Kendal Mountain Festival will return from Thursday 19 to Sunday 22 November 2026, with passes already on sale but the full film programme still unavailable. Organisers say the programme will be announced in mid-October, meaning visitors booking now will not yet know which films are showing.
The festival will spread events across Kendal, including the Brewery Arts Centre on Highgate, Kendal Leisure Centre, Kendal Town Hall, Kendal College and venues at Kirkland, Aynam Road and the Lake District Business Park.
Pass prices and booking rules
Day passes cost £25 on Thursday, £70 on Friday, £85 on Saturday and £45 on Sunday. A four-day Festival Weekend Pass costs £205. The festival places the equivalent individual-ticket value at £341, although that figure is based on its own estimate of consecutive events bought at the highest price.
Two new pass categories have been added for 2026. Two-Together passes provide two tickets to each event and cost £360 for the weekend, or £45 on Thursday, £125 on Friday, £150 on Saturday and £80 on Sunday.
Under-18s passes cost £130 for the weekend, with day prices ranging from £15 to £50. Pass holders must be aged 17 or younger during the festival. Photo identification is required when booking and may be requested during spot checks, with the festival reserving the right to revoke passes and refuse refunds.
All passes carry a one-off booking fee of 3.5%, plus a 0.75 pence transactional fee charged by the ticket provider.
Passes do not include access to online films through Kendal Mountain Player, which requires a separate subscription. They also cannot be used to book overlapping events. Pass holders can cancel or swap a booked ticket through the My Tickets area up to 15 minutes before the event starts, while individual tickets cannot be cancelled, refunded or swapped.
Some events are excluded from passes. Individual ticket prices start at £7.50 for activities, workshops and community events, rising to £22 for premium events and activities. Free carer tickets are available for people who need one for disability or access reasons.
Venues, Basecamp and accessibility
The largest events will be held at Kendal Leisure Centre, described by the festival as an 800-plus-seat venue. Basecamp Village at Kirkland will provide the free element of the festival, with more than 70 free talks, brand stands and a food village.
Basecamp is wheelchair accessible. Only service dogs are permitted inside its tents, while dogs are welcome in the open-air food village and outdoor areas.
Other listed venues include Brewery Arts Centre at 122A Highgate, Kendal Town Hall on Lowther Street, The Box at Kendal College, Abbott Hall Social Centre, The Venue at The Barrel House, Kendal Climbing Wall, Bakery No.4 and The Elsewhere Bar.
Trail races and possible road closures
Three Kendal Mountain Trail Runs will take place on Saturday 21 November. The North Face Kendal Mountain 50km Ultra Run starts at 9am, the adidas TERREX Kendal Mountain 10km Trail Run starts at 11am, and a new North Face Kendal Mountain 25km run has also been added for 2026.
Entries are open for all three races. The festival says the 10km course is closer to 11.8km, while the 50km and 25km routes start on closed roads in Kendal town centre.
No temporary traffic regulation order for the festival races had appeared on the Public Notice Portal when the source checked Kendal postcodes on 4 September 2026. Any closure details are expected to be published through statutory notices before the event.
A separate SportsShoes Quid Games street challenge is scheduled for 7pm on Friday 20 November. Registration is due to open in September 2026 and was not yet bookable at the time of publication.
Parking and what visitors should watch for
The festival’s “Where to park” and “Tickets and Pricing” pages were empty when checked on 4 September, despite passes already being sold. The source notes that Kendal has no free council car park and that the festival weekend is the town’s busiest of the year.
Published parking information lists South Lakeland House at £8.10 all day from Monday to Saturday and £1.50 all day on Sunday. Blackhall Road is listed at £1.40 all day when the ticket is bought before 7am. Permits are not valid at Parish Church, Wainwrights Yard or the Snowsports Club.
The festival’s website gives inconsistent totals for its programme, listing both more than 150 and more than 170 films, and both more than 60 and more than 50 activities. Figures presented consistently include more than 200 live sessions, 300 speakers, 10 parties and an audience of more than 25,000.
The film programme is expected in mid-October, Quid Games registration in September, and any race-related road closure order before 19 November. Full booking details and terms are available from the festival’s website.
