Join us over August Bank Holiday weekend at the Sandgate Sea & Food Festival 2026. The event will be held along Granville Parade extending to Sandgate Castle and in Castle Road Car Park.
Sandgate Sea Festival on Facebook.
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The Sandgate Sea and Food Festival is ON for the evening of Saturday 29th August and all day Sunday 30th August. However, the fireworks planned for Saturday 29th have been postponed.
Due to the high winds forecast for Saturday 29th, we have had to postpone the fireworks display. The first consideration of a fireworks display has to be safety. The predicted wind speeds for tomorrow evening have now risen above that at which the Fireworks Team is confident we could go ahead.
On Saturday 29th: there will still be stalls on the seafront and in Castle Road car park and live music from the Castle Road stage and Roger De Haan Charitable Trust Granville Parade stage from 6pm-10pm.
Sunday 30th August from 10am onwards we have a fun day for all the family with live music, stalls and entertainment along Granville Parade & throughout Sandgate.
Alongside music from our two outdoor stages, venues throughout Sandgate are offering music, food, drink and entertainment through Saturday and Sunday. Come for the fireworks, stay for the weekend!
FREE parking in the Enbrook Park main car park courtesy of Saga from 5pm-11pm Saturday and 10am-6pm Sunday. Please respect the park, ONLY park in marked bays in the main car park, and do not leave litter.
Castle Road Car Park is CLOSED for parking from Noon on Saturday 29th August to 6pm on 30th August for parking. Cars left after noon on Saturday 29th August will be booked. Except for Festival access, Granville Road East, Granville Road West, The Parade and Granville Parade itself are CLOSED to traffic and CLOSED for parking from Noon on Saturday 29th August to 6pm on 30th August. Cars left after noon on Saturday 29th August (or driving except for access) will be booked. We’re not being difficult – just trying to run a free festival for thousands of people with sufficient safety access over a weekend.
On Sunday 30th August from 10am-4pm there will be:
- Seafront market along Granville Parade featuring Acre Kitchen, Coco Riko, Jade Johnson, South Kent Mind, National Coastwatch, Barrow of Booze, Gurkha Palace, Sri Lankan Short Eats, Sandgate Sea Food Maechen Thai Takeover, Mean Burger, Prosecco & Pimms, Premium Ice Cream, Bakber Fresh Foods, The Wagon, Sandgate Society, Sandgate Environmental Action, Sandgate Community Garden & Mimosa Beach Bar.
- Castle Road Car Park market, with live music from the “Introducing” stage.
- The Sandgate Arts & Craft Fair in the Chichester Hall at 70 Sandgate High Street with a wide range of stalls from talented local makers, and a cafe run by The Dog House.
- The Sandgate Deli (88a Sandgate High Street) are running a FREE drop-in kids sea creatures crafting session from 10-2pm.
- Sandgate Ceramic exhibition outside Prater Raines office, 98 Sandgate High Street: all items thrown, fired and finished in Sandgate!
- Curio are hosting a “Meet the Makers” event at 100 Sandgate High Street. You can not only browse and buy from their range of locally made arts, crafts and gifts, but meet the people that made them!
- Kerry’s Art Studio at 117e Sandgate High Street is offering free watercolour taser sessions, live seascape painting while you wait and more!
There will be stalls available on Granville Parade (Saturday night and in the day Sunday), food market in Castle Road Car Park, and a beachside bar outside Sandgate Castle on the sea front (Sunday only).
Festival Music Programme
Granville Parade Roger De Haan Charitable Trust Stage
- Saturday 29th August, 6pm: Alex McNeice
- Saturday 29th August, 8pm: The Hot Takes
- Sunday 30th August, 10am: Gumboots Duo
- Sunday 30th August, 11.30am: Diane Dunn Trio
- Sunday 30th August, 1pm: Realm 79
- Sunday 30th August, 2.30pm: Woosah!
Castle Road Car Park “Introducing” Stage
- Saturday 29th August, 6pm: Ben Milbury
- Saturday 29th August, 7:30pm: Emily J
- Sunday 30th August, 11am: Jack Bowden
- Sunday 30th August, 12pm: Megan Wardroper
- Sunday 30th August, 1pm: Amy Marsh
- Sunday 30th August, 2pm: Neil Herd
- Sunday 30th August, 3pm: Neil Herd
The Royal Norfolk Hotel
Live music over the weekend in the Royal Norfolk Hotel Festival Stage:
- Saturday 29th August, 2pm: The Heroes
- Sunday 30th August, 12pm Turmoil
- Sunday 30th August, 3pm The Marcellas (A tribute to ABBA)
The Royal Norfolk is also renowned for great food, and so in addition on Saturday 29th August they will be serving a Barbeque and Paella, and on Sunday 30th August their full Hog Roast – both from 1pm until they run out!
Bar 96 (96 Sandgate High Street)
Start your Bank Holiday weekend right with DJ Breadsticks returning to the Bar!
