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Get ready for 123rd Matlock Bath Illuminations.

Tickets are on sale for Matlock Bath Illuminations, which returns for an eight-week season every weekend from 11 September after last year’s event was cancelled due to the pandemic.

Organised by Derbyshire Dales District Council, the 123rd Illuminations will then run until Halloween, Sunday 31 October, with the Derwent Gardens and Lovers’ Walks bedecked with colourful lights throughout the season.

Tickets went on sale on 20 August and the District Council has reduced numbers this year to a maximum of 4,000 – half the registered capacity of Derwent Gardens. The number of fireworks nights have also been reduced to just five on Saturdays 9, 16, 23 and 30 October, plus the final night, Sunday 31 October.

There will once again be themed Sundays for younger visitors.

Taking centre stage will be the unique parade of decorated and illuminated boats created painstakingly with thousands of lights by member of the Matlock Bath Venetian Boat Builders’ Association.

District Council Leader Councillor Garry Purdy, whose Masson ward includes Matlock Bath, said:

“Like so many events, this remarkable annual tradition fell victim to Covid restrictions last year and we are proud to be able to bring it back in 2021 to provide a much needed boost to the local economy. Dating way back to Queen Victoria’s diamond jubilee in 1897, the Illuminations play an important role in extending the tourist season at no cost to Derbyshire Dales council tax payers.

“The weather intervened at times in 2019, but we usually manage to attract as many as 100,000 visitors to Matlock Bath.”

Book online here and please note that the entry charges recognise the different levels of entertainment provided on each night.

Tickets for 2021 are £6.50 on Firework Saturdays (£5.50 concessions) and £5.50 on Non-Firework Saturdays and Sundays (£4.50 concessions) if bought online in advance – apart from the final Sunday (31 October) when Saturday prices apply. Accompanied under 16s continue to be free, with concessions available for OAPs. Online tickets can be booked until 6pm on the night of the event.

It means a family of two adults and two or more under 16s can enjoy a Saturday night out at Matlock Bath Illuminations for just £13 – including a fireworks finale – if they buy in advance.

On the night prices (card payments only) are £1.50 more expensive than buying online. Advance sales give the District Council improved monitoring of likely crowds and give it the option to designate certain nights “all ticket” if necessary. On-the-night tickets are not guaranteed and will not be available if the event sells out in advance.

A Park and Ride service will operate from 5pm on fireworks nights from Cromford Meadows to Matlock Bath Pavilion.

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