The Word's Biggest Literary Festival Returns With A Packed 10-Day Programme

Our hotel in Brecon Beacons is perfectly situated so that you can enjoy the best bits of the festival before returning to some guaranteed peace and quiet back at Gliffaes.

Thinking of attending Hay Festival?

A mere 30 minutes’ drive from our Brecon hotel, Hay Festival can be found at Dairy Meadows in Hay-on-Wye. Boasting a picturesque tented village with even more on offer than in previous years, 2019 will be the 32nd instalment of this now famous festival.
This year’s festival will take place from the 23rd May until the 2nd June.
The programme at the Hay Festival offers an eclectic mix of talks and workshops to suit everyone; regardless of age, political affiliation or residence. It’s a great gathering of some of the world’s best minds including authors, poets, filmmakers, musicians, comedians, opinion formers, adventurers, thinkers and sundry oddballs.
The BBC Tent, in particular, has a very impressive line up this year. Other events include:

• The Man Booker International Prize Winner (announced on the 21st May!) in conversation with Bettany Hughes
• Maxine Peake will give a reading of Percy Bysshe Shelley’s radical 1819 poem, England in 1819
• Fiona Stafford, Professor of English at the University of Oxford leads a walk through an old English garden, talking about her book The Brief Life of Flowers
• Germaine Greer discussing Sappho
• Nobel Prize-winning biologist Venki Ramakrishnan
• Markus Zusak discusses The Book Thief in a special Hay Festival Book of the Month event.

See the full programme here – tickets can be purchased by clicking this link.
If you are wondering how to approach the festival, if it is your first time then we fully recommend making a day of it. Choose the date that suits you best and book a number of events for that day otherwise you may find yourself attending the festival in a more bitty format; it’s no fun listening to one event here and there, unless that is what you prefer. If you’ve been before, then you don’t need us to tell you how to enjoy it! Don’t forget to make time for a spot of lunch and a drink – the festival offers plenty of options including a family food hall, bar and cafe.
Accommodation wise, we have limited room availability from 27th – 30th May. We are fully booked Saturday and Sunday which is to be expected given the popularity of the festival and our closeness to the site. Gliffaes is perfectly placed for a trip to Hay and when you get back late we can have a bowl of soup and a drink ready for you before you head up to bed.
If you want to enjoy Hay Festival, why not join us at the most welcoming hotel in Brecon Beacons? Gliffaes can offer comfort, delicious food and some respite from the hustle and bustle of the festival. Book direct for the very best rate, guaranteed.