BID Leamington has published no 2027 date. The 2026 festival ran 12 and 13 September at Pump Room Gardens, and the last three fell in early to mid September.
Update, 15 September 2026: the Leamington Food Festival 2026 has now finished. It ran on Saturday 12 and Sunday 13 September at Pump Room Gardens. BID Leamington has not yet published a date for 2027: its festival website still shows the 2026 weekend. The last three festivals were held on 7 and 8 September 2024, 6 and 7 September 2025 and 12 and 13 September 2026, so a weekend in early to mid September is the pattern to watch for. The preview we published before the weekend follows, unchanged.
The Leamington Food and Drink Festival returns to Pump Room Gardens this Saturday 12 and Sunday 13 September, from 10am to 6pm on both days. Entry is free.
The organiser, BID Leamington, has confirmed around 120 food and drink exhibitors, a full cookery demonstration timetable and a live music line-up on the bandstand. It says the festival draws more than 25,000 people over the two days.
One practical warning before you plan the journey. Chiltern Railways has closed the line between Bicester and London Marylebone for the whole weekend, so the direct London service is not running. More on that below.
The essentials
- When: Saturday 12 and Sunday 13 September 2026, 10am to 6pm each day
- Where: Pump Room Gardens, Royal Leamington Spa, CV32 4AA
- Cost: free, no ticket needed
- Exhibitors: around 120, from local restaurants and bars to producers from further afield
- Organiser: BID Leamington
Live Cookery Theatre: who is on and when
The demonstrations are free and there is no booking. You take a seat and watch. Kirsty Leahy returns as compere.
| Time | Saturday 12 September | Sunday 13 September |
|---|---|---|
| 11am | Rosa’s Thai | Aubrey Allen |
| 12pm | Aubrey Allen | Rosa’s Thai |
| 1pm | Sophie Hyam | Darren Gurry |
| 2pm | Bia’s Kitchen Show | Bia’s Kitchen Show |
| 3pm | The Cocktail Academy | Caz Gundu |
| 4pm | Caz Gundu | In for a Penne |
| 5pm | FreeSpirit | no demonstration |
Live music at the bandstand
| Time | Saturday 12 September | Time | Sunday 13 September |
|---|---|---|---|
| 11am | Abigail O’Meara | 12pm | Abi & Billy |
| 12pm | Easy 3 | 1pm | And The Sunset |
| 1pm | Cartoon Tears | 2pm | Papillon Jazz |
| 2.45pm | All Night Long | 3pm | Electric Ian |
| 4.30pm | Room 17 | 4.30pm | Man Made Moon |
Taking children: book early, in person
The Kids’ Make and Bake Cookery School, sponsored by Get Cooking, runs the same four sessions on both days:
- 11.30am vegetable tacos, gluten-free option available
- 1pm fruit and vegetable rainbow kebab, gluten-free
- 2.30pm biscuit decorating, gluten-free option available
- 3.30pm bread in the bag, made at the festival and cooked at home
Spaces are limited to one per child per day and you have to pre-book in person at the school. Bookings open at 11am on the day, so Saturday sessions cannot be booked on Friday. The organiser also states plainly that parents must not leave children unattended.
Two other children’s activities run across both days. Sixth Moon Art face painting is on from 11am to 4pm, with no under-threes. I Sing, I Dance, I Act runs 20-minute sessions at 11am, 12pm, 1pm, 2.30pm and 3.30pm.
Getting there this weekend, which is the awkward part
The festival site tells visitors the station is a five-minute walk away and recommends coming by train. That advice is sound for a normal weekend. This one is not normal.
Chiltern Railways has closed the line between Bicester and London Marylebone for the whole of Saturday 12 and Sunday 13 September, for engineering work, with rail replacement buses instead. Its own advice, posted at 9.42am on 9 September, is that passengers travelling between Marylebone and stations towards Birmingham, which includes Leamington Spa, should travel via Aylesbury Vale Parkway. Services from Birmingham, Solihull, Coventry and Warwick are unaffected by that closure.
Two road closures also land on the weekend:
- The A46 southbound at Leek Wootton is closed between the slip roads from 8pm on Friday 11 September to 5am on Saturday, so it clears before the festival opens.
- The A429 Coventry Road at Kenilworth is advertised as closed to vehicles all day on Sunday 13 September, 8am to 5pm, between Woodland Road and Crackley Bridge. If you are driving in from Kenilworth or Coventry on the Sunday, that is the road affected, and the signed diversion is long. Warwickshire County Council advertised this as an order it proposes to make, so check before you set off. Our roadworks and travel page has the full detail.
