Vodafone has put fresh numbers behind something Alertify argued only days ago: connectivity is no longer a useful extra at festivals. It is part of the event itself.

In its new Connected Crowd Report, Vodafone found that 87% of UK festival-goers consider reliable on-site connectivity essential. The research, conducted by 3Gem among 1,500 adult festival-goers, also found that 80% value connectivity because it lets them stay in contact with friends and family, both inside the venue and back home.

That matters because the modern festival journey is built around a phone. Tickets, maps, group chats, transport updates, payments, artist discovery and safety information may all sit on the same device. When the signal disappears, the problem is no longer simply that someone cannot upload a video. Several parts of the event experience stop working at once.

The crowd has changed

Vodafone’s findings show how deeply mobile behaviour is woven into festival culture. Group chats are used by 44% of attendees to find people in the crowd, while 43% rely on phone calls and 40% use live-location sharing. Two-thirds have video-called someone during a performance so a friend or family member could experience part of the set remotely.

The numbers can sound excessive until you picture a large festival site after dark. Thousands of people are moving between stages, landmarks look different, and “meet near the food stand” becomes useless when there are 30 of them. Live location is not social-media decoration in that situation. It is basic coordination.

Vodafone also expects data use across its festival portfolio to rise by at least 10% this summer. At Latitude alone, attendees consumed more than 40,000GB, according to the operator.

READ MORE: Vodafone Brings Free eSIM Trials with 50 GB to UK Festivals

A Vodafone spokesperson said:

“At Vodafone, our ambition has always been to connect people to the UK’s biggest moments, on The Nation’s Network.

“We’ve seen data usage continue to grow across the festivals we support, reflecting the increasingly important role connectivity plays in the festival experience.

“Whether it’s helping people stay in touch with friends in a busy crowd, navigate the site, or share unforgettable moments as they happen, reliable connectivity has become an essential part of making the most of a festival. That’s why we’re committed to providing the best possible network experience, so festivalgoers can stay connected and enjoy every moment.”

Alertify saw the next step

The report confirms the demand. Alertify’s recent analysis went further by asking who should solve it.

Published less than a week before Vodafone’s research, “Why Events Need Embedded eSIM Packages for Attendees” argued that organisers should stop assuming every visitor will arrive with affordable, working mobile data. That assumption is especially weak at international festivals, conferences and sporting events, where visitors may be roaming or trying to activate a plan after arrival.

The next step is to place connectivity inside the customer journey: beside the ticket, travel package, event app or welcome email. An attendee could receive a small allowance, buy an event-specific package or activate a partner network before entering the venue.

Vodafone is already moving in that direction. At seven UK festivals, non-Vodafone customers can scan a QR code and install a free seven-day eSIM trial containing 50GB of data, 500 minutes and 500 texts. It is still a customer-acquisition campaign, but it demonstrates the same principle: connectivity becomes easier when offered where it is needed.

Tomorrowland has taken a more explicitly embedded route through its Hubby eSIM partnership, integrating destination data into parts of its festival and travel ecosystem. The model is particularly relevant for international guests because it starts solving connectivity before they reach a congested field.

Coverage is only half the product

An embedded eSIM cannot repair an overloaded radio network. That distinction matters.

Festival connectivity requires both distribution and capacity. VodafoneThree plans to deploy temporary Cells on Wheels more than 130 times during the 2026 events season, with most supporting Vodafone and Three 4G and 5G. Virgin Media O2 has also used temporary masts at festivals, while EE is expanding 5G Standalone support across more than 25 major UK events this summer.

Operators are strengthening the physical layer while event and travel brands improve access to it. The strongest proposition will combine both.

READ MORE: Is eSIM Actually Better Than a SIM Card, or Is It Just Hype?

There are limits. A local attendee with a generous domestic plan may not need another eSIM. Some phones remain locked or incompatible, and an eSIM routed through the wrong network will not help if that network is struggling onsite. Venue Wi-Fi, ordinary roaming and local prepaid SIMs remain sensible options in some cases.

The Vodafone report could also go further. It measures expectations and behaviour, but does not independently compare real-world network performance. For organisers choosing a partner, download speed is only one metric. Uplink capacity, latency, coverage between stages, resilience, activation success and support matter too.

Conclusion

Vodafone’s research confirms that the phone has become part ticket, part map, part meeting point and part broadcast studio. Alertify’s earlier argument identifies the business consequence: events can no longer leave connectivity entirely to the attendee.

The market is developing along two tracks. Operators such as VodafoneThree, EE and Virgin Media O2 are adding temporary capacity. Event brands such as Tomorrowland are beginning to package mobile data into the wider journey. GSMA work around immersive large events points in the same direction, with programmable network capabilities being explored for streaming, augmented reality and real-time audience services.

The winners will not simply advertise “good connectivity.” They will make activation almost invisible, match users to a network that can handle the crowd and provide enough data for the full journey—not only the headline set.

A festival ticket promises access to an experience. Increasingly, that promise is incomplete when the attendee arrives offline.