Céad mÃle fáilte! A hundred thousand welcomes to you! The Dublin Irish Festival is back, celebrating decades of good, old-fashioned Celtic fun.
In this guide
The Dublin Irish Festival returns to Coffman Park Friday, July 31 through Sunday, August 2. It’s the largest three-day Irish festival on the planet, and until a group of scientists tells me otherwise, the Universe.
More than 100,000 guests show up every year, and the 2026 edition gives them seven stages and more than 800 performers, including 16 national and international acts.
| Dublin Irish Festival at a glance | |
| Dates | Friday, July 31 – Sunday, August 2 |
| Hours | Friday 4 p.m.–midnight | Saturday 11 a.m.–11 p.m. | Sunday 9:30 a.m.–8 p.m. |
| Location | Coffman Park, 5200 Emerald Parkway, Dublin |
| Tickets | $25 one-day online | $50 weekend pass | kids 11 and under free |
| Parking | Free public lots near the park, plus a free shuttle from Metro Place |
Festival FAQ
- How much does it cost? One-day tickets are $25 online as of July 19 (they started at $20, so buy early next year). Kids 11 and under get in free and don’t need a ticket.
- Where is the festival? Coffman Park, 5200 Emerald Parkway in Dublin. It’s about 20 minutes from downtown Columbus, one mile off I-270 at Exit 17A.
- Is it family-friendly? Yes. There’s an entire area dedicated to entertaining the kiddos, and it’s a good one. More on that below.
- How much does parking cost? Nothing. The designated public lots are free, and so is the shuttle.
- Are pets allowed? No, with two exceptions: service animals, and the dogs participating in the Celtic Canines area.
- Can I leave and come back? Yes. You’ll get a hand stamp at the gate for same-day re-entry.
- Should I bring cash? Mostly no. The beverage tents, ticket sales, Pot O’ Gold Playland, and festival merch tents are card-only. Food and marketplace vendors may still take cash, and there are reverse ATMs at the gates if you need to load cash onto a card.
Tickets
Tickets are sold online, at the festival gates, and at the Dublin Community Recreation Center on select dates. A few things worth knowing before you buy:
- One-day tickets: $25 online through festival weekend ($20 if you bought before July 19).
- Weekend pass: $50, online only, available through July 31.
- Family pack: $70 online, and it bundles two one-day tickets with two Pot O’ Gold Playland wristbands.
- Discount tickets: Dublin residents, military, seniors 60 and over, and students can get $20 one-day tickets at the Rec Center with ID through July 30.
- Free Sunday morning: admission is free from 9:30 to 11 a.m. on Sunday. Bring a non-perishable food item or cash donation for the Dublin Food Pantry, and be in line at a gate before 11.
Parking and getting there
Free public parking sits within about a mile of Coffman Park, so the walk is short. Parking isn’t permitted on the residential streets around the festival. The 2026 lots:
- Dublin Coffman High School (1/4 mile away) – 6780 Coffman Road
- Emerald Campus (1/4 mile away) – 5175 Emerald Parkway
- STG Logistics (1/4 mile away) – 5165 Emerald Parkway
- Dublin Coffman Grass Lot (1/2 mile away) – across from 5175 Emerald Parkway
- Cardinal Health (1 mile away) – 7000 Cardinal Place
A free shuttle runs continuously between Metro Place (555 Metro Place North) and the festival grounds, starting an hour before gates open and running until an hour after close.
Taking a rideshare? The pickup and drop-off spot is Dublin City Hall at 5555 Perimeter Drive, and the Lyft code DUBLINIRISH26 takes up to $10 off your ride. Dublin residents 55 and over and riders with disabilities can schedule a free lift on the Dublin Connector at 1-833-742-7333.
Entertainment
The entertainment alone is reason enough to make the trip. This year’s headliners include Gaelic Storm, Altan, The Gardiner Brothers, Scythian, and Eileen Ivers & the Brigideens, alongside acts like Ally the Piper, Japan’s O’Jizo, and Columbus’s own Drowsy Lads. The full stage schedule is here, and the festival app will ping you when pop-up performances materialize.
A tip worth stealing: the Trinity Stage is where emerging artists from Ireland play before anyone stateside knows their name. For more organizer-level strategy, read how to experience the Dublin Irish Festival like a pro.
Beyond the music
There are hundreds of things to eat and do between sets.
The sports area hosts the Stones of Strength championship, amateur and kids’ Highland Games, and sheep herding demonstrations. For the dog lovers, the Celtic Canines area is dedicated to Irish pooches, from the giant but gentle Irish Wolfhound to the Glen of Imaal Terrier. These pups are precious, and honestly, it’s my favorite part of the whole weekend.
If you want to dig into your Irish roots, the genealogy area has experts who can help you start from a single surname or untangle a full family tree. The marketplace brings more than 90 vendors selling Celtic jewelry, clothing, art, and that kilt you’ve always wanted. There’s also a darts tent with seminars and open competition, plus cultural stages running workshops, storytelling, and literary presentations all weekend.
Food and drink
The festival is a day to eat, drink, and be merry. This year’s vendor lineup runs from hearty Irish stew and corned beef hash to Schmidt’s of German Village sausages, Fat Boy Q barbecue, Dos Hermanos tacos, and Graeter’s for dessert. Water refill stations near the food courts and the Playland are free, so bring an empty bottle.
Whiskey drinkers should look at the ticketed tasting experiences in the tent near the East Entrance: a $35 Irish whiskey mixology session, $35 whiskey bingo, a $70 Redbreast flight, and a $99 Jameson premium tasting that pours Midleton Barry Crockett and Redbreast 27. On Sunday from 11 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., the Jameson Irish Coffee Open House teaches you to build a proper Irish coffee for $14 a drink. Seating is limited and these do sell out.
Family activities
The Wee Folk area and the Pot O’ Gold Playland are where the action’s at for families. Wee Folk is free with admission and runs crafts, contests, storytelling, and beginner Irish dance lessons all day. The Playland’s wristband is $15 online or $20 at the festival, and it’s good for a full day of unlimited inflatables for ages 2 through 11. It closes at 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 7 p.m. Sunday.
Two things parents appreciate: the Identi-Kid tent issues free wristbands with your child’s name and your phone number, and a sensory-friendly Take-A-Break space offers a calm spot when the bagpipes get to be a lot.
The Thursday night 5K
The festival technically starts a day early. The Dublin Irish Festival 5K and Kids Dash takes over Historic Dublin on Thursday evening, July 30, and the finish line turns into a block party with a live band and a beer truck. Registration includes a one-day festival ticket and a finisher’s beer for runners 21 and over. It caps at 1,100 runners and has sold out three years running, so put it on the calendar early next summer.
Know before you go
- You can bring: two sealed non-alcoholic drinks per person (up to 1 liter total), an empty reusable water bottle, one small soft-sided cooler up to six-pack size, and folding chairs without canopies. About 7,500 chairs are already set up under tents and at stages.
- Leave at home: alcohol, glass bottles, hard coolers, tents and canopies, bikes, skateboards, and fireworks. All bags get searched at the gate.
- Sunday services: gates open at 9:30 a.m. Sunday with free admission until 11 for guests bringing a Dublin Food Pantry donation, and the morning includes church services on the grounds before the full festival ramps back up.
Have fun at the Dublin Irish Festival, Columbus. Sláinte!
