Carnival of the Baubles making its return to kick off the festive period

On Saturday 23 November thousands of people will be lining the pavements of Ashford Town Centre as Carnival of the Baubles once again returns to kick off the festivities and light up the town centre with its stunning night-time giant lantern parade.

Join us for a full day of festive fun for the whole family – with a Christmas markers market, free lantern making workshops and performances at the Bandstand and Elwick Place.

Due to the Carnival’s increasing popularity, this year’s parade route has been reversed – now starting off from the Lower High Street at 5pm, finishing in spectacular style outside The Ashford Cinema at Elwick Place.

This year’s parade will be led by a giant Firebird. With a fountain of sparks from its beak, it will help guide the procession of local schools, youth and community groups and Ashford based businesses through the town.

The theme for this year’s parade is Ashford – The Place That Makes Us. Emergency Exit Arts, famed for their awe-inspiring displays each year at Glastonbury and The Lord Mayor's Show in London, are leading on the creations with Made In Ashford. They are already busy getting this year’s lantern builds underway.

They are running lantern making workshops in County Square in the pop-up Bauble Maker Space - where residents and visitors can also get a sneak peak of this year’s lanterns. Don’t worry, if you can’t attend any of the workshop sessions you can make your own one at home and bring it along on the day.

A huge thank you goes to our festival and events sponsors Bucksford Law, EKC Ashford College, Kent Invicta Chamber of Commerce and You Fibre who are helping raise the profile of this year’s events and will be a part of the parade.

Cllr Heather Hayward, Portfolio Holder for Tourism and Culture at Ashford Borough Council, said: “Everybody loves the Carnival of the Baubles and we can’t wait to see what people create for this year’s spectacular. There are so many residents, schools, community groups and businesses involved in the event and it just seems to get bigger and better.

“A lot goes into the organising of our events so I hope that as many people will come and be a part of what looks to be a magical day.”

Make sure you visit the Love Ashford website for more information and to start planning your trip to Ashford Town Centre this Christmas.