Where do I buy tickets?

The four-day PFF2026 celebration officially kicks off on Thursday, August 13 with a concert featuring acclaimed Canadian singer-songwriter Ken Yates and PFF Emerging Artist of the Year, Tristan Konkle. The show will be held at festival’s second home, the Market Hall Performing Arts Centre.

Tickets are just $30, and there are limited $20 tickets available. Doors at 6pm, show at 7pm. This is an all-ages, licenced event.

Tickets are available here: Tickets | Peterborough Folk Festival Kick Off Concert | Market Hall Performing Arts Centre Inc.

Buy your ticket today and join us for this wonderful concert.

Listen to “Under the Cover of Light” by Ken Yates

On Friday August 14th, Peterborough Folk Festival will bring a club crawl to downtown venues including Quaker Park and The Pig’s Ear.

There are no tickets for the weekend of August 15th & 16th at Nicholls Oval Park. The outdoor festival is free admission, with donations encouraged and appreciated. A suggested donation of $25 per person will help to offset festival costs. You can donate at the festival to the friendly volunteers in yellow T-shirts, or anytime (with instant tax receipts for donations of $25 and up) via our Donate page here. Thank you!

How Do I Get to the Festival?

Excellent Choice #1: Walk or Bike on the Rotary Trail!

Peterborough Folk Festival is right on the Rotary Greenway Trail. We want you to walk or ride your bike!

You can walk or ride north on the Rotary Greenway Trail from Hunter Street East next to Ashburnham Ale House, or from the London Street Footbridge across the Otonabee River. Or you can walk or ride south from Parkhill Road, just east of the Otonabee River bridge.

Thanks to our friends with B!KE Community Bike Shop, valet bicycle parking is available next to the Rotary Trail at the bottom of the hill. Their friendly volunteers will park your bike and give you a ticket to pick it up later.

The B!KE valet parking is open Saturday, August 15 from 11am to 10pm, and Sunday, August 16 from 11am to 7:30pm. No bikes left outside these hours please!

Excellent Choice #2: Take the free shuttle!

PFF is excited to offer a free shuttle kindly sponsored by Peterborough Tourism and the City of Peterborough!

The shuttle will run between the King Street Parkade in downtown Peterborough, the Miskin Law Community Complex on Lansdowne Street, and the festival site at Nicholls Oval Park.

The shuttle schedule for August 15 & 16 is available here.

Excellent Choice #3: Take Y Drive!

PFF is proud to partner with Y Drive to keep your festival weekend moving safely and smoothly.

Enjoy $3 off any Y Drive ride to an official festival location throughout the event weekend!

More details are available here.

If you need to drive:

On-site festival parking at Nicholls Oval Park is limited and will fill up early each day of the festival. Overflow parking may be available on side streets. Accessible parking spots will be available for people with special needs.

Please consider parking off-site near the Rotary Greenway Trail and walking to the festival. For example, the London Street Footbridge across the Otonabee River is only 7 minutes away on foot.

If you must drive to Nicholls Oval Park, please carpool to reduce the number of vehicles on site, allow ample time for parking, drive v-e-r-y carefully, be courteous to the friendly parking volunteers, and respect the signs so that emergency vehicles can get through if necessary.

I’m Visiting from Out of Town, Where Can I Stay?

We’re so happy to have you at Peterborough Folk Fest! While there is no on-site camping at the festival, Peterborough has many places to accommodate your stay in our fine city. See the list below for some recommendations on hotels and campsites in the area:

Hotels

Peterborough Inn & Suites - 312 George Street North. 30-minute walk / 10-minute bike / 2-minute walk to the free shuttle at the King Street Parkade (website).

Holiday Inn Peterborough - 150 George Street North. 35-minute walk / 10-minute bike / 7-minute walk to the free shuttle at the King Street Parkade (website).

Best Western Plus Otonabee Inn - 84 Lansdowne Street East. 1-hour walk /15-minute bike / 5-minute drive to the free shuttle at the Miskin Law Community Complex (website).

Bed & Breakfasts

Liftlock Guest House - 810 Canal Road. 25-minute walk /10-minute bike /5-minute Y Drive to the festival (website).

Twin Pines B&B - 1173 Clonsilla Avenue. 1-hour walk / 15-minute bike / 10-minute Y Drive to the festival (website).

