North or South? Two Mouth-watering Welsh Food Festivals to Savour This Weekend
FOOD lovers are catered for whether they live in the north or the south of Wales this weekend, with two long-established festivals serving up everything from Welsh produce and street food to chef demonstrations, live music and family entertainment.
Abergavenny Food Festival in Monmouthshire and Mold Food & Drink Festival in Flintshire both take place over Saturday 19 and Sunday 20 September 2026, giving visitors the chance to celebrate Welsh food and drink wherever they’re located.
So what is happening, how much does it cost – and which festival might suit you best
WHEN IS ABERGAVENNY FOOD FESTIVAL 2026?
Abergavenny Food Festival takes over venues throughout the town centre this coming Saturday and Sunday.
Saturday runs from 9.30am until 6pm, while Sunday’s festival runs from 9.30am until 5pm. The event spreads across the heart of Abergavenny, including the Market Hall, Brewery Yard and the grounds of Abergavenny Castle.
This is the festival’s 28th year, and organisers are expecting more than 120 stallholders alongside over 80 chef demonstrations, talks and events and more than 16 live music performances.
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WHAT’S ON THE MENU AT ABERGAVENNY FOOD FESTIVAL?
Quite a lot more than simply buying something tasty to take home.
Visitors can watch live cookery demonstrations, discover artisan producers, join talks and debates about food and farming, take part in foraging activities and see open-fire cooking in the grounds of Abergavenny Castle.
The 2026 programme includes inaugural Great British Bake Off winner Edd Kimber, MasterChef champion Ping Coombes, BBC food broadcaster Sheila Dillon and a host of Welsh chefs, producers, writers and food experts.
There is also a free Kids’ Cookery School for youngsters, including Welsh-language and quieter sessions during the weekend.
One of Sunday’s additional ticketed events features former Top Gear and The Grand Tour presenter Richard Hammond in conversation with Welsh presenter Steve Jones, discussing food, travel and Hammond’s venture into the spirits business. Tickets for that event cost £20.
Saturday continues after the daytime festival with the Party in the Castle, featuring two stages, four bands and entertainment at Abergavenny Castle. Separate tickets cost £31 and the event is for over-12s.
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HOW MUCH ARE ABERGAVENNY FOOD FESTIVAL TICKETS?
Adult day tickets cost £17 for either Saturday or Sunday, while a weekend ticket covering both days costs £26.
Children aged under 16 receive free festival admission, although some special events and masterclasses carry an additional charge.
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WHAT ABOUT MOLD FOOD & DRINK FESTIVAL?
Some 140 miles to the north, Mold Food & Drink Festival – Gŵyl Fwyd a Diod yr Wyddgrug – has another reason to celebrate.
2026 marks its 20th anniversary, having first been staged in 2006.
The festival takes place at New Street Car Park, Mold, opening from 10am until 9pm on Saturday – although the indoor stalls close earlier – and from 10am until 5pm on Sunday.
There is even a musical warm-up on Friday 18 September from 6pm until 10pm, with the Friday evening event restricted to over-18s.
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WHAT’S COOKING AT MOLD FOOD & DRINK FESTIVAL?
Expect more than 100 food and drink stalls featuring Welsh produce alongside UK and international flavours, street food, artisan drinks, chef demonstrations and live entertainment.
The Welsh Culinary Team is among those represented, while the Cookery Theatre features chefs and local food businesses alongside complimentary beer, wine and gin tastings between demonstrations.
Mold has deliberately combined food with entertainment, making the event as much a music festival as a food market once the cooking demonstrations and shopping begin to wind down.
This year’s programme is especially significant because of that 2006–2026 twentieth-anniversary milestone.
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HOW MUCH DOES MOLD FOOD & DRINK FESTIVAL COST?
On-the-day/full-price admission is £12 on Saturday and £7 on Sunday. A Saturday evening-only adult ticket costs £10.
Under-16s are admitted free when accompanied by a paying adult, subject to the festival’s conditions. Friday night’s music event costs £20 and is for over-18s.
That makes Sunday at Mold a particularly affordable family option.
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HOW DO I GET TO THE FESTIVALS?
Abergavenny is particularly convenient for visitors travelling by public transport. The railway station is around a ten-minute walk from the festival, while the bus station is approximately five minutes away.
Drivers can use the temporary Castle Meadows Festival Car Park, costing £5 for the day, with proceeds supporting local community organisations.
Mold has an added attraction this weekend: a free Park and Ride service between Mold County Hall and Mold Bus Station on both Saturday and Sunday.
Two shuttle buses will operate, with Saturday services beginning at 9.30am and Sunday services from 10am. Flintshire County Council has confirmed the service specifically for this weekend’s festival.
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ABERGAVENNY OR MOLD – WHICH SHOULD YOU CHOOSE?
Geography may make the decision for many visitors, but the two festivals offer rather different experiences.
Abergavenny spreads itself across an entire market town and combines a huge food market with chefs, authors, debates, foraging, cookery and activities within historic venues.
Mold offers a more concentrated North Wales festival atmosphere, combining scores of food and drink exhibitors with cookery demonstrations and a strong live-music programme – with the added celebration of its 20th anniversary.
Whichever end of Wales you find yourself in, this looks like being one of the tastiest weekends of the Welsh calendar.
DID EWE KNOW?
Abergavenny Food Festival was actually born out of a food crisis. It was founded in 1999 by local farmers Chris Wardle and Martin Orbach after the BSE crisis had badly damaged public confidence in British food. The first festival brought just 39 producers together in Abergavenny Market Hall – the beginning of an event which now attracts thousands of visitors to the town.