There are cities that host festivals, and then there's Glasgow — a city that is a festival. This July, Scotland's largest city adds another brilliant flourish to what is shaping up to be the most culturally ambitious summer in its history, as WOMAD makes its Scottish debut in the heart of Kelvingrove Park.

WOMAD Glasgow — the World of Music, Arts and Dance — will take over the park on Friday 3 and Saturday 4 July, bringing a globe-spanning programme of music, dance, food, workshops and talks to one of the city's most beloved green spaces. It is the first time the legendary festival has crossed the border into Scotland in its 44-year history.

\"We are so excited about WOMAD's first visit to Scotland and to Glasgow — a festival and a city that fit hand in glove,\" said Chris Smith, Director of WOMAD. \"A match that lives and breathes culture, music and creativity together.\"

He's not wrong. Founded by Peter Gabriel in 1982 as a radical experiment in cross-cultural musical exchange, WOMAD has since travelled to more than 30 countries. But few cities can match Glasgow's credentials as a natural home for a festival built on musical curiosity and warm-hearted internationalism. This is, after all, a UNESCO City of Music — and a city where Celtic Connections this January recorded more than 114,000 attendances, the highest in the event's 33-year history.

A lineup to match the setting

The programme reads like a world atlas set to music. Day one brings Malian guitar virtuoso Vieux Farka Touré, the Moroccan desert blues of Bab L'Bluz, Korean brass mavericks ADG7, and — closer to home — the unstoppable Peat & Diesel, fresh from conquering every venue in the Highlands and beyond. Estonian folk artist Mari Kalkun, Colombian act Montañera, and Gambian kora master Suntou Susso round out a thrilling opening.

Saturday sees Palestinian electronic pioneers 47Soul, Ghanaian kologo king King Ayisoba, Indian showman Raghu Dixit, Brazilian songwriter Zé Ibarra, and Scottish acts including Kim Carnie, Shooglenifty, and the GRIT Ensemble. Three stages, two days, and the whole world in a park.

Beyond the music, festival-goers can expect WOMAD's signature free workshops — led by the performing artists themselves — plus cooking demonstrations, wellness sessions, and the festival's popular World of Words talks.

A summer like no other

WOMAD Glasgow doesn't arrive in isolation. It lands in the middle of the Glasgow 2026 Festival, a sprawling celebration of sport, culture and community running from 23 May to 9 August, built around this summer's Commonwealth Games. The Games themselves open on 23 July, just weeks after the last WOMAD note fades across Kelvingrove.

Add to that Glasgow's 850th anniversary celebrations — marking the city's journey from a medieval burgh on the River Clyde to one of Europe's most vibrant cultural capitals — and you have a summer that feels genuinely historic.

The Glasgow 2026 Festival Fund, expanded from £250,000 to £1.25 million, is supporting more than 160 community-led projects across the city's 23 wards. WOMAD sits at the prestigious end of a programme designed to reach every corner of Glasgow.

Billy Garrett, Director of Culture, Tourism and Events at Glasgow Life, said: \"Glasgow is famed the world over as a hotspot of culture with a vibrant and diverse live music scene, and WOMAD's decision to bring its internationally renowned festival to our city is a shining example of this.\"

Getting there

Tickets for WOMAD Glasgow are on sale now at womadglasgow.co.uk. A two-day pass costs £144.50, with single-day tickets available at £78.10. Children's entry details are on the festival website. There is no on-site camping, but Glasgow being Glasgow, you won't struggle to find a warm bed and a warmer welcome nearby.

This is a city that doesn't just welcome the world — it sings along.