Aren’t festivals meant to be about hedonism rather than health? Plenty still are but wellness is an increasingly big part of the festival scene; where once you got a bit of yoga in a damp field, you’re now more likely to find ice baths, elite sports and infrared saunas. There might be a panel on emotional resilience but chances are there will be DJ sets too. Here’s our pick for this year.
The Big Retreat, Pembrokeshire and Cambridgeshire
For gentle activity and tunes
Wild swimming, sauna sessions, sunrise yoga, cooking demos and arts and crafts workshops may well be enough to tempt you to Lawrenny, on the Cleddau River near the rugged Pembrokeshire coast, but the line-up on the main stage is persuasive too — including a DJ set from Fat Tony. He might even spill a little more gossip from the Beckham-Peltz wedding while he’s there. You can pitch a tent, glamp or bring your own camper van, and this year the festival gets a second, end-of-summer outing in Cambridgeshire too.
Lawrenny, May 22-25; Abbots Ripton, Sep 11-13; from £100 (day) or £269 (weekend); thebigretreatfestival.com
LeBlanq Joyride Festival, Isle of Wight
For high-end cycling and food
Lycra is optional at this Ibiza-born cycling festival that makes its UK debut this year at Northwood House in Cowes. Pedallers can spend their days on rides of up to 70 miles through the island’s leafy lanes and chalk-cliff scenery, some led by the Olympic gold medallists Jonny Brownlee and Greg Van Avermaet. You can bring your own bike or hire one through the festival. Saunas and ice baths are laid on to help you recover — it’s all included in the price, along with gourmet feasts prepared by Steve Drake, whose Dorking restaurant, Sorrel, has a Michelin star. You can leave the two-man tent at home; if you don’t bring your own camper van you can book a bell tent or luxury yurt. Music is covered by DJs Pete Tong and Rob da Bank (who knows a thing or two about festivals, having co-founded Bestival). You may leave feeling restored — or very, very tired.
Cowes; Jun 12-14; from £1,100; leblanq.com
Love Trails Festival, Glamorgan
For Strava obsessives
A dramatic coastline and patchwork fields made the Gower Peninsula the UK’s first Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty — so it’s an obvious spot for what was the world’s first running and music festival. An unlikely combo? Not for the 5,000 like-minded trail runners here for the tenth edition this year. Distances on guided runs range from a sociable 5km to a more punishing 52km, with wild swims, surfing and hiking in the mix too. You can bring your own tent or camper van, or book a luxury bell tent. Evenings are for dancing it out to DJs including Nimino and Anaïs — it will all add to your step count.
Gower, Jul 2-6; from £259; lovetrailsfestival.co.uk
Love Trails mixes raving and runningGiulia Spadafora
Happy Place Festival, London and Cheshire
For a shot of positivity
Fearne Cotton’s day festival takes a gentler approach to self-care. Alongside yoga and meditation sessions you’ll also find poetry readings, pottery and jewellery-making workshops, and a strong talks programme — Ruby Wax, Sam Thompson and Paul Whitehouse will be chatting to Cotton this year for live podcast recordings. Jordan Stephens will be talking about “healing through relationships” and Tulisa is in the line-up too; she discussed mental health and life in the public eye with Cotton recently on the Happy Place podcast. Shop at small indie stalls selling sustainable underwear and skincare, probiotics and jewellery. DJ sets from Krystal Roxx and Dave Goodings round things off — though the overall mood is more Sunday reset than late-night abandon.
Old Deer Park, Jul 11-12; Tatton Park, Sep 5-6; from £49.50; happyplaceofficial.co.uk
Wilderness Festival, Oxfordshire
For Pilates and a posh party
What do David Cameron, Florence Pugh and Claudia Winkleman have in common? They’ve all been to Wilderness, one of the UK’s poshest festivals, at which the Soho House-adjacent crowd drifts between Pilates, barre classes, lake swims and feasts prepared by chefs such as Atul Kochhar. Workshops on “devotion in relationships” may test your appetite for enforced intimacy, but a line-up including Scissor Sisters, the Last Dinner Party and Annie Lennox offers a more straightforward release.
Cornbury Park, Jul 30-Aug 2; from £95 (day) or £288 (weekend); wildernessfestival.com
Wilderness workoutsCallum Baker
Good Vibrations Society, East Sussex
For nature lovers
A family-friendly affair, this eco-focused festival mixes yoga, dance and tension-easing breathwork workshops with talks on rewilding and conservation. You might kick off with a guided walk through Ashdown Forest — AA Milne’s inspiration for the Hundred Acre Wood — where you’ll camp in your own tent or van. You don’t have to hug a tree but you can sign up for sound healing or a “cacao ceremony”, a Mayan tradition involving raw, ceremonial-grade cacao thought to help with emotional release. Performances from Ms Dynamite and the Bay City Rollers loosen up the evenings.
Uckfield, Jul 31-Aug 2; from £60 (day) or £180 (weekend); goodvibrationssociety.com