Hops in the Tropics festival details
Hops in the Tropics
Mon 24 - Mon 31 August 2026
Black Lion, Leighton Buzzard
Summer beer festival with live music.
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Explore exceptional beer festivals from the coastal celebrations of Brighton and Portsmouth to the historic brewing towns of Oxford and Canterbury. South England blends seaside charm with traditional brewing heritage for diverse festival experiences.
The South East offers Britain's most varied festival landscape, where coastal cities, historic market towns and Kent's famous hop country each bring something different. It is a region that balances centuries of brewing heritage with one of the country's most independent craft scenes.
Brighton leads the modern side, its festivals as creative and independent as the city itself, spilling across breweries, bars and pop-up venues. Canterbury and the Kent countryside keep festivals rooted in the county's hop-growing past, while Oxford and Southampton add college-town and waterfront events to the mix.
The South East is also home to some of the longest-running festivals in the country, including town and village events that have welcomed drinkers for decades. Expect a real range, from carefully kept Sussex and Kent cask to barrel-aged and farmhouse styles, usually with cider, food and a relaxed crowd.
With the coast, the Downs and the hop gardens all within easy reach, festival-going here doubles as a great day out. Our South East breweries guide introduces the brewers behind the beer, and the listings below show what is coming up.
Hops in the Tropics
Mon 24 - Mon 31 August 2026
Black Lion, Leighton Buzzard
Summer beer festival with live music.
Rivers of Ale Beer & Music Festival
Thu 27 - Mon 31 August 2026
368 Brighton Road, Shoreham-by-Sea
🎉DRUM ROLL PLEASE…it’s the The Duke of Wellington's annual Rivers of Ale Beer & Music Festival! 26 cask ales and 10 ciders. August Bank Holiday weekend Free entry Live Ale - Real Music - Proper Cider Music from.. Thursday - Serotonic 8:30pm Friday - Spiders from Marz 9pm Saturday - Papillon 4:30pm and Stash 9pm Sunday - Joy Machine 10pm Bank Holiday Monday - Burning Skies 4pm .....and more!! Pop-Up Food Kitchen serving Turkish Wraps & side (V/ Vg available) in the beer garden The Duke of Wellington is on the 700 bus route stopping at the door and a 5 minute walk from Shoreham-by-Sea station
The Hope Sour Beer Showcase
Thu 27 - Fri 28 August 2026
The Hope, Carshalton
Keg, cask and ciders. All available in thirds as well as pints and halves. Enjoy.
The Rising Sun Beer Festival
Fri 28 - Mon 31 August 2026
The Rising Sun, Stanford-le-Hope
20+ real ales, 10+ real ciders. BBQ & live music!
The Chequers 4 Counties Beer & Music Festival
Fri 28 - Mon 31 August 2026
The Chequers, Milton Keynes
16 Fantastic Beers! 🍻 Music all day, every day 🎙️ Great Food Available start to finish 🎉
The Chequers Beer & Music Festival
Fri 28 - Mon 31 August 2026
48 Cobden Hill, Radlett
The Third Annual Chequers Beer and Music Festival!🎉 16 Real Ales from across the Four Counties each barrel from independent brewers! We have food from E&S Catering on the 28th and 29th and @pulled_st on the 30th and 31st from 2pm 🍔🌮 We’ve got a huge array of fantastic music starting with Chris, Tuck & Dan on Friday night from 8pm, you won’t want to miss any of it!🪩
The Elephant and Castle's Annual Punk & Cider Festival
Fri 28 - Mon 31 August 2026
8 Hereson Road, Ramsgate
A Fantastic Lineup Of Music And A Full List Of Yummy Ciders To Suit All Tastes 😋 As Always Entrance Is FREE! Just bring a quid for the collection bucket, please 😘
The Rising Sun's Beer, Cider & Music Festival 2026
Fri 28 - Sun 30 August 2026
Rising Sun, Steyning
The Rising Sun's Beer, Cider & Music Festival 2026 Join us for a Bank Holiday weekend full of music, food, local beers & ciders, and so much more! We still have more in the works for you lucky people, which will be announced as we get closer.. But here's your music and entertainment lineup for now: Friday 28th August Open from 4pm 8pm - 10pm - 80s & 90s Party with Charrise (dressing up welcome) Saturday 29th August Open from 12pm 5pm - 7pm - Beeding Hearts Unplugged 8pm - 10pm - The Brooks House Band Sunday 30th August Open from 12pm 1pm - 2pm - Tom Foolery Children's Entertainment 2.30pm - 4.30pm - Open Mic 5pm - 7pm - Travis & Bec 8pm - 10pm - The Others Brothers Monday 31st August We will be closed all day. We can't wait to see you! 🍻
Six Bells Celebration of Real Ales
Fri 28 - Mon 31 August 2026
The Six Bells Newdigate, Dorking
This August Bank Holiday, we’re bringing together 16 fantastic real ales from breweries across the country for our Celebration of Real Ale. The event is organised by the Six Bells in aid of Harper, and her family. Harper has three major operations coming up at Great Ormond Street and funds are needed to support the family during this time. From traditional bitters, milds and porters to pale ales and modern, hop-forward favourites, we’ve chosen a line-up that shows just how varied and exciting proper cask ale can be. Expect beers from some of the best-known names in British brewing alongside a few discoveries that may be completely new to you. And we’re keeping the pricing simple: every real ale will be £5 a pint, giving you every excuse to work your way through the list and find a new favourite.
