Sky presents Isle of Wight Festival 2026: Thursday, 18 – Sunday, 21 June

If you’re travelling by train or coach from anywhere in the country, just head for Portsmouth Harbour station, hop off the coach or train and it’s just a few steps to our FastCat port, from where we’ll whisk you over to Ryde in around 20 minutes.

Of course, foot passengers are welcome to use our Lymington and Portsmouth car ferry services, too. So just choose the route that’s best for you.

Getting to the Isle of Wight Festival site

There are bus stations close to Yarmouth and Ryde Pier Head ports and a good service runs to the Festival site.

In Yarmouth the bus station is on Bridge Road, a five minute stroll from the port. In Ryde, buses run from the Esplanade – reached by walking up the pier or catching the Island Line train which runs up and down the pier.

The nearest bus stop to Fishbourne Car Ferry port is at the end of Fishbourne Lane, 10-15 minutes’ walk away.

There are taxi ranks at Yarmouth and Ryde Esplanade.

Bringing your own wheels? Our Portsmouth Car Ferry Port is easily accessed from the UK motorway network and our comfortable ferry will get you across to Fishbourne in just 45 minutes.

If you’re coming from the West, you may find our Lymington to Yarmouth car ferry suits you better. Once again, it’s easy to get to and because it’s the fastest car ferry crossing to the Island, you’ll be at the Festival site in no time.

Getting to the Isle of Wight Festival site

Once you’ve disembarked the ferry, just follow the signs to the Festival car park from the port. It’s that easy!

Isle of Wight Festival have already made their first line-up announcement, with headliners Lewis Capaldi, Calvin Harris and The Cure to be joined by the likes of Teddy Swims, The Kooks, Sex Pistols, Rick Astley and Tom Grennan across the four days this coming June.

There will be more names announced over the coming months but the full stage schedule often won’t be confirmed until spring 2026, so make sure to check back here soon for line-up reveals as and when they happen.

The IOW Festival is a world-famous, multi-award winning festival that regularly draws tens of thousands of revellers. It’s been named “Best Major Festival”, “Best Family Festival”, and “Best Event”, while acts often receive plaudits and awards for their performances.

The fantastic reputation and legacy of the Isle of Wight Festival ensures that it’s able to draw the best and most iconic acts each year from all over the globe. In 2025, around 55,000 people flocked to Seaclose Park to see a stellar line up and in 2026 the Island will yet again be welcoming a number of fantastic acts.

Getting to the festival is made simple by a short ferry ride from the mainland with Wightlink. Once on the Island, the event is well signposted for drivers, while coach companies like Big Green Coach and Southern Vectis offer direct port-to-Festival transport.

The Island opens its doors and provides accommodation of all kinds to suit every taste and budget. For those who want to stay close to the action, the Isle of Wight Festival itself offers plenty of camping options, ranging from the traditional ‘pitch-your-own-tent’ to boutique glamping. Meanwhile, nearby towns and villages have a great selection of B&Bs and hotels if you value a good night’s sleep.

In 2026, the Isle of Wight Festival will be going all out to make it more memorable than ever. Beyond the main stage, there will be a number of alternative areas offering varied entertainment – from a dedicated ‘Kidzone’ for youngsters, to the rather more adult ‘Cirque du Quirk’. So, if you want to give your ears a bit of a break, but don’t want the fun to stop, the IOW festival has you covered.

The Isle of Wight Festival was the first and best festival of the counter-cultural rock’n’roll revolution. It began with a number of events between 1968 and 1970, leading to the IOW Festival being hailed as the British Woodstock.

Line ups in 1970 included Jimi Hendrix (a life-sized statue of whom can be found at Dimbola Lodge overlooking Freshwater Bay), The Who, Joni Mitchell, The Doors, Leonard Cohen, Supertramp, Procul Harum, and many more. Over 600,000 people attended for what was Jimi Hendrix’s last public performance in the UK.

However, with the Island ground to a halt by a rock’n’roll invasion, it was too much to bear for many, including those in authority.

The festival ceased after 1970 after the introduction of the Isle of Wight County Act, preventing overnight open-air assemblies of more than 5,000 people taking place without certain conditions being met to the approval of the local authority.

That was until 2002, when it was brought back – and it is now run by music promoter John Giddings. The revamped event has been a major success, hosting acts such as The Rolling Stones, David Bowie, The Who, Amy Winehouse, Coldplay, Kings Of Leon, Kasabian, Pearl Jam, The Sex Pistols, Blondie, Biffy Clyro and Rod Stewart, among others.

This year promises to uphold the historical tradition of great performances, great atmosphere, and promoting musical excellence. With some of the best acts around and an atmosphere second to none, book now to become part of the history.