What’s On in Belfast This Bank Holiday Weekend

Belfast does a bank holiday by filling the fields, the square, the park and the ice.

GOV.UK has Monday 31 August 2026 as Northern Ireland’s summer bank holiday. The city already started on Saturday. Hannah Laing is at Boucher. Wolf Alice is at Custom House Square. Sunday is Mela Day in Botanic, the Giants at The O2, and John O’Callaghan back at CHSq. Monday is CMAT, and that night is listed sold out.

What is on, Saturday 29 to Monday 31 August?

Saturday 29 August

• EMERGE: Hannah Laing pres. doof Belfast, Boucher Playing Fields. Gates 4pm. 17+. Ticketmaster.ie.
• Wolf Alice, Custom House Square, with Dea Matrona. Gates 6pm. customhousesquare.com / Ticketmaster.
• Ballynafest, Ormeau Park, 2pm to 5pm. Free.
• St George’s Market, Saturday City Food and Craft, 9am to 3pm.

Sunday 30 August

• EMERGE: blk. Open Air, Boucher Playing Fields. Gates 4pm. 17+.
• Belfast Giants v Herlev Eagles, The O2 Belfast, 4pm. Pre-season. Ticketmaster. Not in the season ticket.
• Mela Day, Botanic Gardens, 12 noon to 6pm. Tickets on belfastmela.org.uk.
• CHSq: Bryan Kearney, John O’Callaghan, KEY 4050, Standerwick, Will Atkinson. Afterparty listed as Modea.
• W5 From Harbour to the Moon, SoundYard on the Maritime Mile, 12 noon to 4pm. Free.
• Sunday Chess, 2 Royal Avenue, 2pm to 5pm. Free.
• St George’s Market, Sunday craft and antiques, 10am to 3pm.

Monday 31 August

• CMAT, Custom House Square, with Katy J Pearson. Official CHSq page: sold out. A second night is listed Tuesday 1 September.
• August Craft Month runs to Monday 31 August.

Subject to licence. Line-ups and hours can move. Check the venue on the day.

EMERGE at Boucher

Belfast City Council lists EMERGE at Boucher Playing Fields on Saturday 29 and Sunday 30 August. It is not a council show. Tickets and the running order live with the festival and Ticketmaster.ie.

LoveBelfast’s own listing for this weekend: Saturday is Hannah Laing presenting doof Belfast, with Charlie Sparks, Funk Tribu, VTSS, The Rocketman and Matty Ralph. Sunday is blk. Open Air. Gates 4pm both days. Strictly 17+, ID on the door. No re-entry once you are scanned. Standing show.

Council noise note: music will usually finish at 11pm. If you are on the Boucher Road, that is your Sunday night.

Wolf Alice, then the square keeps going

Custom House Square’s own 2026 line-up still has Wolf Alice on Saturday 29 August, Dea Matrona on the bill, gates 6pm on the original announce. CHSq is the outdoor room behind the old Custom House. Buy through the official CHSq / Ticketmaster links. Subject to licence.

Sunday on the same site is the trance bill: Bryan Kearney, John O’Callaghan, KEY 4050, Standerwick, Will Atkinson. Monday is CMAT. The official page marks Monday sold out. Tuesday 1 September is the extra CMAT date, still showing tickets at the time of writing. Doors for CMAT listings have been circulating at 6pm. Confirm on Ticketmaster before you travel.

Mela Day in Botanic

This is the 20th Belfast Mela. Mela Day is Sunday 30 August, 12 noon to 6pm, Botanic Gardens.

Official ticket page: General £12, Concession £9, Family £24. Book online to guarantee entry. Gate sales only if they have them left. Entrances: Stranmillis Road Gate by Queen’s and the Ulster Museum, or Botanic Avenue Gate by the McClay Library. Alcohol-free. Dogs on leads, away from the food. Over 30 international food vendors on the organiser’s own page. Translink if you can. Subject to licence.

Botanic is a park the rest of the year. On Sunday it is a festival. Do not assume you can wander through for free once the fences are up. Buy the ticket.

Giants at The O2, Sunday 4pm

Still listed. Belfast Giants v Herlev Eagles, Sunday 30 August, 4pm, The O2 Belfast. Pre-season. Ticketmaster.ie. Not included in the 2026/27 season ticket. Subject to licence.

Friday 28 August finished 4-3 to Herlev in overtime. Same ice, Sunday afternoon. If you want the full rematch note, that is a separate piece. If you want a bank-holiday plan, this is the 4pm option that is not a field and not a park.

Free hours, if the tickets are gone

Ballynafest, Saturday 2pm to 5pm, Ormeau Park. Council Bank of Ideas. Music, crafts, workshops, a DJ to close. Activities free.

W5’s From Harbour to the Moon, Sunday 12 noon to 4pm, SoundYard beside Odyssey. Free drop-in STEM. Plot a line from Belfast Harbour to a lunar base, then walk the Mile.

Sunday Chess at 2 Royal Avenue, 2pm to 5pm, listed free on the council events page.

St George’s Market is open Saturday and Sunday as usual. Ulster Museum is free; Monday is a bank holiday, and their FAQ says they open on those. Check before you go. City Hall tour times may differ on public holidays.

Three nights, three rooms

Saturday the field at Boucher goes until late and Custom House Square has Wolf Alice in the open air. Sunday the park at Botanic is colour until six, then the Teal Army at The O2 at four, then CHSq again after dark. Monday the square belongs to CMAT if you already have a ticket.

Belfast in late August does not taper. It stacks. Pick a room, get the official ticket, and let the rest of the city make the noise around you.