Best music festivals in Cornwall 2024

Dates: Monday 11-Saturday 16 March 2024
Type: Celebration and showcase of local Cornish musicians, singers and poets
Suitable for: All ages. Those who support local talent and unique performers
Location: Truro Methodist Church, Union Place, Truro

Music comes in all shapes and sizes in Cornwall. But one event celebrates and showcases it all. Welcome to the Cornwall Music Festival 2024, which takes place in Truro in mid-March 2024. This is an annual platform in Cornwall for talented amateur musicians and speakers of verse who hail from all sorts of backgrounds, Cornish locations, ages and abilities. The opening and closing concerts are the big draw but there’s all sorts going on all week to blow your musical socks off. For more details, click on the ‘Read More’ button below.

Dates: Saturday 30 March-Sunday 7 April 2024
Type: Grand and beautiful Easter classical music festival inside an idyllic Cornish countryside church
Suitable for: Lovers of glorious classics
Location: The Collegiate Church of St Endellion, St Endellion, Port Isaac

It’s easy to think of music festivals as having massive stages that blare rock and pop tunes out to masses of revellers crammed into a field. Of course, lots of fests are just like that but others are far, far more relaxed. Just like the St Endellion Easter Festival 2024 that takes place in a serene church in the heart of Cornwall. This is no new festival either as it celebrates its 51st anniversary this year, so expect a truly special experience. Find out all the details of this heavenly classic music concert by clicking on that big yellow ‘Read More’ button below…

Dates: Friday 19 & Saturday 20 April 2024
Type: Live music, raucous fun and fully charged adults-only festival
Suitable for: Cider drinkers and revellers who love epic bands from the past 40 years, local and international
Location: Healey’s Cornish Cyder Farm, Penhallow, between Truro and Perranporth

For a decent adults-only music festival in Cornwall, you have to wait until the weather warms up. That’s obvious as the Duchy is the perfect place for glorious alfresco live music experiences when the sun is shining. So the first fully charged 2024 Cornwall music festival that we recommend doesn’t crank it up to 11 until late April. But it’s worth the wait as Rattler Fest 2024 stars East17, Scouting For Girls and, well, Dick and Dom among other acts and, of course, Rattler cider. In its fourth year, this festival is full of surprises. Book your tickets early!

Dates: Friday 19-Sunday 21 April 2024
Type: A sea shanty festival that takes over the village and features some of the best folk acts for miles around
Suitable for: Shanty enthusiasts!
Location: Port Isaac Playing Field in Port Isaac, as well as many other venues across the village

It’s easy to think of music festivals as either having massive stages and blaring tunes to the masses or as being in more relaxed locations and perhaps playing tranquil classical music to those wanting a more chilled experience. Of course, lots of fests are like that but what about all those festivals in the middle? The folk fests, where it’s all about the music and the up-close-and-personal experiences with the acts. Cornwall has some incredible shanty festivals and the one in Port Isaac is one of the best. Discover more by clicking on the link below…

Dates: Friday 17-Sunday 19 May 2024
Type: Upbeat live music festival on a sandy beach
Suitable for: Party people who love sand between their toes with their fab live music experience
Location: Perranporth Beach, Perranporth

Rattler Fest 2024 may have kicked off the high octane rock and indie Cornwall music festivals 2024 programme in fine style but the summer really starts with Tunes in the Dunes 2024. Why? Because this is the first major fest of the year where you get sand between your toes while you watch some of the best bands in the world. And this year, the lineup playing to the crowds on Perranporth Beach over the three days includes McFly, Ocean Colour Scene and Craig David. Welcome the summer of ’24 while listening to great tunes in great dunes.

Dates: Friday 17-Sunday 19 May 2024
Type: Family-friendly tribute act music festival
Suitable for: Mums, dads and kids who like their fave performers to be almost as good as the real thing
Location: Monkey Tree Holiday park, Scotland Road, Newquay

Tina Turner and The Killers may play Cornwall this year. And ABBA. And Elton John. And Britney Spears and Beyonce. Even Michael Jackson could somehow grace the Duchy. All on the same stage at the same festival. How awesome is that? Oh wait, they are not actually the real thing. They are all tribute acts. But wait again, who cares? Tributes to those acts may be at this much-loved festival although wait til the full lineup is announced to find out. We all love a tribute act or 10 and the Party in the Park Tribute Festival 2024 is the king of them all.

