The Ireland travel calendar

September 2026

1. Festivals and culture · Dublin

   Dublin Fringe Festival

   Saturday 5 to Sunday 20 September 2026

   Two and a half weeks of new theatre, dance and performance in small rooms across the city.

   The most useful two nights you can spend in Dublin in September if you want the city working rather than performing for visitors. Tickets are cheap by American standards and the rooms are small.

   What it does to a booking

   Little effect on hotel rates. Restaurant tables near the Project Arts Centre and Smock Alley tighten from about seven o'clock.

   Plan around itDublin Fringe FestivalChecked 2026-09-09

2. Golf · Clare

   Amgen Irish Open

   Thursday 10 to Sunday 13 September 2026

   Ireland's DP World Tour event, played on a west coast links in the best golf month of the year.

   The one week when the professional game comes to the coast most American golfers already want to play. Walk the dunes on Sunday, then play Lahinch and Ballybunion in the same trip while the light is still long.

   What it does to a booking

   Clare and north Kerry rooms go early and go high. Book eleven months out, or base yourself in Limerick and drive in.

   Plan around itDP World TourChecked 2026-09-09

3. Festivals and culture · Nationwide

   Culture Night, Oíche Chultúir

   Friday 18 September 2026

   One night when museums, studios, libraries and private buildings open free of charge, late.

   The cheapest good night of the Irish year, and the only evening you can walk into buildings that are closed to visitors for the other 364. Plan it as an evening, not a schedule.

   What it does to a booking

   No rate effect. City centre parking is worse than usual, so stay somewhere you can walk from.

   Plan around itCulture NightChecked 2026-09-09

4. Food and drink · Galway

   Galway International Oyster and Seafood Festival

   Friday 25 to Sunday 27 September 2026

   The seventy second running of the festival that opens the native oyster season, shucking championship and all.

   Native Irish oysters are only worth eating from September, and this is the weekend the country admits it. Come for the Friday, eat at Moran's or Sheridan's, leave the marquee to the stag parties.

   What it does to a booking

   Galway city sells out. Book by spring, or sleep in Connemara and come in for the day.

   Plan around itGalway International Oyster and Seafood FestivalChecked 2026-09-09

October 2026

1. Food and drink · Kerry

   Dingle Food Festival

   Saturday 3 to Sunday 4 October 2026

   A taste trail through a working fishing town, with the boats still landing behind it.

   Dingle in early October is the version of Kerry we would show a first time visitor: the buses are gone, the peninsula is empty and the food is better than the town lets on. Tourism sources list 2 to 4 October; the festival's own site says 3 to 4.

   What it does to a booking

   Dingle beds are limited at any time of year and this weekend removes what is left. Book by July.

   Plan around itDingle Food FestivalChecked 2026-09-09

2. Food and drink · Cork

   Mad Hatter's Taste of Kinsale

   October 2026, one Saturday. The organiser's page currently lists both 10 and 12 October, so confirm before booking flights around it

   Dates not yet confirmed by the organiser. We have not filled the gap with a guess.

   A walking supper through the restaurants of the Good Food Circle, in costume, at pace.

   Kinsale is the one Irish town where a food crawl is genuinely the best way to eat, because the kitchens are within four streets of each other. Worth building an autumn Cork weekend around.

   What it does to a booking

   Kinsale hotels fill for the weekend either side. Perryville House and the harbour rooms go first.

   Plan around itKinsale Good Food CircleChecked 2026-09-09

3. Festivals and culture · Wexford

   Wexford Festival Opera

   Thursday 15 to Saturday 31 October 2026

   Seventeen days of rare opera, the seventy fifth anniversary edition, in a purpose built house in a small harbour town.

   An opera festival of genuine international standing held somewhere you can walk home from in ten minutes. Black tie without a queue for a cab, which is the whole argument for it.

   What it does to a booking

   Wexford town rooms are gone by late summer. Many visitors stay in Rosslare or Enniscorthy and drive.

   Plan around itWexford Festival OperaChecked 2026-09-09

4. Festivals and culture · Cork

   Guinness Cork Jazz Festival

   The October bank holiday weekend, 22 to 26 October 2026. Cork tourism and the transport authority publish 22 to 26; the festival's own site currently reads 23 to 27

   Dates not yet confirmed by the organiser. We have not filled the gap with a guess.

   The whole city given over to jazz for a bank holiday weekend, hotel ballrooms and back bars alike.

   Cork is the best eating city in Ireland and this is the weekend it is most alive. The ticketed headliners are beside the point. The free pub programme is the festival.

   What it does to a booking

   Cork city sells out entirely and rates roughly double. Book by June or stay in Kinsale and take the road in.