Campsites

Beavermead Park - 2011 Ashburnham Drive. 35-minute walk / 10-minute bike /7-minute Y Drive to the festival (website).

Many other accommodations are available through sites such as Airbnb and Vrbo.

Is drinking water available?

Yes! But not in plastic bottles. The Peterborough Utilities Group Mobile Water Station will be on site near the Food Village. Please bring your reusable water bottle, which you can refill from the Mobile Water Station.

We will also have cool PFF water bottles available for purchase at the Merchandise Booth.

Is an ATM available?

Yes! We have a handy ATM located centrally on site in case you need cash for the Food Village vendors, Artisan Village vendors, Cameron's Pavilion, Merchandise Booth and/or donations to the friendly Bucket Brigade volunteers in the yellow T-shirts.

Can I bring my dog?

Well-behaved dogs on leash are allowed at Nicholls Oval Park. Please be respectful of people who may not be as comfortable around dogs.

However, with the exception of service animals only, dogs are not permitted in the licenced Cameron’s Pavilion / Rotary Stage area.

Can I camp at the festival?

There is no on-site camping at Nicholls Oval Park.

There may be camping available nearby at Beavermead Campground, if they have campsites available. Their website is here: Beavermead Campground – Otonabee Region Conservation Authority

Is the festival accessible for people with special needs?

If you’re driving to 725 Armour Road, please let our friendly parking volunteers know and they will guide you to accessible parking spaces.

Nicholls Oval Park has accessible washrooms. We will supplement those with nearby accessible washrooms and hand-washing stations during the festival.

The hilltop area of the festival with its Food Village, Artisan Village, Children’s Village, Cameron’s Pavilion, Generation Solar Stage and Merchandise Booth is relatively level but bumpy. We’ll have an accessible viewing area on the hilltop for viewing Main Stage performances. The hillside that overlooks the Main Stage is not accessible due to its slope.

Portable washrooms will be provided near the permanent Nicholls Oval Park washrooms and in the lower festival area next to the Rotary Trail.

Am I allowed to smoke or vape?

No. Smoking and vaping are prohibited in all municipal parks in Peterborough, including Nicholls Oval Park, for reasons that include fire safety.

What if it rains at the festival?

Peterborough Folk Festival is a rain or shine event! If there is light rain, the festival would continue as planned with minor adjustments. Any heavy rain may require careful further adjustments to the schedule, and some performances on the Miskin Law Main Stage may be shifted to the Nicholls Oval Pavilion Stage. In the event of lightning in the area or winds above a safe threshold, the live music performances would be shut down until the lightning passes or winds ease, and festival goers would be advised to proceed to the covered pavilion or their vehicles.

What food is available in the Food Village?

Tasty local options available in the Food Village include: The Favourite Greek, MILK + TEA, La Mesita, Island Cream, OtanaBEE Apiary, and Mr. and Mrs. Perogie See our Vendors page for more!

Who is in the Artisan Village?

Take the time to visit our Artisan Village with its 40+ local artisan vendors of beautiful hand-made creations and local community groups! See our Vendors page for more.

Reusable dishes and cutlery?

Yes! The festival has purchased reusable dishes and cutlery, which our friendly EcoTeam volunteers wash and provide clean to vendors in the Food Village. This initiative dramatically reduces the waste produced at the festival.

After enjoying your meal in the Food Village, please return your dishes to the EcoStation (pictured above) where our volunteers will wash them and return them clean to food vendors. Thank you!

Nice! How else do you reduce environmental impacts?

PFF encourages festival-goers to walk, bike or take the free shuttle - or as a last choice, car-pool.

PFF partners with B!KE Community Bike Shop to offer free valet bike parking beside the Rotary Trail.

PFF partners with Generation Solar to provide clean electricity to power the Generation Solar Stage.

PFF arranges the PUG Mobile Water Station to provide free drinking water, and prohibits bottled water sales.

PFF volunteers return Nicholls Oval Park to its clean and beautiful state after the festival.

We even loan our EcoTeam dishwashing station to other festivals to help them reduce their impacts!

See our Environmental Sustainability Initiatives page for more info.

What if I have other questions?

Before the festival, feel free to submit a question via our Contact page.

If you have any questions or concerns at the festival, please speak with an Ambassador (identified by an orange T-shirt or vest) or stop by our Information - Lost & Found Booth, centrally located near the Nicholls Oval Pavilion and Merchandise Booth.