The Flower Pots Beer Festival
Fri 28 - Sun 30 August 2026
The Flower Pots Inn, Alresford
Come and join us for a weekend of cask ales, Flower Pots food and live music Friday Noon through to Sunday Night. We have been brewing all year for this. 20 of our traditional cask ales and over 100 guest ales and lagers from many brilliant independent breweries throughout the UK Our Flower Pots chefs; Rob, George, Jim, Miranda and Lottie, will be providing fresh food throughout the whole weekend, and we have over 20 live music acts - even more than last year. Children and dogs are more than welcome, and like every year, our Festival is free to enter with free car parking at the Cheriton Recreation Ground, with a dedicated Disabled drop off. There is also a free shuttle bus service run by the New Alresford Trust.
Thrapston Beer Festival
Fri 28 - Sun 30 August 2026
Castle playing fields, Kettering
Thrapston Beer Festival is back again August Bank Holiday weekend, featuring the annual Family Fun Day on the Sunday. With more live music than ever before, more food, entertainment and of course, a large array of beverages to choose from! Come along and see what you’re missing out on.
Queens Head Beer & Music Festival
Sat 29 - Mon 31 August 2026
The Queens Head, Maidstone
Selection of real ales, beers & ciders 🍺 Fantastic bands in our beautiful beer garden 🎶 Delicious Street Food 🥘 Free admission
Discover the award-winning breweries that make South East England a craft beer and real ale destination. Many of these breweries participate in regional festivals or host their own taproom events.
London
London
40ft is an independent brewery producing fresh modern, beer on the Blackhorse Beer Mile, Walthamstow. Born in a Dalston carpark in 2015 with just two 20ft shipping containers, we have grown one shipping container at a time.
ABC Brewing (Aylesbury Brewhouse Co)
Aylesbury
Pre-pandemic, Vale owned and operated Aylesbury Brewhouse Co, a sub-brand that brewed small-batch experimental beers on a smaller brewery kit at the excellent Hop Pole in Aylesbury. Now the kit at the Hop Pole is no longer operational, but from this year we’re going to be brewing new beers (and bringing back some old favourites!) under the ABC banner, all brewed at the main brewery. So expect a new monthly one-off beer across a range of different styles: high/low ABVs, hazy/juicy IPAs, new world flavours etc... Our core and seasonal Vale beers will, of course, be continuing in a range of classic ale styles.
Festival regular
Lewes
Abyss Brewing is a creative, Lewes-based brewery founded in 2016 in the cellar of The Pelham Arms. They make “modern beers with big personalities,” ranging from dark to light ales, and place a strong emphasis on community, collaboration (with other brewers, artists and charities), and events.
Horsham
Welcome to Aleworks Brewing Company. We are an award-winning craft brewery based on the beautiful Knepp estate in West Sussex. We create a range of traditional Cask ales crafted with modern flavours and ingredients. Our mission is simple: keep Cask alive.
Festival regular
Winchester
Alfred's Brewery is an independent microbrewery, established in 2012 by brewer Steve to produce high-quality, local craft beers. Moving to Easton Lane in 2017, it utilises a semi-automated brewhouse to produce a wide range of ales, including Saxon Bronze, Winchester Pale Ale, and Cipher.