2023 Events in Inverness & Scottish Highlands
Highland Games - Festivals - Music

Pipe band at Piping Inverness, Scotland
Photo © The Internet Guide to Scotland

Live music:
These are some of the most popular local venues:

Pubs for traditional Scottish Music include Hootananny / Mad Hatters (Church Street), and the The Gellions (Bridge Street). There's often live music atJohnny Foxes (Bank Street, overlooking the river), Encore Une Fois (in Young Street just over the main bridge), the Market Bar (Church Street) and The Tooth & Claw (tucked away in Baron Taylor's Street).
There's also Whisky Gigs at The Malt Room on Thursday nights. The Highland Malt Whisky Experience at Macgregors (end of Academy Street) combines whisky tasting, history, story, legend and music of the Scottish Highlands (weekday evenings from April to October).
The Victorian Market in the city centre often has live music at weekends in the newly refurbished Food and Drink Hall.

Cinema and Theatre
Eden Court Theatre and Cinema in Inverness by the River Ness.
Vue (cinema multiplex a couple of miles outside the city centre).

For art events, The Castle Gallery at 43 Castle Street (tel: 01463 729512) has exhibitions of original contemporary fine and applied art.

Other regular events:

The Inverness Farmers Market is held on the first Saturday of each month (except January), with stalls of local produce (meat, fish, fruit, vegetables, cheese, homebaking) in the Eastgate pedestrian area of Inverness city centre.
The Highland Food & Drink Trail has a variety of street food vendors on the riverside near the Cathedral (usually Wednesday - Sunday during the summer, weekends in winter).
Inverness Cathedral hosts a programme of varied musical events throughout the year and free lunchtime organ concerts on Fridays in the summer.
The Inverness Royal British Legion Pipe Band usually perform in Inverness city centre every Tuesday night at 7pm from end June to end August. There's also a performance of local Highlander dancers.

Events in 2023:

2 - 25 November: from Wednesday to Saturday, Brodie Illuminated is when The National Trust for Scotland illuminates the grounds around Brodie Castle near Forres
17 - 19 November: Exclusively Highlands Christmas craft & food fair at Eden Court Theatre in Inverness (10am – 5pm)
25 November: Christmas Extravaganza in Nairn
26 November: Christmas Lights switch-on at 4.30pm at Falcon Square in Inverness. Also - entertainment in the Victorian Market from 1pm to 3pm, and Reindeer in Falcon Square (12 noon to 3pm). Service at Inverness Cathedral at 5.30pm.
1 - 3 December: Exclusively Highlands Christmas craft & food fair at Eden Court Theatre in Inverness (10am – 5pm)
6 December - 7 January: Sleeping Beauty pantomime at Eden Court Theatre
9 & 10 December: Cawdor Castle Christmas Market
31 December: Red Hot Highland Fling - Hogmanay outdoor ceilidh & fireworks at the Northern Meeting Park in Inverness. For 2023 there will be a charge of Ł12.50 per ticket.
This will be preceded by a parade led by Pyro Celtica and Harbinger Drumming Group starting at 7.30pm from Falcon Square to the Northern Meeting Park.

Events in 2024:

