Get the lowdown on our location, its amazing history and detailed travel information.
View Larger Map
Boughton Estate
Kettering
Northamptonshire
NN14 1BJ
The Boughton Estate is a truly beautiful location for Alt-Fest, part fields, part woodland and part WW2 Airfield and extends to over 11,200 acres!
The World War II airfield to the north of Grafton village was built in 1941. This was the base for the American Eighth Air Force, 384th Bombardment Group (H), who flew many sorties against fortress Europe. Alt-Fest will be using some of the secret 'pods' which were used by the airbase to hide their B17/24 planes inside the woods, these concrete runways and 'pods' are still there buried/hidden in the woodland. Journey into the woodland and find the Sleepy Woods home of the Goth Stage and many other activities, workshops, art and attractions.
Travelling by car?
There will be plenty of signs directing you to the site, plus parking stewards to ensure we make the best use of the space (the aim is that no one should have a huge trek to get to the campsites).
Please ensure you have a sober and well rested driver for the way home. Do not let anyone drive if they are tired or drunk!
Driving but have empty seats in your car? Why not offer them to other festival-goers on goCarShare? You can share petrol costs and have a laugh on the way there.
goCarShare is built around facebook; you can log in quickly and look at people's profiles before deciding whether you would like to travel with them.
For more information please visit the GoShare website.
Tickets for the car park will be £10 in advance and can be purchased from the Ticket Shop. Car parking tickets will be £20 if purchased on the gate at the festival (subject to availability).
Car park opening times will be publicised here at least 2 months before the festival!
Don't like camping?
If you'd prefer not to camp, TripAdvisor have a list of 14 hotels/B+Bs in the area, with reviews and photos so you can find the best option for you.
Additionally we also have luxurious pre-built Glamping options. These include yurts, tipis and bell tents. Glamping options are fully pre-built and contain bedding, rugs and more - simply arrive and make yourself right at home! Check for more details.
Love camping?
We have pre-erected tents available though Tangerine Fields in the festival grounds!
Additionally we also have luxurious pre-built Glamping options. These include yurts, tipis and bell tents. Glamping options are fully pre-built and contain bedding, rugs and more - simply arrive and make yourself right at home! Check for more details.
Festival Shuttle Bus
If you are staying in local accommodation or happen to live near Kettering, you can get a lift to or from the festival site in our shuttle bus. We will do a tour round the hotels, train station and some other key points, as well as the festival site. More info and schedules to follow here in 2014.
Coaches
We have teamed up with Big Green Coaches to make traveling to Alt-Fest by coach much easier. Big Green Coaches will pick up at many destinations around the UK and bring you right to the festival site. More details and book your coach travel HERE.
"Big Green Coach is the undisputed leader in audience transport provision to the UK's music industry, working with more festivals and promoters on an official or exclusive basis than any other operator. Carrying over 90,000 passengers to events during 2013.
Can't see your location on the list? Want to arrive or depart on different days? Please contact Big Green Coach directly on This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
and if they get the demand they will add more coach services!
They are fully committed to the environment and partner with Cool Earth where they will protect 5 square foot of the South American Rainforest for ten years for EVERY single customer they transport to an event on their national coach network."
Coming from outside the UK?
Once you know which London airport you will arrive at and if you hire a car you can use this website to plan your journey to Kettering. Alt-Fest is about an hour's drive from London Luton airport.
There is also a train direct from Luton airport to Kettering and the transfers are also very easy. So for European and International customers, simply fly to Luton and catch the train straight to Kettering. Use the National Rail Journey Planner to find trains and times, again it will take about an hour to travel by train from London Luton to Kettering. Our shuttle bus will then collect you from Kettering train station and take you direct to the festival.
For international customers flying in to Heathrow airport. You'll need to catch the tube from the airport to London St Pancras. From St Pancras you can catch a train direct to Kettering. Train journeys take under an hour and you can check times and plan your journey here.
Don't lose your head at Alt-Fest!
Alt-Fest will be a fantastic place to let your hair down and have fun - but be warned - don't lose your head! The county of Northamptonshire where Alt-Fest will be held is linked to several famous figures who quite literally lost theirs!
Tried and convicted of plotting to murder Queen Elizabeth I, Mary Queen of Scots was beheaded at Fotheringhay Castle in 1587. The site of the castle (which sadly no longer stands) is situated just 15 miles from Alt-Fest. It is still possible to walk down the staircase that the queen reportedly descended on her way to execution. The staircase and stonework from the castle were salvaged and used in the renovation of the Talbot Hotel in the nearby village of Oundle.
Fotheringhay Castle was also the birthplace of King Richard III. Characterised as a bloodthirsty villain by William Shakespeare, the king was allegedly complicit in the murder of two young princes. Although not beheaded, he received a fatal blow to the skull during the 1485 Battle of Bosworth.
Tucked away in the Northamptonshire countryside, less than ten miles from your alternative music festival, is Rushton Triangular Lodge. This remarkable feat of architecture was built in the 1590's by Sir Thomas Tresham (father of one of the Gunpowder plotters). A celebration of the Catholic faith, the Holy Trinity is represented by the number three in many aspects of the lodge's construction.
Three gargoyles perch upon each of its three 33-foot high walls. Every wall features three triangular windows and is inscribed with a different 33-word Latin text. The building also has three floors and a triangular chimney. Sir Tresham was beheaded eight years after the lodge's completion for refusing to convert to Protestantism.
Along the Bedford Road in nearby Northampton, you can see an ancient well that Archbishop of Canterbury Thomas Becket drank from on his way to stand trial at the town's castle in 1164. He had been accused by King Henry II of stealing government funds. The archbishop fled to France but was allowed to return in 1170. Within a year, Thomas Becket was dead, his brains spilled upon the floor of Canterbury Cathedral by four knights who were purportedly acting on the orders of the king.
And last, but certainly by no means least, King Charles I was held prisoner at Holdenby House, close to Northampton, after his defeat in the English Civil War. Accused of being a 'tyrant, traitor and murderer', he was tried for treason and beheaded in London in 1649. Northamptonshire is steeped in history, so why not use your head when you come to Alt-Fest and spend some time exploring the fascinating sites the county has to offer? We hope to write more about the many things you can see and do here, so keep checking back for info!
Leave your comments
Login to post a comment
Post comment as a guest