Festivals and Events

Planning around Britain's big events

Britain's calendar is crowded with events that sell out, and the best ones fill hotels for miles around. If you want to attend one, start with the event and build the trip around it. If you don't, check this page anyway, because a festival you have no interest in can triple the price of a room in Edinburgh or close half of west London for a weekend.

Three rules hold across almost everything below. First, buy tickets only from the official seller or its named resale partner, since many of these events cancel resold tickets and turn holders away at the gate. Second, book lodging as soon as dates are confirmed, often a year ahead, and choose a free-cancellation rate. Third, plan for weather: outdoor events rarely stop for rain, but high winds can cancel fireworks and street parties at short notice.

For weather, school holidays and month-by-month planning, see when to go. For festival-season room prices and where to stay instead, see where to stay.

2026–2027 calendar

These are dates we could confirm from organizers or official calendars as of October 2026. Events marked "not yet announced" usually fall in the window shown; check the organizer's site before you book flights.

Edinburgh's August festivals

For about four weeks every August, Edinburgh becomes the world's biggest arts gathering. Several separate festivals run at once, and together they double the city's population. If you love theater, comedy or music, nothing compares. If you just want to see the castle, come another month. See our Edinburgh guide for the city itself.

How to do it

• Lodging first. Hotel prices in August can run several times their usual rate, and good-value rooms are gone months ahead. Since July 24, 2026, Edinburgh also charges a 5% visitor levy on the room cost for the first five nights of a stay. University residences rent student rooms in summer, and Glasgow is about 50 minutes away by frequent train, though late shows can mean a tight last train.
• Mix big names with gambles. Book a few headline comedy or theater shows in advance, then fill gaps on the day. The Fringe's half-price ticket booth sells same-day seats, and the free Fringe strands run shows where you pay what you like at the end.
• Walk. Venues cluster in the Old Town, around George Square and Bristo Square, and in the New Town. Allow 20 minutes between venues, since streets are packed.

Notting Hill Carnival

Europe's biggest street festival takes over the streets of Notting Hill, Ladbroke Grove and Westbourne Park every August bank holiday weekend. It grew out of west London's Caribbean community in the 1960s and remains a celebration of that heritage: steel pan, soca and calypso, costumed mas bands, booming sound systems and food stalls selling jerk chicken, curry goat and rum punch. The crowd over two days is routinely estimated at more than a million.

• 2027 dates: Saturday Aug 28 is the ticketed steel band competition (Panorama). Sunday Aug 29 is Family Day, starting with J'Ouvert (an early-morning parade of paint, powder and music) and the children's parade. Monday Aug 30, the bank holiday, is the main adult parade.
• Cost: Sunday and Monday are free.
• Getting there: Stations closest to the route are closed or exit-only on carnival days. Walk in from Paddington, Bayswater, Queensway, Holland Park or Shepherd's Bush, and check TfL's carnival travel advice the week before.

Staying in Notting Hill that weekend means noise, street closures and many shops boarded up. If you want a quiet London visit, avoid the area entirely, or stay east of Marble Arch.

Glastonbury and other music festivals

Glastonbury Festival on Worthy Farm in Pilton, Somerset, is the UK's most famous music festival: five days, more than a hundred stages and fields, and a lineup that runs from global headliners to circus tents. It takes a "fallow year" every few years to rest the land, and 2026 was one.

How Glastonbury tickets work

1. Register. Everyone must register in advance with a photo; tickets carry that photo and are non-transferable. Registration for 2027 closed on September 25, 2026 and reopens only after the sale.
2. Pay a deposit in the sale. Coach-and-ticket packages sell first, then general tickets, both in a rush lasting minutes. For 2027, tickets cost £408 (about $545) including a £5 booking fee, with a £100 (about $135) deposit at purchase.
3. Pay the balance. The remaining £308 (about $410) plus postage is due April 1–7, 2027. Miss it and the ticket is released.
4. Try the resale. Cancelled and unpaid tickets go back on sale in spring 2027. Only registered users can buy.

The 2027 festival runs June 23–27, 2027, and the October 2026 sale sold out. Your only remaining official route is the spring resale, so keep your registration details handy and watch the festival's news page.

