Download Festival takes place at the hallowed grounds of rock, Donington Park, next to East Midlands Airport.
Taking place where the three counties of Nottinghamshire, Leicestershire and Derbyshire meet, Download Festival has excellent connections by road, rail, bus and plane.
We have routes from North, South, East and West to get you to the festival site by car. These will be used flexibly depending on traffic conditions at the time. It is important that you follow the temporary road signs for directions around the festival site, and not your sat nav.
A Car Park Pass is required to use our car parks. These are available to purchase in advance or on the day (more expensive).
Whether you are coming from the north, south, east or west, please ensure you follow road signs to Download, from the M1 motorway or from the A38 or A42.
Routes for vehicles arriving on-site will be used flexibly, depending on traffic conditions at the time. Do not use your sat nav, or assume the route you have taken in previous years is correct, as this information might not be correct – and your journey time may take longer. Always follow the road signs where possible.
When leaving, please follow the signs and use routes that avoid the busiest area (either Junction 23A of the M1).
Please travel at a safe but reasonable speed, ensuring you do not stop on the roads around Download Festival. All roads around the site will have temporary “no waiting” traffic orders on them which will be enforced.
If you are travelling to Download with a campervan, to stay in our Campervan Field, we advise that you follow the road signage to site from the M1, Junction 23.
Our official (and exclusive) travel partner, Big Green Coach, will once again be offering Weekend, and Day Ticket, return coach services to and from the festival, with a wide range of pickup and drop off locations available across the UK.
Save money, make friends and go green: visit the Big Green Coach website to find out more.
If you plan on bringing your own coach, please email [email protected] with your name, email, vehicle size (number of seats) and a note of your arrival time and we will send you your routing information and directions.
If you are travelling to Download by motorcycle, please park in the dedicated Bike Park located on the hard standing area of the West Car Park.
A Motorcycle Pass will be required to use our Bike Park, and are available to purchase in advance or on the day (more expensive). One pass will be valid for the duration of the event.
For more information on travelling by road, including detailed directions, please see ‘By Car / Minibus‘.
The closest mainline railway stations for Download are East Midlands Parkway and Derby, both of which are served by regular festival transfer buses – last service times from these stations will be added closer to the event.
Shuttle buses will operate from both stations to and from our Transport Hub at Download. Depending on traffic, these usually take 20mins between East Midlands Parkway and Download, and 30mins between Derby Station.
A return shuttle bus ticket costs £10.
During Download, Notts & Derby will be running a shuttle bus service to and from the festival from both East Midlands Parkway and Derby station.
Travel time: 20mins. Return ticket cost: £10.
Wednesday / Thursday – Buses depart from East Midlands Parkway every hour from 9am until 9pm.
Friday / Saturday / Sunday – Buses run hourly from 9am – 6pm, then hourly from the site back to the station until 11pm, and then every few minutes until midnight.
Traveling from East Midlands Parkway on Monday the 11th of June? Make an early start and beat the queues with buses running at least every 30 minutes from 05:00 to 14:00.
Wednesday and Thursday – Buses depart Derby Station every 30 minutes between 08:30 to 23:30 with the last bus returning from the festival site at 00:00.
Friday – Travel from Derby Station every 20 minutes between 08:30 and 17:00, and then every 30 minutes until 22:00. Buses will be returning to Derby station from 22:30 every few minutes until Midnight.
Saturday and Sunday – Travel to Download Festival from Derby Station every 30 minutes between 08:30 and 22:00. Buses will be returning to Derby station from 22:30 every few minutes until Midnight.
Looking for an early get away Monday morning? Buses run hourly from midnight Sunday evening until 04:00am, 04:30, 5:00 and then every few minutes until 14:00.
Any Time Travel
Perfect for Day Ticket holders, and non-campers, Notts & Derby offer a ticket (costing £25’s) allowing unlimited travel on shuttle bus services across the weekend (Wednesday – Monday).
Want to keep it simple? Notts and Derby offer a £25 ticket for any journeys on their route Wednesday through to Monday – perfect for day ticket holders and non-campers. Tickets can only be purchased on the day and it will be cash payment only.
skylink and my15 are offering bus services direct from the site. You’ll be able to access Nottingham, Derby, Leicester and Loughborough city centres, as well as the main transport hubs in the area, including East Midlands Airport.
Visit their website to find out more.
A taxi rank will be located inside the Transport Hub at Download. Please ensure you instruct drivers to drop you off, and pick you up, from this location.
Agreed taxi fares from local services will be added here closer to the event.
Please note: roads surrounding the festival can be unsafe, with unstable verges, often with no pavements or lighting. “No stopping” orders in place around the site will also mean your taxi is in risk of enforcement action if they do not use the Transport Hub.
A drop off / pick up area is located inside the Transport Hub at Download Festival, with road signs directing to this locating around the festival site.
Note: please ensure you instruct drivers to drop you off, and pick you up, from this location and not nearby roads. Roads surrounding the festival can be unsafe, with unstable verges, often with no pavements or lighting. “No stopping” orders in place around the site will also mean that drivers may risk enforcement action if they do not use the Transport Hub.