Bigger and even better - Taste Cumbria is coming back to Carlisle for the second time this Autumn.
Following the success of the first event in 2024, the city will play host to the county’s favourite food and drink festivals on Saturday 1 and Sunday 2 November 2025.
This year it will be held across two locations in the heart of the community. The big Producers’ Market, hot food court and bar, will be in the grounds of Carlisle Cathedral, while the newly-transformed Market Square and Greenmarket will be the destination for the festival’s music stage.
The Taste Carlisle event also coincides with the annual Fireshow, which takes place on the Saturday night in Bitts Park. The two events will make the city the place to be for a fantastic family weekend.
Taste Cumbria is partnering with the Carlisle Farmers’ Market too, and setting up with them in the beautiful grounds of the Cathedral. The event will include 45 food and drink traders, children’s activities and face painting. Across the two sites will be street theatre and Halloween-themed entertainment.
Stalls will be open from 10am to 5pm on the Saturday and 11am to 4pm on the Sunday, while the sparkling Fireshow will start at 6.30pm on Saturday. There will be a centrepiece bonfire then more than 2,000 spectacular fireworks, set to music, will light up the sky.
The Taste Cumbria events, organised by Cumberland Council, and made possible by the UK Shared Prosperity Fund, bring millions of pounds into the local economy each year through their events in Carlisle, Cockermouth, Maryport and Wigton.
Councillor Anne Quilter, Cumberland Council’s Executive Member for Vibrant and Healthy Places, said:
“It is fantastic to see Taste Cumbria heading back to Carlisle for the second year. The feedback from the 2024 event was fabulous and the Cathedral is a stunning backdrop for this event. It will be open for all the visitors, as will its café, which are always at the centre of the community.
“Then the icing on the Taste Cumbria cake will be seeing the festival expand into the Greenmarket and Market Square where the multi-million pound regeneration scheme is nearing completion. It will be the ideal location for the music stage, where people can mingle with some great food and drink and watch some brilliant local talent. This is going to be another great weekend.”
Taste Carlisle is the penultimate Taste Cumbria event of 2025. Taste Cumbria Christmas takes place in Cockermouth on Saturday 6 and Sunday 7 December for the perfect opportunity to discover loads of festive treats.
For more information visit www.tastecumbria.co.uk