- Friday 28th August, 7.30pm: DJ Breadsticks
On Sunday 30th from Noon, Bar 96 will be open with their usual range of mainly locally sourced drinks. You are more than welcome to buy and bring in food from our neighbours to eat with your drink, including Roka, Fat Raj, Natalina’s and Sandgate Deli.
The Providence Inne
Stall on Granville Parade near the main stage from 5pm on Saturday with maechen serving Thai, oysters and bubbles until 10pm then back again from Noon until 4 on Sunday. Thai food is available on both the seafront and in pub – pre-ordering will be helpful at the busiest times post fireworks!
Takeaway pints to watch the fireworks with, and Fortune Faded Glory with an Oasis tribute on the Sunday at 5pm (outside or inside, weather depending!).
- Saturday 29th August 5pm-10pm: Seafront stall with Maechen Thai Takeover serving Thai, oysters and bubbles.
- Sunday 30th August Noon-4pm: Seafront stall with Maechen Thai Takeover serving Thai, oysters and bubbles.
- Sunday 30th August, 5pm: Fortune Faded Glory at the Providence.
The Ship Inn
Throughout the Bank Holiday weekend, The Ship Inn will be offering Oysters and Chapel Down wine and fizz through their bars and sundeck. In addition there will be a BBQ and Hog Roast outside on both the Saturday and Sunday. Start your Bank Holiday weekend with live music from Ryan Sart, and finish the Sea Festival with Caribbean flavours from Steel and Strings outside on Granville Parade on Sunday afternoon!
- Friday 28th August, evening: Start your weekend with live music from Ryan Sart. Food service 12-9.30pm.
- Saturday 29th August, 12-9.30pm: Food service including BBQ and Hog Roast.
- Sunday 30th August, 12-8pm: Food service including BBQ and Hog Roast.
- Sunday 30th August, 3.30pm: Steel and Strings by the sea.
Mimosa Beachside Bliss
- Saturday 29th August, 8pm DJ Sean D’Elier, DJ Magma Flow, DJ Geo Starter and Guests in Mimosa (28 SHS) until late.
- Sunday 30th August, 10am onwards DJ Sean D’Elier, DJ Magma Flow, DJ Geo Starter and Guests in Mimosa ( 28 SHS, until late) AND on the Sandgate Beach Bar (Seafront near Castle Road Car Park, Noon-6pm).
SSAFF Fuller Tunes
- Sunday 30th August, 10am, 11am, Noon: The Fuller Tunes Under 10’s Disco in Sandgate Library at James Morris Court. Entry free but booking required – each disco lasts 45 minutes. Disco made possible by the generous support of the PPL PRS Charity & Community Discount Scheme. Learn more about PPL PRS at https://pplprs.co.uk/ Free (but limited numbers) tickets available here.
Chichester Hall
- Sunday 30th August, 10am-4pm: The Chichester Hall (70 Sandgate High Street – through the main door and up the stairs) hosts the Sandgate Arts and Crafts Fair and will be filled with stalls bearing unique handcrafted gifts and delights. Come and meet the very talented crafters who create these wonderful items, browse the stalls, have a cuppa and a bite to eat in our cafe and then leave with something beautiful.
Sandgate Members Club
- Sunday 30th August, 6.45pm Just Ash Lee.
Please note: Alex McNeice is Sea Festival Event Music Producer and books all the acts for the Granville Parade De Haan Charitable Trust Stage and the Castle Road Car Park Stage. All 2026 acts are now booked. If you would like to perform at a future Sea Festival on one of those stages, please contact Alex directly at info@alexmcneice.com.
* Safety is our highest priority, and we have spent much of the last 2 weeks in contact with both our professional fireworks team and Kent and Medway Fire and Rescue Authority (K&MFRA) on the fire risk of the event after a dry summer. Kent and Medway Fire and Rescue have advice regarding wildfires, the risks and mitigations on their website, including a link to the forecast Fire Severity Index (FSI) across the country.
The Met Office’s Fire Severity Index (FSI), is an assessment of how severe a fire could become if one were to start. It is not an assessment of the risk of wildfires occurring.
The FSI uses information such as wind speed, temperature, time of year and rainfall to produce a fire severity assessment. To produce forecasts of fire severity, weather information from the Met Office operational forecast model is used.
As you can see, by Saturday 29th August Sandgate has the lowest possible category of Fire Severity Index (low).
K&MFRA have confirmed there is no prohibition on fireworks at this time nationally or in Kent. They also say they would expect due care to be taken to weather forecasts and safe launching and landing zones (which we obviously do, every year).
Our Firework Display Team have reviewed as well. They are absolutely confident (and its their insurance and reputation here) that from a shingle beach, with firing aimed away from land, and taking predicted conditions including wind speed and direction into account that they can run a safe show.
As such, after considerable thought, we are happy we can go ahead with the display on Saturday 29th August at 9pm. We hope the rain stops long enough that all can enjoy the display!
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