13 - 14 January: Strathpuffer 24-hour Mountain Bike Endurance Event in Strathpeffer
tbc early February: local Food and Drink Fortnight (new for 2024)
tbc early March: AM Phillip Trucktech Snowman Rally at the Black Isle Showground near Muir of Ord, just north of Inverness.
10 March: Inverness Half Marathon and 5K
tbc March: Highland Shortbread Showdown competition with live music, food & drink stalls, etc.
29 - 31 March: Easter Egg Hunt around Inverness city centre
13 April: Annual Commemoration Service at Culloden Battlefield
28 April: Etape Loch Ness epic cycle race
tbc end April: Taste of Nairn celebrating local food and drink
3 - 5 May: Crime & Thriller Festival at Cromarty on the Black Isle
4 - 5 May: Ultra X ultra marathons around Loch Ness (50km & 100km races)
17 - 18 May: Beauly Buzz Festival
19 May: Inverness Performance Car Show with up to 1000 cars on display at Dores
25 May: Ness Gin Fest at Inverness Ice Rink (1pm - 5pm)
tbc May: Inverness Classic Vehicle Show with around 150 classic and vintage vehicles on display in the city centre - plus music & entertainment
tbc end May: Vintage Day with classic / vintage cars, buses, tractors and more at the Highland Folk Museum in Newtonmore
tbc end May - early June: Loch Ness Festival
1 June: The Gathering is a music festival in Inverness at the Northern Meeting Park
tbc early June: Ardersier Gala Classic Car Show and Parade
8 June: Beauly Gin Fest at Beauly Holiday Park
8 June: The Loch Ness Classic and Vintage Car Tour
tbc 8 June: Man V Horse Scotland where runners go head-to-head with horses on a 12 km or 24 km circuit on South Loch Ness.
15 June: Woodzstock music festival on the Black Isle
21 - 22 June: Inverness Provincial Mod - annual Gaelic competitions at Eden Court Theatre
5 July: Ministry of Sound Classical - Big Top concert in Bught Park, Inverness
6 July: Skipinnish 25th anniversary concert in Bught Park, Inverness
early July - end August: Under Canvas - live music and DJ sets on the lawn at Eden Court Theatre. This is a family-friendly event in stretch tents with a bar serving pizzas, local beers, gins, whisky, etc.
13 July: Inverness Highland Games
tbc July: Highland Pride LGBT+ march and gathering at the Northern Meeting Park in Inverness
25 - 27 July: Belladrum - Tartan Heart Festivalhuge music festival on the Belladrum Estate, near Beauly.
tbc 27 July: Nairn Show - livestock exhibitions, craft fair, food stalls and amusements.
1 August: Black Isle Show at the Showground, Muir of Ord. This is the largest agricultural show in the North of Scotland. It attracts over 2,000 cattle, horse and sheep entries, more than 300 trade stands and over 25,000 visitors to the show each year. There is plenty to see and do, craft fair, food fair, 'On the Farm' exhibition for the kids, agricultural stands, vintage rally and sheep shearing.
tbc 2 - 3 August: Highland Field Sports Fair at Moy Hall (between Aviemore and Inverness).
tbc 3 August: Strathpeffer Highland Gathering in the grounds of Castle Leod.
tbc mid August: Celebration of the Centuries at Fort George near Inverness - re-enactment event depicting over 2000 years of Scottish history
tbc mid August: Truckness at the Black Isle Showground, Muir Of Ord.
tbc 11 August: Nairn Triathlon with an open water swim alongside Nairn beach, a cycle in the Nairnshire countryside and a run along the beach front.
17 August: Nairn Highland Games
24 August: Glenurquhart Highland Games at Drumnadrochit, Loch Ness
24 - 25 August: Loch Ness 24: 24-hour solo or team relay trail running race with 7 km laps along the shore of Loch Ness near Aldourie Castle.
29 - 30 August: Northern Meeting Piping Competition at Eden Court
tbc early September: Nairn Book & Arts Festival
tbc September: Blas Festival ceilidhs and concerts across the Highlands.
14 - 15 September: Rat Race Coast to Coast - a 105-mile adventure race where participants run, bike and kayak from Nairn to Cawdor Castle and Loch Ness then down the Great Glen to Fort William and finish in Glen Coe.
tbc mid September: Kirking of the Council - civic procession from Inverness Town House to Ness Bank Church
tbc mid September: Aviemore Triathlon starting with an open-water swim in Loch Morlich.
tbc September: Highland Whisky Festival - various venues across the north of Scotland.
tbc end September: NessBookFest - Inverness book festival
29 September: Loch Ness Marathon plus 5K and 10K River Ness fun runs.
end September - early October: Highland Archaeology Festival
5 October: World Porridge Making Championship at Carrbridge
tbc November: from Wednesday to Saturday, Brodie Illuminated is when The National Trust for Scotland illuminates the grounds around Brodie Castle near Forres
tbc November: Inverness Film Festival at Eden Court Theatre
tbc 5 November: Bonfire night and fireworks at Bught Park
tbc mid November: Exclusively Highlands Christmas craft & food fair at Eden Court Theatre in Inverness (10am – 5pm)
end November: Christmas Lights switch-on
tbc early December: Exclusively Highlands Christmas craft & food fair at Eden Court Theatre in Inverness (10am – 5pm)
early December - early January: Annual pantomime at Eden Court Theatre
31 December: Red Hot Highland Fling - Hogmanay outdoor ceilidh & fireworks at the Northern Meeting Park in Inverness.