Festival-lovers get into the Groove
Festival-goers from across the UK are snapping up tickets for Groove Cairngorm, the UK’s first snowsports music festival, taking place next month.
The event will include snowsports and entertainment on the mountain during the day followed by apres-ski at the Badaguish Outdoor Centre near Aviemore. Headliners include legendary hip-hop DJ Grandmaster Flash and acclaimed electronic act Hot Chip.
Two-thirds of the 1600 tickets have already sold for the March 11 and 12 event.
Sam Barker, one of the organisers, expects a last-minute rush for the remaining tickets.
“It is going really well and what we have done is to release day tickets as well,” he said. “We heard a lot of people couldn’t make the whole weekend. They could either make the Friday only or the Saturday only.”
Return buses to and from Inverness will be available for those wanting to attend for the day.
Mr Barker is part of the team behind last summer’s successful inaugural Groove Loch Ness held at Dores on the site of the former Rock Ness music festival and attended by 4500 revellers. He acknowledged it was difficult to predict whether Groove Cairngorm would be a sellout.
“The tickets for the Groove Loch Ness went in the last couple of weeks so if this follows a similar path, we will definitely get there,” he said.
Mr Barker revealed that the festival is attracting interest from across the UK. “It’s because it is unique with the snow sport element,” he explained.
“We have sold lots of tickets in England especially in London, Bristol, Plymouth and Carlisle – it is a really high percentage for such a small event. We have also attracted people from Edinburgh and Aberdeen.”
Accommodation at the Badaguish festival site is now fully booked while other hotels and guest houses have reported they are starting to fill up.
“I think there has been huge uptake across the board,” Mr Barker said. “I was speaking to the Cairngorm Business Partnership and they have had a positive response from accommodation providers.
“I think it has been really positive for the whole area. We are getting some nice feedback.”
The organisers are now keeping a close eye on the weather forecast.
“It has not been a great year for snow even on the French Alps,” said Mr Barker, although he was encouraged that recent falls had seen 10 of the 11 Cairngorm lifts open one day. “We will see what happens over the next two-and-a-half weeks. More snow is coming this week and it is looking good but you never can tell.
“Windy conditions are the biggest enemy. That is why we are holding it in March – the conditions should be better to increase the chances of getting on to the mountain.”
In the event of conditions making the mountain inaccessible, the festival site will open at noon instead of 3pm.
“We have been working on the festival site a lot in the last few weeks,” Mr Barker said. “It is going to be amazing.”
* A two-day festival ticket costs £55 while day tickets cost £35. Ski and snowsport passes are additional while a return ticket for the shuttle bus between Inverness and Badaguish costs £15.
