival goers can take a ride on one of the many fairground rides, including the big wheel.
There will also be an area for inflatables, a petting farm, a falconry display and the Fargo Vintage Village.
Kids can also have a go on the bouncy bungees and have their faces painted for the occasion too. Will there be emergency services on site? If you do happen to get hurt then experts will be close at hand with crews from West Midlands Ambulance Service (WMAS) and St John Ambulance at the site throughout the weekend.
WMAS has said that the Saturday will see a “major incident vehicle on standby” at Godiva as well as two paramedic officers, while Friday and Sunday will see one paramedic officer in attendance.
Should there be any problems at the 2018 festival then officers from West Midlands Police will be ready to take action.
The force has been unable to confirm the number of officers who will be at the event, but say that there will be “many officers” on duty.