Nearby Events & Festivals
Find below a listing of some our favourite nearby annual events and festivals.
Dove Holes Jazz Club
Previously a weekend, summer jazz festival, now a monthly programme of touring jazz musicians on the third Saturday of the month (typically). 8pm at the Dove Holes Village Hall. See our live music listing for details.
Ashbourne Royal Shrovetide Football
Are you an Up’ard or a Down’ard? Well, it depends on which side of Henmore Brook you were born. This customary game of ‘football’ is played on Shrove Tuesday and Ash Wednesday throughout the market town of Ashbourne including its streets, rivers and fields. The goals are three miles apart (the old Clifton and Sturston mills) and pretty much anything goes. The leather ball is ‘turned up’ (thrown in the air) at Shaw Croft car park by an honoured guest into a crowd of thousands and doesn’t stop for at least eight hours each day. A sight to be behold!
KlezNorth
An annual festival of Klezmer music, dance and song welcoming both Jewish and non-Jewish people to the wonderful world of Klezmer which takes place in late March/early April in Youlgrave.
Well Dressing
The tradition of giving thanks to the spring waters by dressing the local wells with pictures made from flower petals is celebrated throughout Derbyshire from May to September. For a list of festival dates for the towns and villages in the area, see our news page, or see the Visit Peak District & Derbyshire website here. Find out about Buxton’s well dressing festival here.
Tideswell Annual Food Festival
A traditional village festival celebrating Tideswell in early May with over sixty stalls offering culinary delights, artisan crafts and musical entertainment.
Castleton Garland Day
Held on 29 May (unless on a Sunday) in the nearby, picturesque village of Castleton, the Garland Day is a custom which coincides with Oak Apple Day, commemorating the restoration of King Charles II in 1660. The heavy, bell-shaped Garland, made in the morning, represents the oak tree in which the monarch hid after the Battle of Worcester. The Garland King, on horseback, is covered to the waist in the Garland and leads a procession through the village.
Carnivals
Carnival parades typically form part of well dressing celebrations. Nearby parades, all of which take place on Saturdays in June, include New Mills (2nd), Chapel-en-le-Frith (3rd), Tideswell (4th) and Whaley Bridge (4th). Buxton’s carnival takes place on the second Saturday of July – find out more on the well dressing festival page.
Rosa Festival
Rosa Festival is an over-18s music and arts festival which takes place over a weekend in mid-June at Kenslow Farm, Middleton-By-Youlgreave, in the heart of the White Peak.
Churnet Valley Railway Real Ale Trail
Enjoy real ale on an 11-mile, round trip along Churnet Valley in heritage locomotives. Early July from Froghall Station.
Blue Dot Festival
A four-day music and science festival in mid-July at Jodrell Bank Observatory in Cheshire. ***No event in 2024***
Y-Not Festival
A three-day music festival held in late July at Pikehall, near Matlock. Enjoy great music, great food and carefree fun in the heart of the beautiful Peak District.
Chesterfield Medieval Fun Day
1261 Festival & Parade Day
A celebration of all things Macclesfield. Taking place in mid-August in 2025 and hosted by Macclesfield Town Council.
Peakender
A beer and food festival at the Bakewell Showground in mid-August hosted by locally-based Thornbridge Brewery. ***No event in 2024***
Peak District Highland Games
The country’s leading strongmen and strongwomen compete at this event at Matlock Farm Park in late August.
Festival Sessions
A three-day music and performance festival in Hayfield in early September organised by The Tent People.
New Mills Festival
A two-week community festival with arts, heritage, science and culture held in nearby New Mills in September. This annual celebration of community spirit features a diverse range of activities from talks and walks to concerts, gigs, exhibitions, trails, quizzes and performances.
Longnor Races
Longnor Sports host their annual races every September, with pony gymkhana races, harness racing, motorbike racing and a fell race.
Matlock Bath Illuminations
A fun-packed, family event featuring spectacular parades of illuminated and decorated boats along the River Derwent each weekend in September and October.
Leek Blues & Americana Festival
A packed weekend of completely free music in early October.
Glossop BookFest
A packed day of creative-writing-based events in Glossop in mid-October.
Matlock Raft Race
A raft event held on the River Derwent in Matlock, Derbyshire every Boxing Day in aid of the Royal National Lifeboat Institute.
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Buxton Civic Association celebrates the natural and human heritage of Buxton including its outstanding buildings and wildlife. We conserve and enhance this heritage and advocate its importance in making Buxton a special place to live or to visit.
