Robin Hood Festival 2024
The Robin Hood Festival is back!
Join us in Sherwood Forest this summer for four weekends of entertainment from 3rd to 26th August, celebrating the legend that makes Sherwood famous across the globe.
What is the Robin Hood Festival?
The Robin Hood Festival is a celebration of the world’s favourite outlaw and the legends which have been inspired by the landscape of Sherwood Forest.
2024 will be the 38th Robin Hood Festival, with each attracting thousands of visitors every year from across the UK and overseas.
They come to see spectacular displays of jousting on horseback and medieval hand-to-hand combat, archery, historical re-enactment, music, comedy, children’s entertainment and much, much more.
When is it and what’s happening?
There will be activities and events taking place on each weekend in August
The Knights of Nottingham Medieval jousting display. Photo: Mark Powell.
Knights ride back into Sherwood
Special Event Weekend – £15 daily parking charge (includes RSPB members)
Saturday 3rd and Sunday 4th August
The Knights of Nottingham return to the Robin Hood Festival for the third year in a row with their spectacular horseback jousting display.
Their retelling of the legend of Robin Hood and his battles with the Sheriff of Nottingham is action-packed, with dazzlng horsemanship and brilliant hand-to-hand combat displays in our arena.
They will perform twice daily, and you won’t want to miss either show because the tale is told in two thrilling parts!
Festival folk:
The Ferrers Household
Helter Skelter
The Bubonic Plague Players
Jim Munro
Simple Tom
Go Active Falconry
Bethan
Sloe Gin
Mowbrays Musickle
Fantasy in the Greenwood
Special Event Weekend – £15 daily parking charge (includes RSPB members)
Saturday 10th and Sunday 11th August
Let us transport you to the world of orcs and ents. It’s the kind of place that Bilbo Baggins would have recognised.
The Ancient Oak Trees of Sherwood Forest could almost be the Ents of Tolkein’s imagination, but what if there were mighty trees here that could walk and talk?
And what other mystical beings could have found their way to this woodland?
There is only one way to find out… by venturing out into the wild, just like the Hobbits of the Shire.
Festival folk:
College of Chivalry
Helter Skelter
Galactic Knights
Academy of the Wolf
Nathaniel Bagshot
Past Imagined
Go Active Falconry
Bethan
Bill Brookman
Inspiring Wildlife
Saturday 17th and Sunday 18th August
It’s 70 years since Sherwood was declared a Site of Special Scientific Interest. Today, it is a vital remnant of the UK’s last ancient woodlands.
Here you will find a woodland which has one of Europe’s largest assemblages of Ancient Oak Trees.
Hundreds of species depend on every ancient tree here and this weekend we’ll be celebrating our special species.
There will be wildlife-focused activities and displays, with a range of organisations here to talk about the work they do to protect the amazing species of the British Isles.
The Outlaws’ Return and Nottinghamshire Day Festival
Special Event Weekend – £15 daily parking charge (includes RSPB members)
Saturday 24th – Monday 26th August
Catching the Festival Finale is always worth your while.
The Sherwood Outlaws headline the weekend’s events by taking to the arena to present their all-action (and often humorous) take on the legend of Robin Hood.
Let battle commence as the wily Sheriff attempts yet again to subdue the outlaws and capture their heroic leader.
We’ll also be hosting the annual celebration of the great county of Nottinghamshire and in particular its cultural and natural heritage.
And, finally, we’ll welcome back those Marvellous Masters of Mirth, the Medieval Maniax! Altogether now: “One spoon…!!”
Festival folk:
College of Chivalry
Helter Skelter
Nathaniel Bagshot
Jim Munro
Sir Robert of Wentbridge
Go Active Falconry
Bill Brookman
Sloe Gin
Mowbray’s Musickle
Festival information
Did you know?
You can get all the latest Festival news first on Facebook:
facebook.com/robinhoodfestival
Where is it?
In Sherwood Forest, home to the legend of Robin Hood and one of the most important ancient oak woodlands in Europe.
Sherwood is located in North Nottinghamshire, with the RSPB’s Visitor Centre in the village of Edwinstowe.
How much is it?
