Events

Harwich Half Marathon, in Essex England, started in 1982 and continued until 1991. The early 80’s running boom attracted over a thousand runners to the Harwich Half Marathon. Some of those who were enticed to try running back then, are the founders of Harwich Runners and are still involved in the club today.

Apr

30

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2020

Harwich Ale Trail 2020

Tickets

Apr 30 – May 4 all-day

The 2020 Ale Trail will be the fifth in its Springtime slot and happily coincides with the Mayflower 400 celebrations. We hope to make the 2020 Harwich Ale Trail a truly special event!
If you haven’t been before – think of it as a five day beer and cider festival across multiple venues in a one square mile area. The past venues have included pubs, cafes, restaurants, a hotel and a sailing club. We’ll announce the 2020 venues in nearer the date..

There’s one beer list for the whole event, complete with a map and information. Public transport is very close with buses and trains stopping within 200m of one of the venues!

@ BEACON HILL FORT

May 8 @ 10:00 am – 4:00 pm

40’s Street Party at BEACON HILL FORT to celebrate VE DAY
Tickets include food, a soft drink, games and entertainment.
Collect & pay for tickets at BEACON HILL FORT from 1st February.

Mayor Making Ceremony

Tickets

May 21 – May 25 all-day

Harwich Town Council has the privilege of being permitted to elect a Town Mayor, a long-standing tradition originally granted by Royal Charter in 1604. The Mayor is elected annually at the Annual Statutory Mayor Making Meeting held in May.

St Nicholas Church Flower Festival ‘The Voyage of the Mayflower’

Tickets

May 23 – May 25 all-day

Celebrate the voyage of The Mayflower at St Nicholas Church

Visit of The Mayflower Steam Train to Harwich

Tickets

May 23 all-day

Built for the London & North Eastern Railway, 61306 Mayflower is one of two surviving B1 Class locomotives.

The B1’s were designed as mixed traffic locomotives capable of hauling express passenger trains as well as freight traffic. As powerful, go anywhere engines, the B1’s worked across most of the UK rail network from East Anglia to Scotland.

Tour de Tendring

May 24 all-day

Come and join us on the hugely popular Tour de Tendring bike ride to raise money for Essex Wildlife Trust. You can cycle on one of three circular routes around the picturesque district of Tendring – perfect cycling country with quiet roads, low hills and views to the sea.

Harwich Sprint Triathalon

Tickets

Jun 21 all-day

Based at Dovercourt Swimming Pool the Harwich Runners Sprint Triathlon will take in 12 lengths of its 25 metre pool as the first phase of the event.

Harwich Festival of the Arts

Tickets

Jun 25 – Jul 6 all-day

Save the Date – The Harwich Festival will be taking place between the 25th – 5th July 2020!

Mayflower 400 ‘Octopus Ahoy’ Trail

Tickets

Jul 4 – Sep 12 all-day

Octopus Ahoy! will be the public art event of 2020 in Essex. This large-scale public art event celebrates the 400th anniversary of Captain Christopher Jones’ sea voyage aboard the Mayflower.

Harwich Secret Gardens

Tickets

Jul 11 – Jul 12 all-day

Harwich Sing Tendring Voices Concert @ St Nicholas Church

Tickets

Jul 11 all-day

Redoubt Beer Festival – The Redoubt Fort

Tickets

Jul 23 – Jul 25 all-day

Each summer we organise a beer festival in the Harwich Redoubt – a superb circular fort dating from the Napoleonic era just up the road from the original brewery. At the festival we like to showcase our own beers as well as those from other microbreweries accompanied by great music and food.

‘Bobbits Hole’ Open Day & Charity Stroll, Dovercourt

Tickets

Aug 2 all-day

Come and stroll at Bobbit’s Hole! Bobbit’s Hole is an oasis of peace and tranquillity in the very heart of Dovercourt and is open free of charge to the public each Sunday morning throughout the year.

East Coast Finn Dingy Championship, Harwich Sailing Club

Tickets

Aug 8 – Aug 9 all-day

Harwich Maritime Festival & RNLI Open Day

Tickets

Aug 8 all-day

The annual Maritime Festival returns on Saturday 27 July, 11am – 6pm promising new and exciting attractions around Harwich Quay and Harwich’s iconic Ha’penny Pier.

Maritime Festival Theme Train

Tickets

Aug 8 all-day

Sat 8 August – Maritime Festival Theme Train

Manningtree to Harwich www.esscrp.org.uk

Harwich Maritime Festival 2020 @ Harwich Quay and Ha'penny Pier

Tickets

Aug 8 @ 11:00 am

The annual Maritime Festival returns on Saturday 8 August, from 11am transforming Harwich Quay and Harwich’s iconic Ha’penny Pier into an exciting hive of activity.

