Dates
Heart of the Rose will take place from the 30th Aug-1st Sep, 2024 on Eridge Park, Tunbridge Wells, TN3 9JT.
Opening and Closing times
Thursday - Early Entry Camping available - entry between 5.30-9pm (you will need to buy a specific £20 ticket for this)
Friday - Doors Open at 9am and last entry is 9pm (the opening circle will be at 11.30am)
Saturday - Doors Open at 8.30am and last entry is 9pm
Sunday - Doors Open at 8.30am and last entry is Midday (the closing circle/ceremony will be from 8-10pm)
Monday - Everyone must be offsite by 10.30am
Thursday Early Entry
Just like last year - we will now be offering an ‘early entry’ camping ticket’s for those that want to settle-in and ground on the park, before the festival get’s going on Friday! This ticket needs to be bought in addition to a ‘Weekend Ticket’. The opening times for the entry will be 5.30-9pm on Thursday. This ticket will just provide entry to the campsite (and not the main area - which will only be open from Friday morning). We are unable to provide food on Thursday evening and so you will need to bring your own food for the evening and breakfast on Friday. But our lovely sauna sister’s from Enchanted Glade will be opening their Sauna on Thursday evening for all to enjoy and will be offering a special discount price for Thursday evening! All who do not wish to go to the sauna will also be welcome to sit around the fire as well enjoy some songs and stories together! If you have any more questions - please don’t hesitate to ask.
Tickets
We will have volunteer’s at the gate scanning your QR code you would have received from Ticket Tailor for your ticket - if you have lost this - don’t panic! We will also have your name and email address on the gate :)
We will also have ticket’s on the door as well, in case any of your friend’s want to come last minute. We have about 50 left!
Can I get a refund if I can’t come?
As mentioned throughout the website and in our T&C’s we are unfortunately unable to offer any refunds. You are very welcome to transfer your ticket to a sister though! This is your responsibility, you will just need to give us the new name on the ticket, and unfortunately
we are unable to advertise on anyone’s behalf.
Travel
Please see our main travel page for specific info!
Site size
The site is very small and in one field and will be the same layout as last year - everything is within a 4-5 minute walking distance and on a relatively flat surface - apart from the parking lot which is on a very slight hill. Please see our site map for more.
Children
This year we are an ‘over-18’ gathering BUT ‘babes in arms’ are welcome (‘pre-crawlers’ and ‘pre-movers’). Unfortunately we cannot have toddlers on site this year, due to it being a new site and the Health and Safety regulations needed for this YET the intention for Heart of the Rose, has and always will be to have children and teens in the future! This will be the ‘heart’ of the festival. Please see ‘The Sisterhood Community’ for more….
For those mammas with toddlers this year - we also wanted to mention that we do also have a local campsite on the Park, on the other side of the Estate - run by an outside company https://www.yampcamp.co.uk/deer-park . We mention this as we aware some women would not like to leave their little ones so long and this is another accommodation option if your partner and little ones would like to stay near the site, so you can then visit them throughout the festival (it is a 5 minute car ride from the festival site). This is completely separate from the festival and will need to be booked and organised separately by the individuals.
Drugs + Alcohol + Animals
The festival is an alcohol and drug free event and unfortunately no dogs allowed.
Food
The intention for this festival is to not only learn and re-member together but to also Be together and to really create a community, so each year there is always intentionally ample time within the schedule to sit, eat, rest, sleep and dream all together.
Food is not included in the price of the ticket and we will have 3 beautiful food vendors throughout the festival serving breakfast, lunch and dinner and delicious snacks and drinks throughout the day. We are asking all ticket holders to refrain from bringing any large BBQ equipment or use any open fires on the park due to health and safety. Festival goers may bring a very small camping stove with a small gas canister under 250g if really needed. Festival goers also need to be aware this is a wild deer park and so if you choose to bring any kind of food/snacks - that these need to be contained and protected in proper packaging, so it doesn’t attract deer at night.
