Frequently Asked Questions

How does Bristol Folk Festival work?

The festival is a venue-based festival that happens over the May Day Bank Holiday. This year, the main venues are St George’s Bristol, Bristol Beacon (Main Hall), Bristol Folk House, Bristol Cathedral, Arnolfini & The Architect.

How does the Ticketing work? Which Ticket should I buy?

If you want to experience the lively festival atmosphere – we recommend buying a Day + Night ticket for St George’s, or a weekend pass. Otherwise book for individual shows.

You can buy the following tickets:
 
Weekend Pass – the best way to experience the festival. The weekend ticket gives you access to Bristol Cathedral, all of the St George’s shows, and Bristol Beacon, plus access to the smaller capacity events at Bristol Folk House, Arnolfini & The Architect (subject to capacity).

We’ve not yet had a capacity issue, but if your heart is set on the Ceilidh, we recommend booking individual rather than weekend tickets, or arriving early.

You will be given a wristband when you first arrive at the festival.
 
Day + Night Tickets give you access to all shows at St George’s on the day in question (5 main hall artists + fringe activity). You will be given a wristband when you arrive at the festival. (1 pm – 10.30 pm with a break for dinner).
 
Day Tickets give you access to the afternoon shows at St George’s. There are 3 main hall acts in the afternoon. Plus choirs, dance & sessions around the venue. (1 pm – 5 pm).

Night Tickets give you access to the evening show at St George’s. There are 2 main hall acts in the evening. (7.30 pm – 10.30 pm).

Late Night Folk Tickets give you access to all the artists at The Architect. Doors open at 9 pm & the music goes on til 12.30 am. With the venue closing at 1 am. If you already have a ticket for a festival show on that day or a weekend ticket, you are welcome to join us down at The Architect for Late Night Folk – just show your wristband/ticket on the door. Capacity is limited. Entry is first-come first-served.

Individual Concert Tickets give you access to that concert.

I bought Online but can’t find my ticket. What should I do?

Occasionally the tickets may have gone into your spam or been blocked by your IT. If you have proof of purchase, e.g. your order confirmation email, bring that along to the festival & this will suffice. We have a list of all ticket purchasers on the door.
 
If you can’t find any proof of purchase, or can’t remember if you’ve booked, please email [email protected] & we can look up your order & re-send details. Please do this in good time, as we are small volunteer team.

How do I get my wristband? 

When you arrive at the festival, for your first show, head to the festival welcome desk & you will be given a wristband.  

We encourage weekend ticket holders to head to Bristol Cathedral for 6.30 pm on the Friday.

Bristol Beacon – Important Entry Information 

If you bought your Unthanks ticket from the festival, you will need to check-in at the Festival Welcome Desk to before heading into the hall. Here you will be given your allocated seat number. You will not able to enter the hall without this.

Weekend ticket holders will also need check-in to get their seat number, before heading into the hall.

The check-in desk is open from 6.30 pm at Bristol Beacon & the Hall Doors will open at 6.45 pm. A little earlier than originally scheduled, to give you plenty of time, as it’s a busy show.

Bristol Cathedral

The bar at Bristol Cathedral is card-only. All proceeds go to supporting the programming of emerging artists at the Festival.

Can I get a child ticket?

A limited number of Child tickets will be made available for the Saturday Day & Sunday Day concerts for under 16s.

Where can I park for the Festival?

We recommend travelling to the festival on foot, by public transport or taxi. If you do need to travel by car, please note that there are no venue car parks. However if you do need to travel by car, we recommend the following public car parks:

St George’s Bristol (BS1 5RR), Bristol Beacon & Bristol Folk House (BS1 5JG)
Trenchard Street

Arnolfini & The Architect (BS1 4QA)
The Grove

Limited on-street parking is available – you can read more about this & the venues at their websites. St George’s Bristol, Bristol Folk House


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