FAQs
How do I get to Firstsite?
The full address of the venue is Firstsite, Lewis Gardens, High Street, Colchester, CO1 1JH
By car: parking information
There is NO parking at Firstsite but there is ample parking in car parks close by.
However, there are a few disabled spaces allocated on a first come first served basis. Please call Firstsite on 01206 713700 if you need assistance with disabled parking.
Option 1: Greyfriars car park
This is a roomy parking lot with 132 spaces. This car park is cash only and will cost between £1.80 to £9.00 depending on the amount of time.
Google Maps: “Greyfriars Hotel Car Park”
Map directions: Turn on to Roman Road from East Hill. After 300m, turn left on Castle Road. 150M down Castle Road, the entrance to the car park will be on your left.
Enter the parking lot on the left. The parking lot on the right belongs to Greyfriars and is reserved exclusively for their guests.
Distance on foot to Firstsite: 3 minutes. Walk through the opening in the wall located to the left of the pay station and straight on to East Hill. Cross the street and walk up the hill for 25M and there will be a small lane on the left called Lewis Gardens. Firstsite is at the end of that lane.
Option 2: All Saints
This is a very small car park (32 spaces only), poorly maintained, rutted and uneven. Moreover, it is not easy to turn your vehicle around should the car park be full. However, it is the closest car park to Firstsite. Payment by Ringo or paybyphone (location ID: 685632) or credit card. The cost will be £1.30 - £6.20 depending on the amount of time.
Google Maps: “All Saints House”
Map directions: After turning from East Hill into Roman Road, the entrance is immediately on the left. This car park is right next to Greyfriars (Option 1). Therefore, should you drive into it and find it full, you can park at Greyfriars by exiting and turning left.
Distance on foot to Firstsite: 2 minutes. Walk towards the brick wall in front of the white house and exit at left on to East Hill. Cross the street and walk up the hill for 25M and there will be a small lane on the left called Lewis Gardens. Firstsite is at the end of that lane.
Option 3: Priory Street Car Park
Priory Street car park. Payment by MiPermit (location code: 737822), credit card or cash. Between £2.10 - £8.10 depending on the amount of time.
Google Maps: “Priory Street Car Park”
Map directions: Coming from any direction, you must drive up East Hill (it becomes High Street) and turn left onto Queen Street. At the first traffic light on Queen Street, you will see signs for parking on the left. Turn left 35m after the traffic light on to Priory Street.The first entrance to the parking lot on the left approximately 100M down Priory Street is for disabled parking ONLY. The main car park is the second entrance.
Distance on foot to Firstsite: 6 minutes. Maddeningly, there is no access to Firstsite through the brick wall that runs the full length of the parking lot, so you will need to return the way you drove in via Priory Street and turn right on Queen Street (also called St. Botolph’s Street). After walking up the hill approximately 200m, look up and you will see the banner indicating the entrance to Firstsite just after the Curzon cinema.
Option 4: NCP Car Park at Osborne Road (next to bus station)
This is a large multi-story car park with 601 spaces. Payment by credit card, £2.45 - 4.95 depending on amount of time.
Google Maps: “NCP Colchester Osborne St.”
Distance on foot to Firstsite: 5 minutes. Walk up St Botolph’s street for 300M. Look up and you will see the banner indicating the entrance to Firstsite just after the Curzon cinema.
By train
Trains run regularly and frequently to Colchester from London and Norwich and include stops at Diss, Stowmarket, Ipswich and Manningtree. It’s a 25 minute walk to Firstsite from the train station. Taxis are available from Colchester station.
On Saturdays only, there are rail connections (via Colchester) to Colchester Town from London and from Norwich. Colchester Town station is a 7- minute walk to Firstsite.
For timetables please go to www.greateranglia.com
Taxis
There are usually taxis at Colchester station. In addition, these taxi companies serve Colchester and vicinity:
Five Eights taxis 01206 588888
Five Sevens taxis 01206 577777
Buses
Buses that stop on the High Street and East Hill close to Firstsite are available from outside Colchester Station.
Come out of the station and turn left. At the main road turn right and cross at the crossing. You will see the bus stop located in front of the large Wickes building. Most of the buses go to High Street, East Hill or the top of Queen Street (nos. 8, 64, 64A and 65). Take the bus to the far end of High St/Queen St stop. The buses are not tap and go. You will need to state your destination (e.g., High Street) and then pay.
Bicycle
There are bike racks at Firstsite.
The venue
Firstsite is a museum open to the general public for free. Therefore, EA Sustain ticketholders will have the same access as museum visitors to the museum’s facilities and exhibitions.
Note that EA Sustain ticket holders (only) will have access to the Festival lounge adjacent to the auditorium. We will not be selling food in the lounge but you can bring food into this space.
Food & Drink
High-quality coffee, tea and hot chocolate will be available for purchase from a London cab stationed outside the main entrance of Firstsite during Festival hours.
There is a small cafe at Firstsite open to the general public. It serves sandwiches, some daily specials and hot and cold drinks.
There are very limited food outlets close by but Greyfriars Hotel, opposite Firstsite on East Hill, has a bar menu and full service restaurant.
Feel free to bring your own food to Firstsite but please be sure to tidy up the space where you consume it.
Tickets
Tickets can be purchased here. We are selling e-tickets only.
We recommend printing the e-ticket in full to avoid any issues on the door. However, you can show your e-ticket on your mobile phone at the door to gain entry.
We cannot be held responsible for any issues arising if you do not take this reference/barcode with you.
We reserve the right to view your credit card or personal identification,before admitting you to the festival.
Please purchase your ticket online in advance of your arrival at Firstsite, Colchester. We would hate for you to be disappointed if an event is sold out and you arrived at the venue without a ticket in hand.
There is a ticket handling fee, which helps us defray the cost of administration and credit card fees.
Day Pass holders receive a wristband at the time of entry.
If you remain in your seat after your event and are not wearing a wristband, we may ask you to show us your ticket for the next event.
Will I be allocated seating?
There is no assigned seating.
How do I get a refund?
We are unable to offer refunds for purchased tickets unless the event is cancelled in its entirety.
Therefore, please ensure you are buying the correct number of tickets for the correct event.
I want to re-print my ticket/my ticket hasn't printed properly/I've torn my ticket.
Please click here and provide us some basic details to enable you to re-download and print your tickets. (Note that we use a third-party provider, EventCube, for ticketing and cannot guarantee their response time should you lose your Order Reference number and require manual retrieval of your order details.)
Are dogs allowed at Firstsite?
No. The only dogs permitted inside Firstsite are guide dogs.
How secure is my personal information?
We do not share your personal data with third parties.
The EventCube ticketing platform, employed on our website, uses DigiCert-certified 256-bit Secure Socket Layering and we use Stripe to process your payment. We do not store your credit card details after the transaction is complete.