Sleeping on site
There are fifteen furnished bell tents going up in the grounds at Chafford Park, pitched for us by Life’s A Pitch. It is by a distance the best way to do the day: no taxi to book, no last train to catch, and breakfast in the valley the morning after.
You book and pay for your own tent directly. Everything below is what we’ve been told to pass on, so you know what you’re getting before you commit.
Tents are booked through our page on the Life’s A Pitch site. The page is password protected — enter WE1046 to get in. Fifteen pitches, first come, first served.
Book a tentRoom for how many
A furnished guest tent sleeps up to four. If you’d rather book an empty tent and bring your own kit, you can get seven or eight in on airbeds and roll mats, though everyone involved describes that as a squeeze. The tent is still pitched for you either way — it’s only the beds and bedding you’d be supplying. If you’re a family or a group, this is the cheap way to do it.
They’re bell tents in treated cotton canvas and they cope with British weather perfectly well. Two things make them leak: leaning bags or bedding against the inside of the canvas, and not doing up the doors and windows properly. Prolonged heavy rain may still bring a little seepage, so keep your suit off the walls.
They’re roomier than they look. Suitcases and bags go under the beds, and there’s a metal loop about two metres up the centre pole to hang an outfit from — which is the answer to the question everyone asks about creased dresses.
There is no electricity in the camping field, and that’s on purpose — it’s a field, and the point is to be in it rather than on your phone. If you genuinely need an emergency charge there are sockets in the toilet and shower area and in some of the barns, but bring a power bank and you won’t have to think about it.
Life’s A Pitch will send round a tent plan before the wedding so you know which one is yours and who you’re next to.
The important part
The beds are proper camp beds raised off the ground rather than anything on the floor. Doubles have a support bar running down the middle and come with a mattress topper.
Bedding packs are an optional extra at checkout, and worth it — they use 13.5 tog duvets, which is more than enough for a June night in Kent. Bedding is priced per person rather than per bed, because the laundering cost goes up with the size of the duvet, so a double pack costs more than a single. If you’re coming on your own, book a single: that central bar on the double means you can’t stretch out across the middle anyway.
If you’d rather not pay for bedding, bring your own. A sleeping bag and a pillow will do it.
Dates and money
One night only, the Thursday. You can arrive from midday on the day itself, and everyone needs to be packed up and off the estate by 11.30am on the Friday. If the booking mentions a 48-hour hire period, don’t be thrown — that’s the window the suppliers need to pitch the tents and take them down again, not how long you can stay.
As early as you can. There are only fifteen, and the suppliers plan their stock, staff and transport around who has booked.
In full at the time of booking to hold your tent. Most credit and debit cards, plus PayPal. Ask them directly if you need an invoice.
There isn’t one. But anything broken, badly soiled or damaged gets invoiced afterwards to repair or replace — their replacement price list and terms are on their site.
Fine to bring, but space gets tight depending on how many beds you’ve booked. Ring them first if you’re cutting it fine.
Pack this
There is no street lighting in a field in a valley. Your phone will do but a head torch is better, and your phone battery has a long night ahead.
Wellies or trainers for crossing wet grass at midnight and again at seven in the morning. Whatever you wore to the wedding will not thank you.
Canvas is not insulation. It gets properly cold before dawn even in June — a jumper and thick socks make the difference.
Showers and toilets are in the woodland barn, but no towels or toiletries come with the tent. Flip-flops help for the walk across the field.
There is deliberately no power in the field, so bring a charged bank if you want a working phone on Friday. If you’re desperate there are sockets in the shower block and some of the barns, but don’t plan around them.
You are sleeping in a field with fourteen other tents full of people who have been at a wedding. Also, birds.
Skip this if you’ve bought a bedding pack. Otherwise a sleeping bag, pillow and something soft to lie on.
The practical question
There are showers and toilets in the woodland barn — the same one we’ll marry in earlier that day — a short walk from the camping field and easy to get to whether that’s at midnight or at seven the next morning. You don’t need to plan around a portaloo or drive somewhere for a wash.
Bring a towel and your washbag — those aren’t provided with the tents. Flip-flops or something to walk across wet grass in are worth having too, since you’ll be crossing the field to get there. A torch makes the walk considerably easier after dark; the woodland is properly dark once the party has finished.
Fifteen tents sharing means a queue at the obvious times, and everyone is out by 11.30am. If you want a shower before you go, go early rather than leaving it to the last half hour.
The morning after
Take your rubbish with you, and this bit matters: zip the tent shut down the middle and along the bottom before you go. The tents often aren’t collected straight away, and an open one invites weather and wildlife in to do expensive things to the canvas.
Beyond that, just leave it as you found it. It’s a one-night stay and the field needs to be clear by 11.30am on the Friday. Have a shower in the woodland barn, say your goodbyes and go and find breakfast in Tunbridge Wells.
If you’ve a question we haven’t covered, the suppliers keep a fuller list on their own site, or just ask us. If camping isn’t for you, there are hotels in Tunbridge Wells on the main page.
Life’s A Pitch FAQ Hotels instead