Taking part in the festival:

Q. I am interested in speaking at / taking part in / showcasing my book /exhibiting at Nairn Book and Arts Festival. How do I get in touch about this?
A. The Festival programme is drafted in November and has usually been finalised by February / March. The best time to approach us with an idea is in October / November by emailing info@nairnfestival.co.uk. After early March, you will probably be added to a longlist for the following year. The festival has one part-time member of staff and we can’t respond to every individual enquiry, but we will contact you if your proposal is of interest.

If you are an artist, please ask to be added to our artist mailing list, which we use for open calls for exhibitions. Please contact info@nairnfestival.co.uk.

Q. I’d like to volunteer at the festival – what options are there?
A. Please see our Get involved webpage for more information

Bookings:

Q. I don’t want to book online – what are the other options?
A. You can buy tickets in person from Nairn Bookshop, or on the door at the event if not sold out.

Q. I need to cancel my booking – what do I do?
A. If you need to cancel your booking you may do so, subject to our cancellation/ refund policy. Cancellation instructions and conditions are on your booking confirmation email.

Q. I haven’t received my e-ticket, what should I do?
A. If you have booked and paid but not received your e-ticket, please send an enquiry to info@nairnfestival.co.uk

Q. I’d like to book another ticket for a friend but online bookings have closed
A. You can purchase additional tickets on the door at the venue as long as there is capacity. If an event is sold out, this will be highlighted on the event entry on the festival website.

Q. Do I need to print off my eticket?
A. No, you can just show it at the door on your phone.

Q. How long are the events?
A. The speaker events mostly last for around an hour, with time afterwards for any book signings.

Q. Can I buy the books at the events?
A. Yes.

Accessibility:

Q. Is there parking at the festival venues?
A. Yes, there is plenty of parking at Nairn Community and Arts Centre, and across the road at the public car park off King St. For the Little Theatre, the closest public car park is at the nearby Links Car Park, Cumming Street.

Q. Is there disabled parking space at the main venue?
A. Yes, there are disabled parking bays at Nairn Community and Arts Centre. Please see their Facilities webpage. There are also disabled bays near the Little Theatre at the Links Car Park, Cumming St.

Q. I’m a wheelchair user – do I need to book space for my wheelchair in advance?
A. When booking, please let the organisers know if you would like a space for a wheelchair reserved. This is particularly important when booking events at The Little Theatre as space there is limited.

Q. Is there a café at the venue?
A. There is no onsite café but lots of places to eat nearby. For pre-event meals we recommend Festival partner The Classroom – just show your tickets to get a special discount on your meal. For more ideas on where to eat visit our Plan Your Visit page.

Q. Where are the events held?
A. Please see our Plan Your Visit page for more information.

Q. What is the festival's COVID policy?
A. The festival follows Scottish Government events guidance. Masks are not compulsory at events but audience members/ workshop participants are welcome to wear them at their own discretion, and we encourage all to respect others personal space. If you have Covid symptoms, you should not attend any festival event.

Q. How can I get to Nairn?
A. Please see our Plan Your Visit page for more information.

Further FAQs

Q. Who chooses the theme of the festival?
A. The theme is chosen after discussion by the Festival Committee and every two years relates in some way to Event Scotland/ Visit Scotland’s biannual themed year.

Q. How can I provide feedback for the festival?
A. Ticketholders will also be asked to fill in evaluation forms at events, and/or an online survey after the festival. You can also email us any feedback, or leave us a review.

Q. What is the festival's environmental policy?
A. Nairn recently won a Scotland Loves Local Climate Town award. We aim as the town’s arts festival to become greener and to encourage all participants and audiences to be more aware of issues facing the environment.

We consider the following in our planning:

• Overall messaging: will incorporate our commitment to sustainability through our own practises and those of our partner venues and participants. We encourage audiences to think about how they travel to attend festival events and choose environmentally friendly methods of getting to us (bicycle, train, bus, car shares, walking). Also to tread lightly in Nairn, for example by bringing their own cup.
• Transportation: to encourage use of public transport (or bicycle) by all speakers, artists, participants, volunteers and audiences. We will be discouraging air travel to and from this and future festivals except when public transport is not available.
• Venues: Our main venue recently ended its use of single use plastics and installed solar panels, an EV charging point and energy efficient windows. We will be advocating the use of biodegradeable disposable cups there -James’s Café, our partner venue for live outdoor music events already uses them. We advocate responsible rubbish disposal, and ‘bring your own cup’ for outdoor events to cut waste. For indoor events we will always where practicable use glasses.
• Print Promotion: to research the use of recycled or sustainably sourced paper in our printed materials (building contingency in to our print budget for this).
• Materials used by artists: we will be asking our artists to use sustainable /biodegradeable / recycled materials in their work as appropriate.
• Planning for future: we will incorporate our natural environment as a strong thread in creative ways in this and all future festivals alongside encouraging environmentally sustainable behaviour.
• Events: Our programme will include a strand of events highlighting our immediate and extended environment - how better to care for it and exist within it. We continue to use artists who build such advocacy into their workshops particularly those working with children and young people. We will also engage speakers who are also powerful advocates for change.