Bedford River Festival: What you need to know from parking to food and drink

From its humble beginnings in 1978 to the biennial behemoth it has since become, the River Festival is an unmissable event that brings the community of Bedford Borough (and beyond) together.

The festival, which takes place on July 18 and 19, is staged across a unique site encompassing the Victorian Embankment Promenade, the River Great Ouse, scenic local parkland and the town centre to welcome a wealth of attractions to Bedford.

More than 250,000 visitors are expected over the two days, with the River Festival now described as the second largest outdoor event of its kind in the UK. The site itself measures 107 acres, the equivalent of 71 football pitches.

The 2026 River Festival will include countless river activities and displays, multiple live music and performance stages, arts, crafts and sports, family entertainment and so much more.

You can visit the link here to download a festival programme – but here’s a handy guide to help you.

GETTING TO THE RIVER FESTIVAL

By bus

Stagecoach will be running extra buses to and from the Bedford River Festival. The bus operator will be offering extra late services for customers on Saturday and Sunday to make it even easier. Visit www.stagecoachbus.com to find out more.

Park and Ride with free parking

Elstow Park & Ride (MK42 9XF or what3words: lungs.roof.crowd) will be running an enhanced service during the festival weekend.

Bus operator Grant Palmer will be operating a 15-minute service dropping off and collecting from Bedford town centre. Tickets cost £2.40 single and £4.80 return. Visit www.grantpalmer.com for more details.

By train

Check Thameslink and East Midlands Railway websites for timings.

From Bedford Station (what3words lawn.grab.relate), the River Festival is a short walk away. Follow the signs from the train station to Borough Hall. Turn right as you leave the station on Ashburnham Road, turn left at the roundabout and then turn right at the next roundabout, as you cross the bridge you’ll see the festival.

In past years a Sunday service has run on the Marston Vale Line between Bedford and Bletchley – but that won’t be running this year.

Road closures

The following roads will be residents-only parking: Newnham Road; Albany Road; Waterloo Road; Rothsay Road; Bushmead Avenue (south of Castle Road); Howbury Street (south of Castle Road); Bower Street (south of Castle Road); Pembrooke Street (south of Castle Road); York Street (south of Castle Road); Denmark Street (south of Castle Road); Dudley Street (south of Castle Road); George Street (south of Castle Road); Shaftesbury Avenue; Kingsley Road; Tennyson Road; Beresford Road; Newnham Avenue (south section); Russell Avenue; The Embankment

Disabled car parking

There are a number of car parks available around the festival site for Blue Badge holders at:

> Cauldwell Street (MK42 9AP or what3words behave.woke.audit)

> Longholme Way (MK42 0BX)

These car parks will be on a first-come, first-served basis.

As well as the regular Blue Badge provision in our town centre car parks, Blue Badge holders can also park in Everard Meadow and Bedford International Athletic Stadium, but please be aware that this is a grass field.

For more details, visit the Accessible Site Map, page 49 of the programme.

FOOD & DRINK

Whether you’re thirsty, peckish or fancy a treat, take your pick from the best of what the borough has to offer at official trade stalls at this year’s Bedford River Festival.

Official food, drink, craft and trade stalls will be available across the site; this includes the Craft and Gift Marquee, which will be returning to Russell Park, and a specialist Festival Market based around The Embankment Gardens.

Festival goers can also bring their own food and drink (no glass though).

A variety of festival food stalls will be onsite to tempt your tastebuds, while numerous bars provided by official bar provider, 3B1G Events Ltd, will be open throughout the festival weekend.

They will be operating a reusable cup scheme – vsitors will be charged for a cup when buying a first drink, which can be reused throughout the event or recycled. At each bar, there will be a designated area for visitors to return their cups for recycling, and any cups returned to the bars will be sterilised and reused for future events.

The Green Earth Vegan Lounge also returns to the River Festival this year at Castle Mound, offering a mix of vegan food, drinks and ethical products, alongside live demonstrations of willow weaving and wood turning. Families can enjoy nature-inspired children’s activities hosted by the Forest of Marston Vale, while music at the Lounge will be hosted by Remedy Collective, a Bedford-based group showcasing talented acts from across the UK.

