St Annes International Kite Festival starts tonight and runs through to Sunday - here's all you need to know
Kite flyers from all over the UK and beyond are in town throughout the weekend
St Annes International Kite Festival is back from tonight and throughout this weekend, bringing colourful kites, international teams, entertainment and family activities to the town's seafront.
The festival, featuring kite teams from across the UK and beyond, is a unique partnership between Fylde Council and kite fliers SmileFactor10, with ongoing support from St Annes Town Council.
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Along the kites, there are a host of attractions, including a fairground and food stalls galore.
When is the St Annes Kite Festival?
The planned kite-flying times are:
- Friday, September 4: 12 noon to 10pm, including illuminated kite flying in the evening.
- Saturday, September 5: 11am to 5pm. The fairground will continue operating into the evening.
- Sunday, September 6: 11am to 4pm.
The event is weather dependent and the programme may be changed without notice for safety reasons.
What can visitors expect?
The skies above St Annes seafront will be filled with colourful display kites, with the main flying taking place on the beach adjacent to St Annes Pier.
There will be five flying arenas on the beach, one of which is outside the dog control zone, meaning visitors with dogs can get closer to some of the kite action.
This evening will feature illuminated kite flying, providing a particularly striking spectacle as the kites take to the sky after dark. There will also be a fairground on the beach, alongside food and drink stalls on the Promenade.
Visitors are encouraged to explore St Annes town centre for further refreshments, or bring their own picnic.
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Artisan market
A new addition this year is an artisan market in the Promenade Gardens. The market will be run by Bespoke Events North West and takes place on Saturday and Sunday from 11am.
Visitors will be able to browse stalls featuring locally sourced food, drink and gifts, with traders located in the gardens adjacent to the Promenade, opposite the St Ives Hotel and Inn on the Prom Hotel.
St Annes International Kite Festival Art Trail
The festival will also extend into the heart of St Annes through a new art trail.
Visitors can explore 15 shop windows around the town centre featuring colourful kite designs created by pupils from local primary schools and hand-painted by community art studio Durose Studios.
The trail is free and self-guided. Participants can collect a map from the Discover Fylde bus on St Annes Promenade or from any of the participating businesses. They can then explore the 15 locations and look for hidden letters.
Those who find all the letters can enter a prize draw to win a kite hamper by handing their completed leaflet to the Discover Fylde bus or the Pot Bound shop in St Andrews Road South through the weekend.
Facilities at the festival
A range of facilities will be available during the event, including an information point, lost children point, lost property and security desk. A first aid team will also be constantly patrolling the event.
Additional event toilets will be provided, including disabled facilities. Additional bins and a litter-picking team will also be in operation.
Visitors should be aware that there is a dog exclusion zone either side of St Annes Pier, running from the RNLI ramp to the North Promenade car park beach entrance.
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Getting to the festival
The seafront is expected to be very busy and additional event parking will be available on South Promenade, adjacent to Fairhaven Road Car Park, with space for up to 600 cars.
The postcode is FY8 1NW. The event parking is strictly for daytime use, with no overnight parking permitted. Visitors are strongly advised to research alternative town centre car parks in advance to avoid congestion around the seafront.
The town centre also has additional parking and toilets, while its shops, cafés and restaurants provide plenty of options away from the main festival area.
Travelling by train: The festival is also easily accessible by rail. St Annes-on-the-Sea railway station is around a five-minute walk through the town centre to the beach. The station is served by the South Fylde line between Preston and Blackpool South.