Afternoon Headlines | Call for more police on Karangahape Rd and severe winds continue to batter parts of New Zealand | Tuesday, December 30, 2025
A popular Auckland music festival has promised a customer a refund after two-hour bus delays and Portaloo chaos ruined her festival experience.
The single-day Hidden Valley electronic music festival takes place annually at Matakana in north Auckland and usually attracts about 8000 to 10,000 people.
However, rain-soaked punters at thisyear’s event on December 27 say they had to wait hours to get inside and encountered a two-hour delay for pre-organised transport after the festival finished.
Florence Cater told the Herald thousands of ticket holders waited for hours to enter the festival grounds through three entrances.
“We needed poles to get into orderly lines. There were people cutting the lines and we waited outside for two and a half hours before getting in.”
Cater claimed there were only three toilets outside the gates and there was no water or food.
“We felt like caged animals for a while and by the end of it, we were contemplating turning around and leaving because by the time we got in, the festival had been going for a couple of hours and we had missed some of the people we wanted to see.”
Cater said she had to wait for a return bus for two hours in a single line at the exit to the festival.
“It seemed like there was only one bus leaving every five minutes and there were 500 people waiting for the Auckland bus,” she told the Herald.
“There was no order, there was no one trying to present order. It was just people yelling on megaphones.”
Punters shared their experiences online, with one person posting on TikTok: “We made it on the second bus to snells beach departing at 12.30... we lined up at 10.30 Disgusting!! [sic]”.
One person replied to the post: “We waited almost 2 hours to get in and then leaving we waited over 2 hours again and didn’t get back to Omaha until 2am”.
An email from Hidden Valley Festival organisers sighted by the Herald shows them acknowledging there were “some issues on the day” and offering Cater a refund.
“We had planned this event as we do every year and have had similar numbers year on year,” they wrote.
“We couldn’t plan for the rain while lining up, we cannot cover the line up area. No other festivals do that.”
Organisers said loos had to be in one place to monitor intoxication and drug taking, as this is how police and security prefer it.
They also said they had hired more guards this year, as well as more bathroom facilities, and needed space for drug testing.
“We are truly sorry for your experience as we have prided ourselves on that year on year.
“We are happy to offer you a refund in this instance, and we hope to improve and be back better next year.”
The Herald has approached Hidden Valley Festival for comment.
Sign up to The Daily H, a free newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
