ANY VEHICLES ON THE CARNIVAL ROUTE ON CARNIVAL DAY WILL BE TOWED AWAY
Due to operational reasons we regret that the Park & Ride at J24 will not be available for carnival-goers on parade day. We have a new Park & Ride at J25 along with J23.
If you intend to come to our carnival, please bear in mind roads in the town start closing at 1pm. After this time access to the town is likely to be congested, particularly from both J23 & J25 of the M5 so please come early. There is a full programme of entertainment in the town centre from 10.30am.
Park & Ride & Car Parks
Fee: Cars £17, Minibuses £30
Carnival Park and Ride schemes at J23 and J25 will be fully operational from 2pm until 11.30pm. The car parks close at midnight.
M5 - Junction 23
Charity: Bridgwater Operatic Society
M5 - Junction 25
Charity: Cancer Research UK
Car Parking
The Official Bridgwater Carnival town car parks are all signposted and close at midnight. No overnight parking is available. The largest car park is at St Matthew’s Field, close to the carnival route. All Carnival car parks are manned by volunteer representing charities and community organisations authorised by Bridgwater Guy Fawkes Carnival Committee which takes no responsibility for any loss sustained. Many of these car parks have parking bays for blue badge holders on a first come first used basis.
Council Car Parks will be operational at Market St and Barclay St.
Cars
Minibuses
Warning: There have been past incidents when cars parked on private land have been clamped with release fees running to hundreds of pounds. Bridgwater Carnival has no control over this practice and cannot accept any liability.
Coach Parking Information 2026
A coach pack containing a short promotional DVD and flyers is available for coach companies from Sharon Cresswell on request.
We have allocated some parking spaces within the town centre for coaches on a first come first served basis, spaces are limited; (see application form for details), making it far easier to drop off and pick up your passengers. Should you wish to pre-book a coach you can download an application form by clicking on the link below and returning it with the appropriate payment or you can pay via our online shop, please put in the note fields the number of vehicles and number of seats together with any other relevant information. Online Shop.
(2026 Prices) The parking charge if available for those that arrive on the day without pre-booking will be an extra £5 per coach / minibus (maximum 16 seats).
Disabled Access
Limited disabled parking is available, with almost 100 spaces in Bridgwater’s council car parks. While there is no designated disabled parking directly on the carnival route, several large car parks are located within a short walk of the procession. Visitors with grandstand tickets will find sizeable car parks and accessible toilet facilities within a 10-minute walk.
The entire two-mile carnival route is accessible to wheelchair users. A dedicated wheelchair viewing area is available at Northgate Yard, Mount Street, Bridgwater (TA6 3FQ). Spaces are limited, so advance booking is recommended via the Disabled Viewing contact.
For further information, please contact the Carnival Centre on 01278 428220.
Traffic Details
Any queries concerning traffic management should be directed to our Traffic Management Director, Chris Mockridge.
Enjoy the show!
