A weekend of music, activities,walks, arts and crafts, workshops and more, celebrating the amenities and attractions of East Clare.

The annual Scariff Harbour Festival is an open-air, street-based event showcasing the many attractions and amenities accessible from Scariff. Its aim is to promote the leisure and pleasure potential of Lough Derg, the inland waterways and the East Clare countryside both among local people and visitors from further afield. The four-day festival, which takes place over the August bank holiday weekend, offers a varied programme of activities, arts, music and entertainment inspired by the “lake” theme. In recent years Scariff Harbour, the festival’s focus, has been redeveloped and expanded by Waterways Ireland, a North/South implementation body set up under the Good Friday Agreement. Scariff now boasts a top-class marina facility for pleasure boats, anglers, sailing people and other water recreation enthusiasts.


The festival seeks to highlight Scariff’s role as the “southern gateway” to the inland navigable waterways by forging a special relationship with corresponding towns in Northern Ireland to which Scariff is now linked through the waterways system and by promoting cross-border exchanges at the political, cultural and community levels. The festival continues to develop and to attract ever-growing numbers of people.

Boat tours of the Scariff River and Lough Derg have proved perennially popular in previous years with a seemingly never-ending demand by the public to get a chance to experience the river and lake firsthand. 2025 sees a revamped Riverside Activity event with Toons and Balloons and UL Activitiy Centre providing activities such as Archery, Canoeing, Stand Up Paddle boarding, team building challenges, bungy trampoline, hang tough, human demolition and more.

Historical and scenic walks are organized in cooperation with Shamrock Walking Tours and local historians from the centre of Scariff, offering lake views and a chance to learn more about the history, culture and natural environment of East Clare.

Local arts and crafts also figure prominently, with a chance to see displays of traditional craft making. The Scariff Harbour Festival prides itself on being a family-focused event and this year will see lots of attractions including the Kids Fun Zone in the GAA field, Street Theatre, Arts & Crafts for the kids, and Kayaking in the Harbour.

Other highlights of this year’s festival include a screening of the acclaimed Blue Road – The Edna O’Brien story in the Edna O’Brien library and genealogy sessions with Jane Halloran-Ryan.
Music plays a big part of the weekend as always and this year’s headline acts include Ronan Collins and his showband in the the Church of the Sacred Heart on Thursday 31st July, Mack Fleetwood on the main stage on Friday 1st August, The Fureys headlining on Saturday 2nd August and on Sunday 3rd August, local groups the Grogan Brothers and the Tulla Céilí Band will close the festival along with the lively trad group Sin a Deir Sí.