From a two-person tent to a six-berth motorhome, here is what each festival camping tier costs, gets you, and suits, so you can pick the right one.
Festival camping runs across roughly six tiers, from a basic tent on general admission ground up to a full-service luxury motorhome on a powered site. As you move up, three things rise together: cost, comfort, and how well you sleep by day three. A tent is cheapest and most exposed. A rooftop tent or swag adds a dry, off-ground bed. A campervan gives you a lockable, weatherproof base. A self-contained motorhome adds a kitchen and bathroom. A powered motorhome site adds air conditioning and endless charging. And a luxury or pre-set glamping option removes the setup entirely. The right tier depends less on budget than on the length of the event, the weather, and how much a real bed matters to you by the final night. This guide compares all six honestly, and the deeper you go into a multi-day event, the more the higher tiers earn their cost.
Before the list, two things shape every choice more than price does.
The first is event length. For a single day or one night, a tent is perfectly fine and the higher tiers are hard to justify. Across three, four or six nights, the calculation flips completely, because sleep debt, heat, cold and rain compound with each night, and by day four the people on real mattresses are having a visibly better time than everyone else. Our guide on choosing the right motorhome size for a festival goes deeper on matching the vehicle to the group.
The second is whether the event even allows the higher tiers. Some festivals have no on-site vehicle camping at all, which caps everyone at tent tier on site and pushes vehicles to nearby parks. Others run dedicated powered RV fields. Always check what a specific event offers before deciding, and our guide to on-site camping versus nearby campgrounds covers how to weigh that.
The entry point, and still the most common way people camp at festivals. A two or three-person tent on a general admission camping field costs almost nothing beyond the tent itself, packs small, and goes anywhere a patch of ground allows.
What you give up is everything else. You are on the ground, exposed to heat, cold and rain, sharing distant amenity blocks, with nowhere lockable for valuables and no way to escape a 2pm heatwave or a 3am noise. For a one or two-night event in mild weather it is genuinely fine and part of the fun. For a long event in a harsh climate, it is where the sleep debt starts. This tier suits solo travellers, tight budgets, and short events, and it is the baseline every tier above is measured against.
The same idea done properly: a larger, better tent, a quality air mattress or stretcher, a shade tarp or gazebo, and a powered site if the festival sells one. The cost rises modestly, and the comfort gain is real, since getting off the ground and into shade addresses the two biggest tent weaknesses.
A rooftop tent or a swag on a hired vehicle sits at the top of this tier, giving a dry, off-ground bed that packs away in minutes. This is the sweet spot for people who like the tent-camping culture and the social side of the general campground but want to sleep better. It suits couples and small groups at mid-length events who are not ready to move up to a vehicle.
The first real step change, and the point where camping becomes weatherproof. A compact two or three-berth campervan gives you a lockable, insulated base with a proper bed, a fridge, and usually a small kitchen, all in a vehicle small enough to park and drive easily.
The jump in daily cost is significant against a tent, but so is what it solves: you are off the ground, out of the weather, able to lock valuables and instruments away, and able to retreat to shade and a cold drink whenever the day gets too much. Most campervans at this tier are not fully self-contained, so you still use campground showers and toilets. It suits couples and pairs at multi-day events, and anyone combining the festival with a road trip, since the van doubles as transport and lodging. Compare campervans across Australia, New Zealand, the USA and Canada on the destination hubs.
Moving up from a campervan, a four to six-berth motorhome adds the two things that change a long festival most: your own bathroom and a full kitchen. A self-contained rig has fresh, grey and black water tanks, a shower and toilet, a proper cooktop and fridge, and beds for a family or group.
The practical effect at a busy event is large. You skip the queues at shared amenities, which by the morning of a big festival day can be long, and you cook real meals rather than buying every one from a vendor. For events with vehicle lockdown, where you cannot move once parked, a self-contained motorhome is close to essential, since it carries everything you need for the full stay. This tier suits families and groups of four to six at multi-day events, and it is where splitting the cost across a group starts to beat separate accommodation comfortably.
The same motorhome, but plugged in. A powered site, where the festival offers one, connects your vehicle to mains electricity, which unlocks the two things a battery cannot sustain: air conditioning through hot afternoons and unlimited charging for phones, cameras and devices.
