Microsoft Flight Simulator adds Glastonbarry music festival to the game

It may be much smaller than Glastonbury, from which it takes its name, but it has hosted countless tribute concerts and is located in a seaside town in Wales beloved by Gavin and Stacey fans.

Now Glastonbarry Festival has another high claim to fame thanks to the creators of the hit video game Microsoft Flight Simulator.

The familiar blue and white festival tent in Barry has been added to the sights players can see from the sky in the latest update.

“It’s fantastic,” said festival director Matt Blumberg. “It’s a bit of luck that we’re there, but it’s great that people can go and explore.”

The festival, with a maximum capacity of 7,000, was started as a “stupid idea” between two friends and has been held in Romilly Park in the Vale of Glamorgan since 2013.

Glastonbarry tribute acts pay tribute to artists such as Abba, AC/DC, Harry Styles, Taylor Swift, Arctic Monkeys, Bon Jovi and Eminem.

“It’s good entertainment. We don’t take ourselves too seriously,” Bloomberg said.

“It’s all tributes – some people turn up their noses at it, but it’s what’s written on the banknote. It’s a bit of a laugh, people dress up, they come and sing their favorite songs and it’s a great atmosphere.”

Tom Jones will be honored at Glastonbarry 2025 on Saturday, with Queen headlining on Sunday.

“There really is something for everyone,” Bloomberg said.

“Some of them come from the very first festival. Many of the artists we use return year after year. They are just wonderful.”

Glastonbarry appears to have found its way into the game through its appearance on Bing Maps, the Microsoft-owned mapping service where Microsoft Flight Simulator gets much of its data.

The game creates realistic terrain based on map data. The result is an even more realistic version of several British cities, including Cardiff, located a few miles from Barrie, and the surrounding areas.

The most recent map update appears to have taken place when the Glastonbarry marquee was up at the festival last July. The festival later found itself in the game with an even more realistic version of the site available as part of its global update system.

World Update XVII: Great Britain and Ireland also added several new Welsh points of interest to the game – detailed locations that were added specifically by the Microsoft Flight Simulator team to enhance immersion.

“Microsoft Flight Simulator has partnered with Bing Maps, Gaya Simulations and iniBuilds to create this latest spectacular offering for aviators,” Microsoft said in a statement accompanying the update.

Cardiff Airport is one of five UK airports added to the game.

Other Welsh landmarks recently added include Pembroke Castle, St David’s Cathedral in Pembrokeshire and the Menai Suspension Bridge between Anglesey and mainland north Wales.

This was in addition to the four existing Welsh venues for the game – the Principality Stadium and the Wales Millennium Centre, both in Cardiff, Caernarfon Castle in Gwynedd and Pontcicillte Aqueduct in County Wrexham.

The main stadium of the national rugby union team, the Principality Stadium in Cardiff is the largest stadium in Wales.

The 74,500-seat stadium also hosts a variety of events and concerts Taylor Swift and Billy Joel recently played at the arena.

The Wales Millennium Center in Cardiff Bay opened in 2009 and is the national arts center for Wales.

Thevenue offers theatre, comedy, opera, ballet and musicals on a variety of stages, with the main venue being the Donald Gordon Theatre, the second largest stage in Europe.

The first fortification at Caernarfon Castle was built at the end of the 11th century.

The medieval fortress and surrounding town were founded by King Edward I of England, and the castle now houses the Royal Welch Fusiliers Museum.

The Pontsissillte Aqueduct is a navigable waterway that was completed in 1805.

The aqueduct carries the Llangollen Canal across the River Dee near Wrexham, and the 18-arch cast iron and stone structure is still used by narrowboats.

The first fortification in Pembroke Castle appeared in 1093.

It later became the residence of the Earl of Pembroke and underwent a major restoration that began in 1928 thanks to Major General Sir Ivor Phillips.

St. David’s Cathedral is located in the smallest city in Great Britain.

A monastic community founded in AD 589 by the patron saint of Wales, St David, the cathedral has since been restored and rededicated by the Most Reverend Win Evans, Bishop of St Davids, on St David’s Day 2012.

Clairwen Dam was completed in 1952 – a gravity dam built on a solid rock foundation.

Found at Claerwen Reservoir in the Elan Valley, Powys, the dam is built mainly of concrete, with stone cladding on the outside.

Found near Llanidloes, Llyn Clivedog Dam was used to create an artificial reservoir.

It was created to regulate the flow of the River Severn by releasing water into the river bed during periods of low water, and was completed in 1967.

Powys Castle is a medieval castle, fortress and country house near Welshpool.

The first fortification at this place was built by the Welsh princes Powys Wenwynwyn, the first mention of the castle appeared in 1111. However, the current castle was built in the 13th century.

Barmouth Bridge is a single-track wooden railway viaduct in the town of Gwynedd.

Originally opened in 1867, the bridge was rehabilitated by Network Rail over several years starting in 2021 and fully reopened on 2 December 2023.

The Vyrnwy Tower was completed in 1892 and was built to extract water from Lake Vyrnwy.

Located near Llanwdin in Powys, the attractive water tower provides water to the city of Liverpool.

The lake was built on the site of the former Welsh town of Llanwdin, which was moved nearby.

Halech Castle is built on a rocky hill in the town of Gwynedd.

It was built between 1282 and 1289 by Edward I during his invasion of Wales.

Over the years the castle has played an important role in Welsh history, being captured by Owain Glyndr in 1404 and the 1468 siege being mentioned in the song The Men of Harlech.

The Menai Suspension Bridge spans the Menai Strait and connects Anglesey to mainland Wales.

It was completed in 1826 and was the world’s first major suspension bridge when it opened.

Also across the Menai Strait, the British Bridge connects Anglesey and Bangor.

It was designed and built by noted railroad engineer Robert Stephenson, with the engineer himself setting the last rivet (and opening the bridge) on March 5, 1850.