Spring is nearly here and with it the anticipation of upcoming summer music festivals; give me that special aroma of exotic foods mixed with the unwashed masses and I am in my element. There are thousands of festivals in the UK alone during the summer months, bringing people together from a variety of backgrounds, cultures and areas, attracted for the same reasons; the atmosphere, passion for the music and the thrill only experienced at an open air festival.

Whether you are a regular festival groupie or have been saving like crazy to get to that one special event this year, then you need to think about getting your tickets now before they are all sold out. If the festival you want to go to is a huge event, such as Glastonbury or WOMAD, tickets will be in demand and are likely to sell out in record breaking time. Once you know the date of the festival, find out where to buy your tickets from and when they will be going on sale.

The best place to start looking for your ticket is to search the internet, this is a great source of information and advice and often you will be able to buy a ticket online with no fuss. These call centres work from the same database as you can access directly, so it makes sense to sit at home in comfort and do it yourself online.

For big festivals there are a number of agents authorized to sell tickets on the promoters? behalf. They sell the tickets at their face value and add on a booking and processing fee, usually around 5-10%, for their service. You might have heard of some of the well-known agencies.

If you do find that it seems as if all the tickets are sold out don't give up that easily as tickets usually go back on sale again closer to the date of the festival. The reasoning behind this is that musical festivals are given permission to operate with a certain capacity awaiting fire and safety checks. After these checks have been made and plans finalized then they receive the actual allowed capacity, which is always higher, and so at this point they can release more tickets. Keep checking out the web sites for tickets if you couldn't get them before.

Another option open to you if you are finding it impossible to get a ticket is the resale market. Always ensure you use a secure exchange system which can provide guarantees that if you're a buyer you get your tickets and if you're a seller you get paid. EBay always has tickets on sale for music festivals, theatre tickets and concerts and is a secure site so see what is available.

When desperately seeking a ticket be cautious of whom you are buying from as there are loads of touts eager to rip you off or sell counterfeits, it's always best to buy from the official websites and agents. Ensure any online exchange you use is trustworthy; it's possible for anyone to create a website or procure links on Google. Lastly, never buy tickets outside the grounds as this is the most common place for fraud. Forgeries can look as good as the originals these days and as you are getting turned away from the door the tout will have disappeared.