At a hot-climate event this is the difference between enduring the afternoons and enjoying them, and for anyone running medical equipment it can be non-negotiable. Powered festival sites are limited and sell out first, and they usually carry both a site fee and, at some events, a separate per-person charge, so they sit near the top of the cost range. Note that many festivals ban generators in the general campground for noise and pollution, which makes a powered site the only legitimate way to run air conditioning. This tier suits groups who want full comfort across a long, hot event and are willing to pay and book early for it.
The top of the list splits two ways. The first is a large, premium, late-model motorhome, the newest and best-equipped vehicles a rental fleet offers, with slide-outs for extra living space, better insulation, and full self-containment on a powered site. The second is pre-set glamping, where the festival or a partner provides a furnished tent, bell tent or cabin already built, sometimes with real beds and serviced amenities, so you arrive to a finished setup and do nothing.
Both remove effort in exchange for cost. The luxury motorhome removes the compromises of a smaller rig over a long stay; the glamping option removes setup and packdown entirely, which appeals to people who want the festival without the camping labour. This tier suits larger groups, longer events, and anyone for whom comfort and convenience outweigh budget. A premium motorhome also holds its value best across a combined festival-and-road-trip itinerary, since it is comfortable well beyond the event itself.
The honest rule of thumb is to match the tier to the length and climate of the event, then to your group. A single warm day suits a tent. A three or four-night event in changeable weather is where a campervan or self-contained motorhome earns its cost through sleep, shelter and skipped queues. A long, hot event pushes toward a powered site for the air conditioning. And a group splitting the cost of a larger motorhome often lands somewhere better and cheaper per person than everyone booking their own tent-plus-hotel compromise.
Two practical cautions apply across every vehicle tier. First, check whether your chosen event allows vehicle camping at all, and whether powered sites exist, before you book the vehicle. Second, book early, because at almost every festival the powered and larger-vehicle sites are the first to sell out, often months ahead. For the vehicle side, compare operators and prices on the Australia, New Zealand, USA and Canada hubs, and for a hot event read our guide to keeping a campervan cool.
What are the main festival camping tiers? Roughly six, rising in cost and comfort: a basic tent, an upgraded tent or rooftop setup, a campervan, a self-contained motorhome, a powered motorhome site, and a luxury motorhome or pre-set glamping option.
Is a campervan worth it over a tent for a festival? For a single night, rarely. For a multi-day event, usually yes, because a campervan is weatherproof and lockable, keeps you off the ground, and gives you a fridge and a retreat from heat, which matters more with each night.
What is the difference between a campervan and a self-contained motorhome? A campervan gives you a bed, a fridge and usually a small kitchen but often no bathroom, so you use campground facilities. A self-contained motorhome adds a shower, toilet and water tanks, so you are independent of shared amenities.
Do I need a powered site at a festival? Only if you want air conditioning or unlimited device charging, since a house battery cannot sustain those for long. Powered sites are essential at hot events and for medical equipment, but they are limited and sell out first.
Can I run a generator instead of booking a powered site? Often not. Many festivals ban generators in the general campground for noise and pollution, which makes a powered site the only legitimate way to run air conditioning. Always check the specific event’s rules.
Which festival camping tier is cheapest? A basic tent, by a wide margin. But cost per person changes with group size, and a larger motorhome split across four to six people can work out competitively while delivering far more comfort.
What tier is best for a family at a multi-day festival? Usually a four to six-berth self-contained motorhome, which gives beds, a kitchen and a private bathroom, and skips the amenity queues that are hardest with children. A powered site adds air conditioning for hot events.
What is glamping at a festival? Pre-set accommodation, a furnished tent, bell tent or cabin provided by the festival or a partner, built before you arrive. It removes setup and packdown entirely, at the top of the cost range, for people who want the event without the camping labour.
How far ahead should I book a vehicle camping tier? As early as possible. Powered sites and larger vehicles are the first to sell out at almost every festival, often several months ahead, and rental fleets tighten around major event dates.
Does every festival allow motorhome camping? No. Some have no on-site vehicle camping and cap everyone at tent tier on site, pushing vehicles to nearby parks. Always confirm what a specific event offers before booking a vehicle.
Compare campervans and motorhomes across every tier and market on the Australia, New Zealand, USA and Canada hubs, or browse the events index to see what each festival allows on site. Use the search widget to check live availability and prices for your dates, and book early for the powered and larger-vehicle tiers. Questions about vehicles or bookings are in the FAQs, or contact the team.
