8 tried and tested rules to guarantee the craic at any festival

As most Irish festival goers will agree, the success of a festival does not hinge on the musical line-up alone.

The factors that go into the creation of an epic Irish festival weekend are many and varied. Here are eight elements that will help to guarantee The Craic. Choose your crew carefully: A good festival crew is like the cast of a sitcom: there must be a joker, a love interest or two, an outdoorsy type who knows how to pitch a tent, a famously irresponsible party animal and, ideally, a person who can play the guitar. Never bring (emotional) baggage: Remember that time you went to Electric Picnic with your ex, argued your way around the campsite then gave each other the silent treatment as Blur played Tender? Yeah that was a bit crap, wasn't it? Newsflash: you skipped a crucial step to guaranteeing true festival happiness: leave your drama (or your other half) at home. Consider the set-up: Organise your mates to arrive at the campsite at the same time, then pitch your tents in a circle with a common area in the middle for sing songs and drinks. Ignore the dirty looks of other campers attempting to pitch tents nearby. Shower: Sure, schlepping around a field for three days in your own filth is part of the charm, but nothing feels as good as a hot shower the morning after a big night (and a sweaty kip in a tent). Even if you have to queue for an hour to get into the shower cubicles. Bring bin bags: Unless you enjoy living among empty cans and bottles, crisp packets, old kebabs and cigarette butts, bring some bin bags to keep the mess contained near your camping spot. Extra points for being an eco-warrior. Plus you can use one to hold your muddy, wet clothes when you pack up to go home. Get out of your comfort zone: For at least a couple of hours, venture into a part of the festival you don't normally explore. That could mean sitting in the forest hot tub, trying yoga in a field or dancing to disco in a sparkly tent. Let yourself go. Bring one meal to eat together: This is one for the first night in the camp site: ask everyone to bring one Tupperware dish to be shared, then host an outdoor dinner near your tents. We recommend easy stuff like cous cous, falafels, hummus, pasta and good bread. Make a vague plan: Nobody wants to adhere to a strict schedule of organised fun, but an outline of where everyone will be at various times of the day can be handy. Regular meet-ups will keep the gang connected and make sure nobody's left solo when everyone's phone batteries inevitably die. Disregard this rule the minute someone wanders off with a hottie from the other campsite, in which case fair enough.