The Best Festivals and Fairs in Devon this Summer

Crustacean connoisseurs should prepare for a seafood extravaganza with the return of the annual Rockfish crab Festival this August. The one-day event is co-hosted by Mitch Tonks, head chef at Dartmouth’s Rockfish Seafood Restaurant, and Michelin starred chef Angela Hartnett, and invites 400 guests to come and enjoy some of the world’s finest crab in all its incarnations under a marquee on Dartmouth’s South Embankment. As well as food offerings, the festival features a fun-packed programme, including crab cracking demonstrations and live music. There’s also a table dressing competition with guests invited to bring tablecloths, bunting, candelabra and flowers. And if you’re feeling really adventurous, why not break out the fancy dress for a classic English day at the seaside? (Photo: Rockfish Crab Festival))

For seven days each year, the town of Dawlish on the south coast of Devon plays host to one of the region’s most popular seaside carnivals. The family friendly event features several exciting spectacles, including a stunning display from the famous Red Arrows aerobatics team and an incredible procession spanning over half-a-mile in length. But the fun doesn’t stop there, with an array of events and activities (many of them free) taking place throughout the week, helping turn a quintessential British seaside town into a vibrant, colourful and welcoming place that can be enjoyed by people of all ages. (Photo: Blackboard Associates Media)

Held in the shadows of one of England’s most beautiful medieval cathedrals, the Exeter Craft Festival would certainly delight those whose ingenuity, toil and devotion made its imposing backdrop possible some 900 years ago. Spread across the pretty Cathedral Green each year, underneath a tented village, are over 100 West Country designer-makers and artists showcasing ceramics, textiles, metalwork, jewellery and much more. There’s also family friendly entertainment in the shape of a Punch and Judy show, face painting, singers, dancers and even a strolling jazz band, while there’s also a fine choice of refreshments with vendors dotted around the site. (Photo: Exeter Craft Festival)

Taking place just outside the town of Chagford on the edge of Dartmoor, Chagstock Festival has grown organically since its conception in 2003. Originally the brainchild of a group of friends who rigged up a few tents in a garden, the festival has evolved into a sell-out event that draws up to 50,000 visitors each year. As the event has grown in size and stature, so have the musicians who come to perform, with a blend of both established and emerging names on the line-up. . In recent years, Dartmoor Reptiles, a team of local reptile experts, have turned up with a selection of spiders and snakes to wow the kids, while there’s also a range of creative arts to explore aboard a funky ‘magic bus’. (Photo: Claire-Shauna Minett)

With an ear to the past and an eye on the future, Sidmouth Folk Week is a week-long seaside celebration of music, dance and song featuring both established stars and emerging talents. Taking place in the charming East Devon regency coastal resort of Sidmouth, the event dates back more than 60 years, drawing tens of thousands of visitors who come to enjoy a diverse array of live musical performances and other events, including folk dancing, roots parties, storytelling sessions, workshops, arts and crafts and much more. During the festival, Sidmouth’s streets and venues burst with atmosphere and colour, as party-goers come together for what many consider the friendliest music-based holiday event of the summer. (Photo: Sidmouth Folk Week)

The Contemporary Craft Festival returns to the picturesque market town of Bovey Tracey, bringing together 200 makers of contemporary craft including award winning silversmiths, potters, furniture makers, textile artists, glass makers, jewellery, 3D printing and even surfboards. With nearly 10,000 visitors attending each year, the festival has grown to become one of the most prestigious and much loved craft events in the UK. Families can enjoy the Children’s Craft tent with live music and a variety of street food, while there’s also talks about different aspects of craft, plus workshops and demonstrations. (Photo: Jim Wileman)

Now in its 13th year, the Beautiful Days festival is a hugely popular and family friendly musical extravaganza that attracts music lovers of all ages – many of whom come to camp at the three-day event. The festival features live sounds and entertainment across six stages, plus a children’s area for toddlers through to teens, walkabout theatre, art installations, comedy, theatre, food & craft stalls, a healing area, and real ale bars run by renowned Devon beer makers Otter Brewery. (Photo: Beautiful Days)

With its craggy landscape defined by forests, valleys, rivers, wetlands and rock formations, the vast moorland of Dartmoor is a walker’s paradise. Each year, the Dartmoor Walking Festival hosts events and activities for all ages and energy-levels, from modest guided strolls and children’s rambles to full day walks. Held over nine days, the festival programme also features climbing, cycling, archaeological visits, illustrated talks by local speakers and much more. The end of the week culminate in a celebratory event at a local Princetown venue, featuring food and live entertainment. (Photo: Dartmoor Walking Festival)

Taking place on the embankment of the village of Kingswear and with uninterrupted, panoramic views of the River Dart, the KingsBeer Festival is quite possibly the UK’s most beautifully located beer festival. Now in its third year, the three-day event will be extending both the beer and food selections this July, with a riverside marquee serving more than 50 real ales from breweries of all shapes and sizes from across the country, along with free tasting notes booklets, plus selected ciders, wines and soft drinks. There’ll also be top notch food hand-picked especially for the festival, as well as extensive riverside seating areas. (Photo: KingsBeer Festival)

With its rich naval history, it’s fitting that Devon hosts a number of maritime themed events throughout the year. One of the most popular takes place in the small harbour village of Clovelly, which hosts an action-packed day of activities and entertainment for all ages. Proceedings begin with the eagerly awaited ‘Clovelly Gun Run’, with two teams of cadets taking it in turns to manhandle a weighty gun from the harbour to Victoria Fountain. There’s also live music, street entertainment, sea-themed story-telling, puppet shows and a workshop about exploring the great outdoors. On the quay, there’ll be seafood kitchens and art and craft stalls, while there’s also a chance to have a go in a gig (a six-oared rowing boat) with the official Clovelly rowing team. Under-16s have free entry to the festival, although there is a catch – to qualify they must come dressed as a pirate, mermaid, salty sea dog or fish wife. (Photo: Clovelly Maritime Festival)

Set against the backdrop of the rolling waves of the Atlantic ocean, the multi-award winning GoldCoast Oceanfest is one of the south west’s finest coastal festivals. Popular with families, each year large crowds of every age descend on the pretty seaside village of Croyde and transform it into a bustling but friendly and relaxed party atmosphere, with an eclectic mix of live music combining with exhilarating surf, action-packed sports and an array of other events and activities. (Photo: Oceanfest)

An Edwardian Quad set within 90 acres of spectacular Devon countryside serves as a striking setting for one of the West Country’s most popular festivals, which returns this August for two days of great music and top quality beer. Held in the impressive grounds of Hannahs Seale-Hayne, a large venue that is run and operated by Hannahs Trust, a charity that has been enriching the lives of children and young people for more than 200 years, the Hannahs Beer & Music Festival features more than 40 local real ales along with party vibes from the 70s and 80s. There’s also local band performances on the Saturday, while the Sunday gives way to a more chilled out vibe. (Photo: Hannahs Beer & Music Festival )