We are continually aiming to improve access to Byron Writers Festival and enhance the experience of patrons of all abilities. Please contact us on [email protected] if you require any further information or advice in regards to the below.

Auslan Interpretation 

Selected sessions from the main program are interpreted each day of the Festival. Floating Auslan interpreters will also be available at the Festival site on an as-needs basis. If you require an Auslan interpreter, look out for the Auslan symbol in the printed program, or go to the Information Tent at the Festival site to book an on-demand interpreter for a session of your choosing.

Thanks to Multicultural NSW for funding this initiative.

Explore the full program and see which sessions have been preselected for Auslan interpretation on:

Friday

Saturday

Sunday

Click the button below to watch our Auslan interpreted video guide to the 2019 Byron Writers Festival, produced in conjunction with Social Futures.

Wheelchair Accessibility at the Festival

The Festival site is located at Elements of Byron Resort, approximately 5km from Byron town centre. The terrain is flat and grassy, but can become more difficult to navigate in a wheelchair after periods of rain. We advise to use a wheelchair with large wheels if possible.

Seating

Festival marquees and stages have wheelchair accessible allocated seating. Please make yourself known to the marquee supervisor and you will be ushered to an accessible seat.

Festival Satellite Events take place in various venues across the Northern Rivers. If you require a wheelchair accessible seat at any of our Satellite Events, please call the office on (02) 6685 5115 or email Emily Brugman at [email protected] to make the necessary arrangements.

Parking

An accessible parking and drop-off/pick-up zone is located close to the Festival entrance. Our parking volunteers will direct you accordingly. Please have your sticker on display.

Accessible parking at Satellite Events is dependent on council parking regulations in and around the selected venue. Please call the venue directly to discuss your options.

Companion Cards

Byron Writers Festival is a participant of the National Companion Card scheme, offering disabled patrons holding a current companion card a second ticket for their accompanying companion at no charge.

When you arrive, please make your way to the Festival Box Office and present your National Companion Card, along with your Festival ticket, to our friendly staff. You will be allocated a corresponding complimentary pass for your companion. There is a limit of one companion pass per person per day. For further information please visit www.companioncard.gov.au/

Information on ticket releases, announcements and pricing

12 June: Full Program announced and all tickets on sale|
Full program announcement
All tickets available, including 3-Day passes, 1-Day passes, Sunday Locals’ passes, Kids Big Day Out and separately ticketed Workshops and Satellite Events*.

3-Day Pass: $255 Members / $299 General
1-Day Pass: $110 Members / $135 General
Sunday Locals’ Pass*: $80, limited release, conditions apply. Supported by Stone & Wood
Sunday Kids Big Day Out Pass**, $40 (1 adult + 1 child. $20 for each additional child)
Sunday Family Pass**: $120 (2 adults + 1 child. $20 for each additional child)

Satellite Event ticket prices range from free to $35
Workshop ticket prices range from $35 to $120, with member discounts available.

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29 July 29 – 4 August
Workshops and Satellite Events running throughout the week

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2 – 4 August
Festival Weekend!

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Notes and conditions

• All tickets are available to purchase online, over the phone via (02) 6685 5115 or in person at our offices in Byron Bay.
• All tickets are subject to booking fees. Find out more about ticket types on Our Tickets and Pricing Explained page.
• *Sunday Local’s Passes are available to residents of the Byron, Ballina, Kyogle, Lismore, Richmond Valley and Tweed council areas. These tickets are limited in number and available for purchase from the festival office or online (maximum two tickets per person); purchasers will need to present proof of address at the Festival gate. Supported by Stone & Wood.
• ** Children must be supervised by at least ONE adult at all times.
• For full terms and conditions, click here.

Member benefits for the 2019 Festival

Not a member of Byron Writers Festival, or yet to renew your 2019 membership? Join today and save up to $74 on full price 3-Day passes. Other Festival member benefits include a special preview of the Full Program online and priority booking periods for Festival Satellite Events. Read the full list of annual Member benefits and click here to sign up now!

Never miss a beat

Sign up to our newsletter, like us on Facebook, and follow us on Twitter and Instagram as we continue to post Festival updates throughout the coming months.

Get a taste of the Festival

Never been and heard great things? Watch our show reel from last year’s Festival and relive the highlights with our 2018 photo gallery and podcast series.

