Motorcyclists dreaming of green, wide-open spaces - and riding off-road rather than contending with London's 20mph limits and traffic jams - are gearing up for the biggest UK bike festival of the year.
Dubbed ‘Glastonbury for motorcycles’, the Adventure Bike Rider Festival has it all; 50 kilometres of exciting on-site riding trails for all abilities, skilled off-road instructors for novices or ‘improvers’, and a host of knowledgeable guest speakers at five different stages, delivering more than 60 talks, demonstrations and interviews, alongside expert advice from experienced travellers and riders who have already tackled their own big adventures.
Other attractions at the beautiful Ragley Hall Estate from June 26 - 28 include leading motorcycle manufacturers showcasing their latest machinery and offering test rides, alongside more than 140 exhibitors selling the latest motorcycle gear, tools and tech, street food from 50 different vendors, multiple on-site bars, 20 live bands and well organised on-site camping.
Over 20 tour operators will be exhibiting, offering trips to UK, Europe, Africa, the Americas, and destinations beyond, while motorcycle manufacturers - including electric specialists - will offer try-rides to festival-goers.
Tour guide
Organisers will be encouraging self-guided road tours into the Warwickshire countryside and arranging pub-style quizzes, while guided tours of historic stately home Ragley Hall - dating to the 17th century - will also be available, with festival-goers also able to enjoy the extensive Capability Brown-designed gardens and landscape.
There will be acoustic - and decidedly non-acoustic - music sets, sidecar demonstration rides, what the organisers describe as an ‘old-fashioned knees-up’ around a piano at The Magic Teapot tent, free morning tea and coffee for those camping, bike-washing facilities to wash off thick layers of mud gathered on the trails before riders head back home, and ‘authors’ tables’, where adventure and travel writers will capture the thrill of adventure riding.
Bike-riding skill demonstrations will take place at the Display Arena, while budding motorcycle adventurers will be able to pick up new practical travel skills at the Himalayan Masterclass Stage. Other activities include a silent disco, guided green lane ride outs with the Trail Riders Fellowship and a street food market. Newbie riders are catered for at the friendly three-day extravaganza, with leading experts showing how to get started in the Phoenix Trails Off-Road Training Zone.
Easy rider
There will be a wide range of different trails on the Warwickshire estate for putting new-found - or even finely-honed - skills to the test. The Beginner’s Loop was designed along the lines of a green slope at a ski resort; it’s easy to ride with no nasty surprises, giving newcomers a chance to adjust to how they handle the loose stuff. This gentle trail takes riders on a short loop over grass and beside woodland and will be open exclusively to beginners, with rules in place to prevent ‘intimidating’ riding.
The Bridgestone Trail, meanwhile, winds its way for 40km through the rolling grounds of the Ragley Hall Estate and beyond. It’s designed to be big bike-friendly, and there are sections geared to all riding levels, from beginner to advanced, with tight wooded sections and gravel trails. Snaking over open grassland and through tight wooded sections, there’s a series of challenges for riders to enjoy - or circumvent - as they wish. Marshals will be on hand to ensure that things run smoothly.
Tyring
Those after a tougher riding challenge can tackle the TRF trail, an on-site 8km-long route designed in collaboration with the Trail Riders Fellowship and open to all road-legal motorcycles with off-road capable tyres. It boasts climbs, descents, water crossings and technical terrain to test slow-speed skills.
The brave - or foolhardy - will be able to tackle more severe challenges such as ‘Bog of Doom’, ‘Swamp Man’, and ‘Woodland Wonderland’. While others watch on in wonder. The TRF Trail is open to all bikes with off-road capable tyres, and access is included in the Trail Access Pass.
New for 2026, the Explorers Stage will host talks from some of the world’s greatest explorers and mountaineers, giving insights into how they conquered the world’s wildest places. Bushcraft sessions will also give attendees the chance to test their own survival instincts.
Top speakers confirmed for the festival so far include The Grand Tour’s Richard Hammond, Long Way Round star Charlie Boorman, content creator Kinga Tanajewska, AKA: On Her Bike, Simon and Lisa Thomas who have clocked up 507,000 miles across 83 countries, adventure motorcycle Elspeth Beard, adventurer Lyndon Poskitt, acclaimed travel writer Sam Manicom, TV presenter and riding instructor Chris Northover, the inspirational Ted Simon, author of seminal motorcycle travel book Jupiter’s Travels, and many more.
Alun Davies, ABR Festival Founder, told the Standard: “It started out as a few mates who loved motorcycles having a weekend get together in a field. And that’s exactly what it is now, except there are 20,000 of us in a few dozen fields and the whole of the motorcycle industry has joined in too. I’m so looking forward to welcoming all our ticket holders at the 2026 Festival, including the thousands who ride up from London and the South East.”
More information at ABR Festival 2026.
