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Trending Apps for Music Festival Goers.

Andy Robertson

Use of mobile apps has rocketed in recent years with millions of apps available for just about any purpose. Music festival organisers have been embracing this technology for their own app development to satisfy festival-goers demand. What is the festival app landscape looking like for this year's festival season.  


The availability of ever improving mobile wireless capability facilitated by the use of 5G has made app use more useable. Connectivity speeds have increased and content heavy apps can now work as intended. Most apps are available for use on both Apple and Android devices although Apple is always looking for ways to dominate the mobile app market. What are festival-goers looking for in apps this year and what are organisers developing to satisfy demand.

Traditional Popular Festival Apps.
There are plenty of useful mobile apps that many festival-goers rely on as part of their survival kit when attending a festival. One of the most popular has been Find My Friends which was originally an Apple only app and has since been incorporated into their Find My utility. There are Android versions that use GPS but they need to be set up by users. Shazam has been around since 2002 and is available on Apple and Android devices, it allows users to sample music to instantly discover the artist and track name, Shazam is now owned by Apple. Tent Finder form Boutique Camping is an app that lets users tag their tent location and links to GPS to easily locate it, available for both Apple and Android devices.

Dating and Hook-Up Apps. 
Back in 2019 Tinder launched its ‘Festival Mode’ on their popular dating app, it allowed users to see in advance who was going to specific festivals. When it was launched the 'Festival Mode’ feature was available exclusively with AEG Worldwide and Live Nation events. It was also only available in select countries; however, it is gradually being rolled out to more events and counties. There are alternatives to this app including Bumble and Peachy but some festival organisers like Shindig festival in Bath have launched their own festival dating service, Shinder. Although not technically a Tinder alternative it is an online and in-person matchmaking service.

Festival Own Apps. 
Most large-scale music festivals now have their own apps with the best-known being Glastonbury, Wireless, Bestival and Isle of Wight who were early adopters of mobile app technology to deliver event specific apps. With the move to 5G the use of event specific apps will become more prevalent as useability is vastly improved. Expect the majority of UK music festivals to have their own apps in 2022 which will include content like site maps, artist line-up schedules, weather forecasts, news and other useful information.

For festival organisers planning their events using a software management platform like Festival Pro gives them all the functionality they need manage every aspect of their event logistics. The guys who are responsible for this software have been in the front line of event management for many years and the features are built from that experience and are performance artists themselves. The Festival Pro platform is easy to use and has comprehensive features with specific modules for managing artists, contractors, venues/stages, vendors, volunteers, sponsors, guestlists, ticketing, cashless payments and contactless ordering. 

Andy Robertson
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