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There are loads of amazing Dorset food festivals throughout the year! Beer festivals, cheese festivals, even the infamous Dorset Knob Throwing Festival… there’s plenty to keep you busy!
With loads of amazing local produce – from seafood to cheeses to beers and ciders – Dorset has a lot of good stuff to celebrate. This is probably why we have so many festivals and fairs focused solely on food!
Some are more general, while others focus on a very specific food type. Keep scrolling to see this year’s lineup of awesome foodie events for your calendar. In a hurry? There’s a short list with dates only at the bottom of this page.
Help us keep this post up to date! If you know of any great Dorset food festivals that should be on the list – leave a comment at the bottom of the page or get in touch and we’ll be sure to get it added.
Update June 2025: We’ve updated this article with the latest dates and info. We’ll keep adding new info as we receive it!
Dorset Food Festivals: Jan – Apr
Dorchester Beerex
Dates: 31 January – 1 February 2025
Location: The Corn Exchange, Dorchester High East Street, Dorchester
Tickets: £11 (includes two halves of beer or cider and a pint glass)
More Info
This year will be the 36th Dorchester Beerex – a beer festival that has raised over £277K for charitable causes to date! Expect 80 real ales and 20 ciders/perries, with food available at all sessions and live music during the Friday and Saturday evening sessions.
Abbotsbury Food Fair
Dates: 19 April 2025
Location: Abbotsbury Subtropical Gardens, Buller’s Way, Abbotsbury, Weymouth DT3 4LA
Tickets from: £7.95 adults, £5 children
More Info
The Abbotsbury Food Fair is in one of the more unique settings on this list, hosted within the grounds of the stunning Abbotsbury Subtropical Gardens. It’s run in association with Dorset Food & Drink, so you know you’re in for a real foodie treat. Surrounded by the spring foliage and dazzling blossoms of the gardens, you can explore over 40 stalls of local produce.
RELATED POST: 8 Dorset Vineyards to Visit for Tours and Tastings
Food Festivals in May
READ MORE: 25 of the Best Things to do in Dorchester
Shaftesbury Feastival
Dates: 5 May 2025
Location: High St, Park Walk, Shaftesbury
Tickets from: Free (some events are ticketed)
More Info
Home of the iconic Gold Hill Cheese Run, which sees participants racing uphill carrying a wheel of locally-made Blackmore Vale cheese – which are 35cm in diameter! There will also be food stalls, cooking demos, literary events, and more.
Christchurch Cheese & Chilli Festival
Dates: 17 – 18 May 2025
Location: next to Bournemouth Airport, Hurn, Christchurch, Dorset, BH23 6AD
Tickets from: £9 adults, £7 concessions, under 16s FREE
More Info
The Cheese and Chilli Festival is a unique celebration of both cheese and (you guessed it) chilli, featuring some 70-100 traders. There are eating competitions, chilli challenges, rides, bars, live music, entertainment, and more.
BeCider Seaside 20
Dates: 23 – 26 May 2025
Location: Bredy Farm, Bredy Ln, Burton Bradstock, Bridport DT6 4ND
Tickets from: £95 for the weekend (adults), £33 for day tickets (adults)
More Info
Looking for a proper, overnight festival, complete with camping? Bredy Farm hosts the BeCider Seaside – a music and cider festival combo – on the May and August bank holidays. It’s a celebration of local cider, food and drink, and music; held on a family-run farm in the rolling hills of West Dorset.
Christchurch Food Festival
Dates: 24 – 26 May 2025
Location: High Street, Christchurch
Tickets: Free
More Info
Christchurch Food Festival is one of my personal favourites. This 3-day event takes over the centre of Christchurch to celebrate locally made food and drink. It’s free to attend and packed with stalls from local food and drink suppliers.
Food Festivals in June
Highcliffe Food & Arts Festival
Dates: 14 – 15 June 2025
Location: Highcliffe High Street (Lymington Road)
Tickets: Free
More Info
This two-day event focuses on both local and regional food, drink, and art. With arts and crafts on sale, live music, entertainment, and plenty of great food, this is a brilliant way to enjoy the local culture. Expect celebrity chefs, cooking demonstrations, and stalls selling products from independent restaurants and producers.
