What to Bring to the Eden Festival of Action

As the Eden Festival of Action is fast approaching, we thought we’d share with you a list of must-have items to pack this year.

After seven years of experience in hosting our annual Festival of Action, we feel as though we’ve nailed our packing list for this year – our eighth! So here are eight things to pack in your bag, so you can relax about the practicalities of festival life and focus on having fun!

1.Re-usable Water-Bottle

Here at Greenpop, we’re not fans of single-use plastic. Did you know that a single plastic water bottle takes, on average, 450 years to decompose?! However, it’s going to be super important to stay hydrated at Eden; we’ll be working hard at planting trees during the week and in your time off there are a plethora of outdoor activities you’ll no doubt want to try. So a reusable water bottle is going to be essential.  It’s also handy at night, so you won’t have to leave your cosy sleeping bag if you’re thirsty in the middle of the night!

2. Warm Jacket

This year, we’re holding the festival at the Garden Route, where it can get pretty cold at night. Whilst we can cosy up around the campfire in the evenings, it’s still the great outdoors and can be pretty chilly! A warm jacket is an ideal way to combat this so we can enjoy long evenings together – chatting, making music, watching movies or sharing our passions at our Speaker Evening.

3. Sleeping Bag

Bedtime will eventually roll around though and, when it does, a high-quality sleeping bag is going to be your best friend. We provide a mattress and a tent but we also recommend that you bring a pillow, thermal underwear, cosy pyjamas and extra blankets – anything that’s going to help you get the best possible sleep so you’ve got maximum energy for the following day’s activities! Your sleeping bag will be the foundation of this though so, if you’re still in the market, definitely make it a priority to get that sorted.

4. Sun Hat

We’ve been pretty focused on the cold so far – but this is still South Africa! The sun is powerful here and, along with staying hydrated, it’s important to protect ourselves from those rays. Sunscreen is essential – but having a hat will provide some extra protection for your face and neck (especially useful if you’re like me and forget to re-apply!) and will also help shield your eyes from the sun. As we’re going to be pretty active at the festival, having a hat with a string is handy.

5. Sun Screen and Bug Spray

As mentioned above, sunscreen is going to be essential when you’re exposed to the African sun but our top tip is to get sun protection with added citronella that doubles as bug spray, meaning you’ll have one less thing to apply in the morning.

6. Hand Sanitiser

Hand sanitiser is a quick and easy way to keep your hands clean whilst camping. It’s also a simple way of minimising water use – which is particularly important in South Africa which is water-stressed after the recent droughts.

7. GoPro

We’ll have a professional photographer at the festival, but nobody is going to capture your memories better than you! From the beautiful scenery of the Garden Route sunsets to the faces of the friends you make along the way – Eden will have GoPro opportunities galore. It’s also the perfect way to share the message of Greenpop with your friends and family – that getting active about the environment can be fun!

8. Ukelele!

Or any portable musical instrument, really. Because no evening around the campfire is complete without music!

Getting stuck in!