In the Summer of 2023, I was lucky enough to head to the legendary Glastonbury festival, and so I decided to travel there by train. The first thing to know is that to reach the actual site by train, you’ll need to travel to the town of Castle Cary, and then catch a free shuttle to the festival, from Castle Cary train station. Not only it is the most sustainable way to get to Glastonbury, but it’s also super easy! Here’s how it went for me:
Catching the train at London Paddington station
I travelled on the Great Western Railway train to Castle Cary from London Paddington. The train station was busy with commuters and festivalgoers (the latter were recognisable with camping bags and trolleys full to the brim with festival gear). Around 20 minutes before departure, our platform was announced - I scanned my digital ticket at the gate (no faffing about with a paper ticket) and walked up to the train.

On board the Great Western Railway train from London to Castle Cary
Having managed to be one of the first people to board the train, I had enough space to store my big camping rucksack in the luggage space. Once on board, I was able to buy a few snacks and drinks from the food trolley, which was great as I simply did not have space to carry anything more than my rucksack and camping chair on the way to the station.
It was great to be able to connect to the free WiFi to make last-minute Glastonbury plans regarding camping and bands I wanted to see.
I was able to sit back, relax and enjoy a quiet moment before 5 days of partying.

Glastonbury free shuttle from Castle Cary to the festival site
After less than an hour and a half, we arrived at Castle Cary station, where all my fellow festival goers got off. I was rather impressed at the organisation for such a small train station. The free shuttles were already waiting for people right outside the station and orderly queues were organised to get everyone on their way to the festival as quickly as possible.
It takes about 45 minutes from Castle Cary station to Glastonbury festival with the shuttle bus – it’s a tiny country road, going through hills and small villages. Seeing the iconic Glastonbury sign and the Pyramid stage just a few minutes before arriving on site was such a special moment I will never forget.
Upon arrival at the festival site, the Glastonbury crew team will first get the bags, luggage, trolleys, and camping gear outside of the bus, then it’s our turn to get out and get our belongings. It’s then time to queue for the gates – which doesn’t take that long, from memory, we were in the queue for less than an hour before we were able to get in the festival.

Getting back from the Glastonbury festival to Castle Cary
When it’s time to come back home post-festival, I recommend getting to the exit of the site as EARLY as possible. And by early, I mean before 7:30 am. Don’t do it like me and leave your campsite around 10:00 am or 11:00 am. Why you ask? Well, to get back to the shuttle pick-up point, if you’re not an early bird, you will need to walk several miles and queue for hours before boarding the shuttle. Trust me, after 5 days of walking and dancing non-stop in a field, you don’t want to queue for 5 hours before getting back home!
