Five essential things to take with you if you’re visiting Crufts 2020

If you’ve never been to Crufts dog show before and Crufts 2020 is going to be your first visit, you’re probably already really excited about your trip and may have already started planning out what you want to see and do when you get there.

You might be searching online too or asking friends who have visited the show before about what you might need to know, what not to miss, and how to get to Crufts and get around when you get there; and you can certainly make your day more enjoyable by prepping in advance.

One Crufts visitor tip that most people will tell you immediately is not to go laden down with lots of things at the start of the day, as these will be bulky and inconvenient and wear you out faster, and also, you’ll probably pick up a lot of swag during the show too.

However, there are a few things that you should consider to be Crufts 2020 essentials to keep you comfortable and make sure your day goes off without a hitch that you might not even realise would be handy until you get there and it’s too late!

With this in mind, this article will tell you five essential things to take with you to Crufts 2020 to help you to get the most out of your trip and stay comfortable. Read on to learn more.

Hand sanitiser

When you’re at Crufts, the chances are you’ll be coming into contact with a lot of dogs, and so practicing good hygiene is vital, both to keep you safe and to ensure that you help to keep the dogs you come into contact with safe too!

There are plenty of toilets in the NEC arena and they don’t generally have huge queues despite how busy the event will be, so plenty of hand washing facilities that you should make regular use of too; but a small bottle of hand sanitiser is very handy to have on you in the interim.

You might also want to take a packet of wet wipes or travel wipes for cleaning your hands and face if you get grimy or mucky too.

A pop-up seat

As mentioned earlier, you should try and minimise the amount of things you take to Crufts because you’ll either have to carry it around with you all day, or pay to leave it in the cloakroom – and if you’re leaving it in the cloakroom, was it really essential?

However, one thing you might want to think of taking is a pop-up set, like a shooting stick or walking stick folding seat to let you take the weight off your feet when needed!

Other than the seating in the main arenas and around the show rings (which are usually full during classes and often closed off outside of them) the NEC is not well served with seating, and it is even sparse in the cafés and other areas where you can buy food and drink too.

Wear comfortable shoes and take spare shoes and socks

Lots of first-timers to Crufts grossly underestimate the importance of picking the right shoes! This is not an event to try wearing in something new or dressing for fashion rather than function.

Thin, flat-soled shoes that will make the balls of your feet ache or even something comfortable but unsupportive like Crocs might soon let you down after a couple of hours on your feet; and there’s a lot of walking involved at Crufts.

Wear comfortable, supportive shoes or boots and take some spare socks and an alternative set of footwear if you really want to ensure your feet don’t ruin your fun!

Water and some snacks for energy

You will walk a lot of miles going around the NEC arena for Crufts, and there’s no avoiding this. You might not feel as if you’re power walking if you’re taking your time, stopping to watch things and not rushing, but a day at Crufts takes a lot of energy and will be very tiring and draining.

Make sure you stay hydrated whilst you’re walking around and carry some water with you at all times, and take some energy snacks too for when you start to flag.

You can take your own drinks and snacks into Crufts, and there are plenty of places to buy water, coffee and food in the NEC arena too, but as you might expect, they’ll be expensive and the queues are almost invariably long and slow most of the time.

A comfortable backpack and/or some foldaway bags

Finally, even if you start the day with just a purse or wallet and your hands blissfully free, the chances are that you will not finish the day in the same way. From the map and information pack you’ll probably pick up on the way in, to promotional goods, freebies, and all manner of shopping, virtually no Crufts visitor leaves the event empty handed, and first-time visitors tend to be the worst culprits for overspending and picking up things they won’t really use.

Take some small foldaway bags with you to use to hold your swag, so that you can grab one when needed but stow them in your main bag or a pocket when not in use.

Even better is a light and comfortable backpack that will fit in a reasonable amount of stuff but that can be worn comfortably throughout the day.