Upcoming Holidays and Festivals in Scotland
- 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, contact the Visit Britain office.
- This list includes major festivals in Edinburgh, plus national holidays observed throughout Scotland. 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 England, Wales, and across Europe
2018
May 7: Early May Bank Holiday
May 18–20: Festival of Museums, across Scotland
May 25–28: The Biggest Weekend, Perth (indie/pop music festival)
May 28: Spring Bank Holiday
June 20–July 1: Edinburgh International Film Festival
June 21–24: Royal Highland Show, Edinburgh (Scottish-flavored county fair)
June 30–July 1: Scottish Traditional Boat Festival, Portsoy (east of Inverness)
August 3–25: Edinburgh Military Tattoo, Edinburgh (massing of military bands)
August 3–27: Edinburgh International Festival (music, dance, shows)
August 3–27: Edinburgh Fringe Festival (offbeat theater and comedy)
August 6: Summer Bank Holiday
August 11–27: Edinburgh International Book Festival
August 23–25: Cowal Highland Gathering, west of Glasgow in Dunoon
September 1: Braemar Gathering, north of Pitlochry
October 12–20: Royal National Mòd, Western Isles (Gaelic cultural festival)
November 5: Guy Fawkes Night (fireworks, bonfires, effigy-burning of 1605 traitor Guy Fawkes)
November 11: Remembrance Sunday (two minutes of silence at 11:00 to remember WWI dead, people wear poppies on lapels)
November 30: St. Andrew's Day (national day; ceilidh dancing and other cultural events; bank-holiday closures)
December 24–26: Christmas holidays (closures)
December 31–January 2: Hogmanay (Scottish New Year's, with music, street theater, carnival)
2019
January 1: New Year's Day (closures)
January 2: New Year's Holiday (closures)
January 25: Burns' Night (poetry readings, haggis…whisky)
January 29: Up Helly Aa, Shetland Islands (Viking-inspired festival with torch processions and a burning galley)
April 21–April 22: Easter weekend (Good Friday through Easter Sunday; closures)
April 30: Beltane Fire Festival, Edinburgh (dancing, bonfire)