Festivals & Events in Manama, Bahrain 2026
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Travel advisory: Bahrain is currently a participant in the 2026 regional conflict involving Iran, and Manama has sustained direct strikes, including a drone strike on a hotel in the city. Governments including the US State Department and the UK FCDO currently advise extra caution or against travel to Bahrain. Check your government’s current advisory before booking anything. This calendar is for planning ahead, not a trip right now.
Here’s what’s actually on Manama’s calendar, plus one important correction for 2026.
The Bahrain Grand Prix Is Not in Bahrain in 2026
Get this out of the way first: the Bahrain International Circuit at Sakhir hosted the Middle East’s first Formula 1 race, but the 2026 Bahrain Grand Prix has been relocated to Sepang, Malaysia because of the regional conflict. Bahrain keeps the promoter and revenue role, but there’s no race weekend to plan a Manama trip around this year. Don’t book anything expecting to watch F1 in Bahrain in 2026.
Spring of Culture
An arts festival, typically running February to March, bringing local and international performers, exhibitions, and workshops to venues across Manama. Confirm 2026 dates closer to the time.
Bahrain National Day
December 16-17 marks Bahrain’s independence from British colonial rule in 1971, with parades and events across the city. A straightforward, low-key national holiday.
Ramadan and Eid
Ramadan 2026 runs roughly mid-February to mid-March (confirm exact dates closer to the time). Daytime eating, drinking, and smoking are restricted in public for everyone, visitors included, and business hours shorten. Evenings come alive instead, with extended hours and a different rhythm to city life. Eid celebrations follow at the month’s end.
Bahrain Food Festival
A food-focused event, generally in the spring, showcasing local cuisine alongside international offerings. Confirm current-year dates and venue before planning around it.
Ashura
Ashura is a solemn Shia religious observance, marked by mourning processions and gatherings (majalis), not a festival in the celebratory sense. If your trip overlaps with it, treat it with the same respect you’d give any religious memorial observance: no photography of mourners without permission, and no treating it as a spectacle.
Planning Around the Calendar
Outside Ramadan and any major holiday, hotel rates in Manama don’t move much seasonally the way they would in a normal year around the March F1 weekend, since that race isn’t happening here in 2026. Check current Manama hotel rates on Booking.com , and check the current official travel advisory before booking anything.
For the rest of the year’s practicalities, see the travel tips guide or the full Manama guide .