Dates: Friday 31 May-Sunday 2 June 2024
Type: Music, entertainment, art and ‘rambunctious’ festival
Suitable for: Music fans, fun lovers and as many ‘rambunctious’ people as possible
Location: Scorrier House, Scorrier, near Redruth

The Darkness, anyone? Indeed, the much-adored rock act are believing in a thing called Cornwall at The Great Estate 2024 festival near Redruth. They are joined by Bez’s Acid House and the Pulp Friction Show, as well as the traditional ‘rambunctious’ events that make this family-friendly fest a unique one every year. All sorts of fun and zany events are organised for big and little kids around the fab music performances. Click on the ‘Read More’ button below and discover more about this festival. Cornwall gigs 2024 never looked so good!

Dates: Wednesday 12 June 2024-Saturday 13 July 2024
Type: Big performers and big concerts in an epic setting with a happy biosphere, including Crowded House, JLS and Rick Astley
Suitable for: Music lovers of all tastes and ages. Usually there’s at least one act for everyone!
Location: Eden Project, near St Austell

‘The nearest you’ll get to watching a gig on the moon’. That’s what they say about the Eden Sessions 2024, a series of concerts in June and July 2024 that take place around the famous biospheres at the Eden Project near St Austell. Crowded House play on Wednesday 12 June, Fatboy Slim on Saturday 15 June, Suede and the Manic Street Preachers on Saturday 29 June, The National on Tuesday 2 July, Rick Astley and The Lightning Seeds on Wednesday 3 July, Tom Grennan on Friday 5 July and JLS on Saturday 13 July 2024. Epic.

Dates: Friday 14-Sunday 16 June 2024
Type: Foamy folk music festival with plenty of songs o’ the sea!
Suitable for: Anyone who loves sea shanties and a pretty raucous festival atmosphere
Location: Various venues across Falmouth

It’s official. The Falmouth International Sea Shanty Festival 2024 is the big one, at least when it comes to superb sea shanty fests in Cornwall this year. And there are indeed a fair few shanty fests in the Duchy in 2024. But this one is just bigger and grander as it hits the streets of the south coastal town. Click on the ‘Read More’ button and find out what the organisers are labelling ‘the largest free nautical music and song festival in Europe’. Cornwall really does do shanty singing on the streets during the summer better than anywhere else!

Dates: Five gigs and festivals between Friday 21 June 2024 and Saturday 21 September 2024
Type: A fairly new series of concerts, now in its second year, set on a gorgeous Cornish beach
Suitable for: Fans of Atomic Kitten, Five, Vengaboys, Fisherman’s Friends and many more acts
Location: Perranporth Beach, Perranporth (apart from a festival in July)

In only its second year after a barnstormer of a debut in 2023, Bands in the Sands 2024 is set to be bigger and better. Apart from The Wild Gardens of Port Eliot 2024 festival between Friday 5 and Sunday 7 July 2024, it all takes place on the sands at Perranporth Beach in Perranporth. Enjoy Atomic Kitten, Five & Marvin Humes on Friday 21 June 2024, the Ibiza Beach Orchestra on Saturday 22 June 2024, the Vengaboys on Friday 20 September 2024 and the inimitable Fisherman’s Friends on Saturday 21 September 2024. Electric!

Dates: Friday 5 & Saturday 6 July 2024
Type: Grassroots food, drink and (of course) music festival
Suitable for: Families, fun folk, foodies and festival lovers from across the Duchy… and beyond!
Location: Manor Mead, Tremeere Lane, Lanivet, near Bodmin

Pandas are cute but get too close and they’ve got a full-on bite. This pretty well describes PandaFest 2024. Cute to look at but with plenty of bite. And where does that bite come from? From the food, of course! This festival near Bodmin pairs great music with fab food over two days. Top local and touring bands rock up as some of the best food traders for miles around serve up cracking grub for all-comers. Camping is, of course, the other must-do over the weekend. Or just pull up in a campervan and let all the eating, dancing and eating again begin!

