Ticketing for
Beer Festivals

Beer festivals are a beloved institution in the UK, from large-scale CAMRA real ale festivals to boutique craft beer showcases. Ticketing for beer festivals needs to handle session management, add-on products, and licensing compliance in a way that generic platforms often struggle with.

Session-based entry is essential. Most beer festivals run in distinct sessions (Friday evening, Saturday afternoon, Saturday evening, Sunday) with separate capacity limits for each. This ensures a comfortable experience, manages licensing conditions, and allows for restocking between sessions. Your ticketing platform must support multiple sessions with independent capacity tracking.

Token systems are a hallmark of beer festivals. Many events sell tasting tokens at the door or in advance as add-ons to the entry ticket. If your platform supports add-on sales at checkout, you can sell token bundles alongside entry tickets, giving attendees a convenient all-in-one purchase.

Designated driver tickets at a reduced price are both socially responsible and good for attendance. Groups are more likely to attend if the driver pays less (or nothing) for entry. This is a distinct ticket type your platform needs to support.

For beer festivals, the key platform features to look for are:

• Session-based entry to manage your event professionally
• Tasting token add-ons for a smooth attendee experience
• Designated driver tickets to protect your margins
• Camra member discounts for convenience

Eventbrite is a common choice but charges 6.95% + £0.59 per ticket. On a £12 ticket, that is £1.42 in fees. Skiddle offers different pricing but still adds up at scale.

tickts charges zero platform fees, zero booking fees, and zero commission. The only cost is Stripe's card processing at 1.5% + 20p per transaction, which on a £12 ticket is just £0.38. That is £1.04 saved per ticket, which adds up significantly over multiple events.

Payments go directly to your Stripe account and land in your bank within 2-3 business days of each sale. No waiting until after the event to access your money.

See the full platform comparison or model your exact costs with the fee calculator.

Beer festival pricing needs to balance entry fees with token sales for an overall revenue strategy. Here is the approach:

Session pricing: Price each session based on expected demand. Saturday evening is always premium. Thursday/Friday daytime sessions should be discounted to attract serious beer enthusiasts who will spend more on tokens. A typical structure: weekday sessions £8, Saturday afternoon £12, Saturday evening £15.

Entry + token bundles: Offer a discounted bundle at checkout. "£12 entry + 10 tokens for £20" (vs £12 + £12 separately) gives a perceived saving and guarantees higher per-head spend. Most visitors will need more than 10 tokens and buy extra on the day.

CAMRA and club member discounts: Offer £2-3 off for CAMRA members or local beer club members. These are your most engaged attendees who will spend the most on tasting. The discount is a goodwill gesture that drives loyalty.

Designated driver tickets: Free or £3 entry for designated drivers. This removes a barrier for groups and is responsible practice. DDs still spend money on food and soft drinks.

Multi-session passes: If your festival spans 3+ sessions, offer an all-sessions pass at the price of 2 sessions. This captures your most enthusiastic visitors and guarantees attendance across quieter sessions.

For a typical beer festival event with 400 visitors at £12 per ticket (total revenue: £4,800), here is what each platform costs:

• Eventbrite: £570 in fees (6.95% + £0.59 per ticket)
• WeGotTickets: £480 in fees (10% flat)
• tickts: £152 in Stripe processing only (zero platform fees)

The saving with tickts versus Eventbrite is £418. That is money that stays in your pocket (or your cause, or your business) instead of going to a ticketing platform.

For organisers who run multiple beer festivals per year, these savings compound. Four events per year at the same scale saves £1,670 annually versus Eventbrite. That is real money that can be reinvested in better events.

Payout timing also matters. With tickts, your ticket revenue reaches your bank account within 2-3 days of each sale via Stripe. With platforms that hold funds until after the event, you are financing all your costs upfront and waiting weeks or months for reimbursement. For beer festivals with significant upfront costs, this cash flow difference is significant.

Start promoting early. Open ticket sales as soon as you have confirmed your date, venue, and key details. The longer your tickets are available, the more time people have to discover and commit to your event. For beer festivals, 4-8 weeks of advance sales is ideal.

Use social media strategically. Post your event across all relevant platforms. Use a mix of formats: static images, short videos, countdowns, and behind-the-scenes content. Tag your venue, performers, or partners to expand your reach beyond your own followers.

Build an email list from your first event. Collect email addresses (with consent) from every attendee. Before your next beer festival, email your past attendees first. People who have attended before are 5-10x more likely to buy than cold audiences.

Create urgency with availability updates. Post regular updates on ticket availability: "70% sold, only 30 tickets remaining!" This creates genuine FOMO (fear of missing out) and pushes undecided people to buy now rather than later.

Partner with local businesses and venues. Cross-promote with businesses whose customers overlap with your audience. Offer a small discount code for their customers in exchange for promotion on their channels. Find venues and partners on UK Venue Guide.

Make sharing easy. After someone buys a ticket, encourage them to invite friends. A simple "Share this event" button or a "Bring a friend" discount code turns every buyer into a promoter. Word-of-mouth is the most powerful marketing tool for beer festivals.

Follow up after the event. Send a thank-you email with photos, highlights, and a link to your next event. Ask for feedback. This builds loyalty and starts the marketing for your next beer festival before the current one has faded from memory.