For five days every early May, the Walled City turns into one big open-air stage — around 450 performances across 70 venues, with brass bands on the streets, jazz in the cafés, and swing spilling out of every doorway.
What it is — Ireland's biggest jazz festival, running since 2002 over the early-May bank-holiday weekend (usually five days from late April into the first days of May), drawing well over 100,000 music lovers to Derry~Londonderry.
For families — the daytime is the family part: free street music, brass bands and buskers in the city centre, and jazz drifting out of the cafés. You can wander the streets inside the walls, follow the music, and let the little ones dance along — no ticket, no fuss.
Where — it fills the whole city centre: streets and squares inside the historic walls, pubs, hotels and cafés, and headline concerts in bigger rooms like the Guildhall. Pick up the festival trail map and follow the notes from stage to stage.
Cost — a genuine mix: the daytime street music and many pub sessions are free, while the big-name headline concerts are ticketed. You can build a lovely free family day and only pay if you want a marquee show.
Evenings turn grown-up. Once the sun goes down the gigs move into the bars and licensed venues, which are an adult, over-18 scene. Keep the family plan to the daytime street music and head home before the late sets.
When to plan — the full line-up usually lands in late winter or spring. The 2027 dates fall around the early-May bank holiday; pencil in that weekend and watch cityofderryjazzfestival.com.
What's on
From street brass to the big concert stage
The programme is huge, but here's the shape of it — the kinds of music a family can catch across the five days.
🎺Street brass & buskersFree open-air bands on the city-centre streets and squares — the easiest, most family-friendly way to catch the festival.
🎷Café & daytime sessionsJazz and swing in the cafés and hotel lounges through the afternoon — pop in for a bite and a listen, all ages welcome.
🎶The jazz trailA printed trail map links the venues, so you can hop from stage to stage on foot and follow whichever sound you like best.
🎤Headline concertsBig-name jazz, swing and soul acts in ticketed shows — the marquee evening events, often in the Guildhall and larger rooms.
🎹Big-band nightsFull big-band swing that gets the room dancing — the sound the festival is named for, mostly ticketed evening shows.
🍺Pub gigs (evening)Late-night sets in the licensed bars — a lively, grown-up, over-18 scene once the daytime programme winds down.
Plan your visit
How to do the festival with kids
The family sweet spot is the daytime, on the streets. Park up or take the bus, wander into the city centre inside the walls, and simply follow the music — brass bands, buskers and café sessions are free and there's no need to book a thing. Grab the festival trail map so you can hop from stage to stage, and build in a break at a café where a jazz trio happens to be playing. The evening scene is a different animal: once it moves into the bars it's a licensed, over-18 night out, so aim to have the little ones home before the late sets. If you fancy a marquee show, a few of the earlier-evening concerts suit older children — check each event's age guidance and book those tickets early, because the big names sell out. It's an easy, joyful day: music round every corner, the river and the walls to explore, and plenty of it costing nothing at all.
Dates and the full line-up drop in the run-up.
The 2027 dates land around the early-May bank holiday, with the programme usually published in late winter or spring. Keep an eye on cityofderryjazzfestival.com and book the ticketed headline concerts early — the big shows sell out.
Good to know
Everything before you go
When
Around five days each early May, over the bank-holiday weekend. The 2027 dates are confirmed in the run-up — watch cityofderryjazzfestival.com.
Where
Right across Derry~Londonderry city centre — the streets inside the historic walls, plus pubs, hotels, cafés and bigger rooms like the Guildhall.
How many gigs
Around 450 performances across 70 venues — Ireland's biggest jazz festival, drawing over 100,000 visitors.
Cost
A mix. The daytime street music and many café and pub sessions are free; headline concerts are ticketed.
Best for families
The free daytime street music — brass bands and buskers in the city centre. All ages, no ticket needed, easy to dip in and out.
Grown-up side
The evening pub gigs are in licensed venues and are an over-18 scene. Keep the family plan to the daytime.
Getting there
The city centre is walkable and compact. There's paid parking around the centre and good bus links; the Guildhall sits right by the river.
Booking
Street and café music needs no ticket. Book the headline concerts early through the festival website — the big names go fast.
Questions
The Derry Jazz Festival, answered
When is the City of Derry Jazz Festival 2027?
It runs for about five days each early May, over the bank-holiday weekend. The exact 2027 dates and full programme are confirmed in the run-up (usually late winter or spring) — check cityofderryjazzfestival.com.
Is it good for children?
The daytime is — free street brass bands and café sessions all round the city centre, with no ticket needed, are a joy for little ones who like to dance. Just plan to be home before the evening pub gigs, which are a grown-up, licensed scene.
Is it free?
Lots of it is. The daytime street music and many café and pub sessions are free; the big headline concerts are ticketed. You can build a great free family day and only pay if you want a marquee show.
Where does it happen?
All over Derry~Londonderry city centre — the streets and squares inside the historic walls, plus pubs, hotels, cafés and larger venues like the Guildhall. A printed trail map links it all together.
Do I need to book?
Not for the street music and café sessions — just turn up and follow the sound. For the ticketed headline concerts, yes, and book early because the big names sell out.
How big is it?
It's Ireland's biggest jazz festival, with around 450 performances across 70 venues and well over 100,000 visitors across the weekend. It's been running since 2002.
Getting there
Everything sits in the compact, walkable city centre, so once you're parked you can follow the music on foot. There's paid parking around the centre and good bus links into Derry~Londonderry. The Guildhall is a handy landmark to head for — it's right by the river and near the walls, and a natural spot to start a wander.
The City of Derry Jazz & Big Band Festival started back in 2002 and grew, fast, into the biggest festival of its kind in Ireland — around 450 performances across 70 venues, over 100,000 visitors, and a reach that fills the streets, pubs, hotels and cafés of the Walled City every early May. Run by Derry City and Strabane District Council, it does something lovely with a bank-holiday weekend: it takes live jazz out of the concert hall and puts it out in the open, so a brass band on a street corner is as much a part of the festival as a marquee name on the Guildhall stage.
For a family, the daytime is the win — free, easy and full of music round every corner. Follow a brass band, dance on the cobbles, duck into a café for a jazz trio and a bun, and let the whole compact centre become your stage. Save the pub gigs for the grown-ups, watch for the programme as spring comes in, and go and enjoy a city that sings.