Royal Welsh Winter Fair preparations full steam ahead after Welsh Government announces no changes to coronavirus restrictions

In light of the Welsh Government’s announcement today that there will be no changes to coronavirus regulations at this time, preparations for the Winter Fair are well underway for the two-day event taking place on Monday 29th and Tuesday 30th November.

With just over one week to go until the showground in Llanelwedd is once again full of visitors, exhibitors and superb livestock, The Society is looking forward to welcoming returning Winter Fair enthusiasts to the Royal Welsh Showground for its first major event since the 2019 Winter Fair.

First staged in 1990 and originally just a modest one-day event, the Royal Welsh Winter Fair is now widely referred to as the finest prime stock show in Europe and has become well established as one of the most popular attractions on the British agricultural show calendar.

With hundreds of cattle, sheep, pig and horse entries and over £25,000 in prize money on offer, the stakes are set for a great couple of days’ worth of competitions.

This year’s Winter Fair will be officially opened by Chairman of the Council, Mr David Lewis DL FRICS FLAA FRAgS in the Royal Welsh Exhibition Hall 1, Main Ring on Monday 29^th November at 10 am.

Mr Lewis of Penrhiw, Llandysul is well-known as a livestock auctioneer and breeder of Charolais cattle. In addition to being one of the Society’s principal cattle commentators for over 40 years, Mr Lewis was the Royal Welsh Show President in 2005 and has previously held the position of Chairman of the Board of Directors. In 2017 Mr Lewis was awarded the Society’s Gold Medal for his ongoing achievements and outstanding contribution to the Society.

Following the official opening will be the presentations of the John Gittins Memorial Award 2021, the RWAS Oxford Farming Conference Bursary 2022, the Nuffield Farming Scholarship 2022 and the CARAS Fellowship Award to the family of the Late Mr Richard Tudor.

Along with the usual schedule of competitions, classes, exhibitions and displays, the Winter Fair offers shoppers the perfect opportunity to pick up some unique and original Christmas gifts from the hundreds of tradestands and we will see the return of the great firework display on Monday evening at an earlier time of 6:30 pm. The food hall will be once again offering a display of the very best Welsh food producers and their produce, tempting visitors to try the wide variety of culinary delights.

All tickets will need to be purchased before the event through our website in order to comply with the current Coronavirus regulations. Due to the Welsh Government Track & Trace regulations we will not be able to offer the usual free entry after 4 pm on the Monday evening.

Visitors attending the Winter Fair over the age of 18 will need to provide evidence of their NHS COVID pass or a negative lateral flow test on arrival. Extra measures are being put in place to ensure that everyone’s safety is a top priority when they are visiting the showground. We ask all visitors to please wear face coverings when inside any of our buildings, adhere to social distancing and one-way systems and regularly use our hand sanitizing points.

Buy your tickets for the Winter Fair online now on our website. For more information about the event and our COVID safety measures please visit www.rwas.wales/winter-fair/.