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food-drink · Sunday 2 August 2026 · Various throughout festival 
Ballaghaderreen Arts Festival 2026
At Ballaghaderreen town · Ballaghaderreen, Co. Mayo
At Ballaghaderreen town · Ballaghaderreen, Co. Mayo
The Ballaghaderreen Arts Festival runs for nine days each August and has grown quickly since it launched a few years ago into one of the more enjoyable community arts events in Connacht. It is a genuinely mixed programme - theatre, music, visual art, circus, workshops for children and adults - rather than a single-strand festival, which makes it worth planning a trip around even if you only dip in for a day or two. The audience tends to be a mix of locals, people with family ties to the area, and visitors passing through on the N5 corridor who have heard about it. If you enjoy a festival that still feels community-scaled rather than corporate, this is a good one.
The festival spreads across several venues around the town, including St Nathy’s College, the Phoenix Centre, Edmondstown House, and the Cathedral of the Annunciation. Past editions have included theatre from the Ballaghaderreen Players, performances by well-regarded Irish musicians, children’s opera based on Irish legend, art workshops with painters, ukulele sessions, film and writing workshops, circus skills with Broken Theatre, heritage walks, and archival exhibitions. The mix leans toward the participatory - there are things to watch but also things to join in.
Ticketed events generally run from around €11.50 to €31.50 depending on the act. Many workshops are free but limited in numbers, so it is worth checking the programme and booking early. Children’s events are usually discounted or free. The full programme for 2026 is published at ballaghaderreenartsfestival.com.
Ballaghaderreen sits on the N5 between Strokestown and Westport, close to the Roscommon-Mayo border. Coming from Dublin, it is roughly two and a half hours by road via the M4 and N5. From Galway, allow about an hour and twenty minutes via the N17 and N5. Bus Eireann serves the town on the Westport-Dublin route, stopping at the N5 junction - check timetables at buseireann.ie as frequency varies. Parking in the town centre is straightforward during the day; evening show traffic can fill the main square quickly, so arriving a few minutes early is sensible.
The town has a handsome cathedral, a nine-hole parkland golf course a few kilometres outside, and the Lung Valley nearby for coarse fishing. It is a working market town with good local cafes and pubs that tend to fill pleasantly during festival week. There is more to see in Ballaghaderreen and across Co. Mayo.
Heading to Ballaghaderreen town? Mayo has plenty more to see. Browse the area guide, find what else is on, and explore the towns and villages nearby.