A popular fixture in Bedford’s annual events calendar is set to make a welcome return next month, as the much-loved Bedford Beer & Cider Festival opens its doors from Wednesday 1 to Saturday 4 October 2025.
A long-standing celebration of real ale, cider, and community, the festival will once again take place at the Corn Exchange, offering visitors the chance to sample more than 90 UK cask and foreign beers, ciders, and perries, alongside a small selection of red and white wines and soft drinks.
Run entirely by volunteers from the North Bedfordshire branch of CAMRA (Campaign for Real Ale), the festival has become a highlight of the town’s beverage calendar and continues to draw visitors from across the region.
This year’s event will be open from 4pm to 11pm on Wednesday, 12pm to 11pm on Thursday and Friday, and 12pm to 10pm on Saturday.
Admission is £5 for non-members and £2 for CAMRA members, with multi-day and group tickets available via the festival website.
Festival-goers can enjoy their drinks in a commemorative festival glass, available for a £4 deposit at the glasses stand. Glasses can be returned for a refund or kept as a memento. All drinks will be served in third, half, and pint measures, apart from bottled drinks.
Live music and tutored tastings
Each evening will feature live entertainment, with Bedford Ukulele kicking off the programme on Wednesday, followed by Acoustopaea (Thursday), Who Stung Sting (Friday), and Skimmington Ride (Saturday).
For those looking to deepen their knowledge, the festival will also host tutored tasting sessions, including:
- Beer & Cheese Pairing – Wednesday at 6pm (£20)
- Mead Tasting – Wednesday at 7pm (£15)
- A Journey Through Beer Styles – Thursday at 6pm (£15)
- A Journey Through Continental Beers – Friday at 6pm (£15)
Full details of the tasting sessions can be found here.
Food, family space, and more
Hot and cold food will be served throughout the festival, alongside bar snacks, and a dedicated family area will be open in the Howard Room on Saturday until 5pm. Children under 18 are welcome in this space if supervised by an adult.
Bars will accept beer tokens or card payments, and visitors are encouraged to donate any unused tokens to the festival’s chosen charity via collection buckets on site.
Full drinks lists for cask beers, foreign beers, and cider and perry are available on the North Bedfordshire CAMRA website at the links below:
Cask Beers
Foreign beers
Cider and Perry
A wine list will be available soon.
To book tasting sessions, check drink lists, or buy advance tickets, visit: northbeds.camra.org.uk.
