Bristol Festivals

Festival fiend? Then Bristol is your natural home – there’s pretty much a festival for everything here. From ballooning to beer, this city’s got festival fever all year.  

Bristol festivals are world famous. Take the Bristol balloon festival – an international fiesta of hot air balloons spanning four glorious days each summer. Head to Ashton Court Estate and watch mass ascents of balloons in all sorts of amazing shapes and sizes, morning and night. There’s also night glows set to music, fireworks and lots more family fun. 

Then there’s Bristol Harbour Festival, the mother of all maritime festivals, which celebrates the city’s vibrant Harbourside. You can watch daredevil stunts, go on leisurely boat rides, nod your head along to local bands and eat and drink Bristol fashion from the many amazing market stalls. 

But it doesn’t stop there! As the home of Banksy, we’re proud to host Upfest – Europe’s largest urban paint festival and a rare chance to see some of the best graffiti artists work their magic right in front of your eyes. No need to leave the kids at home either... It’s a great day out for the whole family, with lots of creative workshops and activities for the little ones.  

Oh, and did we mention our many music festivals? From Love Saves the Day to Bristol Sounds and Bristol Americana Festival to Valley Fest – it’s a pretty pumping calendar if you like dancing in fields (or by the docks) with a cider in hand. 

Of course there’s also cider festivals, craft beer festivals, food festivals, a chocolate festival, film festivals, a surf film festival, a Shakespeare festival… (take a breath) and Bristol festivals just for kids. There’s even a slapstick comedy festival and a festival dedicated entirely to local boy turned Hollywood A-lister - Cary Grant. 

See what we mean? Bristol festivals are something to behold! So sunglasses and silly hats at the ready… Simply browse through the list below or search for the dates of your visit and find the perfect Bristol festival for you. Oh and if you want a memento of your adventures, remember to visit our Online Shop.