We have festivals all year round in Ireland, some are all over the country while some are unique experiences that you can only find in Cork. Here is a list of our top yearly festivals that you can experience during your time in Cork. As you will see below there is a wide variety of festivals for types of tastes & interests. You will never be short for something to do!
31th October 2023
Each year thousands take to the streets of Shandon on Cork ’s Northside to walk with the Dragon as it travels between worlds in a celebration of the living and the dead accompanied by an assortment of creatures from the underworld.
Learn More26-30th October 2023
The festival returns for its 44th year with a host of new acts, venues, and experiences to surprise and delight attendees. Taking place over the October Bank Holiday weekend from the 28th – 31st, this year’s line-up is incredibly special with some of the biggest names in jazz gracing the stage for what is set to be the most magnetic Guinness Cork Jazz Festival we have seen yet – tickets are on sale from Friday, 26th August.
Learn More9-19th November
Cork International Film Festival’s mission is to present Ireland’s most exciting, diverse, and ambitious annual film festival, connecting and stimulating audiences and artists through a carefully curated selection of the best films, to create a unique shared cultural experience, rooted in Cork, open to the world.
The first film festival in Cork was recognised by the International Federation of Film Producers Association, one of only five globally to be approved at their 1950 Congress in Cannes. In 2023, Cork International Film Festival is one of a handful of film festivals in Ireland to host three awards with Oscar® accreditation.
Learn More2nd -11th June 2023
Cork’s largest celebration of maritime culture and heritage returned on June 3-13 with over 50 events in 15 stunning locations throughout Cork City and Cork Harbour.
The varied programme spanned on-the-water activities, history, music, art, workshops, talks and walking tours, the environment, and family events. There was truly something for every age and activity level. Sing a sea shanty, view the sea on the moon, learn about marine life or try your hand at foraging for seaweed. Families and children could make a model boat, join a picnic, create Lego art or explore the harbour’s awe-inspiring forts.
Learn More23rd June – 2nd July 2023
Summer music festival taking place in the beautiful Bantry House.
2023 Artists include: Armida Quartet, Pacifica Quartet, Ragazze Quartet, Ardeo Quartet, Ensemble Diderot, Alina Ibragimova, Viviane Hagner, Caroline Melzer and Trio Gaspard. The Biber Mystery Sonatas, postponed from 2022, will be performed by Ensemble Vintage Köln with newly commissioned poems by Ruth Padel.
Learn MoreThe event puts a spotlight on local beverages, culinary wonders and talented performers. It brings together expert chefs, musicians, artists, and bakers to share what they do best in the beautiful coastal town of Kinsale.
Learn More14th- 25th June
An award-winning opera performance watched from above, performed on an indoor beach at Cork’s City Hall.
Learn More27th May to 24th June
Live at the Marquee is a season of music concerts and other live performance events organised by Aiken Promotions in a large marquee in Cork
Learn More28th April to 1st May
Unmatched fringe Jazz Festival in the village of Ballydehob, which is the gateway to the Mizen Peninsula in West Cork, Ireland, on the Wild Atlantic Way.
Learn More26th- 30th April 2023
Founded in 1954 to be a dynamic force in developing choral music in Ireland, the Cork International Choral Festival is held annually over the five days preceding the first Monday in May in venues across the city, centring around the City Hall, one of the most attractive and acoustically superb venues in Ireland.One of Europe’s premier international choral festivals, Cork is noted for its high standards, eclectic and wide-ranging programme, and the friendliness of its welcome.
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