Wexford Festival Opera
Wexford Festival Opera takes place Oct 15 - 31, 2026 (75th anniversary season) in Wexford, Ireland. The dress code is Evening dress is traditional for main-stage nights (black tie or cocktail common) but welcoming rather than strict; daytime events casual. Typical cost ranges from 400 to 1200 EUR per person.
An intimate festival with a singular mission: staging rare and forgotten operas the big houses ignore, in a small Irish harbour town that gives itself over entirely to music each October. The 75th anniversary season (2026) presents Mascagni's Iris, Rossini's L'equivoco stravagante and Prokofiev's The Gambler. Connoisseurs fly in from around the world for repertoire they will hear nowhere else.
- When
- Oct 15 - 31, 2026 (75th anniversary season)
- Where
- Wexford, Ireland
- Dress code
- Evening dress is traditional for main-stage nights (black tie or cocktail common) but welcoming rather than strict; daytime events casual
- Cost
- Typical cost ranges from 400 to 1200 EUR per person.
- Weather
- 11 - 14C, cool wet Irish autumn with Atlantic wind
- When to book
- Priority booking via Friends in early summer, public booking from midsummer; the anniversary season will sell out early
- Getting there
- DUB (Dublin), about 2h by car or 2.5h by train to Wexford
- Where to stay
- Talbot Hotel Wexford, Whites of Wexford, Kelly's Resort Hotel (Rosslare)
- Official site
- https://www.wexfordopera.com/
How to attend
Book main-stage operas and Pocket Operas at wexfordopera.com or by phone; Friends get priority and the 75th season will sell out early. Plentiful daytime recitals, talks and community events are free or cheap, so you can sample richly without a big spend. Wexford is about 2.5 hours from Dublin by train.
Insider tip
The daytime Pocket Operas and lunchtime recitals in intimate venues are where regulars find the festival's magic - at a fraction of main-stage prices.
Get inside Wexford Festival Opera
Booking matters here: priority booking via Friends in early summer, public booking from midsummer; the anniversary season will sell out early. Members track that window, what it really costs, and 573 more events across the season.
Free while in beta. One email when your invitation is ready, nothing else.