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Four in five festival-goers ready to return to live music after lockdown

Four out of five music lovers are ready to return to festivals soon after they reopen according to a huge survey conducted by Festicket.

Some 110,000 festival-goers from countries such as the UK, France, Germany and the Netherlands were surveyed by the London-based festival ticket specialist about their views on the end of lockdown.

The survey found that 82 per cent of fans would feel confident attending a festival within one to six months of lockdown being lifted. Within that group, 66% would feel confident enough to attend within one to three months, while almost one in three (30 per cent) would happily do so immediately after lockdown is lifted.

Just under 70 per cent said they would happily go to a weekend festival, while 60 per cent said they would feel confident attending both domestic and international music events next year.

“Despite all the current uncertainty, it’s reassuring to see a high percentage of festival-goers have a positive outlook for the live events industry, backed up by over 75% saying they’d feel comfortable booking events for 2021,” said Luis Sousa, Festicket’s marketing director.

“Unsurprisingly, we are of course entering the beginning of a ‘new normal’ for events where festival-goers – in the short term at least – will expect promoters and venues to adapt their offering to ease anxieties.

“We’ve already seen this in some venues that have begun opening their doors again, with measures such as reduced capacity and compulsory table service being part of the deal of reopening.”

Those surveyed said they are confident that 2021’s outdoor events season will be unaffected, with over 75 per cent saying they would feel assured booking for next year within the next two months.

In a sign of the times, over 82 per cent of festival-goers said that free cancellation would be a key consideration when booking future events.

Some 60 per cent of respondents said they have watched artists’ live streams during lockdown.

Festicket, which acquired Event Genius last year, allows music fans to discover and book tickets and travel packages for over 2,000 music festivals worldwide. Its two-sided marketplace brings together a network of nearly 6,000 accommodation and travel suppliers.