Winter Festivals

Tender description

Provision of Event Services for Edinburgh’s Winter Festivals (Edinburgh’s Hogmanay Festival and Edinburgh’s Christmas) These Festivals offer a rich and varied programme of activities, events, attractions and celebrations designed to provide magical experiences for visitors and residents alike. This requirement is being published under the Light Touch Regime Historically, Edinburgh’s Christmas has taken place over a six-week period from around the third weekend in November to around the 6th of January, at locations in and around the city centre. Previous activities have included a market offer, fairground, family attractions and an ice rink. Edinburgh’s Hogmanay Festival is an internationally renowned New Year event. Edinburgh’s Hogmanay Festival has been a 3-day event centred around celebrations on 31st December. The Festival provides unrivalled promotion for the city and images of the midnight fireworks display have previously been broadcast around the world, attracting significant international audiences and awareness. Previous activities have included a street party, concerts in Princes Street Gardens, a torchlight procession and an open-air ceilidh. In 2021, an extensive public consultation on the future of the winter festivals (Christmas and Hogmanay) was undertaken which is reflected within the specification for the service. It is the intention that any Contract resulting from this procurement process will commence in March/April 2024 to service the 2024/25 requirement for Edinburgh’s Christmas and 2025/26 onwards requirement for a combined Edinburgh’s Christmas and Edinburgh’s Hogmanay. The Contract term will be for an initial period of three years with two optional one year extensions undertaken at the sole discretion of the City of Edinburgh Council (the Council).