Vegan Festivals UK: Best 10 Vegan Food Festivals

In this post I’m going to include the top 10 best Vegan festivals in the UK that sound like they’re worth a visit and one vegan food festival that I’ve been to myself.

When I was in my 20’s a festival to me was where you stayed overnight, usually camped and it was a long weekend sort of event. However, the term festival has been used for events where there is no accommodation so I will make it clear what is available at each of these vegan festivals.

Vegfest UK

Bristol

The last time I went to Vegfest Bristol was 2018 (26th-27th May) when it was held at Ashton Gate stadium and it was a fantastic venue for the vegan food festival.

Where I live in Somerset it isn’t the best place to be for takeaway vegan food. So going to Vegfest in Bristol was always a big treat for my sister and I. In 2016 we went to quite a few Vegan festivals and events that were fairly close to us and we discovered that Vegfest was just much more worth our time and money.

Vegfest Bristol is smaller than the London and Brighton events, although in 2018 they had 9,000 visitors over the weekend.

There were 30 outdoor stalls, mostly food but also including some alcoholic drinks like vegan ales and vegan products. They also had 2 musical stages outside, kids cookery tent and an activism tent.

There were also lots of other stalls inside: food, vegan and eco friendly products at this vegan food festival.

I like to just spend my money on trying as much food as I can there at this vegan food festival – until I feel sick and then I start to collect food to take away. I’m not a greedy person generally but when you can get crepes, churros, mac and cheese, pizza and cheesecake: and it’s all vegan! It is pretty exciting ?

London

Vegfest London vegan festival was supposed to be held at Olympia Grand in London on 13th, 14th and 15th November 2020, however it will now be an online only event in 2020. See below for more information.

The London event usually has 300+ stalls, the usual talks and activism; plus celebrities and special guests. It has been said that it attracts over 15,000 visitors to the event over the weekend which is amazing!

This vegan food festival is definitely on my bucket list as I can imagine it would be such a great event to attend. It would be probably worth while finding accommodation nearby if you were going to this one and didn’t live locally. So you don’t miss anything and can attend the whole weekend.

Brighton

Vegfest Brighton sounds like another awesome event by the Vegfest team, they usually attract 7,000+ visitors around 24th-25th of March. With 200+ stalls and the usual talks, comedians and activism.

I’ve heard that generally Brighton caters for vegans much better and has a really good selection of places vegans can eat and takeaway food. I would love to visit one day, whether it’s for Vegfest, vegan food festival or a short break.

What Vegfest are doing in 2020

2020 has not been the year for festivals and events so this year Vegfest are arranging a vegan festival called Vegfest UK Summerfest which is an online only festival. The online festival takes place 15th-16th August 10am-11pm and it is free to attend so I have signed up for this.

I don’t know what to expect from this but there will be the usual Headlines as live streams, comedy, music, activism, cookery demos and stalls so well worth checking this out if you get a chance.

There is also Vegfest London Online, November 13th, 14th and 15th 2020 if you happen to miss Summerfest.

Vegan Camp Out

This weekend camping vegan festival takes place at Newark Showground in Nottinghamshire, they’re currently selling tickets for 20th – 22nd of August 2021. As this is a weekend of camping tickets are priced at £50 per adult and £25 for children (0-3 goes free), which I don’t think is too bad a price.

This vegan food festival in past years has been attended by 7,000+ people from 40 different countries. The very first event in 2016 was attended by 400 people and one food vendor so it’s really grown since then.

This festival is definitely one that I’m considering for next year. In past years it’s featured talks, food, live music, activism workshops, after parties, yoga and family area.

In the past this event has had celebrity activists such as Simon Amstell, Bosh!, Earthling Ed and Joey Carbstrong is on the list for 2021.

Shambala Festival

This festival has been going for 20 years and although it’s not a vegan festival per-say; they are meat and fish free so a lot of the food available will be plant based. It’s due to take place 26th-29th August (2021) in Northamptonshire.

86% beer on site and 89% of the wine is vegan friendly and they always try and source local food and drink products where possible and use companies that share the same ethics as them.

As it’s a weekend camping festival it is a bit more on the pricier side with tickets at around £150 per adult if I remember correctly (prices not currently available).

Environmental Festival

The thing that draws me to this festival is their commitment to their social responsibilities. They mention the tonnes of GHG emissions that they saved from not selling meat at the festival. Also long before it was a trending subject they brought in a reusable cup scheme and only had compostable cutlery and plates available at the festival.

