Neath‘s September fair is back in a week and a half, and this year there are two funfairs: the real one on Milland Road, and a miniature one in the library.
The street fair runs through the town centre from Wednesday 9 to Saturday 12 September, 9am to 10pm each day. The funfair on Milland Road car park runs a day longer, to Sunday 13 September, opening at 6pm on the Wednesday and Thursday, 4pm on the Friday and midday on the weekend.
What’s on the stalls
The council says traders will be selling clothing, crafts, accessories, homeware and mystery parcels, with hog roast, Mexican food, churros and brownies among the food stalls.
The fair draws traders “from across the County, the region and even across Europe”, according to Cllr Cen Phillips, Neath Port Talbot Council‘s cabinet member for nature, tourism and wellbeing. The council described it in 2021 as the fourth largest chartered street trading fair in the UK.
The fairground you can fit on a table
The new attraction is on Saturday 12 September at Neath Library: an exhibition of working miniature fairground rides, models built with lighting and moving parts that the council says look “almost identical to full-sized rides” in photographs and video.
The Showmen’s Guild, which runs the Milland Road funfair, is supporting it with a collection of fairground memorabilia. The council pitches it at enthusiasts, photographers and anyone interested in fairground heritage; the practical point is that it is indoors and open while the rides outside are still setting up.
746 years, on the council’s count
The council calls this the fair’s 746th year and describes it as one of the oldest chartered fairs in Wales and Europe. A charter fair is one granted the right to trade by the Crown; Neath’s is generally dated to the 13th century, which is why the street fair still starts in the second week of September every year.
Anyone who wants the history before the fair arrives can find it at Neath Library now: an exhibition on the fair’s 700-year story opened on 25 August and runs to 12 September.
Cllr Phillips said: “We’re excited to welcome the return of the iconic Neath Great Fair for its 746th year. What makes this event so special is how the organisers can celebrate its tradition whilst also introducing innovative ways to entertain, such as this year’s new miniature fairground exhibition.”
He added that the fair brought “a fantastic atmosphere” and supported local businesses.
The fair that skipped two years
The fair did not run in 2020 or 2021. The council cancelled the 2021 event in June that year, citing the preparation needed for a fair of its size and the uncertainty over pandemic rules, and said it hoped the fair “will be around for future years for many generations to enjoy”. It has run every September since.
Neath Great Fair 2026 at a glance
Street fair: Wednesday 9 to Saturday 12 September, Neath town centre, 9am to 10pm.
Funfair: Wednesday 9 to Sunday 13 September, Milland Road car park. Wednesday and Thursday 6pm to 10pm; Friday 4pm to 10pm; Saturday and Sunday 12pm to 8pm.
Miniature fairground exhibition: Saturday 12 September, Neath Library.
History of Neath Great Fair exhibition: now until Saturday 12 September, Neath Library.
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