Dates: Friday 5-Sunday 7 July 2024
Type: Well-being, nature and meditation festival with some incredible bands, acts, musicians and DJs on stage
Suitable for: Those who like to mix music with wellness sessions and outdoor activities
Location: Boconnoc Estate, near Lostwithiel, off the A390 between St Austell and Liskeard

A brand new festival for 2024! Paradhis 2024 takes place on the beautiful Boconnoc Estate near Lostwithiel and it’s all about calmness and serenity as you spend three days enjoying classes, workshops and activities all focused around well-being, meditation and nature. Of course, the music also takes centre-stage, with Morcheeba headlining and other stars like Afriquoi and Scott Matthews on the bill as well. It may be the fest’s first edition but we’re expecting big things here as we reckon this really will be a three-day taste of paradise in Cornwall.

Dates: Friday 12-Sunday 14 July 2024
Type: Colourful, intimate and welcoming world music festival next to the sea
Suitable for: Fans of world music and families who just adore a relaxed vibe and fun festival activities
Location: Mount Pleasant Eco Park, Chapel Hill, Porthtowan, between Portreath and Perranporth

World music acts from across the, well, world performing under a hot Cornish sun. You really can’t ask for more than that, can you? Tropical Pressure 2024 should be a cracker, following up on its red-hot 2023 success. Expect tremendous bands alongside a World Food Market, which offers all sorts of 100 percent plant-based tuck. Also enjoy the many nighttime DJ sessions and just the overall sustainable, environmentally friendly vibe at this fest. Click that lovely yellow button below and learn about the hottest festival of Cornwall’s summer.

Dates: Thursday 25-Sunday 28 July 2024
Type: Music and food festival that’s a treat for the senses
Suitable for: Those who enjoy a bivalve or 20 along with their Bombay Bicycle Club and Sugababes!
Location: Dinham House, St Minver, between Rock and Wadebridge

If food be the music of love, then eat on. Or something like that. The Rock Oyster Festival 2024 is all about those gorgeous bivalves and all the other food that’s served up alongside a top helping of the world’s best musical acts. And this year that includes Bombay Bicycle Club, the Sugababes, Wille and the Bandits, CMAT, Billie Marten and Newton Faulkner. On the cookery side, catch the likes of Nathan Outlaw, Thuy Diem Pham and Emily Scott at the fest. Food, music and a load of activities for all the family. This is what Rock music is all about!

Dates: Wednesday 7-Sunday 11 August 2024
Type: Massive music, fun and surfing festival
Suitable for: Party people of all ages who love big music next to big waves
Location: Fistral Beach and Watergate Bay, Newquay

Boardmasters 2024 doesn’t really need an introduction. But we’re going to give it one anyway, just in case you’ve never heard of it. This is, for sure, one of the biggest music festivals in the South West. It takes place on a couple of Newquay‘s finest beaches and across the famous party town between 7 and 11 August 2024. Headlining are Stormzy and Chase & Status. Also headlining are the annual surfing, skateboarding and BMX competitions that take place each day. Click on the ‘Read More’ button below for all the juicy details…

Dates: Tuesday 13 August 2024
Type: Huge rock festival on Falmouth‘s Waterfront
Suitable for: Fans fo rock music and turning it up to 11!
Location: The Waterfront, next to Church Street Car Park, Falmouth

It’s all go at Falmouth Week 2024, with its annual sailing competitions and food, entertainment and events on land. But one of the big draws of 2023 was Falmouth Rocks and the big one-night-only live music extravaganza in the heart of Falmouth takes place once again in August 2024. Last year it was all about tributes to mega bands Guns N’ Roses and AC/DC. Expect cracking gigs this year that could be even bigger and better than those concerts. For those about to rock in Falmouth: we salute you!