If you do drive, St Peters multi-storey is the closest car park to Pump Room Gardens. The festival’s own information page still quotes £8.00 for ten hours. The council’s current tariff, set by the 2026 off-street parking order, is £8.30 for ten hours and £12.45 for 24. Full tariffs for every Leamington car park are on our parking page.
There are bike racks next to the Pump Rooms, and National Cycle Route 41 runs past the gardens.
The free cup, and a scam to ignore
Anyone arriving with a valid rail ticket dated 12 or 13 September can claim a free Festival Drinks Cup from the Information Tent. The ticket has to be produced on the same day you collect, it is one cup per ticket per person, and it is subject to availability. Limited edition cups in pint and half pint sizes are also on sale at the Information Tent between 10am and 5pm on both days.
Separately, the organiser has posted a warning worth repeating. All exhibitor places are taken and the waitlist is closed. Emails offering pitches, including any sent from an address ending gmail.com, are a scam. BID Leamington’s own contact address is on the festival website.
What it means for you
- You do not need a ticket and you do not need to book, except for the children’s cookery sessions, which are booked in person from 11am on the day.
- The demonstrations and the music are free, and the timetables above are the organiser’s own.
- Do not assume a direct train to London. The line south of Bicester is closed all weekend, and the replacement buses add time in both directions.
- Sunday drivers from the Kenilworth and Coventry side should check the A429 before setting out.
- If you want a quieter hour, the gardens open at 10am and the first demonstration is not until 11am.
Other things to do in the area are listed on our things to do in Leamington page.
Frequently asked questions
When is the next Leamington Food Festival?
No date for 2027 had been published by BID Leamington as of 15 September 2026. The 2024, 2025 and 2026 festivals were all held on a Saturday and Sunday in early to mid September at Pump Room Gardens.
Do I need a ticket for the Leamington Food and Drink Festival?
No. Entry is free and no ticket or booking is needed. The only thing you book is a place at the children’s cookery school, and that is done in person on the day.
What time does it start and finish?
10am to 6pm on both Saturday 12 and Sunday 13 September 2026, at Pump Room Gardens, CV32 4AA.
How many stalls are there?
BID Leamington says around 120 food and drink exhibitors, and that the festival draws more than 25,000 people across the two days.
Can I get the train to Leamington for it?
From Birmingham, Solihull, Coventry and Warwick, yes. From London, no direct service: Chiltern Railways has closed the line between Bicester and London Marylebone for the whole weekend, with rail replacement buses running instead.
Where should I park?
St Peters multi-storey is the closest car park to Pump Room Gardens. The council’s current tariff is £8.30 for ten hours and £12.45 for 24. The A429 Coventry Road at Kenilworth is advertised as closed all day on the Sunday, so allow extra time if you are coming from that direction.
Can I book the children’s cookery sessions in advance?
Only on the day. Bookings open at 11am each morning at the school itself, spaces are limited to one per child per day, and parents have to stay with their children.
Sources
- Leamington Food and Drink Festival, BID Leamington, for the dates (including the 2024 and 2025 dates still carried in the site code, and the absence of a 2027 date when checked on 15 September 2026), times, venue, free entry, the rail ticket offer and its terms, and the scam warning.
- Live Kitchen for the Saturday and Sunday cookery demonstration timetables, the compere and the festival cups.
- Live Music for both bandstand line-ups and their times.
- Kids’ Cookery School and other activities for the session list, the booking rules and the face painting and drama session times.
- Exhibitors for the figure of around 120 exhibitors and the closed waitlist.
- Information for the travel advice, the car park guidance, the bike racks and Route 41, and the organiser’s figure of over 25,000 visitors across the two days.
- Chiltern Railways travel updates for the Bicester to London Marylebone closure on 12 and 13 September and the Aylesbury Vale Parkway advice, as posted at 09:42 on 9 September 2026.
- National Highways road closure report, seven-day spreadsheet updated 9 September 2026, for the A46 Leek Wootton overnight closure on 11 September.
- Warwickshire County Council notice dated 28 August 2026 for the proposed A429 Coventry Road closure at Kenilworth on 13 September and its extent and diversion.
- Warwick District Council (Off-Street Parking Places) (Variation No. 1) Order 2026 for the St Peters multi-storey tariff in operation from 1 April 2026.
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