Plenty of other summer festivals are easier to get into, including Reading and Leeds, BST Hyde Park's concert series, the Isle of Wight Festival, Latitude in Suffolk and Green Man in Wales. Most sell tickets through the winter and spring; check each official site.

Wimbledon

The Championships run June 28–July 11, 2027, marking 150 years since the first tournament in 1877. Wimbledon is one of the few major sporting events where you can still turn up on the day and get in, which makes it a realistic goal for an American visitor. Full tennis detail is on our sports page.

The ballot

The Wimbledon Public Ballot is a lottery for show-court seats, open to overseas applicants. You need a myWimbledon account, may apply for up to two tickets, and only one application is allowed per household. The 2027 ballot opened September 1 and closed September 14, 2026; winners hear by email in October 2026. Expect the 2028 ballot around September 2027.

The Queue

Wimbledon's famous Queue forms in Wimbledon Park every day of the tournament. Stewards hand out numbered queue cards, which hold your place, and a share of show-court seats plus thousands of grounds passes are sold to people in the line. Diehards camp overnight to get Centre Court seats; arriving around dawn usually gets you a grounds pass on early-round days. The line is good-natured, orderly and very British. Bring a book, food, water, a rain layer and patience.

• Grounds passes give access to the outside courts, where you can watch top players from a few feet away in the first week.
• Inside the grounds, a resale kiosk sells seats returned by people who leave early.
• Check wimbledon.com for any online day-ahead sales, debenture seats (the only tickets that can be legally resold) and official hospitality.

The Proms

The BBC Proms is an eight-week summer festival of classical music at the Royal Albert Hall in South Kensington, with dozens of concerts by top orchestras, film-music nights and late-night recitals. It typically runs from mid-July to mid-September; the 2027 season had not been announced at press time and is usually unveiled in spring.

• Promming: Standing tickets in the arena and gallery, sold for every concert at a low flat price, are the Proms' tradition and the best bargain in London classical music. Check bbc.co.uk/proms for this season's price and booking rules.
• The Last Night: The flag-waving finale, with sing-alongs of patriotic songs, is so popular that tickets are allocated by ballot and through multi-concert packages. If you miss out, Proms in the Park in Hyde Park screens it with live acts.

Trooping the Colour, Chelsea and Royal Ascot

Trooping the Colour

The King's Birthday Parade, on a Saturday in June, sees more than a thousand soldiers, horses and musicians parade on Horse Guards Parade, followed by an RAF flypast over Buckingham Palace with the royal family on the balcony. In 2026 it took place on June 13, with rehearsal reviews on May 30 and June 6. The 2027 date had not been announced by October 2026.

• Seated tickets: Allocated by ballot through the Army's official site, kbp.army.mod.uk. Seats cost £30 (about $40) each, up to four per application. The two reviews in the preceding weeks are near-identical rehearsals and easier to get.
• Free viewing: Stand along The Mall or at the edge of St James's Park overlooking Horse Guards. Arrive by 9am for a spot, and expect your view to be partly blocked.

RHS Chelsea Flower Show

The world's best-known garden show fills the grounds of the Royal Hospital Chelsea with show gardens, a giant floral marquee and plant sellers. In 2027 it runs May 18–22. The first two days are for Royal Horticultural Society members; public days are Thursday May 20 to Saturday May 22, with a Chelsea Late evening on Friday May 21. Public tickets start at £61 (about $80) and member tickets at £48 (about $65); booking before January 4, 2027 gets the best prices. Tickets are on sale now and sell out.

Royal Ascot

Five days of top-level flat racing at Ascot, west of London, from Tuesday June 15 to Saturday June 19, 2027. Each afternoon starts with the Royal Procession, when the royal family arrives down the course in open carriages. Thursday is Gold Cup day. Trains from London Waterloo take about an hour.

Overseas visitors have traditionally been able to apply for Royal Enclosure badges through their embassy in London; ask early in the year. Read the full dress code on ascot.com before you shop, since staff turn away anyone who doesn't comply. For other racing, see sports.