Due to the number of visitors to the River Festival, signal reception in the area may be poor. Also, some trade stalls may not have a card payment option, so it is a good idea to bring cash as a backup.

KEEPING EVERYONE SAFE

Festival stewards and security personnel will be on duty for visitors’ safety and to help guide people around the site.

For example, as some of the bridges will be one way only, a steward can direct visitors to the closest bridge to cross. To help people move more freely and easily across the site during the festival, there will be three temporary two-way pontoon bridges installed across the River Great Ouse.

For the safety of everyone attending the festival, a temporary airspace restriction is in place between 4am and 10pm on Saturday and Sunday. No drones are allowed within the restricted area.

Bedfordshire Police will be also using Live Facial Recognition (LFR) technology, which compares images from a live camera feed against a pre-established watchlist of people, such as individuals who are wanted by the police or the courts or subject to bail conditions or specific court orders. If a potential match is identified, officers are alerted and carry out further checks to confirm the person's identity before any action is taken.

Images that generate an alert will be deleted within 24 hours unless a match is made and deemed necessary for investigation purposes. Images and biometric data of individuals who do not generate an alert are instantly and permanently deleted.

LFR may also be used to help locate and safeguard vulnerable people, including high-risk missing persons and victims of crime.

The Bedford Borough Council Community Safety team will be based in The Blue Lights area in Russell Park, near the tennis courts. Here, parents can pick up wristbands for children to wear and include their contact details, in case they become separated.

Visitors can also learn about what local emergency services partners (including Bedfordshire Police and Bedfordshire Fire and Rescue Service) manage all year round in The Blue Lights area.

ACCESSIBILITY

Families of children and young people with Special Education Needs and/or Disabilities (SEND) can enjoy the best of what Bedford has to offer by visiting the SEND Area in The Family Island in St Mary’s Gardens (what3words safety.icon.nearly).

The SEND Area includes a quieter relaxed space to take a break from the festival.

It will also include a dedicated soft play section, a bouncy castle and some sensory toys. Blue Badge parking is available close to the Island allowing easy access to and from the festival.

A ‘relaxed’ hour between 10am-11am on both days will run across the entire site to welcome visitors who may have additional sensory needs or those who simply prefer to visit the event before it becomes too busy.

Official festival traders have been requested to refrain from playing amplified music or using any sort of flashing lights on their pitch during this ‘relaxed’ hour.

Traders will also be required to complete the Sunflower Lanyard Training. This nationwide initiative was launched by Hidden Disabilities Sunflower to raise awareness of non-visible disabilities and create a more inclusive, understanding society. Bedford Borough Council is one of many organisations, businesses and institutions across the country that supports the initiative.

Visitors can relax in dedicated chill-out spaces and explore the Wellbeing Tent, hosted by Bedford’s new Wellbeing Hub, which is making its festival debut. The programme includes calming and restorative sessions such as Reiki, Qigong demonstrations and sound baths.

Changing Places Toilets

There will be Changing Places Toilets available at locations near to the main festival site, which can be opened using a RADAR toilet key (details further below):

> Russell Park, Bedford: Open Monday to Sunday, 7am-6pm from March to October, and from 7am-4.30pm daily from November to February. A Changing Places Toilet is located next to The Kiosk café, near the accessible play equipment.

> The Higgins Bedford: Open Tuesday to Saturday, 11am-5pm and Sunday 2pm-5pm. A Changing Places Toilet is located on the ground floor.

> A Changing Places Toilet is located inside The Pilgrim’s Progress in Midland Road, Bedford, click here for opening times.

There will not be a mobile Changing Places Toilet on-site at the Bedford River Festival.

How to get a RADAR key

Disabled users can access over 9,000 public disabled toilets with a RADAR key, enabling people with a disability to use a locked toilet facility across the UK.

You can find out more about Changing Places Toilets in Bedford Borough here.

Youc an find out more at the accessibility at the Bedford River Festival guide.