Clonmel Applefest | Festival celebrating Clonmel food, nature, heritage

Clonmel Applefest 2025 – A Harvest Festival Full of Family Connections

Returning for its 8th year, Clonmel Applefest celebrates community, sustainability and creativity through four lively days of food, art, music and nature. This year’s theme, The Ties That Bind, explores what connects us — from family to folklore, crafts to cuisine — and brings it all together in a welcoming, small-town atmosphere that’s ideal for families.

The Harvest Fair on Saturday 27th is the heart of the festival, drawing families from across Tipperary for a day of hands-on workshops, circus fun, music, and community stalls. Kids can get stuck into nature-themed plastercasting, tee-shirt printing, wood carving, rush sculpture and apple pressing, while parents enjoy the food trucks, dancing and craft stalls. It’s relaxed, vibrant and full of free fun — the perfect Saturday out.

Younger children can also enjoy storytelling and harvest crafts led by Niamh Donnellan in primary schools, and the creative energy carries through Sunday with Family Yoga and Mindfulness Walks, a nature-themed trail with yoga games, meditation and a free biodiversity book. At the same time, The Honey Show and Musical Afternoon Tea provide gentle family entertainment indoors — a nice balance for a weekend with young children.

Other family-friendly highlights include Family Portrait workshops, the launch of the new Families of Clonmel book, and several ongoing projects around textiles, climate action and visual storytelling. Whether you’re weaving denim at Circular Square or following a spoken word trail at Channon’s Forge, the festival offers plenty of ways to connect across generations.

Clonmel Applefest continues to be a space where the whole family can unwind, take part and learn something new — all rooted in a genuine community spirit and the richness of autumn in Tipperary.