With a year-round calendar of events and festivals, you can be sure that no matter when you visit there is always something exciting to do!
Music festivals
The Staithes Weekender
A wonderful weekend of music, spoken word, workshops, storytelling and an exhibition of spectacular art take over the coastal village of Staithes in late June. It's the perfect partner to the Staithes Festival of Arts and Heritage in September and hosts an array of concerts including Jazz, Blues, Pop, Folk and Bluegrass across the village.
Crawfest Music Festival
Crawfest is a family friendly music festival held every July at Partings Farm near Scarborough and Pickering in North Yorkshire.
Headland Festival
A boutique Festival on the North York Coast celebrating the nicer things in life. Music, food and drinks shared with family, friends and lovers every August.
Folk music
Folk music has strong roots in the area with annual Folk Weeks in Whitby and Saltburn in August, baby versions are held over weekends in Robin Hood's Bay (home to Waterson Carthys, the first family of folk), and Botton (Great North Folk Festival), while the daddy of all celebrations rounds the year off in October at the Musicport Festival in Whitby, the UK's biggest indoor world music festival.
Jazz music
For jazz enthusiasts, head for Ryedale Jazz Festival in July for a week of celebrating traditional jazz music. The festival hosts an array of bands across various venues in Pickering and aims to bring professionals and enthusiasts together.
Classical music
Classical music is well catered for too and makes the very best of the acoustics in our historic venues. The Ryedale Festival, held over two weeks in July, is one of the year's cultural highlights, welcoming performers from all over the world for concerts and arts events in spectacular houses, churches and theatres. Renowned musicians from around the world also gather every August in some of the area's most remote and beautiful churches for the North York Moors Chamber Music Festival, where the journey to the venue is part of the magic.
Arts Festivals
Staithes Festival of Arts and Heritage
It’s been called the friendliest festival on the coast. For one weekend in September, cottages across the picturesque fishing village of Staithes open as pop-up galleries showcasing the work of artists, sculptors and creatives, offering visitors a chance to meet them and see their work.
Across 90 temporary galleries, more than 130 artists, both amateur and professional, exhibit their work in houses and public spaces at the top and bottom of Staithes. Expect to listen to music in the cobbled streets and venues around the village, and be entertained by a programme of heritage activities, talks and walks.
Catch of flavour of other festivals and events happening throughout the year in the North York Moors too.