Camping is an essential part of the festival experience. Get it wrong and you can have a truly miserable few days; get it right and you'll remember it forever. So if you want to stay clean, dry and comfortable, then like all good boy scouts you'll need to be prepared.

If you've never camped before, then a festival field is a pretty good place to start. Everyone's there to have fun, people are generally really friendly and up for a good time and, let's face it, when the rain starts you're all in the same boat, which makes for some serious camaraderie. And the good news is that if you follow a few simple rules you're sure to be a happy camper.

Do:

· Put your tent up in the garden before you set off. That way you can make sure you know how it works, that you've got all the bits and don't need to make any repairs.

· Face your tents inwards if you're going in a group. That way you can stay dry and chat at the same time. Also, sleep with your head at the door end of the tent. This is good for both security and sociability.

· Make friends with your neighbours. You'll be living in pretty close quarters, so it pays to get on well. Also, they'll be the ones you'll rely on to watch your tent when you're away from it and lend you anything you may have forgotten.

· Take earplugs if you're a light sleeper, but bear in mind that sleep is a luxury at a festival. If you're looking for peace and relaxation, check into a spa.

· Check out the rules about campfires and cooking - you don't want to get thrown out.

· Customise your tent - it'll make it much easier to find. A helium balloon works well, as does a distinctive flag on a long pole.

· If the idea of being miles from a bathroom for more than an afternoon fills you with dread, you could always take a solar-powered shower . They're cheap and probably the only way you'll get rid of all that mud.

· Take plenty of bin bags. They're not glamorous, but necessary for keeping your stuff dry, getting rid of rubbish and storing bedding in when you're not in your tent.

· Wear swimwear under your clothes. Nothing dries as quickly as skin, so wearing a bikini or swimming shorts as underwear means you can strip off at the first sign of rain. Pop your clothes in a water-tight plastic bag and when the shower passes you can dry off in the sun before getting dressed again.

· Pack some gaffer tape - it's essential for repairing rips in tents.

· Take sensible clothes and more than you think you'll need. Make sure they're lightweight. Jeans, while seemingly practical, are actually not a good idea. Anyone who's suffered wet denim clinging to their legs will know what I mean. Thai fishing pants, on the other hand, are brilliant as they fold up to next to nothing, look effortlessly cool and dry quickly. Lightweight combats work well as they have lots of pockets for all your essentials.

T-shirts are obvious essentials, but so is a really warm sweater as it can get surprisingly chilly at night. A hat, too, is a must-have - your mum wasn't joking when she said you lose most of your body heat through your head. Also, remember to take Wellingtons or hiking boots - you can catch some seriously nasty foot diseases if the venue becomes a mud bath.

· Take enough cash. Have you seen the queues for the cashpoint?

· Remember the essentials. Torch, mobile phone - for when you lose your friends - sunscreen, antiseptic cream, wet wipes, matches or lighter, painkillers, a towel, waterproof wallet for your ticket and cash, spare batteries, toothbrush, toothpaste and lots of loo roll.

Don't:

· Camp near the loos, on an incline or near a hedge - when the portaloos become unusable the hedges become rather crowded with less than fragrant people looking for a place to pee and worse.

· Take anything you care about losing. If it's precious, expensive or important to you, then leave it at home.

· Spend ages worrying about make-up. It's rather like jewellery at the gym - less is definitely more.

· Make a snap decision about where you're going to camp. Check out the fields you're interested in and sit around on your proposed pitch for half an hour just to make sure it's a cool place to spend the next few nights.

· Take glass bottles. There's a pretty universal 'no glass' rule at festivals, so make sure any drinks you take are in plastic bottles.

· Get too stressed about the state of the loos. They're notoriously gross and nothing is ever going to change that. At some festivals there are charity loos where, for a donation, you get to pee in relative luxury. Also, for brave girls, there's the She-Pee, which allows you to wee standing up just like the boys. Otherwise, if you're at a festival that allows for it, a quick trip into the nearest town and a pit-stop at a pub or supermarket gets my vote, particularly for the added treat of hot running water.

· Laura James is the author of Cool Camping

· Share your own festival tips in our Been there section