Swanage Fish Festival
Dates: 21 – 22 June 2025
Location: Prince Albert Gardens, Swanage, BH19 2AR
Tickets: Free
More Info
Now in its tenth year, Swanage Fish Festival is an annual tribute to the town’s long-running heritage of fishing and the sea. Expect plenty of stalls offering both locally sourced and more exotic fish and seafood. Whether you’re after a classic fish n’ chips, or champagne and oysters, there’s something for every seafood lover!
RELATED POST: 17 of the Best Things to do in Swanage
Bridport Food Festival
Dates: 14 June 2025
Location: Askers Meadow, Bridport, Dorset, DT6 4SB
Tickets from: £3.50 at the Tourist information centre or £5 on the door.
More Info
A week-long event promoting local food and drink – as well as healthy, sustainable eating – Bridport Food Festival is full of local flavours and produce. There are usually lots of cookery demonstrations, baking competitions, a beer festival, and plenty of family-friendly entertainment.
Dorset Beer Festival
Dates: 13-14 June 2025
Location: Hall & Woodhouse Brewery, Blandford St Mary, Blandford Forum DT11 9LS
Tickets from: £5
More Info
The Hall & Woodhouse Beer Festival is run by one of the most popular breweries in Dorset – the producers of Badger Beers – at their brewery in Blandford Forum. Expect hot food, live music, entertainment, and – of course – a great lineup of real ales, ciders, and perries.
Upton House Food and Music Festival
Dates: 20-22 June 2025
Location: Upton Country Park, near Poole
Tickets from: From £6 adults £3 children
More Info
Upton Country Park’s fantastic Food and Music Festival is held on the front lawn of the park’s grand, Grade II-listed Georgian House. Expect a gastronomic weekend packed with interactive experiences, food stalls, and live music. Get ready for top tribute acts – as well as local musicians and kids’ entertainment!
Food Festivals in July & August
Great Dorset Chilli Festival
Dates: 2 – 3 August 2025
Location: Stock Gaylard Estate, Sturminster Newton, DT10 2BG
Tickets from: £8.50 adults, £2.50 children (under 10s free)
More Info
The Great Dorset Chilli Festival has everything a chilli enthusiast could want! Expect stalls selling everything from sauces and jams to chilli fudge and chilli cider. Now in its 14th year, this is a top-notch food festival with stalls selling a variety of local food (it’s not just about chilli!) – plus live music, mariachi, competitions, bars, cooking demonstrations, bouncy castles, and more!
Dorset Knob Throwing Festival
Dates: 10 August 2025
Location: Cattistock Countryside Show (click here for map location)
Tickets from: TBC
More Info
UPDATE: The Knob Throwing Games are now held as part of the Cattistock Countryside Show
No one, old or young, seems able to resist a snigger at the name of the infamous Dorset Knob Throwing Festival. Although the name lends itself to all kinds of puns and childish giggling, a Dorset Knob Biscuit is actually a kind of bread roll produced by the local Moore’s Biscuit Company (photo below).
The Knob Throwing competition (which anyone can enter) is the highlight, but you’ll also find food stalls brimming with local produce, music, entertainment, and workshops like knob painting (not even joking!). There’s even a Knob Eating Challenge. I promise I’m not making this up!
Dorchester Cider Festival
Dates: 16 August
Location: The Borough Gardens, Dorchester, DT1 1RG
Tickets: Free
More Info
One of Dorchester’s biggest summer events, The Dorchester Cider Festival, features over 75 ciders from local and national suppliers. There’s also hot and cold food, live music from local artists, and plenty of entertainment to keep the kids occupied as you sample your way through some of the best ciders in Britain!
READ MORE: 20 of the Best Places to Eat in Dorchester
BeCider Seaside 21
Dates: 22 – 25 August 2025
Location: Bredy Farm, Bredy Ln, Burton Bradstock, Bridport DT6 4ND
Tickets from: £95 for the weekend (adults), £33 for day tickets (adults)
More Info
BeCider Seaside 21 is the follow-up to the May bank holiday festival, held across the August bank holiday weekend. This is a celebration of Dorset food, drink, music, and (of course) cider, held on a family-run farm in West Dorset. There’s a packed lineup of music, featuring local favourites as well as talent from around the world.
