The National Bowl — Local services in Milton Keynes

Came here to see Foo fighters on the 5th September and am glad to say that they were awesome and the venue itself, i.e. the physical bowl/arena, is quite good.

Unfortunately the compliments end there; I've seen better organisation from 1 year olds at a playcentre.

We were warned traffic could be bad, especially as the council had in their wisdom closed some roads around the venue. Fair enough, we allowed an extra 1 and a half hours from reaching Milton Keynes to actually get in the arena to see the first act, Royal Blood at 5:30pm. We reached the arena at 8pm! Completely missing the first 2 bands and only just making the main event. Sat nav suggested it might take 15 minutes, which gives you an idea of the total chaos.

I'm sure the venue will blame sheer weight of traffic, but they host 65 THOUSAND PEOPLE, and there is limited public transport, so you might think they would expect more than a couple of cars. In fact we found out it was entirely their fault. There was no police presence until about 7:30pm (probably because fans were getting understandably irritable), no information and signs directing people to the wrong place.

The reason for all of this, parking was limited to 6000 cars and they had simply let in the first people to arrive so they were not honouring pre-booked spaces (including disabled ones, such as the one we had booked for our friend). Once the car parks were full, they simply waited for each and every individual car to crawl it's way to the closed entrances, before telling people they could not get in.

If, like us you were one of the unlucky few who had pre-booked a space, you were directed to a different traffic jam and got to queue to be told they couldn't help you there either, and to go on to a third entrance, which again was not allowing anybody in.

Not a single member of staff had a single clue about anything, there was no organisation and the police only got involved when things started getting ugly. Anyone we spoke to, including a police officer, basically said it wasn't their problem.

Finally we had to drop off our poor friend who had to make her own way in on crutches whilst we desperately hunted around for a space somewhere else.

After the Foos themselves (did I mention they were fantastic), getting out was only slightly less traumatic, mainly because we were not one of the 'fortunate' few who had managed to get into their booked space in the car park. Trying to assist a disabled fan through the tiny exits provided was an experience. Once we had been freshly squeezed and emerged from the Bowl, we passed the thousands of poor souls who were locked in the car parks until the crowds had passed (about an hour and a half apparently), once more stuck and unable to move. The staff of course, were nowhere to be seen.

Luckily we only had to get our disabled friend to our car where we'd managed to park it, relatively close in the end, but quite simply, if the arena was a brewery, they would only have served water.

NEVER come here, unless you have a helicopter.

Tl;Dr Spent a wonderful 4 hours not watching Royal Blood or Iggy Pop, as we were enjoying the huge traffic Jam leading to a closed exit as per the Event Management's signposts and directions, breathing in all of the wonderful pollutants and soaking in the scenic roundabouts of...

I'd read some quite bad reviews about this place, but I think I'd have to say that on a summer's evening, this is probably the best venue I've ever experienced. We chose not to park in one of their car parks as there wasn't a single good thing written about it, and I'm so glad we did. After parking some distance away and walking through the park, it still took us around an hour to get away but the lost and disorientated other people who parked in the allocated car parks were allegedly there for hours and the surrounding roads are ill-equipped to deal with the 10's of thousands of cars leaving at the same time, whilst our only other option, travelling from London, meant a 3 hour plus journey there, and no way of getting home afterwards. The nature of the construction of the Bowl also prevented anyone's maps or sat navs to work, so it seemed all were completely lost! This in itself would stop us coming to this otherwise incredible venue, with a jaw-dropping sight that greets you when you come into the bowl at the top centre to be greeted by a clearly visible stage, plenty of bars, though it looked like they could have done with twice the staff. We didn't eat there but chatted to people who had who thought, for a venue, the drinks and food were not too bad, though why you wouldn't strive for excellence and value for money, I have no idea. But the place, the sound quality, the views, the sunset... absolutely incredible. Please, owners, step up. It has so much potential to be 5 star with just...

A fantastic venue for large gigs as the view and sound is like no other. Recently saw Muse who were EPIC. Best live gig I've seen in over 30 years.

However, nothing much has changed over the years in terms of the problems they used to have back in 90's. i.e. the parking, and cost of food and drink which is extortionate.

Expect long delays and head off VERY early and you'll be ok. Don't expect to get parked if you arrive an hour or two before the gig.

If you don't have mobility issues and can walk a distance it is HIGHLY recommended to park off site and walk in. You can rent people's driveways online. Other wise your looking at £27 - £35 to park at the bowl in a field even though you've paid for tickets for the event. Trains are also an option but believe it or not the last train out of MK is 10pm so you'll miss the end of the gig.

They lock the car park gates for an hour after the gig to get pedestrians out quickly before cars are let out so expect a wait and you will be fine, if you want to leave quickly it's going to ruin your day. Top tip pack snacks in car, settle in and have a nap you won't be going anywhere quickly so chill out.

Next top tip.. DO wear shades and a baseball cap as the sun sets directly behind the stage in summer and will blind you if not prepared, but it will look beautiful...