Walking festivals are wonderful places to discover and learn about far-flung locations or those closer to your doorstep.
They’ll motivate you to get out there and walk, whether it’s for a short stroll through a vineyard (yes please) to longer hikes over hilly terrain. There are many up and down the country, with guided or self-guided options to choose from.
- Toughest long-distance walking trails in the UK: Challenge yourself with one of these bucket-list routes
- What muscles does walking tone?
Best walking festivals in the UK
Richmond Walking & Book Festival
19-28 September 2025
A festival of walking and reading, what more could you ask for? For it to be held in the south-east, our London readers might retort, as this is Richmond in the Yorkshire Dales. In the daytime, enjoy daily ambles or hikes from a wide selection of graded walks. By night, enjoy one of the many book events and talks, which will often relate to the area you’ve just ticked off. Enrich both your body and mind this late summer.
- Drop the weight: These are the best lightweight hiking boots I've tried in 2025
- Best walking shoes for summer: Tried & tested hiking shoes for men and women
Saltmarsh Walking Festival
26 September to 5 October 2025
The Saltmarsh Coast, say the organisers, is Essex’s best-kept secret. Which you can uncover this autumn with a series of leisurely walks along tidal creeks and guided hikes through ancient landscapes. The 10-day festival features a programme of evening entertainment, too, with guest speakers regaling all with the rich history and heritage of the area. You can also download self-guided walks from the festival’s website.
Isle of Wight Walking Festival
Autumn walking festival 4-12 October 2025
Isle of Wight bills itself as an outdoor-activity island. There’s a wonderful signposted bike ride around the island plus numerous water hotspots. There are also two walking festivals, in the spring and the autumn, with the former celebrating its 25th anniversary in 2024. Follow in the footsteps of Alfred Lord Tennyson, Jimi Hendrix and dinosaurs over hundreds of walks that make these two of the biggest walking festivals in the country. Over half the island’s recognised as an area of outstanding beauty so memorable views are guaranteed.
Crickhowell Walking Festival
7-15 March 2026
The picturesque town of Crickhowell, nestling in the beautiful Usk Valley, plays host to one of the year’s earliest walking festivals. That means arming yourself with waterproofs – this is Bannau Brycheiniog, after all – though after a surprisingly clement 2025 edition, some wag suggested it should be renamed the ‘Dry Festival’. Enjoy over 80 walks of various distances. For the competitive amongst you, there’s the TMC or Table Mountain Challenge where you walk or run up and down the 380m-high Table Mountain as many times as you can. There are prizes for the female and male winners.
Ride2 Stride, Settle-Carlisle
2026 date TBC
This week-long bonanza usually takes place at the start of May and takes in the delights of the western Dales and Eden Valley. To add a thematic edge, the varied walks take place along the spectacular Carlisle railway line. Many pubs along the way will be playing live music while talks take place in Settle’s Friends Meeting House. Walks range from four to 15 miles.
- Welcome to Eden – The Lake District’s fascinating neighbour
- The UK's best viaducts to explore by rail, foot or bike for magnificent scenery and Roman-inspired architecture
- The best walks from train stations in Northern England
Arran Mountain Festival
15-18 May 2026
That moniker doesn’t lie – this is a four-day walking festival for those who revel in a challenge and possess a solid foundation of fitness. Technical ratings stretch from ‘moderate’ to ‘extreme’ with a ‘social’ mountain run coming in at around six hours. But it’s worth prepping for to tame true classic Scottish hill walks, which include tackling a semi-circle of high ridges running between Beinn Nuis, Beinn Tarsuinn and Beinn a’Chliabhain. Keep an eye out for Saturday night’s lively ceilidh, which in 2025 took place in Brodick Village Hall.
- Guide to Scotland’s Great Trails: history and best walks
- Scottish islands guide: best to visit and how to get there
The National Forest Walking Festival
2026 date TBC
2026 sees the 17th edition of this East Midlands walking festival, which takes place annually in mid-May. The National Forest spans 200 square miles of Leicestershire, Derbyshire and Staffordshire, of which much you can discover thanks to over 90 walks that are categorised ‘easy’ to ‘strenuous’. Previous events included a spot of forest bathing, plus ‘Bench to Bench’ walks for those with less mobility. There’s also Nordic walking for those with Parkinson’s, as research shows it helps those with this degenerative brain condition.
Discover more walking inspiration
- Best hill walks in Britain
- What is a Munro? And what is Munro-bagging?
- Best walking holidays: Hiking routes, guided tours and accommodation
- Nordic walking: what it is, why it is a great workout and how it tones the body
Top image: group of hikers. Credit: Getty