   Plan around itGuinness Cork Jazz FestivalChecked 2026-09-09

5. Festivals and culture · Dublin

   Bram Stoker Festival

   Friday 23 to Monday 26 October 2026

   Four nights of gothic theatre, light installations and late openings in the city that produced Dracula.

   The civilised half of Irish Halloween. It is designed for adults, it is largely free, and it is the reason to be in Dublin rather than in traffic to Derry.

   What it does to a booking

   Mid term break overlaps, so family rates in Dublin climb. Book restaurants, not just rooms.

   Plan around itBram Stoker FestivalChecked 2026-09-09

6. Festivals and culture · Derry

   Derry Halloween

   Wednesday 28 October to Sunday 1 November 2026

   The fortieth anniversary of the carnival that turned a walled city into Europe's largest Halloween street event.

   Halloween is Irish before it is American, and this is the one place that proves it. Tens of thousands in costume inside seventeenth century walls, then the Causeway Coast an hour away the next morning.

   What it does to a booking

   Derry accommodation is booked out months ahead. Most visitors sleep in Portrush, Limavady or Donegal and travel in.

   Plan around itDerry HalloweenChecked 2026-09-09

November 2026

1. Festivals and culture · Antrim

   Belfast Christmas Market

   Mid November to just before Christmas. The 2026 dates are not yet published by the city

   Dates not yet confirmed by the organiser. We have not filled the gap with a guess.

   A continental market in the grounds of the City Hall, run since 2004.

   The best excuse to give Belfast two nights in winter, which is when the city is at its most likeable. Pair it with the Merchant, Titanic Belfast and a Bushmills day.

   What it does to a booking

   Weekend rates in Belfast rise sharply through December. Midweek is half the price and a quarter of the crowd.

   Visit BelfastChecked 2026-09-09

2. Festivals and culture · Galway

   Galway Christmas Market

   Expected mid November to 31 December 2026. Exact opening not yet confirmed by the operator

   Dates not yet confirmed by the organiser. We have not filled the gap with a guess.

   The largest Christmas market in the west, set in the city's main square.

   Galway in December is wet, dark and completely charming, and this is the week the west stops being seasonal. Come for two nights, eat at Aniar or Loam, walk the Latin Quarter after.

   What it does to a booking

   December weekends in Galway now behave like summer weekends. Book by September.

   Plan around itGalway TourismChecked 2026-09-09

December 2026

1. Festivals and culture · Dublin

   New Year's Festival Dublin

   Wednesday 30 December 2026 to Friday 1 January 2027

   Three days of concerts, light events and city centre programming into the new year.

   Dublin over New Year is quiet in a way it never is in summer, and the hotels that are impossible in July are open on the last week of December. A good, cheap window for a first visit.

   What it does to a booking

   Rates hold high on 31 December and drop hard on 1 January. Arrive on the 29th, not the 31st.

   Plan around itNew Year's Festival DublinChecked 2026-09-09

January 2027

1. Festivals and culture · Dublin

   TradFest Dublin

   Wednesday 20 to Sunday 24 January 2027

   Traditional and folk music played in cathedrals, castles and churches rather than bars.

   The single best answer to the complaint that Irish music in Dublin is now a tourist product. Hearing a set in St Patrick's Cathedral in January is not a tourist product.

   What it does to a booking

   January is the cheapest week of the Dublin year and the festival barely moves it. Book the concerts, not the room.

   Plan around itTradFestChecked 2026-09-09

March 2027

1. Festivals and culture · Dublin

   St Patrick's Festival Dublin

   Saturday 13 to Wednesday 17 March 2027, with the parade on Wednesday 17 March

   Five days of programming around the national holiday, ending with the parade.

   We will say this plainly: the parade is not why you come. The festival around it, the concerts, the talks, the céilís, is genuinely good, and mid March light on the west coast afterwards is underrated.

   What it does to a booking

   The most expensive four nights of the Dublin year, comfortably. If you are not there for the parade, travel the following week instead.

   Plan around itSt Patrick's FestivalChecked 2026-09-09

2. Food and drink · Cork

   Cork Whiskey Fest

   Late March 2027, dates not yet announced. The 2026 edition ran 27 to 29 March

   Dates not yet confirmed by the organiser. We have not filled the gap with a guess.

   A city whiskey weekend with access to Midleton, where Redbreast and the Spot whiskeys are made.

   The only weekend of the year when the rare cask tastings at Midleton are easy to get into. If you care about Irish single pot still, plan the trip around this rather than around the distillery's normal tour.

   What it does to a booking

   Cork city fills for the weekend. Book Midleton events the day they release, they go in hours.