Water
We will have taps on site to refill your water bottle and the food vendors will also be serving various drinks and teas throughout the festival as well.
Ride Shares
If you are looking for a ride or able to offer one - please post on our Heart of the Rose Facebook Group...https://www.facebook.com/groups/413790187260113
Going to Workshops
Please note that all workshops will be on a ‘first come, first served basis’ so you will not be able to pre-book. We recommend arriving at each workshop at least 10 minutes before to give time to settle in.
Money
The card machines always work on site, but feel free to bring cash in case - as we will not have a cash machine on site and the card machines may be quite busy.
Stalls, Art Gallery, Sauna + Healing Area
As well as the 6 main stages - this year we will also have 10 stalls selling their beautiful offerings - clothes, oils, books and so much more! An art gallery of various artist’s selling their work, a beautiful healing area with 5 wonderful healers (you can sign up and book to have a healing when on site!), a red tent space, and Enchanted Glade will be bringing their epic sauna again too (which you can also sign up to enjoy when on site). So please do bring extra card/cash if you would like to enjoy all that Heart of the Rose has to offer this year!
Sustainability
We are wanting to make the gathering and festival as ‘sustainable’ as possible. This means encouraging car sharing and public transport, and serving as much locally sourced food as possible, asking all guests to bring their own water bottles and also exploring any other ways, we can try to support the environment and be as sustainable as possible this year.
Accessibility
We try to make the whole festival as accessible as possible to all woman. The car park is a very short less than 3 minute walk to the festival site. If you have special needs, please email us and we would love to try to accommodate…for example we have an accessible camping area and people are welcome to park their car right near their tent and/or drop their luggage off nearer it, before parking.
What to bring?
If you are camping - please obviously bring all your own camping gear.
There will also be lighting in all communal areas at night, but is also advisable to bring a hand torch for the evening.
As always, we never know what the weather will be like in England, - it looks like it will be sunny in the day (thank the Goddess) but it get’s very cold at night so please bring lots of warm layers + potentially waterproof layers (just in case) + even a hot water bottle if feel. There is a very small chance it may rain around the time of opening ceremony - so do bring an umbrella in case.
We will have some cushions around the festival but we HIGHLY recommend bringing your own extra blankets, picnic blankets, cushions, sheepskin rugs, yoga mats to sit and lie on.
Please bring your own water bottle to refill from water point throughout the festival.
There will be showers on site and we ask all participants to PLEASE only bring/use organic and natural shower gel/soap and shampoo/conditioner to site - as the land is very protected and all waste water needs to be as clean as possible.
If you feel drawn we also invite you to bring a song, poem, musical instrument, prayer, story to share and play by the fire.
Health + Safety
There will be a First Aid responder on site at all times, if you are feeling unwell, please reach out to the nearest volunteer or team member, and we will assist you as best as we can. Please also be mindful that the festival is in nature with an open landscape - so please walk with care. This site is also a Deer Park so please be weary of tic’s and we recommend everyone check themselves throughout the festival and after going home - the first aider on site will be able to help safely remove any tics, if found, although this is very rare for the park. There will also be lighting in all communal areas at night, but is also advisable to bring a hand torch for the evening.
Emotional Support
Similar to last year - we will have a dedicated welfare space close to the main box office. This will be overseen by our dear Sister - Reverend Laura from Sacred Sister’s Festival. This welfare space will be even bigger this year, with even more support, for any that may need throughout the festival. You are welcome to drop-in throughout the day and there will always be someone there who can help you. We will also have dedicated welfare people walking throughout the festival if need too!
Photography and Videography
As mentioned in our T+C’s we will have a professional photographer and videographer capturing the event throughout. They will be very respectful and sensitive throughout and you are welcome to let them know if you would prefer not to have your photo taken. Please know that by attending the festival you are consenting to being photographed and recorded for promotional purposes, unless you state otherwise.