Forest Fest

About Forest Fest

Forest Fest was dreamed up in 2019, then knocked off course by the pandemic before its first public edition in 2022. The Forest Fest 2027 edition runs from 23-25 July in Emo Village, Co. Laois, as a music festival with a bill rooted in indie, folk, trad, country and americana. The format stuck.

Its first ticketed edition went on sale in March 2022 and ran in Emo village that summer. Forest Fleadh arrived the same year as a separate platform for Irish folk and trad.

Lineup and Programme

The bill sits across indie, folk, trad, country and americana. Music runs across the Forest Stage, Village Stage, Finnegan’s Wake and Forest Fleadh. Forest Fleadh has a specific brief.

That stage is for Irish folk and trad, including trad sessions and folk programming. Away from the stages there are food stalls, craft drinks and children’s activities.

Who Is It For?

The festival is set up for a mixed adult and family crowd. Children can attend. Under-18s must be accompanied by a ticket-holder aged over 23, and the campsite is family-friendly with 24/7 supervision.

That audience shape matches the programme: roots, trad and indie bookings sit alongside family entertainment rather than a late-night club format.

The Venue and Site

Emo Village supplies the arena campus, with stages, camping, parking and facilities arranged around the village area. The site is compact. Key areas sit within easy walking distance of each other.

Camping is weekend camping only, with tent, campervan, caravan and glamping options. There is no electrical hook-up. Campsites have free hot showers and toilets, plus freshwater points and waste disposal; accessible viewing and medication storage can be requested.

Travel to Forest Fest

Emo Village is just off the M7, around 5km from Exit 15. Portlaoise is about 10 minutes away by road, with Dublin about an hour away.

• Rail: Portlaoise Railway Station and Portarlington Railway Station are the nearest stations.
• Road: Access is via M7 Exit 15, with routes using the R422 and R419 / Portarlington Road. Drivers follow signs for Emo and Mountmellick.
• Parking: Free car parking is available for patrons, with pick-up and drop-off points and designated accessible parking. The walk from the day-ticket car park to the venue is about 15-20 minutes.
• Shuttles: Shuttle buses serve Portarlington and Mountmellick.