Festivals & Events
Jersey has played host to The Dance World Cup, The Super League Triathlon & The European Touch Rugby Championships over the last few years and welcomed the musical genius of old favourites such as The Human League, Boney M and Madness. With the household names of Rita Ora,Jess Glynne, Dizzee Rascal, Rag`n`Bone Man, Fleur East and Lewis Capaldi also choosing Jersey as a venue to perform, the island has become a popular venue for entertainment. We have selected arguably the top 5 festivals in Jersey to give you a flavour of the island, please see our events page for daily events and festivals
Jersey has played host to The Dance World Cup, The Super League Triathlon & The European Touch Rugby Championships over the last few years and welcomed the musical genius of old favourites such as The Human League, Boney M and Madness. With the household names of Rita Ora,Jess Glynne, Dizzee Rascal, Rag`n`Bone Man, Fleur East and Lewis Capaldi also choosing Jersey as a venue to perform, the island has become a popular venue for entertainment. We have selected arguably the top 5 festivals in Jersey to give you a flavour of the island, please see our events page for daily events and festivals
Weekender Festival – The Weekender is the largest festival of music in Jersey and is held at the Royal Jersey Showground. Making its debut in September 2018, the festival attracted such iconic stars as Rita Ora, Dizzee Rascal and The Rag `n` Bone Man to perform, supported by local acts such as Mozaics. The Festival itself is a celebration of music, entertainment and food, with up to 10,000 people enjoying a world class line up of musicians and street performers.
Battle of Flowers Carnival – Enjoy the electric carnival atmosphere that is “The Battle of Flowers”. With spectacular displays of hand flowered floats on show, live music, dance routines and entertainers interacting with the crowd in an array of costumes you will be enveloped in one of the most impressive floral festivals in Europe. This spectacular festival is normally held on the 2nd Thursday in August and lasts for two days, culminating in a Moonlight Parade and fireworks on the second day
The traditional Grand Day Parade is held in August and battle planning is a major pastime in Jersey with communities around the Island spending months designing and building their themed floats, then frantically spending the last week busily flowering them to produce a float worthy of competing for the coveted Prix d`Honneur. The Festival is Jersey`s oldest and best loved event in the summer calendar and is guaranteed to delight you as it has done the thousands of visitors and locals alike every year.
With the cry of ‘Let Battle Commence!’ the floats enter the arena in Victoria Avenue, giving spectators their first view of the visual and musical extravaganza that is to follow. The floats come in all variety of all shapes and sizes, with the effort taken to plan themes plain to see and being a credit to all those taking part, if you’ve never seen a floral dalek or an 8-foot elephant made of flowers, this just might be the place to be!
Battle of Flowers Carnival – Enjoy the electric carnival atmosphere that is “The Battle of Flowers”. With spectacular displays of hand flowered floats on show, live music, dance routines and entertainers interacting with the crowd in an array of costumes you will be enveloped in one of the most impressive floral festivals in Europe. This spectacular festival is normally held on the 2nd Thursday in August and lasts for two days, culminating in a Moonlight Parade and fireworks on the second dayThe traditional Grand Day Parade is held in August and battle planning is a major pastime in Jersey with communities around the Island spending months designing and building their themed floats, then frantically spending the last week busily flowering them to produce a float worthy of competing for the coveted Prix d`Honneur. The Festival is Jersey`s oldest and best loved event in the summer calendar and is guaranteed to delight you as it has done the thousands of visitors and locals alike every year.With the cry of ‘Let Battle Commence!’ the floats enter the arena in Victoria Avenue, giving spectators their first view of the visual and musical extravaganza that is to follow. The floats come in all variety of all shapes and sizes, with the effort taken to plan themes plain to see and being a credit to all those taking part, if you’ve never seen a floral dalek or an 8-foot elephant made of flowers, this just might be the place to be!There is seating and standing areas for viewing and Jersey has its very own ‘Miss Battle, ‘Mr Battle’ and ‘Miss Junior Battle’ to represent it with past winners including Petula Clark (who was entitled ‘First Lady of Flowers,’) Roy Castle, Stirling Moss and Gareth Gates.
What is the Battle of Flowers?
