Upcoming Holidays and Festivals in England
- Before planning a trip around a festival, verify the festival dates on the festival's website or with a local tourist information office. For more information about these and other events, see the sites for Visit England and Visit Britain.
- This list includes major festivals in major cities, plus national holidays observed throughout England. Many sights and banks close down on national holidays — keep it in mind when planning your itinerary. Note that this isn't a complete list; holidays can strike without warning.
- See upcoming holidays and festivals in Scotland, Wales, and across Europe
2022
Through January 2, 2023: Blackpool Illuminations (waterfront light festival)
Through mid-December: Christmas festivals, across Britain; York's St. Nicholas Fayre and Keswick's Victorian Fayre are especially fun (markets, music, entertainment)
December 24–26: Christmas holidays
2023
January 1: New Year's Day
January 2: New Year's Day Bank Holiday (closures)
February (5 days): Jorvik Viking Festival, York (costumed warriors, battles)
March 26: Oxford vs. Cambridge Boat Race, southwest London
April 7–April 10: Easter Weekend (Good Friday through Easter Monday; closures)
April 29–May 1: Chimney Sweeps Festival, Rochester (Morris dancers, northwest of Canterbury)
May 1: Early May Bank Holiday (closures)
May 6–26 (likely): Plymouth History Festival
May 12–21: Bath Festival (music and literature)
May 23–27: Chelsea Flower Show, London
May 26–June 11: Bath Fringe Festival (alternative music, dance, and theater)
May 27: Live at Leeds (city-wide music festival)
May 29 (likely): Cooper's Hill Cheese Roll, Gloucester, Cotswolds
May 29: Spring Bank Holiday (closures)
June 2–3: Keswick Beer Festival (music, shows)
June 10 (likely): Trooping the Colour, London (King's birthday parade, with military bands and pageantry)
June 16–25: Golowan Festival, Penzance (midsummer celebration)
June 20–24: Royal Ascot horse races, near Windsor
June 21–25: Glastonbury Festival, Somerset (indie pop/rock music)
June 30–July 2: Love Supreme, Sussex (jazz festival)
July 1 (likely): London Pride Parade
July 3–16: Wimbledon Tennis Championship, London
July 7–14: Early Music Festival, York
Mid-July–mid-September: The Proms, London (series of classical-music performances in Royal Albert Hall)
July 21–23: Tramlines Festival, Sheffield (indie rock and more)
July 27–30: WOMAD Festival, Malmesbury (between Bath and Oxford; world music)
July 27–30: Cambridge Folk Festival
August 4–7: Pride Festival, Brighton
August 12–20 (likely): Kettlewell Scarecrow Festival, Yorkshire
August 27–28: Notting Hill Carnival, London (costumes, Caribbean music)
August 28: Summer Bank Holiday (closures)
September (all month): Totally Thames, London (free events on the south bank of the Thames)
September 1–January 2, 2023 (likely): Blackpool Illuminations (waterfront light festival)
September 8–17: Heritage Open Days (free entry to many historical sights across England)
September 8–17 (likely): Jane Austen Festival, Bath
September 21–24 (likely): Leeds International Festival of Ideas (forward-looking arts and culture festival)
September 22–October 1: York Food and Drink Festival
October 4–15 (likely): BFI London Film Festival
November 5: Guy Fawkes Night (fireworks, bonfires, effigy-burning of 1605 traitor Guy Fawkes)
November 11: Lord Mayor's Show (traditional pageants in the City of London, including horse-drawn coach parades and fireworks)
November 12: Remembrance Sunday (two minutes of silence at 11:00, people wear poppies on lapels, royals lay wreaths at Cenotaph on Whitehall in London for WWI dead)
November 18 (likely): Glastonbury Carnival
Late November–mid-December: Christmas festivals, across Britain; York's St. Nicholas Fayre and Keswick's Victorian Fayre are especially fun (markets, music, entertainment)
December 24–26: Christmas holidays