Overview

One of the best venues/festivals I have attended in recent years. Fantastic facilities and the bar platform service is extremely helpful. The view from the platform is outstanding. The communications from the accessibility team prior to attending really helped me manage and prepare for the journey and conditions within the park. The only part I felt unprepared for, was entering and exiting the viewing platforms which required navigating through large crowds. I'm unclear if this is usually circumvented by arriving and leaving early but it would definitely have helped to have this information in advance. Overall it was a fantastic event and concert and I would revisit in future. I am confident the BST accessibility team will continue to build and improve the experience.

Transport & Parking

We had researched the venue prior to arrival and stayed at a hotel in Knightsbridge. This meant we were closest to the entrance for the accessible gates and remained on hard standing paths. The information for accessibility park and ride, nearest tube stations and buses were emailed prior to the event: Travel Distances Marble Arch – to – Accessible Entrance: 660m (8min) Hyde Park Corner Tube – to – Accessible Entrance: 1130m (14min) along level hard standing path Knightsbridge Tube – to – Accessible Entrance: 970m (12min) Green Park Tube (step free) – to – Accessible Entrance: 1800m (23min) Underground/Main Line Train Stations Tubes: Marble Arch, Hyde Park Corner, Bond Street, Knightsbridge, Green Park (step-free access), Lancaster Gate Tube & Main Line Trains: Paddington and Victoria Please note step-free access is only available via Green Park, Bond Street, Victoria and Paddington Buses Marble Arch : 26, 7, 10, 16, 23, 30, 36, 73, 74, 82, 94, 98, 137, 148, 159, 159, 274, 390, 414, 436

Access

We used the paths within the park to reach the accessible gate. There are a few inclines on the way in and out from the Knightsbridge gates, there are plenty of park benches available within the park if rest is required. Security and collecting accessible bands was easy and the staff helpfully pointed out directions to the accessible area. We had to pass through some general areas on the way to the platform and had to get through queues in the general areas for ticket checks, bathrooms and merchandise. Exiting the gates was an extremely challenging process as we were ushered out with people from the GA areas. These exits were bottleneck areas and my husband had to try push my wheelchair through the departing general crowd who were very unaware of their surroundings. There were several people who cut across me and tripped over my chair. The other difficulty was, as the large crowd frequently stopped suddenly, it was unavoidable that my chair would run in to the back of them. This resulted in my husband and I encountering a few unpleasant exchanges. There were however some very helpful festival attendees who assisted my husband in exiting safely. Once out the gate into the wider park there were no problems. I usually leave events during artist encores however, I now know that encores don't always happen at the park events. Guidance from the onsite app or security to remain on the platform to avoid a stressful exit may have resolved the challenges. We only viewed the Main Oak stage but we could see perfectly and there were BSL interpreters on the big screen. It may be helpful to have signage to remind people who want the occasional dance to move to the rear of the platform to avoid obstructing views for others seated behind them.

Toilets

Lots of space around the accessible bathrooms, no queues and clean and tidy.

Staff

Photos