On 9th August 1902 Jersey decided to stage a parade to celebrate the coronation of Edward VII and Queen Alexandra. The floats were covered in flowers and the “battle” was the practice of flowers and petals being torn from these creations and thrown to a lady in the crowd in the hope they would be thrown back. The event was so successful that the organizers repeated the event the following year and it is now a summer tradition that, with exception of the wartime years has become an annual event since the 1950`s with some floats now reaching a very impressive 45 feet long
On 9th August 1902 Jersey decided to stage a parade to celebrate the coronation of Edward VII and Queen Alexandra. The floats were covered in flowers and the “battle” was the practice of flowers and petals being torn from these creations and thrown to a lady in the crowd in the hope they would be thrown back. The event was so successful that the organizers repeated the event the following year and it is now a summer tradition that, with exception of the wartime years has become an annual event since the 1950`s with some floats now reaching a very impressive 45 feet long
Jersey International Air Display
“The Battle of France is over. I expect the Battle of Britain is about to begin”
These words spoken by Prime Minister Winston Churchill on 18th June 1940 proved to be founded when German Luftwaffe bombers commenced the bombing of major British cities and strategic defences on 7th September in Hitler`s attempt to destroy The Royal Air Force. Britain`s resolve and morale however was not to be broken, with Hitler making one final attempt on 15th September 1940, with over 1,500 aircraft involved in a fierce battle over London, culminating in the RAF defeating the German attack.
The Jersey International Air Display is held annually in September to commemorate the brave pilots who defended our country during The Battle of Britain and to raise funds for British Forces Charities.
The Jersey International Air Display is held annually in September to commemorate the brave pilots who defended our country during The Battle of Britain and to raise funds for British Forces Charities.
This free event is one of the most eagerly anticipated events in the Jersey calendar with aircraft from around the world taking to the skies with a fantastic display of both modern and vintage military aircraft. This spectacular event has entertained thousands of locals and visitors to the island since 1952 and is one of the finest air shows that you will see anywhere in Europe, with St Aubin`s Bay on Jersey`s South Coast as the backdrop for this display it is certainly the best venue. With vintage displays from WW11 veterans The Lancaster Bomber and the infamous Spitfire and Hurricane fighters and breathtaking acrobatic displays from The Red Arrows and RAF Tuscano display teams it is a “must” see event for all the family to enjoy
There is also a great opportunity for you to view the aircraft and other military vehicles on the ground with static displays and exhibits which are held at Jersey Airport and People`s Park. You may also be lucky enough to meet one of the pilots!
TreatFest is the newest event in Jersey, where over 50 local restaurants and independent eateries will participate in creating some mouth-watering set menu`s and special offers at some even more mouth-watering prices. The festival starts at the beginning of October and carries on until the end of November, so there is plenty of time to sample your favourite menu`s from around the island.
Chef`s from around the island will create and deliver their own inspired menu`s to tantalize and treat your taste buds by using the abundance of fresh local produce and seafood available in the Autumn months. It is a great time of year to visit the island if you are looking for an end of season break and love your food! With the many participants ranging from pub`s and bistro`s to Michelin starred restaurants you can be sure you won`t go hungry.
The island has such a variety of culture`s so as well as there being locally influenced specialities there are other contributions from countries from around the world for you to try including French, Italian, Portuguese, Japanese, Greek, Indian, Thai and many more.
Jersey is well renowned for its quality of local seafood and produce so what better than to indulge in a food heaven of lobster thermidor, pan-fried Sea Bass or hand dived scallops served with a prawn ragout. With crushed Jersey Royal potatoes and lashings of creamy Jersey butter served with seasonal vegetables straight from the farm and Vegetarian, Vegan and Gluten Free options also available the Jersey TreatFest is a food heaven.
Channel Islands Heritage Festival – This festival takes place each Spring and is a five-week celebration of the Channel Islands Multi-layered History and Heritage. There are a number of special events that take place across the island exploring the vast number of historical attractions and exhibitions around the island. Discover Neolithic Dolmens, coins from the Roman era, medieval & coastal castles, historic towers and more recent fortresses and bunkers from WW11 and learn about life as an islander through these periods of history that have shaped the future of Jersey.
The festival culminates with a special service of thanksgiving and commemoration to those who lost their lives during the Second World War and the subsequent celebration of the liberation of the island from German forces.
The Liberation Day Ceremony on 9th May includes re-enactments of the arrival of the Liberating Forces, marching bands, parades and military vehicle drive-pasts, such is the poignancy of the occasion the 9th of May is declared as a public holiday in Jersey.