With the exception of some activities, such as archery, admission to the festival is free, but there is a special event parking charge of £15 per vehicle per day on selected dates for all visitors (including RSPB members).
For a family of four, that’s just £3.75 each for a fun-filled day with lots to see and do.
On all other days our regular parking charges will apply.
This helps to meet the cost of such a large event, as well as to help protect Sherwood Forest and maintain the visitor facilities we provide.
What’s on and at what time?
Visit our Events page for a summary of performances. Keeping checking back as we add more information.
Follow us on Facebook at facebook.com/robinhoodfestival to find out first.
A comprehensive programme with event times and locations is available to buy for just £2 from our Visitor Centre shop.
Parking
On special event days, you can pay for parking by cash, card or contactless device. We will have attendants to greet you and take payment on your arrival.
Please note that the charge still applies even if you do not intend to watch or participate in any of the Festival events and activities.
On all other days, you can pay by cash, card or contactless device at the car park machines. You can also use the PaybyPhone app. Our location code for PaybyPhone is 806294.
When visiting us for the Festival, please respect the local community and avoid parking on neighbouring residential streets.
There should be ample parking within our main and accessible car parks. We can also provide additional spaces next to the main car park.
Our car parks will open at 9am every day. On special event days they will close at 5pm.
Please ensure you arrive in good time for the start of events, which will normally begin at around 10am with the last event of the day at 3pm.
This helps avoid queueing along Swinecote Road.
Here’s a map to show you how to reach our main car park.
If you have limited mobility, then you can use our accessible car park next to the Visitor Centre building (postcode NG21 9RN).
This is not a Blue Badge car park. Please use it responsibly.
Public transport
The Sherwood Arrow bus service links Nottingham city centre directly to the Visitor Centre.
The Robin Hood Line isn’t far away either. The nearest train station is six miles away at Shirebrook.
Safety first
Please take care whilst enjoying this busy event. For your safety, please:
Take care near the archery stand – stay behind the rope barriers and never walk behind the targets.
Stay behind the fencing in our arena whilst watching the tournaments.
Supervise children at all times
Keep dogs on leads
Be aware that some shows feature loud bangs
Take care of valuables on site and do not leave anything on display in your vehicle.
First aid
First aid facilities and assistance are available.
Public toilets
There are only toilets at the Visitor Centre, which also has accessible toilets and a Changing Places facility. There are no toilets in the forest for visitors to use.
Alternative facilities are available at the Sherwood Forest Art and Craft Centre (opposite the Visitor Centre) or in Edwinstowe village.
Refreshments and souvenirs
Our Visitor Centre has a selection of refreshments, including snacks, sandwiches, and hot and cold drinks. Ice creams available at the Visitor Centre and the Major Oak. Pop into our shop or visit one of our festival stalls for a souvenir of your day!
Picnics
Have fun enjoying a picnic around the site but please ensure you dispose of your rubbish responsibly and consider taking it home to help keep our forest clean and tidy during this busy event.
Barbeques are not allowed anywhere on site, including the car parks.
Dogs
Dogs are allowed at the festival, but please be aware it is a very busy event and may not be a comfortable environment for some pets.
A number of the events may be noisy and include loud bangs.
Dogs must be kept on leads at all times and cannot be left in vehicles.
Please clean up after your dog and use the bins provided around our nature reserve.
Mobility scooter
We have a motorised scooter for hire at the Visitor Centre at £3 per hour which must be pre-booked by calling 01623 677321 or emailing sherwoodforest@rspb.org.uk.
Bad weather
The festival is an outdoor event and performances or events may need to be changed or cancelled at short notice.
Photography
Please note there will be photography and filming at the event. The RSPB and our partners will use this for promotion of the event, on our website, social media channels and marketing materials.
By attending the event you are giving your consent to appear in photos or footage we may capture during the festival.
If you do not wish to be in any of these photos, please avoid the photographer or speak to our team for more details.
Need more information?
We recommend you go to the Plan Your Visit page of this website to find out more about coming to the reserve for the Festival.
Alternatively, call us on 01623 677321 or email sherwoodforest@rspb.org.uk