Bonfire Night and Remembrance

Bonfire Night, November 5

Bonfire Night (also Guy Fawkes Night) marks the failed 1605 plot to blow up Parliament. Towns light bonfires and set off fireworks, usually on the weekend closest to November 5; in 2026 the date falls on a Thursday. Many public displays are free or cost a few pounds, and local councils list them online.

• Lewes, East Sussex: The most dramatic celebration in Britain, held on the night itself, with rival bonfire societies parading in costume with flaming torches, burning barrels and crosses honoring the Protestant martyrs burned in the town in the 1550s, before huge bonfires and effigy burnings. It is crowded and chaotic; roads close and trains may not stop, so check the bonfire societies' and rail operator's travel advice.
• Ottery St Mary, Devon: Locals run through the streets carrying flaming tar barrels on November 5.

Remembrance Sunday and Armistice Day

Britain honors its war dead on Remembrance Sunday (Nov 8, 2026; Nov 14, 2027) and on Armistice Day, November 11. At 11am, the country observes two minutes' silence: traffic stops in places, announcements pause in stations and shops, and people stand still. Join in; talking or carrying on through it is deeply disrespectful.

The main ceremony is at the Cenotaph on Whitehall, with the King, political leaders and a march past by thousands of veterans. You can watch from the pavements along Whitehall; arrive very early and expect security checks. In the weeks before, nearly everyone wears a paper poppy sold for the Royal British Legion (in Scotland, Poppyscotland's version has no leaf). Visitors are welcome to buy and wear one.

Christmas markets and Winter Wonderland

From early November, cities across the UK set up German-style wooden huts selling mulled wine, sausages, crafts and decorations. These are the announced 2026 dates; all are free to enter, but confirm on each market's own site before you book.

Hyde Park Winter Wonderland

London's giant winter fair runs from November 19, 2026 to January 3, 2027, closed only on Christmas Day. Expect an ice kingdom, a circus, an ice bar, an open-air ice rink, a 230-foot (70-meter) observation wheel, roller coasters and plenty of food and drink stalls. Entry is by timed ticket, and booking online is cheaper than paying at the gate.

London's street lights on Regent Street and Oxford Street and Covent Garden's decorations are free to enjoy. Pantomime, a riotous family theater tradition, runs in most British theaters from December; see London theater.

New Year's Eve in London and Hogmanay

London's New Year's Eve fireworks

London's midnight fireworks over the Thames around the London Eye are one of the world's biggest displays, and you need a ticket to watch from the riverside. For December 31, 2026, tickets went on sale on October 23 through Ticketmaster, the only authorized seller. Standard areas cost £40 (about $53) for visitors and £20 (about $27) for Londoners; premium areas cost £55 (about $73) for visitors and £35 (about $47) for Londoners, plus a booking fee.

• Standard areas are on the Victoria Embankment (north bank) and behind the London Eye (south bank), with an accessible viewing area on the Albert Embankment.
• Premium areas sit opposite the London Eye and on Waterloo and Westminster bridges.
• Tickets usually sell out quickly. Buy only through the official link on london.gov.uk.

Without a ticket, you can't get near the river around Westminster and the South Bank on the night. Distant views from hilltop parks such as Primrose Hill and Parliament Hill are an alternative, though crowded. TfL runs extra services on New Year's Eve, but stations near the river close or turn exit-only.

Edinburgh's Hogmanay

Scotland's New Year, Hogmanay, is a bigger deal than Christmas for many Scots, and Edinburgh throws a three-day party. The 2026–27 program:

• Torchlight Procession: Tuesday Dec 29, 2026, from 6:30pm, thousands of torch-bearers through the city center.
• The Night Afore Party: Wednesday Dec 30, with The Fratellis.
• Street Party: Thursday Dec 31 from 8pm on Princes Street, with fireworks from the castle at midnight. Ticketed.
• Hogmanay in the Gardens: Dec 31 from 8pm in Princes Street Gardens, headlined by Underworld. Ticketed.
• First Footin': New Year's Day, a free live-music trail around city venues.

Check edinburghshogmanay.com for ticket prices and availability. Dress for cold and wet weather, and know that high winds have forced the street party to cancel in recent years, including 2024. January 1 and 2 are both bank holidays in Scotland (January 4 in 2027, as the 2nd falls on a Saturday), so expect some closures.