As the hometown of the Mayflower, this year the much-loved festival will celebrate the 400th anniversary of its historic sailing to the New World. The celebrations will commemorate the legacy of the passengers and crew who travelled on the Mayflower including its Captain, Christopher Jones whose house still stands on Kings Head Street, Harwich.

Learn more about the Mayflower Story here

The festival’s programme will incorporate Harwich’s vibrant creative community and it’s rich maritime history – with sea and land based attractions that intend to attract thousands of people from across East Anglia.

Organised by Harwich Haven Authority, there will be over 50 traders, live entertainment and must-see water based activities going on throughout the day.
If you have any questions about the festival or would like some more information, please give us a call on 07801681144 or email us.

Follow us on social media #HarwichMaritimeFestival #Mayflower400 #GetOnBoard2020

Beside the Seaside

Aug 9 all-day

Sun 9 August – ‘Beside the Seaside’

Harwich Redoubt Open Day

Tickets

Aug 31 @ 11:00 am – 4:00 pm

August Bank Holiday Monday! ADMISSION FREE!
HISTORIC antique guns! Tombola and Bottle stalls, Souvenirs and Bric-a Brac/White Elephant. Refreshments and Ice creams will be available. Traditional Games, including Roll the Penny, Wheel of Fortune & Splat the Rat. The Grand Draw will take place! There is a large selection of second hand books (fact & fiction) and more!

Harwich Society Heritage Open Days

Tickets

Sep 12 – Sep 13 all-day

Every September some 46,000 volunteers across England organise 5,500 events to celebrate our fantastic history and culture. It’s your chance to see hidden places and try out new experiences – all of which are FREE to explore.

Harwich Society Heritage Open Days

Tickets

Sep 12 – Sep 13 all-day

Sat 12 & Sun 13 September – Harwich Society Heritage Open Days

Harwich Motorcycle Rally

Tickets

Sep 13 @ 5:04 pm – 6:04 pm

Essex & Herts Air Ambulance host two Motorcycle Run and Family Fun Day events a year.

Harwich International Shanty Festival

Tickets

Oct 8 @ 5:04 pm – Oct 11 @ 6:04 pm

The 15th Harwich International Shanty Festival this year coincides with the 400th Anniversary of the historic voyage of the Mayflower and much of the Festival will celebrate aspects of this anniversary and the important place of Harwich within this story. With Concerts, Free entertainment, Shanties, Sea Songs and Music, plus Street Theatre, Pirates, Maritime Crafts, Workshops and Train and Barge Trips, there is entertainment for all ages and abilities. Join a rousing shanty session on the Ha’Penny Pier, watch a pirate skirmish in the Redoubt or snuggle down in a real ale pub to watch or join a lively music session. Tickets and Programmes available from late summer. Details on the website – https://harwichshantyfestival.co.uk

Shanty Festival Theme Train

Tickets

Oct 10 all-day

Sat 10 October – Shanty Festival Theme Train

Manningtree – Harwich www.esscrp.org.uk

Harwich Society History Fair 2020

Tickets

Oct 31 @ 11:00 am – 4:00 pm

We invite you to bring your old photos, maps, artefacts to discuss with archivists from the Harwich Society and Harwich Town Council.
Old photo displays, maps, pictures and prints. Illustrated talk! We can digitise old negatives. Make a recording for our audio history archive.

Harwich Guy Carnival Procession

Tickets

Oct 31 @ 5:04 pm – 6:04 pm

It seems there have been various incarnations of the carnival through the centuries, each one different to the last. So, when did it all start?

Harwich Sausage Festival

Tickets

Nov 7 all-day

Come hither to the historic seaport of Harwich and witness the medieval* spectacle of sausage throwing, as grown men and women try to hurl seasoned pork projectiles as far as they can. Following on from this fabulous frivolity, three fantastic local inns throw open their doors for the gathered masses to test the wares of the finest butchers of the Tendring Hundred and determine the public’s favourite sausage, all washed down with the choicest real ales and ciders.

Mayflower 400 Illuminate Festival

Tickets

Nov 27 @ 5:00 pm – Nov 28 @ 8:00 pm

Historic Harwich will again light up to commemorate Mayflower 400. The Illuminate Festival 2020 will take place on 27th and 28th November bringing a lantern parade, Tunnel of Light and projections right along the old town seafront.

Friday 27^th November 5:00pm – 8:00pm and Saturday 28th November 3:30pm – 8:00pm.

Kings Head Street Christmas Market

Tickets

Nov 29 all-day

Festive fun at the Kings Street Christmas Market

Dec