They also only use biodegradable non-toxic cleaners and they don’t sell Coca Cola or Nestle products!

Sustainable Travel Plan

They even have a sustainable travel plan, so depending on your method of transport you can

• Train: They provide a subsidised shuttle bus service from the nearest train station to and from the festival for a £4 charge per journey.
• Coach: If you buy an express shambala ticket (discounted ticket price, £20 off) you must use the coach which comes from Bristol, Brighton, London, Birmingham and Sheffield. The price for the coach ranges between £20-£25 with children going free.
• Car Sharing: This is encouraged if people do need to arrive by car. There’s a Facebook group you can join to find a lift or to fill your spare seats with like-minded people
• Cycling: Cycling to the festival is encouraged as well with a £20 discount against the ticket. Guided cycles from the main cities can be joined if you fancy an adventure along the way as well.
• Electric Cars: In previous years they have had electric car charge points as well for those that have an electric car. However, there is a disclaimer on the website stating they hadn’t planned on having that in 2020 due to issues with the provider.

So as you can see from an environmental standpoint this festival is almost perfect. I would like to see them go fully vegan in the future as they do seem to be aware of the environmental impact of the dairy industry, but haven’t taken that final step.

Whats On

At this almost vegan festival you can expect lots of live music, food workshops, hot tubs, camp fires, yoga and more.

Plus glamping accommodation such as Yurts and Bell Tents if you would prefer not to have to bring a tent with you. Now I’m in my 30’s with a family, I have to admit the luxury accommodation does appeal to me. Scruffy hair and not showering is fine but I’d still like to have a skincare routine and be comfortable when I sleep!

For families: Creche for 2-7year olds, Bush camp for 8-12 year olds and big kids area with plenty of entertainment for everyone.

Starry Skies

If you were looking for a specific family friendly festival this is Shambala’s baby festival set in the Welsh village of Usk. It’s been running for 8 years and it usually happens around the 4th- 8th August (2021) prices not shown yet, however you can pay a £50 deposit and pay the rest nearer the time.

I’m not really sure about food for this venue but as it’s a baby festival of Shambala’s I think it’s likely to have vegan options available.

This festival is much smaller though so tickets sell out pretty quickly. They only have room for 250 families in total so this is probably a great option for those who don’t particularly like crowds.

Glasgow Vegan Festival

If you’re in Scotland this vegan festival seems like quite a good day festival to visit. Tickets around £5, 12th September 2020 they are currently planning for with 80+ stalls and workshops etc.

This is definitely a smaller vegan food festival so it probably won’t have the wow factor of say Vegfest. However, my partner still mentions some tofu wrap that he had at a small vegan market in Weston-Super-Mare close to us – so even the smaller festivals are worth checking out.

Vegtoberfest

This vegan festival usually at London Camdens Fest venue sounds like a really good beer festival. It is due to take place 3rd October and 10th October 2020 with vegan beers, street food, live music, burlesque and comedy.

It’s a vegan alternative to the German Oktoberfest beer festival with tickets between £10-£15 open 4-10pm. As it’s a beer festival it is adults only.

Brighton Vegan Festival

Which was held in The Hilton Hotel on 22nd February 2020 sounds like a good day, vegan food festival. With 80+ stalls, workshops and children’s activities all day.

As I’ve said before, Brighton really know how to do awesome vegan food from what I’ve seen and it sounds like vegan events in the city are always well received. It’s always fun to go to the daytime, vegan food festivals to see the latest vegan goodies and products.

Great Yorkshire Vegan Festival

This vegan festival features 100+ stalls, cookery demos, live music, yoga and children’s activities. This vegan food festival was due to take place at Leeds Town Hall on two dates, 30th August 2020 and 29th November 2020.

Profits from the event all go to animal welfare charities as well which is great! Tickets £5 and under 16’s get in free.

If you’re in the Leeds area definitely check this one out as it sounds like it’ll be a fabulous day.

I hope you enjoyed reading my post on the best vegan festivals in the UK. I’m hoping to tick some more of these vegan food festivals off my list in the next few years.

For another vegan lifestyle post, check out the guest post from the lovely Chrissy at Grateful Green Life. If you’re newly vegan I have written a post with the best vegan supplements as well.

Please let me know if there’s any vegan festivals I’ve missed in the comments, on Instagram or Facebook. If you’d like to put a face to the name, check out my YouTube channel.