Where Latitude is middle class, self-improving and somewhat hand-wringing in its desire to be the coolest and the best, Secret Garden Party is feudal, eccentric and unashamedly hedonistic.

The Party takes place on a “secret” stretch of dreamy Cambridgeshire countryside, surrounded by whispering yellow cornfields that roll away to the horizon. It has its fair share of festival amusements - headline and unsigned bands, DJs, book talks, art and games - but the best thing is the crowd: this is the best people-watching on the planet.

It's hard to describe just how wonderful “the gardeners” are. Gone, for the most part, is the ubiquitous festival uniform of straw hat, wellies and ironic Seventies shades. This is more carnival than festival: ball gowns and 1920s flapper dresses, top hats, men in frocks, people dressed as cardboard boxes, Hell's Grannies, Clockwork Orange droogs and, my favourite, a man dressed as a giant Ikea lampshade shaking his booty (which, in a lampshade's case, is an ambitious pogo) on the dancefloor.

The event is hosted by Freddie Fellowes, the heir to Baron de Ramsey, who owns this idyllic Cambridgeshire estate. Fellowes, a passionate music fan, was tired of festivals where people sat around in cliquey groups and never spoke to each other. He decided to invite actors and performers to mingle with the crowd, kick off the activities and encourage the punters to be, well, pretty silly.

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The surprises are usually daft, turning a standard concert experience into a hilarious riot. During an afternoon gig on the Great Stage, hundreds of plastic balls were released from the sky and the entire audience engaged in a huge, childish ball fight.

A trumpeter wandered through the crowd like a troubadour, piping up in response to Echo and the Bunnymen as they played Walk on the Wild Side - and upstaging them. The audience performed a 180-degree turn to cheer him raucously. Even the notoriously crabby Ian McCullough thanked him as he swaggered off stage.

That's the wonderful thing about the gardeners. If Madonna played here, the chances are she would be upstaged by a snail race (yes, really) taking place at the back. Fellowes has even banned VIP areas for performers, insisting that they have to mingle with the crowd. He has also kept the festival non-corporate, turning down beer and mobile-phone sponsors.

Perhaps that's why the prices were good. The programme - light and lo-fi - cost £1. Delicious organic meat pies with mash filled you up for the day and cost £7. A decent burger with two hot drinks cost £5. The loos were the cleanest I've seen at any festival.

Secret Garden Party might be a bit zany for some. But it's also insanely, deliciously English - and a reminder that the best festivals are a lot more than the sum of their performers. Maybe Latitude should take a few notes. And for heaven's sake, lighten up a bit.

NEED TO KNOW

Latitude, Henham Park, Southwold, July 17-20 (www.latitudefestival.co.uk). Weekend tickets cost £130 (sold out).

Secret Garden Party, Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire,July 24-27 (www.secretgardenparty.com ). Weekend tickets cost £125. Line-up includes Grace Jones, Glasvegas, Morcheeba and Saint Etienne. Other summer events are listed at www.enjoyengland.com/culture

DITCH THE TENT

Podpads.com

It is, at the final analysis, a shed. But put yourself at a music festival, in a leaking tent, and a shed starts to appeal. This one contains a light, a shelf, and a couple of beds. For the Glastonbury weekend, a pod will cost you £450. Dignity doesn't come cheap.

Boutiquecamping.net (01823 433197). Dinky beach huts, buses with bunks and luxury tipis. A small tipi sleeping four people costs £675 for Bestival. Ouch. Rates vary at other festivals.

Cheriton House (01480 464004, www.cheritonhousecambs.co.uk).

Too old to camp? Can't stretch to a shed? This award-winning B&B in Houghton, a few miles from Secret Garden Party, offers comfy, en suite doubles for £80 a night.

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