Short answer: Mazey Day 2027 in Penzance is Saturday 26 June, according to the town council's festival calendar. Golowan week runs around it, with the civic parade on Sunday 20 June, Mazey Eve on Friday 25 June and Quay Fair Day on Sunday 27 June. The full programme is not out yet. Come by train if you can, as town car parks fill.
Golowan is Penzance's midsummer festival, and Mazey Day is its big Saturday of giant wicker sculptures, marching bands and street food. Penzance Town Council has a calendar for 2027, so we can give you the date now, even though the full programme is not out yet.
Mazey Day falls on a Saturday each year, and the council's festival contract gives Saturday 26 June 2027. The same calendar lists the surrounding days for 2027:
The calendar table is a little unclear about which day is marked Midsummer, so wait for the official 2027 programme before you plan around the evening events. The festival as a whole ran from 20 to 29 June in 2025, so expect around ten days.
Schools, community groups and entertainers hold processions through the town with music, giant sculptures and other street arts. Musicians and artists from the Celtic nations often perform. In 2025 the wicker model parades started at 11am, 1pm and 3pm with marching bands, and there were street stages, markets, food stalls and theatre all day. The mayor and the Mock Mayor of the Quay address the crowds from a platform. Check the 2027 programme for set times.
Penglaz is Penzance's skull-headed 'Obby 'Oss. He appears on Mazey Eve and on St John's Eve, 23 June. The hobby horse was introduced in 1992, as part of the modern festival that began in 1991. It echoes the old midsummer fire festivals that were once held across Cornwall.
If you like shanties, see our sea shanty festival guide for the other festivals around the county.
Penzance is the end of the line for the main railway, which makes the train a sensible choice for the busiest day. The station sits next to the harbour. For drivers, the Harbour long stay car park is rated 4.1 from 402 Google reviews, open 24 hours and close to the harbour and bus station, although reviewers say it fills quickly. There is also a car park at Penzance station, rated 4.0 from 78 Google reviews.
The 2025 programme moved the Golowan marquee to the Wharfside Maritime car park and put street food in Greenmarket car park on Mazey Day, so some town car parks lose spaces on festival days. Look at the 2027 programme for the exact list. Our Penzance parking guide has the alternatives.
On the Sunday civic parade in 2025, a rolling closure ran along Alverton Street, Market Place, The Greenmarket and Market Jew Street from 10:30 to 10:50am. We have not confirmed 2027 closures. For anything not shown in the programme, the council's contact number in 2025 was 01736 363405.
The Penzance Harbour area is rated 4.5 from 1,027 Google reviews and is the festival's main base. For a quieter hour, walk to Morrab Gardens or take the bus to Mousehole, which we cover in our Penzance to Mousehole guide. Beaches are covered in best beaches near Penzance, and the Penzance page lists more. If you are visiting in winter, see our Montol and Mousehole Lights guide.
Penzance Town Council's 2025 road closure notice shows how big the closure is. 2027 closures are not published, so treat this as the pattern.
The notice does not cover bus changes or parking suspensions, so ask the council on 01736 363405. Our Penzance parking guide lists the alternatives. Park outside the town centre and walk in, rather than expecting to drive through.
Penzance Town Council extended some toilet hours for Mazey weekend in 2024 and again in 2026, so it is a reasonable bet that it will do the same in 2027, but that is not confirmed.
The 2026 arrangement (Friday 26 to Sunday 28 June) was:
Other council toilets kept their usual hours: Alexandra Play Park 8.30am to 6.30pm, Newlyn 8am to 7.30pm, Princess May Rec 8.30am to 6.30pm, Wherrytown 8am to 7.30pm, and Penalverne 8.30am to 5.30pm on Saturday and Sunday only. The council also lists community toilets in participating businesses, with opening times that vary. The queues for the central ones will be long on Mazey Day, so use the Newlyn or Wherrytown ones if you have a car and young children.
The council has not published a viewing guide or the 2027 route. Using the 2025 layout, the main places were:
The torchlit procession on St John's Eve gathers at the top of Chapel Street and ends at The Dolphin Tavern, rated 4.6 from 2,186 Google reviews. If you want a drink before the procession, expect it to be packed.
Our advice, not the council's: with parades at 11am, 1pm and 3pm, arrive 30 minutes early and pick a pavement on the parade street rather than at the platform, because the crowds are thickest there. If you have a buggy, stay at the edge of the closed streets, where you can leave. Our Penzance page has more.
Saturday 26 June 2027, according to Penzance Town Council's festival contract calendar.
Penzance's midsummer festival, revived in 1991, with parades, a torchlit procession, fireworks, a Mock Mayor election and Mazey Day.
In 2025 the wicker model parades started at 11am, 1pm and 3pm. Check the 2027 programme for times.
Streets, parades and most street entertainment are open to watch. Check the programme for any ticketed events.
Penzance's skull-headed hobby horse, which appears on Mazey Eve and St John's Eve and was introduced in 1992.
In 2025 it was closed to traffic all day, with many adjoining streets shut from 6am to 7pm. 2027 closures have not been published.
In 2026 the council extended hours at the bus station and South Pier toilets to 10.30pm. Check whether the same applies in 2027.
In 2025 it gathered at the top of Chapel Street and processed to the Dolphin pub.
In 2025 on Battery Road, in front of the Jubilee Pool, on the Sunday.
Times, prices and dates are the businesses' and organisers' to change, so check before you travel. Spotted something we've got wrong? Tell us and we'll fix it.
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