Key Takeaways: After the festival ends, your wristband may carry hygiene risks — both from bacteria and prolonged wear — so it’s wise to remove it when you’re back home.
- Bacterial build-up: A study found worn cloth wristbands had high concentrations of micrococci and staphylococci due to exposure at festivals.
- Hygiene risk: Festivals involve mud, shared facilities and sweat — creating ideal conditions for bacterial growth.
- Souvenir vs safety: While wristbands make memorable keepsakes, letting them stay on indefinitely may compromise hygiene.
- Best practice: Remove or clean your wristband at home so you can safely store it instead of wearing it continuously.
There are certain things you should bring back from a festival. Brilliant memories, your tent and maybe a bad hangover. But what about your treasured festival wristband? Well, it turns out, you might actually be better off cutting it off when you get home.
In a recent study, Dr. Allison Cottell a microbiologist at the University of Surrey, discovered that festival wristbands are breeding ground for bacteria, containing more than twenty times the bacteria than our normal clothes.
She conducted a study on the cloth of two festival wristbands, that one person had been wearing for two years, and found there to be a concentration of around 9,000 micrococci and 2,000 staphylococci bacteria on them. Though these bacteria are normally found on people’s skin, this is an exceedingly high amount.
When you think about it, it does make sense. You’ve spent a weekend rolling around in mud and using portable toilets, and you’re likely to have picked up some fairly unfriendly bacteria on the way.
- Long-worn wristbands can harbour significant bacteria post-event.
- Removing the wristband reduces risk of prolonged bacterial exposure.
- After removal, store your band as a memento rather than wear it daily.
- Clean or frame your wristband to keep the memory without the risk.
Festivals are great! You get to see cool bands, relax, have a few drinks, and just hang out. So it makes sense to keep on wearing your festival wristband, it’s a great way to remind yourself of those good times, but as you can see this probably isn’t a great idea! Glastonbury 2010 might have been a vintage year, but that souvenir wristband might end up making you very sick! We recommend perhaps taking the wristband off and popping it in the wash – then you can admire from afar it while staying clean and germ-free!
If you are planning an event and want a wristband that someone won’t want to take off, you’re at the right place! For information or advice on purchasing your custom wristbands, please call us on 01565 777062 or email info@thewristbandcompany.co.uk. We can advise you on the best product to suit your needs, as well as providing you with a quote for our most competitive price for your requirements.
Keep Your Festival Memories — Safely
Remove your wristband after the event, clean or store it properly, and browse our event-grade wristbands for next time.