   Plan around itCork Whiskey FestChecked 2026-09-09

April 2027

1. Food and drink · Waterford

   Waterford Festival of Food

   Late April 2027, dates not yet announced. The 2026 edition ran 24 to 26 April

   Dates not yet confirmed by the organiser. We have not filled the gap with a guess.

   A working town food festival built on the Copper Coast producers around it.

   Dungarvan is where Irish food journalism goes to eat, and the Greenway gives you a way to work it off. A quiet, unshowy weekend for people who actually cook.

   What it does to a booking

   Dungarvan has few rooms. The Tannery townhouse and Cliff House at Ardmore fill first.

   Plan around itWaterford Festival of FoodChecked 2026-09-09

2. Racing and sporting · Kildare

   Punchestown Festival

   Tuesday 27 April to Saturday 1 May 2027, per hospitality partners. Confirm on the racecourse's own calendar before booking

   Dates not yet confirmed by the organiser. We have not filled the gap with a guess.

   Five days that close the National Hunt season, thirty minutes from Dublin.

   The Irish racing week that is still Irish. Cheltenham is where the country goes to compete. Punchestown is where it goes to enjoy itself, and it is far easier to get into.

   What it does to a booking

   Kildare and south Dublin hotels fill. Car hire out of Dublin airport tightens that week too.

   Punchestown RacecourseChecked 2026-09-09

May 2027

1. Food and drink · Cork

   Ballymaloe Festival of Food

   Friday 14 to Sunday 16 May 2027

   Three days at the house and cookery school that reinvented Irish food.

   If you only understand Irish food through pubs, this is the correction. Book a room at the house itself, do the Saturday, and you will plan the rest of the country differently.

   What it does to a booking

   Rooms at Ballymaloe House for that weekend go a year ahead. East Cork alternatives are thin.

   Plan around itBallymaloe Festival of FoodChecked 2026-09-09

June 2027

1. Food and drink · Dublin

   Whiskey Live Dublin

   Early June 2027, dates not yet announced. The 2026 edition ran 5 to 6 June at the RDS

   Dates not yet confirmed by the organiser. We have not filled the gap with a guess.

   Every Irish distillery of consequence pouring in one hall, including bottles that never leave the country.

   Two hours here will teach you more about what to bring home than a week of distillery tours. Go early in the session, before the room gets loud.

   What it does to a booking

   No meaningful rate effect. Stay walking distance in Ballsbridge and do not plan to drive.

   Plan around itWhiskey Live DublinChecked 2026-09-09

2. Food and drink · Dublin

   Taste of Dublin

   Mid June 2027, dates not yet announced. The 2026 edition ran 11 to 14 June in Merrion Square

   Dates not yet confirmed by the organiser. We have not filled the gap with a guess.

   The city's restaurants cooking small plates outdoors for four days.

   The efficient way to audition six Dublin kitchens in an afternoon before deciding where to spend a real evening. Treat it as research, not as dinner.

   What it does to a booking

   None on rates. The restaurants themselves are quieter than usual that week.

   Plan around itTaste of DublinChecked 2026-09-09

3. Festivals and culture · Dublin

   Bloomsday

   Wednesday 16 June 2027 for the day itself. The full festival programme and its surrounding dates are not yet announced

   Dates not yet confirmed by the organiser. We have not filled the gap with a guess.

   The city reading Ulysses aloud, in Edwardian dress, on the day the novel is set.

   One of the few literary anniversaries anywhere that the host city actually observes in the street. Start at the Martello tower in Sandycove at breakfast, not at the pub crawl.

   What it does to a booking

   None on rates. Book the James Joyce Centre events the week they open.

   Plan around itBloomsday FestivalChecked 2026-09-09

July 2027

1. Festivals and culture · Galway

   Galway International Arts Festival

   12 to 25 July 2027 for the fiftieth edition, per Galway Tourism. Not yet listed on the festival's own site

   Dates not yet confirmed by the organiser. We have not filled the gap with a guess.

   Two weeks of theatre, visual art and music that take over the city, ending as the Races begin.

   The fiftieth edition, and the most ambitious cultural fortnight in Ireland. If you want one trip that is Ireland at full volume, this into the Races is it.

   What it does to a booking

   July in Galway is already tight and the festival closes it. Book by January or base in Connemara.

   Plan around itGalway International Arts FestivalChecked 2026-09-09

2. Racing and sporting · Galway

   Galway Races Summer Festival

   Monday 26 July to Sunday 1 August 2027

   Seven days of racing, and the social week the west of Ireland plans its summer around.

   Ladies' Day at Ballybrit is the closest thing Ireland has to Ascot, with none of the reserve. Go Thursday, wear the hat, and let the hotel arrange the car.