Outside Edinburgh, Stonehaven in Aberdeenshire swings flaming fireballs through its streets at midnight. See Edinburgh for where to stay.

Up Helly Aa and Shetland's fire festivals

Up Helly Aa in Lerwick, Shetland's capital, takes place on the last Tuesday of January: Tuesday January 26, 2027. It celebrates Shetland's Norse heritage. The Guizer Jarl and his Jarl Squad, in Viking armor, march through town all day, visiting schools and care homes. After dark, around a thousand torch-carrying guizers parade through the streets and hurl their torches into a full-size replica Viking galley, which burns to the sound of songs and fireworks. Since 2025, women and girls have been able to join the Lerwick squads.

• Watching: The day procession and evening torchlight procession are free to watch from the streets.
• The halls: After the burning, squads perform skits in local halls through the night. Entry is by invitation or ticket; the Lerwick Town Hall sells a limited number of tickets through the official site, so check uphellyaa.org early.
• Getting there: Overnight NorthLink ferries from Aberdeen, or Loganair flights to Sumburgh from Scottish airports. Rooms in Lerwick sell out; book months ahead. See Scottish islands.

Smaller Up Helly Aa festivals run in other Shetland communities from January to March. On the mainland, Burghead on the Moray coast burns the Clavie, a barrel of tar, every January 11.

Wales: Hay Festival and the Eisteddfod

Hay Festival

Hay-on-Wye, a small town of secondhand bookshops on the Wales–England border, hosts one of the world's leading literary festivals: novelists, historians, scientists and politicians in big tents in a field outside town. The 2027 festival runs May 27 to June 6. Tickets are sold per event, and members get priority booking before general release. Hay has no train station, so plan a car or festival transport, and book rooms early; many visitors stay in nearby villages or across the border in Herefordshire. See Wales.

The National Eisteddfod

The National Eisteddfod is Wales's great festival of Welsh-language culture: music, poetry, dance and the ceremonies of the Gorsedd, including the crowning and chairing of the festival's best poets. It moves location each year. In 2027 it is held in Montgomeryshire and Meirionnydd, on the banks of the River Dyfi at Cemaes near Machynlleth, from July 31 to August 7.

Everything happens in Welsh, but visitors are warmly welcomed, and the Maes (the festival field) is full of food, crafts, music stages and a learners' area. Check the festival's site for day ticket prices and translation services.

Wales's other big gatherings include the Llangollen International Musical Eisteddfod each July, with choirs and dancers from around the world and an English-friendly program, and the Urdd Eisteddfod, Europe's largest youth festival, in late spring.

Belfast's St Patrick's Day and Derry's Halloween

St Patrick's Day

March 17 is a bank holiday in Northern Ireland; in 2027 it falls on a Wednesday. Belfast holds a carnival parade through the city center and free concerts, and Cathedral Quarter pubs fill with traditional music. Armagh, the seat of both the Catholic and Church of Ireland archbishops, and Downpatrick, where the saint is said to be buried at Down Cathedral, have their own parades and are quieter alternatives. Dublin's huge celebration is about two hours south by the Enterprise train if you want both; see combining the UK and Ireland.

The day is now celebrated across communities, but parades and flags still carry meaning in Northern Ireland. Green clothing is fine; avoid political symbols. Our etiquette page covers the sensitivities.

Derry Halloween

Derry~Londonderry stages one of the biggest Halloween festivals anywhere, and the city's 17th-century walls make a perfect backdrop. The 2026 festival runs October 28 to November 1:

• Awakening the Walled City: October 28–30, 6pm to 9pm, a trail of light installations, performances and storytelling inside the walls.
• Carnival Parade: Saturday October 31 at 7pm, marking the parade's 40th anniversary.
• Fireworks finale: October 31 at 8:15pm over the River Foyle.
• Heart of Samhain: Live music, food and entertainment in Guildhall Square and Harbour Square.

Locals of all ages dress up, so bring a costume. Derry is about two hours from Belfast by train, and rooms for Halloween weekend are scarce, so if you are reading this in late October, look at Belfast or the Causeway Coast and travel in for the evening. See Northern Ireland.