Celebrating the very best of Bristol’s historic Harbourside

Bristol Harbour Festival
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Bristol’s Biggest Bike Ride
Free, Council-run family event that’s gone up a gear (sorry) since Bristol became, in 2008, Britain’s first Cycling City. Choose from five bike rides, all setting off from the Square and heading out into the countryside. Then it’s back to the Harbourside for food, entertainment and more.
20 June, starts Millennium Square, bristol.gov.uk

Bristol Wine and Food Fair
Three-day gastronomic get-together, with food and drink producers from the South West and beyond descending upon Bristol for master classes, tastings, stalls and more. New features for this year include an International Dining Area and Children’s Cookery Competition.
2-4 July, Lloyds Amphitheatre and Waterfront Square, bristolwineandfoodfair.co.uk

St Paul’s Carnival
Hugely popular, colourful and influential community festival enters its 42nd year. Street art, stalls, live music, food and drink – and the unmissable procession. This year’s theme: ‘Heroes and Sheroes’.
3 July, St Pauls, stpaulscarnival.co.uk

Bristol Shakespeare Festival
Five weeks of alfresco Bard-worship, with a mix of Bristol companies and well-known touring troupes performing plays from the Shakespeare canon – plus a few adaptations.
3 July-7 Aug, venues including Queen Square and Ashton Court Estate, bristolshakespeare.org.uk

Boogie for Brizzle
The Zoo stays open into the small hours for a packed programme of live music, street theatre, dance and kids’ stuff among the animals.
17 July, Bristol Zoo Gardens, bristolzoo.org.uk

Bristol International Balloon Fiesta
Massively popular annual event, founded in 1978, with hundreds of buoyant creations taking to the skies over Bristol across the weekend. New for 2010: a Bristol food court, with stalls from local food and drink makers including Pieminister. Bristol brewer Zerodegrees will host bars around the site.
12-15 Aug, Ashton Court Estate, bristolfiesta.co.uk

Square Sessions
Head down to the green lawns of Queen Square after work to unwind with an evening of free live music. Programmed by Colston Hall: expect an eclectic mix of blues, funk, soul, reggae and jazz.
Dates to be confirmed. Aug, Queen Square, colstonhall.org

Bristol International Kite Festival
A 25th birthday this year for the festival of all things airborne. Kites in all guises plus flying displays, synchronised routines, weird and wonderful air sculptures and aerial battles between traditional Japanese fighting kites.
4-5 Sept, Ashton Court Estate, kite-festival.org.uk