Scotland hosts on average 200 festivals per year, ranging from cultural, musical and arts. The Edinburgh Fringe Festival is the world's largest arts festival, and the country is also renowned for its hosting and organisation of sporting festivals and cultural events. Considered the birthplace of golf, Scotland has hosted The Open Championship tournament 97 times, more than any other country, and hosted international sporting events such as the Commonwealth Games three times.
Below is a list of some festivals in Scotland, either held annually or occasionally, as well as international sporting fixtures of which Scotland has been the sole host nation, or part of a joint–hosting duty.
Annual festivals in Scotland
25 January: Burns Night 6 April: Tartan Day May–September: Highland Games 27 May-4 June: Children's Festival 14–23 July: Jazz and Blues Festival August: Edinburgh Festivals (Edinburgh Fringe Festival, Edinburgh Military Tattoo) 30 November: St Andrew's Day 31 December: Hogmanay 17 May - 3 June Six Cities Design Festival
Types of festivals Religious
Beltane Fire Festival
Sports Highland Games
Cowal Highland Gathering Crieff Highland Games Dinnie Stones The Gathering 2009 Highlander Challenge World Championships Inverness Highland Games
Commonwealth Games host nation
Edinburgh – 1970 British Commonwealth Games Edinburgh – 1986 Commonwealth Games Glasgow – 2014 Commonwealth Games
International football competition hosts
1888 World Championship (football) 1889 World Championship (football) 1970 UEFA European Under-18 Championship 1985 Rous Cup 1986 FIFA World Cup qualification (UEFA–OFC play-off) 1987 Rous Cup 1988 Rous Cup 1989 FIFA U-16 World Championship 1989 Rous Cup 1998 UEFA European Under-16 Championship Football at the 2005 Island Games – Men's tournament 2010 CPISRA Football 7-a-side European Championships Football at the 2012 Summer Olympics 2019 UEFA Women's Under-19 Championship UEFA Euro 2028 British Home Amateur Championship British Home Championship Football World Championship Four Nations Tournament (1979–2008) Victory Shield 1901–02 World Championship (football) UEFA Euro 2020 2019 UEFA Women's Under-19 Championship
Rugby World Cup hosts
1991 Rugby World Cup 1994 Women's Rugby World Cup Six Nations Championship
Golf
The Open Championship Prestwick Golf Club – 1860, 1861, 1862, 1863, 1864, 1865, 1866, 1867, 1868, 1869, 1870, 1872, 1875, 1878, 1881, 1884, 1887, 1890, 1893, 1898, 1903, 1908, 1914, 1925 Old Course at St Andrews – 1873, 1876, 1879, 1882, 1885, 1888, 1891, 1895, 1900, 1905, 1910, 1921, 1927, 1933, 1939, 1946, 1955, 1957, 1960, 1964, 1970, 1978, 1984, 1990, 1995, 2000, 2005, 2010, 2015, 2022 Musselburgh Links – 1874, 1877, 1880, 1883, 1886, 1889 Muirfield – 1892, 1896, 1901, 1906, 1912, 1929, 1935, 1948, 1959, 1966, 1972, 1980, 1987, 1992, 2002, 2013 Royal Troon Golf Club – 1923, 1950, 1962, 1973, 1982, 1989, 1997, 2004, 2016 Carnoustie Golf Links – 1931, 1937, 1953, 1968, 1975, 1999, 2007, 2018 Turnberry – 1977, 1986, 1994, 2009
Sports and cultural
Fort William Mountain Festival
Arts
Aberdeen Alternative Festival Aberdeen International Youth Festival Craigmillar Festival Society Cupar Arts Festival Edinburgh Annuale Edinburgh Art Festival Edinburgh International Magic Festival Edinburgh Mela Edinburgh People's Festival Fèis Bharraigh GENERATION: 25 Years of Contemporary Art in Scotland Glasgay! Festival Glasgow International Glasgow International Comedy Festival Inverness Fringe Festival Edinburgh festivals Mòd St Magnus Festival Syn Festival Edinburgh
Film festivals
Alchemy Film & Moving Image Festival Ballerina Ballroom Cinema of Dreams Celtic Media Festival Deep Fried Film Festival Screenplay Film Festival SQIFF Africa in Motion Dead by Dawn Edinburgh Greek Festival Edinburgh International Film Festival Edinburgh Mountain Film Festival Edinburgh Spanish Film Festival Italian Film Festival Scotland Loves Animation The Scottish Short Film Festival Glasgow Film Festival GLITCH Film Festival Southside Film Festival (Glasgow)
Literary festivals
Aye Write Bloody Scotland Edinburgh International Book Festival Lennoxlove House Mòd Royal National Mòd West Port Book Festival Wigtown Wigtown Book Festival Word – University of Aberdeen writers festival
Comedy festivals
Edinburgh Comedy Festival Edinburgh Festival Fringe The Free Edinburgh Fringe Festival Glasgow International Comedy Festival
Music festivals
Aberdeen and NE Scotland Music Festival Aberdeen International Youth Festival Argyllshire Gathering Big Beach Busk Big Burns Supper Festival Big in Falkirk Callander Jazz and Blues Festival Celtic Connections Connect Music Festival Darvel Music Festival Eden Festival The Edge Festival Edinburgh International Harp Festival Fèis Bharraigh Fingask Castle Give it a Name Glasgow International Jazz Festival Glasgow Summer Sessions Hebridean Celtic Festival Isle of Skye Music Festival Killin Music Festival Knockengorroch Leith Festival Let's Rock List of festivals in Glasgow Live at Loch Lomond Loopallu Festival Mòd Montrose Music Festival Musica Nova Festival, Glasgow Northern Meeting The Outsider Festival Perthshire Amber Piping Live! Festival Rewind Festival RockNess Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo St Magnus Festival Skye Live Festival Southside Fringe Festival Tiree Music Festival TRNSMT TRNSMT festival lineups Wickerman Festival
See also
Culture in Scotland Sport in Scotland Music of Scotland Cinema of Scotland
References