This weekend sees two more of the country’s premier music and arts festivals welcoming fans from around the country and beyond, with the likes of Bruce Springsteen and Paul Simon playing at Hard Rock Calling, and the Latitude Festival welcoming Paul Weller and Elbow among others. If you’re planning to make your way to either of these festivals at the weekend, there are some preparations for travel which you’ll need to make.

Hard Rock Calling – Hyde Park, London, Friday 13-Sunday 15 July

Just as with the Wireless Festival this past weekend, the Hard Rock Calling festival is being held in Hyde Park, London – until 2008 it was known as Hyde Park Calling.

Those who wish to enjoy the diverse offerings of the three-day bill might wish to avoid a repeat of the chaos which occurred in the area on Saturday, thanks to the heavy rain and traffic throughout the capital. As recommended on the website, the festival’s proximity to two tube stations (Hyde Park Corner for the Piccadilly Line and Marble Arch for the Central Line) means that festival-goers have a very convenient way to get to the gigs without needing to bring out the car. If coming from further away by car, then why not consider parking somewhere securely that’s along one of those two lines, and catching the tube into Hyde Park? There are also buses available along the length and breadth of the venue; catching a bus to and from the gig will avoid some of the stress that driving there would otherwise bring.

Latitude Festival – Henham Park, Suffolk, Thursday 12-Sunday 15 July

For reasons differing and more economical to Hard Rock Calling, Latitude encourages all festival goers to take public transport to cut down on carbon footprints. Coaches and minibuses are also urged, or carpooling at a push. Those who applied and were registered in time for a special Car Pool sticker will be entered into a prize draw to win free tickets to next year’s event; quite an incentive for people to do their bit.

The festival site, located in Henham Park in Suffolk, is heavily signposted for each kind of ticketholder – for example, the families and campervans campsite on the west of the site has one specific entrance known as the Green Gate, while the north and eastern sides of the site have three Red Gates for the majority of the other revellers. Sat nav devices should not be relied upon due to the different entrances for different ticket holders, such as those approaching from the A145 southbound who would run parallel to the Green gate who might not actually have clearance to use it.

For both festivals, but particularly Latitude, checking the local traffic is advised due to recent weather conditions and potential for overcrowding.