Dates: Thursday 22-Monday 26 August 2024
Type: Cornwall’s beloved folk music fest
Suitable for: Anyone who loves folk music in all its shapes and sizes
Location: Various venues across Wadebridge

Half a century. That’s quite a feat for a folk fest. The Cornwall Folk Festival 2024 has been going for more than 50 years. It takes place in August and there’s going to be a celebratory atmosphere to go along with all the acts that come from far and wide. Lady Maisery should draw the crowds in as they are one of the headliners over the weekend. But also expect to enjoy the likes of The Trials of Cato, James Dixon, Tarren, Daphne’s Flight and Suthering, among others. There’s a ceilidh too, as well as lots of other folky events and activities.

Dates: Tuesday 27-Friday 30 August 2024
Type: Much-loved jazz fest with all the classic trimmings
Suitable for: Cool cats, jive bunnies and everyone in between
Locations: Various venues across Bude

Jazz hits Bude in a big way between 27 and 30 August 2024. This annual festival is an utter treat for the senses as bands and acts from far and wide play up to 80 concerts in just a few days at venues scattered across the north coast town. And it’s not just the acts that hail from far and wide. It’s the visitors. There’s a really loyal set of followers who attend the festival every year and it’s hoped that youngsters in Cornwall will help support the fest over the coming years as it really is a jewel in the Duchy’s crown when it comes to jazz music every year.

Date: Sunday 1 September 2024 (12midday-10pm)
Type: Jam-packed tribute act festival in the beautiful outdoors
Suitable for: Fans of awesome UK tribute acts!
Location: Royal Cornwall Showground, Wadebridge

Watching a tribute act is great if you love the band or singer they are playing tribute to but watching loads of them back-to-back from lunchtime to 10pm is more than great. It’s fab! The Outdoor Tribute Festival 2024 in Wadebridge should tick all the tribute act fans’ boxes as it’s out in the beautiful Cornish open air with plenty of street food trucks around alongside a fully charged atmosphere. Click on the ‘Read More’ button below to discover more about this unique fest at the Royal Cornwall Showground…

Dates: Friday 13-Sunday 15 September 2024
Type: Family-friendly fun festival with some incredible local and international acts
Suitable for: Cider drinkers, music lovers, campers and kids
Location: Healey’s Cornish Cyder Farm, Penhallow, between Truro and Perranporth

There’s only one way of life… and that’s your own… if you know those lyrics, you know the Levellers, who are headlining this year’s Little Orchard 2024 festival. As this is a family-friendly cider festival, though, perhaps those lyrics should be ‘there’s only one drink of life… and that’s cider… while you eat some incredibly tasty local food from one of the countless food trucks that pull up here every year’. Maybe. Find out about this festival’s lineup, which includes the Dub Pistols and The Wurzels, and all the other details by clicking the ‘Read More’ button.

Dates: Saturday 14-Saturday 28 September 2024
Type: Music and arts festival
Suitable for: Lovers of eclectic and moving music and arts
Location: All around St Ives

St Ives is Cornwall’s beating heart when it comes to art. So when the doors of galleries, studios, pubs, churches, theatres, the Guildhall and, well, loads of other venues (including the streets themselves) open every year for the St Ives September Festival, it’s a special time indeed. This 15-day arts and music fest brings the town alive. Expect some of the best bands and artists who play locally to be on the bill as well as some pretty big acts. Last year, for instance, saw the Three Degrees playing. You can’t ask for more than that.

Dates: Friday 20-Sunday 22 September 2024
Type: Busy three-day live music festival in the pretty Cornish seaside town
Suitable for: Music fans looking for a wide variety of bands, singers and live acts across the town
Location: In all sorts of venues across Looe, with a main stage in West Looe

After a solid debut in 2023, the Looe Weekender 2024 festival returns in September 2024. Expect pubs, eateries and other venues on both the east and west slopes of the idyllic town to feature some of the best acts for miles around. And expect a live stage alongside a buzzing atmosphere across the town over the three days of quality live music. Plus, 2023 was free so 2024 could be the same, which is great as it makes every gig accessible to anyone and everyone, no matter what your background may be. Prepare to rock!

