Glastonbury 2008 ticket purchasing process *phew

[sNyx]

It's late. Fix up the minor grammical mastakery tmrw.

Glastonbury... music festival, few hours out of London, big lineup, lots of people... if ya need then Google.

Due to scalpers lowering the overall profits this year the festival has changed from allowing multiple ticket purchases for a single individual to a pre-purchase registration. Up until around early March you were able to go to the ticket website, register by uploading a passport photo and including your full name, residents and other basic contact information. Once closed, only a registered user is able to purchase a single ticket using the confirmation number given to them. Each ticket will be printed with your name and photo and checked accordingly on entry and throughout the festival.

Ticket sales open Sunday April 6th at 9am BST (UK). Well for international attendees it's up to you to align with this time/date (shit) and use the international call in number to order your tickets over the phone. This all happened to land on the weekend I was forced to visa run out of Thailand, double shit.

So it's Friday, I'm in Singapore and realize upon landing my pay-as-you-go mobile provider from Bangkok doesn't roam as I had not set it up prior to leaving. Not a big deal. I pickup a cheap chip from 7-11 and problem solved.... too bad it's 0.56 cents SKG a minute to call UK (about 0.50 cents Canadian). Sunday April 6th rolls around, 3:15pm Singapore time (or 8:15am UK) and I make the first test call. Instantly goes through but I'm told sales aren't for another 45 mins. Call back in 30 just to test the line and it's busy. I then call for the next 3 hours with my mobile headphone in one ear, watching TV going *green button *green button... "sorry but yo.." *red button - repeat).

Eventually I give up for an hour and decide to enjoy my day outside of the room. My German travel mate Tanja and I walk the bay and stop for a drink. I begin to call again and after a dozen go's it picks up. Bouche! Now I'm on hold with the festivals automated machine, waiting for an agent. After a good 10 or so minutes I get a nice guy who collects my confirmation numbers, sort out the fine details and asks me for my UK debt card. WHAT!? I read the ticket information page in its entirety, several times. No mention they were not going to accept standard Visa or MC (thinking back the only notes on international ticket buyers was the call in number so I assumed it was overlooked). I ask if I can mail it in or align with a UK resident in the next 12-24 hours and he reassures me tickets will be gone at the end of the day. In shock and disappointment I am forced to hang up.

I look up at Tanja nearly in tears as there has been much planning and flights aligned around this event all gone over such an stupid overlooked point. She looks at me and asks me why I wasn't listening to her while on the phone and points to her UK debit card now on the table. As a student in London she has a card going to school. I attempt to ring back and wouldn't ya guess it's busy. I figure 4 hours and 1 pickup noway am I going to catch another break. I try regardless and catch it again. Waiting, waiting, operation! YESSSS. She informs me I need a special operators who handles international buyers, so as I hold and she passes me around like a doobie something goes click and I'm dead air. She hung up on me!!

I loose it in a rant of chain cursing until I realize it was me who ran out of money on my mobile. Hey, 0.50 cents Canadian a minute adds up. Knowing that the call in number is at a weak point I hustle to a 7-11 to top up, wasting no chance I buy two $18 cards. After another dozen or so try's I get into an operator, over to an international agent who brisk's me through and passes me a single confirmation number. Yes! YES! Finally it's confirmed I have tickets, but do I? I will not receive an email regarding the purchase nor will I have any ticket in my possession until I arrive at the information booth as the festival does not ship tickets outside the UK. So now it's up to a little luck and a hopefully organized festival to ensure my entry.

Anyway I have gone on long enough. Sunday night is dead bald in Singapore and Tanja went to the beach today and is passed out from being sun stoked to shit. So I figured I would take the time to share with you my experience. I have never gone through a ticket process as nerve racking, time consuming and frustrating as this for an event. I know the festival it will surpass all this but I had to document the ride.

Love to hear about other long and nail biting experiences.