   What it does to a booking

   The most expensive week of the Galway year by a distance. Rooms triple and require minimum stays.

   Plan around itGalway RacesChecked 2026-09-09

August 2027

1. Festivals and culture · Antrim

   Fleadh Cheoil na hÉireann

   Early August 2027 in Belfast, exact dates not yet announced. The 2026 fleadh ran the week of 3 to 9 August

   Dates not yet confirmed by the organiser. We have not filled the gap with a guess.

   The world championships of Irish traditional music, returning to Belfast for a second year.

   Half a million people and every good young player in the tradition, in one city, mostly playing on the street for nothing. There is no better week to hear this music anywhere on earth.

   What it does to a booking

   Belfast is effectively full for the week. Book the moment dates are published, or commute from Newcastle or Armagh.

   Comhaltas Ceoltóirí ÉireannChecked 2026-09-09

2. Racing and sporting · Dublin

   Dublin Horse Show

   Wednesday 4 to Sunday 8 August 2027

   Five days of international show jumping, including the Aga Khan Nations Cup, in the middle of the city.

   The most formal week in the Irish calendar and the easiest to attend well: the RDS is a ten minute walk from the best hotels in Dublin. Book the Friday for the Nations Cup.

   What it does to a booking

   Ballsbridge hotels fill first and price accordingly. The Merrion and Shelbourne hold rate all week.

   Plan around itDublin Horse ShowChecked 2026-09-09

3. Festivals and culture · Kilkenny

   Kilkenny Arts Festival

   Early to mid August 2027, dates not yet announced. The 2026 edition ran 6 to 16 August

   Dates not yet confirmed by the organiser. We have not filled the gap with a guess.

   Ten days of classical music, literature and theatre in a medieval city small enough to walk.

   Chamber music in St Canice's Cathedral is the quietest good thing in the Irish summer, and Kilkenny is an hour and a half from Dublin. The antidote to Galway in July.

   What it does to a booking

   Kilkenny's small hotels fill for the middle weekend. Mount Juliet nearby is the fallback.

   Kilkenny Arts FestivalChecked 2026-09-09

September 2027

1. Golf · To be announced

   Amgen Irish Open 2027

   Venue and dates not yet announced. The tour has scheduled it in early to mid September in recent years, and usually publishes the following season around the turn of the year

   Dates not yet confirmed by the organiser. We have not filled the gap with a guess.

   Ireland's national open on the DP World Tour.

   Worth holding a September window loosely if you are a golfer. The venue drives everything: a Portrush or Portmarnock year is a different trip from a Doonbeg year.

   What it does to a booking

   Do not book non refundable rooms on an assumed venue. Wait for the schedule, then move quickly.

   Plan around itDP World TourChecked 2026-09-09

2. Food and drink · Galway

   Galway International Oyster and Seafood Festival 2027

   Late September 2027, dates not yet announced. The festival has held the last full weekend of September in recent years

   Dates not yet confirmed by the organiser. We have not filled the gap with a guess.

   The opening weekend of the native oyster season.

   If you missed 2026, this is the weekend to hold in a following year. Native season runs September to April, so the festival is the start of the good months, not the end.

   What it does to a booking

   Book Galway the moment dates appear. The city has never had enough rooms for this weekend.

   Plan around itGalway International Oyster and Seafood FestivalChecked 2026-09-09

Ireland events and travel dates: common questions

What is the best month to visit Ireland?

May, June and September give you the longest light and the steadiest golf weather without the July and August crowds. September is the strongest single month: the Irish Open, the Galway oyster weekend and links courses still in summer condition, at shoulder season room rates.

What are the biggest events in Ireland this year?

The Amgen Irish Open in September, Derry Halloween and Cork Jazz in late October, New Year in Dublin, TradFest in January, the St Patrick's Festival in March, Punchestown in April, Bloomsday in June, the Galway Races in late July and the Dublin Horse Show in August.

When do hotel prices spike in Ireland?

Around fixed dates rather than seasons. Irish Open week in Clare, Galway Races week, St Patrick's weekend in Dublin, Cork Jazz weekend and Wexford's opera run all move nearby room rates sharply, and the good rooms go months ahead.

How far ahead should I book around an Irish festival?

Six to nine months for a room in the host town on a festival or tournament weekend, and twelve months for the Irish Open and the Galway Races. Staying twenty minutes out and driving in is usually the cheaper, calmer answer.

Are these Ireland event dates confirmed?

Every date here comes from the organiser or the national tourism board, and each entry shows the date we last checked it. Where an organiser has not announced yet, the entry says so rather than guessing, and where two official sources disagree we print both.

Keep reading