Grahamstown National Arts Festival in Grahamstown

Please note
2025 dates are still to be confirmed.
Please confirm with the event organiser before making any travel plans relating to this event.

About the Grahamstown National Arts Festival

The Grahamstown National Arts Festival: Africa's largest and most colourful cultural event offers a choice of the very best of both indigenous and imported talent. Every year for 11 days (June/July) Grahamstown's population almost doubles, as over 50 000 people flock to Grahamstown in the Eastern Cape for a feast of arts, crafts and sheer entertainment.

Every hall or large room becomes a theatre, parks and sport fields become flea markets, normally quiet streets have to be managed by an army of temporary traffic wardens, and every available bed in the city is booked. The festival offers more than 500 shows from opera, cabaret, drama and jazz to stand-up comics and folk music.

From theatre to dance, opera to cabaret, fine art to craft art, classical music to jazz, poetry readings to lectures, every art form imaginable is represented in one of the most diverse festivals in the world. And there's something for every taste, with techno raves, mediaeval banquets, craft fairs, cyber cafes, carnivals, buskers and walking tours.

To avoid disappointment it is advisable to book your accommodation well in advance for this event. Visit the Grahamstown Accommodation pages to find guest houses, hotels and self catering places and for additional info about Grahamstown which includes attractions and Things to Do, see Grahamstown Attractions.

While many come to take in the arts, others simply want to be here for the spectacle or to market products ranging from tie-dyed T-shirts and woven rugs to handmade jewellery and customized telephones. The festival operates out of the 1820 Settlers National Monument and is organized by the Grahamstown Foundation.

To avoid disappointment it is advisable to book your accommodation well in advance for this event. Visit the Grahamstown Accommodation pages to find guest houses, hotels and self catering places to stay and for additional info about Grahamstown which includes attractions, restaurants and things to do, see Grahamstown Info.

Need to Know

WhenTo be confirmed - June 2025

Where1820 Settlers National Monument, 1820 Settlers National Monument, Fort Selwyn Drive, Makhanda, Grahamstown 6139, Frontier Country, Eastern Cape, South Africa

Telephone+27 (0)46 603-1103

OvernightStay nearby in Grahamstown, in Eastern Cape

Disclaimer

Please note, event details can change. While we endeavour to ensure all information provided by the event organiser is correct at the time of publication, we do not assume any liability caused by errors or changes, such as price, cost, time, and location. Please check with the provider that the event/festival is still offered as described, before making any travel plans.

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Additional Reading

For an in depth review of this Festival see our articles at:
• The Grahamstown National Arts Festival review
• Grahamstown, "Festival City"

Find Grahamstown National Arts Festival in these collections

Music Festivals

Arts & Culture

Annual Festivals

In the vicinity

Hotels & other accommodation options by proximity

* Distances shown are "as the crow flies", not driving distances. Please confirm with the establishment should driving distance be a factor in your decision.