September Dorset Food Festivals
The Dorset Seafood Festival
Dates: Cancelled due to sea wall repairs (but set to return next year)
Location: Weymouth Harbour, Weymouth DT4 8BG
Tickets from: NA (in 2024, tickets were £15 – kids free)
More Info
The annual Dorset Seafood Festival on Weymouth Harbour is a celebration of local seafood (and other local produce). There’s usually plenty of fizz flowing alongside the delicious food – don’t miss the chance to have champagne and oysters on the harbourside! Stalls from local suppliers and independent restaurants line the harbour, while stages offer live shows and demos.
READ MORE: A Local’s Guide to Weymouth Dorset
Poole Seafood & Sounds Festival
Dates: 13-14 September 2025
Location: Poole Quay
Tickets: Free
More Info
Held on Poole’s historic quay, the Poole Seafood Festival is Dorset’s only free seafood festival. This is two days celebrating the best in local seafood and other produce – with a great lineup of local music to enjoy while you feast.
READ MORE: Things to do in Poole
Sturminster Newton Cheese Festival
Dates: 13 – 14 September 2025
Location: Sturminster Newton Recreation Ground, Sturminster Newton, DT10 1BY
Tickets from: From £7 adults, children (under 16) free
More Info
The Sturminster Newton Cheese Festival is a MUST for cheese lovers! It’s held in the hometown of the famous Dorset Blue Vinney cheese, so this is a real celebration of local and regional cheeses. It’s a huge event with demos, music and entertainment, and street food – as well as heaps of stalls piled high with incredible local cheeses and cheese-related products.
Dorset Food Festivals: Quick List
- Dorchester Beerex: 31 January – 1 February 2025
- Abbotsbury Food Fair: 19 April 2025
- Shaftesbury Feastival: 5 May 2025
- Christchurch Cheese & Chilli Festival: 17 – 18 May 2025
- BeCider Seaside 20: 23 – 26 May 2025
- Christchurch Food Festival: 24 – 26 May 205
- Highcliffe Food & Arts Festival: 14 – 15 June 2025
- Swanage Fish Festival: 21 – 22 June 2025
- Bridport Food Festival: 14 June 2025
- Dorset Beer Festival: 13-14 June 2025
- Upton House Food and Music Festival: 20-22 June 2025
- Great Dorset Chilli Festival: 2 – 3 August 2025
- Dorset Knob Throwing Festival: 10 August 2025
- Dorchester Cider Festival: 16 August 2025
- BeCider Seaside 21: 22 – 25 August 2025
- The Dorset Seafood Festival: Cancelled this year
- Poole Seafood & Sounds Festival: 13-14 September 2025
- Sturminster Newton Cheese Festival: 13 – 14 September 2025
Read More
8 of the Best Dorset Music Festivals
Dorset Festival Dates for Your Diary
Locally Made Foodie Gifts from Dorset
Are there any Dorset food festivals I’ve missed from this round-up? Scroll down to leave a comment and let me know!
Well written post.
Thanks Patricia 🙂
Thank you so much for sharing these Serena. I went to both of them last summer, can’t believe I forgot about them!! Poole Seafood Festival was gorgeous when I went, such nice weather!
I’ve just added both festivals into the post 🙂
Is this list up to date? Thanks.
It was last updated in January this year – all the dates showing are correct, a few more are still TBC 🙂
Hello You forgot the Athelhampton Manor Christmas Foodfestival and the one at Lychett
Minster which use to be the Venison Festival.
All the best, Brian.
Ooh great tips I’ll check out the info, thank you!
What about the Dorchester Food Festival? Normally 1st weekend of August on the Great Field.
I think that’s the Food and Arts Festival in Poundbury – that’s definitely one I need to add in as it’s getting bigger every year. There were still a lot of ‘TBC’ dates when I was updating this post in January so I will be updating again asap 🙂
Thanks, I have been looking for exactly this. I would suggest adding the Lymington Seafood festival in July, and the Hampshire show at the end of July, also possibly Christchurch and New Milton.
Thanks for commenting Ross 🙂 Lymington is technically in Hampshire rather than Dorset so I don’t think it would fit on this list, but it looks like another great one!