Make a Donation

Did you know that Byron Writers Festival received relatively little public funding – under 20% of our total revenue – with a majority coming from people like you. To ensure we can continue to support and celebrate writers, readers and storytellers please make a donation today. As a not-for-profit organisation run with a small team of staff and volunteers, contributions of any size go a long way in enriching the creative culture of our community. Amounts over $2 are tax deductible. To find out more, click here.

Byron Writers Festival is a non-profit organisation, and most of our revenue is self-generated – with a majority coming from Festival ticket sales. So each year we think carefully about how to make the Festival accessible to our audience, while also covering our costs.

In 2021, the safety and well-being of our guests and artists is a priority and to ensure a Covid-safe event we will be following all NSW Health advice. This includes guidelines around social distancing and capacity regulations, and to help us manage this the Festival Board has decided we will only be selling 1-Day Passes this year (no 3-Day Passes).

What type of ticket should I buy?

Byron Writers Festival is set up a bit like a music festival, with six stages that you can move between as you please, featuring panel discussions and conversations. In buying a 1-Day pass you will get access to all sessions happening in the main Festival program for your chosen day(s).

Satellite Events are individually ticketed events during Festival week in venues across the region (a few of them are free). Access to Satellite Events is not included in 1-Day passes.

Ticket types and prices are explained here:

Sunday Locals’ pass, discounted price (from 19 May, 2021)

Looking after our locals in 2021! Discounted tickets for Sunday – save up to $45 per ticket – available to residents of the Byron, Ballina, Kyogle, Lismore, Richmond Valley and Tweed council areas. Tickets are available for purchase online, over the phone or from the festival office. Purchasers will need to present proof of address (maximum two tickets per person) upon ticket collection at the Festival Box Office. Limited release, available until sold out.

Sunday Pass: $90 General

General Release Tickets (from 23 June, 2021)

1-Day passes give access to Festival sessions in the main program, excluding workshops and separately ticketed events.

1-Day Pass: $110 Members / $135 General

Workshop and Satellite Event tickets

A program of separately ticketed workshops and Satellite events – some of them free –  runs in the lead-up to the main Festival weekend and on weekend evenings. Ticket prices vary and details will be released when the full program is announced in June.

All tickets are subject to booking fees.

After reluctantly taking a break in 2020, Byron Writers Festival will return as a live event on 6-8 August 2021, at Elements of Byron in Byron Bay. The full program will be announced and all tickets go on-sale on 23 June 2021.

Of course, it won’t quite be business-as-usual: the safety and well-being of our guests and artists is a priority and to ensure a Covid-safe event we will be following all NSW Health advice. This includes guidelines around social distancing and reduced audience capacity.

What is changing and why?

To help us deliver a Covid-safe event, the Festival Board has decided we will only be selling 1-Day Passes this year (no 3-Day Passes). This means no Early Bird release.

Only selling 1-Day Passes will allow us to more efficiently track how many people will be on site every day in order to adhere to NSW Health Department guidelines. Social distancing regulations also mean we will have reduced audience capacity at the Festival site.

As usual, Byron Writers Festival members will receive a discount on full-priced tickets. And as ticket numbers will be limited, members will be given a 24-hour priority booking window to purchase tickets before they are released to the general public.

We understand things look a bit different this year and we appreciate your patience while we do everything we can to keep you safe. By buying a ticket you are investing in the future of  Byron Writers Festival and the arts in regional Australia. Your loyal support is greatly appreciated.

We can’t wait to gather together again as community to celebrate Australian stories and writers. We hope you will join us.

2021 Key Dates

19 May: First guests announced, Sunday Locals tickets on sale (limited release)*, $90
22 June: Full program and 24 hour priority booking window available for members: 1-Day Pass, $110 members
23 June: Full program announced, all tickets on sale: 1-Day Pass, $110 members / $135 general
6-8 August: Festival Weekend

*Sunday Locals’ Ticket terms: Available to residents of the Byron, Ballina, Kyogle, Lismore, Richmond Valley and Tweed council areas. Tickets are available for purchase online, over the phone or from the festival office. Purchasers will need to present proof of address (maximum two tickets per person) upon ticket collection at the Festival Box Office. Limited release, available until sold out.

Got a question?

For further information about the 2021 Festival and how it will run, please refer to our FAQs page.

Stay in the loop

We encourage you to remain signed up to our e-newsletter and follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter for important Festival updates and announcements.

Get a taste of the Festival

Never been and heard great things? Relive the highlights with our 2019 photo gallery and podcast series.