Beer Festivals Near Ponteland

Ponteland is lucky. Plenty of towns have to travel for a proper beer festival, but here the biggest one of the year happens on the edge of the village, run by volunteers from the rugby club. Beyond that, there are three more well-established festivals within a short drive or bus ride, each with its own character and its own place in the calendar.

This guide covers the festivals that come round every year, roughly when to expect them, and what each one is like. Where organisers have officially announced dates, we give them. Where they haven't, we give the usual month, so check the organiser's own website before you plan a day around it.

Ponteland Beer Festival

The home fixture. The Ponteland Beer Festival is organised by Ponteland RFC and held at Ponteland Rugby Club on Callerton Lane, with the marquee going up on the club's grounds by the leisure centre. The money it raises supports community rugby in the village.

It has grown into one of the biggest dates in the Ponteland social calendar. Press coverage of recent editions has described a bar list of more than 150 real ales, ciders and lagers, with prosecco, Pimm's and gin for anyone who doesn't drink beer, plus food stalls on site. The 2022 festival drew more than 3,000 people, and money raised has gone towards clubhouse facilities shared by the rugby club and Ponteland United FC.

The festival used to run in April before moving to June in 2023, and June is now its regular slot. The organisers have confirmed the next one for Friday 4 and Saturday 5 June 2027, and early-bird ticket sign-up is open on the official festival website. Signing up early is the surest way to hear when tickets go on sale.

Because it's walkable from most of the village and Darras Hall, it's also the one festival on this list where nobody has to be the designated driver.

Best for: Best for: a big, friendly local day out with a huge beer list on your doorstep.

Newcastle Beer and Cider Festival

The region's flagship CAMRA event is run by the Tyneside and Northumberland branch of the Campaign for Real Ale, and in recent years it has been held at Northumbria Students' Union in Newcastle city centre. It's the place to go if you want breadth: a long list of cask ales from across the country, a dedicated cider and perry offering, and CAMRA volunteers behind the bar.

Dates for 2027 are confirmed as Wednesday 7 to Saturday 10 April 2027. Ticket prices had not been announced at the time of writing, so watch the branch's festival pages. From Ponteland it's an easy trip: buses run into the city centre, and nobody needs to worry about the drive home.

Best for: Best for: serious real ale and cider fans who want the widest choice in the North East.

Tynedale Beer Festival

Held every June at Tynedale Rugby Club in Corbridge, this is one of the longest-running festivals in Northumberland. It has been going since 2002 and has raised more than £1 million for charities, good causes and the club over that time.

The 2026 festival ran over three days, Thursday 18 to Saturday 20 June, and the 2025 edition was mid-June too, so a mid-June weekend is the usual pattern. The 2027 dates have not been announced yet. Alongside the beer you'll find cider, gin, rum, wine and prosecco, with food and live music, and there's free parking on site. The ground is a short walk from Corbridge railway station, which makes the train a sensible way to get home.

Corbridge is around half an hour's drive west of Ponteland, and the setting along the Tyne valley makes it feel like a proper summer outing.

Best for: Best for: a long-established summer festival with a countryside feel and a great charity record.

Morpeth Beer Festival

Morpeth RFC runs its own festival at the club on Mitford Road, and it has become a fixture of the late spring. The 12th edition was held in early May 2026, a two-day event with beers from local and regional breweries. Earlier editions have also raised money for charity, including a 2024 collaboration with Wooden Spoon Northumberland.

Expect it again around the start of May, but check Morpeth RFC's announcements for confirmed dates. It's smaller and more relaxed than the Newcastle festival, and Morpeth is an easy drive north of Ponteland.

Best for: Best for: a relaxed spring session with a strong showing from North East breweries.

A good pint between festivals

Festivals only come round a few times a year. The rest of the time, Ponteland has its own pubs that take their beer seriously.

The Diamond Inn on Main Street is a refurbished 18th-century coaching inn and the village's best-known real ale pub, a proper local with food and rooms upstairs. The Badger at Street Houses is a Vintage Inn country pub in an 18th-century building, with real ales, real fires and beer gardens.

For more ideas, see our guide to the best pubs in Ponteland and our round-up of beer gardens in Ponteland.

Best for: Best for: a quality pint in the village any week of the year.

Tips for festival-goers

• Book early. Ponteland's festival offers early-bird sign-up, so register to hear first when tickets are released.
• Use public transport where you can. Newcastle and Corbridge both work well by bus or train, and Ponteland's festival is walkable for most of the village.
• Take cash as a backup. Most festivals now take cards, but a little cash helps if a card machine struggles in a busy marquee.
• Pace yourself. Thirds and halves are the best way to work through a long list.
• Check before you travel. Dates move from year to year, and organisers' own websites are the only reliable source.

Know of a beer festival near Ponteland we've missed, or spotted a date change? Let us know and we'll update this guide.