Summer is a wonderful time to explore Gloucester, with the city boasting iconic architecture, gorgeous green spaces and, of course, the picturesque Gloucester Docks.
The city comes alive with festivals and entertainment during summer, too, with SoGlos rounding up some of the very best events and activities taking place in 2025.
Gloucester Quays Food Festival
From seeing your favourite celebrity chefs and Great British Bake Off stars cooking live, to tucking into the south west's very best artisan produce, Gloucester Quays Food Festival is one of Gloucester's most unmissable events of the summer – and it's free!
This year's event takes place on Saturday 19 and Sunday 20 July 2025. Check out SoGlos's pick of the highlights with 5 great reasons to visit Gloucester Quays Food Festival this summer.
Sky Sports on the big screen at Gloucester Quays
The big screen is back at Pillar and Lucy Square at Gloucester Quays, showing Sky Sports fixtures for free all summer long.
From Formula One, the PGA Tour, T20 cricket to EUFA football matches, pull up a picnic table and catch all the action. Gloucester Quays has also teased family events and live music happening in the square during summer, too.
Lions at Large
A pride of colourful lions is coming to Gloucester this summer when the Lions at Large trail arrives on Friday 11 July 2025. There are 32 full-sized lions to find across Cheltenham and Gloucester, all uniquely painted by local artists, celebrating the history, culture and diversity of Gloucestershire. There are also 54 lion cubs decorated by local schools and community groups to search for, too.
The trail is in place until Sunday 14 September 2025, when the lions will be auctioned off to raise money for Cheltenham and Gloucester Hospitals Charity and The Big Space Cancer Appeal, to create new cancer care facilities in Cheltenham.
Ultimate Warriors
Popular family attraction, Ninja Warrior UK Gloucester, is getting a brand-new name and look this summer 2025, as it rebrands to Ultimate Warriors.
Promising to be 'bigger, better and more thrilling than ever before', the venue closed on Sunday 1 June to refresh and install new equipment to suit a broader range of abilities, before reopening on Thursday 3 July 2025 with a host of summer offers.
Moomin 80 celebrations from Gloucester Guildhall
During Refugee Week from Saturday 14 to Sunday 22 June 2025, Gloucester is marking the 80th anniversary of Tove Jansson's first Moomin book, The Moomins and The Great Flood, with a week of special celebrations.
Featuring themes of community, acceptance and togetherness, the week-long celebrations include the unveiling of a new floating art installation by Dana Olărescu at Gloucester Docks; a Moomin picnic in Kings Square; a special screening of Moomins on the Riviera at Gloucester Guildhall; and the ongoing Moomin ABC exhibition at the Museum of Gloucester.
AirHop trampoline park opening
The UK's leading trampoline park operator is opening its newest venue in Gloucester this summer 2025.
AirHop is due to open at Gloucester Retail Park in time for the school holidays, promising 'excitement for thrill-seekers of all ages' with everything from interconnected trampolines to interactive games to try.
Soak up some culture at Gloucester Cathedral
From Saturday 12 July until Sunday 7 September 2025, Gloucester Cathedral is hosting its 'Crafts that Built the Cathedral' exhibition, showcasing heritage handicrafts like stained glass making and stonecarving. Visitors can admire stunning handcrafted creations in the cloister; watch live demonstrations at the Stonecarving Festival throughout the August bank holiday weekend; and even take part in workshops to have a go at these heritage crafts themselves.
Gloucester Cathedral's iconic Tower has just reopened for the summer season with brand-new roof deck, too, providing breathtaking views from Gloucester all the way to the Malvern Hills on clear days. Tower tours are available to book in advance of your visit with tickets costing £12 for adults and £6 for children.
Outdoor cinema at Llanthony Secunda Priory
Llanthony Secunda Priory provides a spectacular waterside backdrop for outdoor cinema on Saturday 21 and Sunday 22 June 2025.
There are six family-friendly screenings taking place across the weekend, including The Greatest Showman and Wicked sing-a-longs, Shrek, The Gruffalo, Mamma Mia! and Sing — with tickets costing from £15.50 for adults and from £9.50 for under 12s.
Art in the City
Gloucester's city-wide ‘Plein Air’ painting competition Art in the City is back on Saturday 2 August 2025, inviting professional and amateur artists to take part and create paintings inspired by their surroundings.
There are prizes up for grabs and free art packs for the first 100 families to register, with entries open now costing £15 each.
Gloucester Rhythm and Blues Festival
Filling Gloucester city centre with live music, Gloucester Rhythm and Blues Festival is back from Friday 25 July until Sunday 3 August 2025.
Music fans will find blues bands and solo artists playing at Cafe Rene, Dick Whittington's, The Drunken Duck, England's Glory, The Fountain Inn, Hop Kettle, The Pelican Inn, The Turks Head and The Thirsty Pine across the 10-day event, so bring your dancing shoes!
Gloucester History Festival
Gloucester History Festival returns from Saturday 6 to Sunday 21 September 2025, with the historic Blackfriars Priory providing a breathtaking location to see some of the country's most well-respected historians and broadcasters.
Starting off on Gloucester Day, this year's programme is packed with 150 talks and performances available to attend in-person or stream online. The first few names announced include Tracey Borman, Helen Carr, Dan Jones and Gordon Corera, with the full lineup arriving in July 2025.
Open-air theatre at The Folk of Gloucester
The Folk of Gloucester is playing host to open-air theatre this summer, with two performances of family favourite Treasure Island on Saturday 30 August 2025.
Popular touring theatre company Jenny Wren Productions presents its take on this seafaring adventure, complete with rousing shanties and a very talkative parrot, in this atmospheric setting – with shows at 3.30pm and 7.30pm and tickets costing £15 for adults and £10 for under 16s.