Dates: Friday 4-Sunday 6 October 2024
Type: Rock and metal festival
Suitable for: Rockers and rollers
Location: Tencreek Holiday Park, Polperro Road, Looe

Collateral. And Dare. And Departed, Skam and Miguel Montalban and The Southern Vultures. Oh boy, the region’s rockers are in for an almighty treat at Cornwall Rocks 2024 in Looe in early October 2024. Some of the biggest names in the British metal scene over the past half-a-century are gracing the stage at Tencreek Holiday Park for this intimate rock fest that’s in its fifth edition. There are options to stay in caravans on the site or just turn up for the whole weekend or to single gigs. Click that yellow button for more…

Dates: Friday 11-Sunday 13 October 2024
Type: Sea shanty festival in and around the pretty south coast village and its surroundings
Suitable for: Wellermen and women and enthusiasts of the shanty and folk song traditions
Locations: Pubs and venues around Mevagissey and the surrounding villages

Roll out the barrel for this one as gorgeous Mevagissey once again plays host to this lively shanty festival. More than 140 hours of entertainment are expected over the three days as shanty acts from far and wide descend on the village. Singers, groups, duos: it doesn’t matter who they are, the organisers always seem to select the best quality outfits for this jam-packed festival. The gigs are traditionally free to attend but, of course, always remember some cash for drinks when you’re in the pub. Roll out the barrel and all that…

Dates: Friday 25-Sunday 27 October 2024
Type: Traditional Cornish music and Celtic dance festival
Suitable for: Lovers of Celtic song and dance and Cornish tradition
Location: Various venues across Redruth

There’s lots of rock, indie, jazz, folk and dance on this list but what about the ultra-local and ultra-traditional? Well, here you are – welcome to one of Cornwall’s most traditional, important and inspiring music and dance festivals. The annual Lowender festival has been going for more than 40 years now (although it’s now under a more slimline name) and attracts hundreds of performers from Celtic nations and regions to take part in ceilidhs – social gatherings with traditional folk dancing and music – plus street dance demonstrations and more besides.

Dates: Friday 22 & Saturday 23 November 2024
Type: A festival celebrating the time-honoured sea shanty at venues across St Ives
Suitable for: Shout fans. And by that, we mean shanty fans but this is the annual ‘shout’…
Location: Pubs, coffee shops and hotels across St Ives

Tune up those vocals, people, as you’ll be singing (or shouting, in fact) along with some of the best shanty acts in the business at this annual festival. Beloved sea shanties and cracking Cornish folk songs are the order of the two days in hotels, pubs, eateries and cafés across St Ives. Click on the yellow ‘Read More’ button below to find out all the details. And then you could be heading to the annual ‘shout’ in this beautiful Cornish town to hear a cappella melodies that will last in the memory for years to come.

Dates: Friday 6, Saturday 7 and Sunday 8 December 2024
Type: Rock and blues music fest
Suitable for: Those with the blues, plus those who love their rhythm and rock music!
Location: Tencreek Holiday Park, Polperro Road, Looe

After all of the above, Cornwall needs a pretty chilled way to end a busy 2024 in terms of music festivals. Not too chilled, hence the rock. But fairly relaxed, hence the blues. The Looe Blues Rhythm and Rock Festival 2024 should be a barnstormer, with acts descending on the south coast town from far and wide. Bag some accommodation at the holiday park and get three cracking nights of blues music from some of the best performers on the circuit. And then head home for Christmas after such an action-packed 2024 of gigs, concerts and fests. Phew!

You can camp at many of the music festivals in Cornwall. But sometimes you just want to be away from the fest for a quieter experience. Or a more luxurious one. So check out Hipcamp‘s special recommendations for camping and glamping in Cornwall, by clicking: here. There are hundreds of options in there so get booking now for a rockin’ stay in the magnificent Duchy in 2024.