When is Edinburgh’s Beltane Fire Festival 2025 and how much are tickets?

The ancient Celtic event celebrates fire, new life and purity, and marks the end of the darker seasons and the arrival of summer on May Day. The age old tradition, that goes back 3,000 years, was first revived for modern times in Edinburgh in 1988 and is now one the largest celebrations of its kind in the world.

Around 8,500 people attended the event at the historic site last year where they were captivated by fire spinners, storytelling, dancing, acrobatics and pulsating drums.

Here is everything you need to know about the Beltane Fire Festival 2025.

Beltane Fire Society members displayed 'the epic battle between the Summer and Winter Kings' | Andrew Milligan/PA Wire

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When is the Beltane Fire Festival this year?

The Beltane Fire Festival takes place on Wednesday, April 30 at Calton Hill. The immersive event runs from 7.30pm to 1am.

How much are tickets?

Advance tickets for the event cost £17.45, people under 16-year-old will pay £8.88 and low-income concession tickets cost £11.01. A booking fee is included in all prices. Tickets bought on the night may be slightly more expensive.

What are the organisers saying?

The event will see hundreds of volunteers from the Beltane Fire Society perform a re-interpretation of an ancient Iron Age Celtic ritual which dates back thousands of years.

This year’s festival will explore themes of rewilding and ‘reviving our cultural and spiritual connection to the earth’. Performers will craft their own costumes with foraged materials as part of the society’s call to action ‘to reimagine our place in the world and our role in the land's story’.

Organisers said: “Throughout the festival, you’ll experience the spirit of rewilding through a seed exchange series - a chance to connect with the earth and with one another in a way that goes beyond the physical. And on the night itself, a symbolic seed exchange led by the May Queen will invite everyone to come together, share, and cultivate something magical.

“As we retell the traditional stories of The May Queen, and The Death and Rebirth of The Green Man, you’ll also come across a whole assortment of larger-than-life characters, fire-play, acrobatics, drummers, dancers, musicians, and much more.”

For more information you can visit the Beltane Fire Festival website.