Frequently asked questions about Karnidale

Your questions, answered

Aerialist performing on silks under purple lighting at Karnidale
Two festival-goers in costume at Karnidale

Tickets and prices

Yes. Tickets for Karnidale 2027 are on sale now at lunarcircus.com/tickets.

Individual weekend tickets are Adult $240, Concession $220, Youth 13–17 $120, and Child 4–12 $80. Children aged 3 and under are free and don’t need a ticket.

Camping is $20 per person per night — and children 12 and under camp free. All prices are in Australian dollars, with a Humanitix booking fee on top.

Six:

  • Family Weekend Package (2 adults + 2 kids under 12) — $480
  • Family Weekend Package plus camping — $560
  • Family Weekend Package (2 adults + 2 youth 13–17) — $600
  • Family Weekend Package plus camping (2 adults + 2 youth) — $720
  • Priority Adult Weekend Package — all inclusive, one adult with Priority Access and two nights camping — $360
  • Priority Family Weekend Package — all inclusive, 2 adults + 2 kids with Priority Access and camping — $720

Not at the moment. Karnidale is sold as a full weekend ticket. Day tickets may become available closer to the festival, but they aren’t guaranteed — if you want to be certain of getting in, buy a weekend ticket.

Priority Access gets you into every venue ahead of the general queue, before each show starts. At a festival with several venues running at once, it’s the difference between choosing your seat and taking what’s left.

It’s strictly limited — only 100 exist for the whole festival — and most are sold inside the $360 Priority Adult and $720 Priority Family packages. Please note children can’t occupy the front cabaret seating in the Lunar Sensation or The Edith.

No. Payment plans such as Zip and Afterpay aren’t available for this event. Tickets are paid in full at checkout.

Refunds are available up to 30 days before the festival, minus booking fees, through Humanitix where you bought the ticket. Inside 30 days tickets are non-refundable.

Tickets are transferable, so if your plans change you can pass them on to someone else.

Yes. All tickets are checked against ID on entry, so the name on the ticket must match the ID.

Concession tickets need valid concession ID such as a health care card. Youth tickets need ID showing the holder is 13 to 17, and youth ticket holders can’t access the 18+ shows.

Dates, getting there and camping

Gates open at 2pm on Friday 15 January 2027 and the festival runs through Saturday 16 January, finishing around 1am on the Sunday morning.

No. From 2027 it runs every second year, so after January 2027 the next Karnidale is January 2029.

Two years to build each one means longer to bring artists from further away, and more time to make each festival bigger than an annual one can be.

171 Vansittart Road, Karridale, WA 6288 — about 300km south of Perth, a three-hour drive, and around 30km south of Margaret River town.

There’s public transport from Trans WA and South West Coachlines to Karridale and Margaret River.

Gates open at 2pm on Friday and close at 8:30pm that night. They reopen at 9am on Saturday. If you’re arriving Friday, plan to be on site before 8:30pm.

Yes. Camping is $20 per person per night. Bring a tent, van, car or caravan — whatever makes you comfortable.

Camping is chosen during the same checkout as your festival ticket: pick your festival tickets first on Humanitix, then add camping before you check out.

Children 12 and under camp free — you only pay camping for the adults. Two adults and two children camping for the festival weekend is $80 in total.

That’s why the Family Weekend Package plus camping is $560, exactly $80 more than the $480 version without camping.

No. Camping is only available alongside a festival ticket.

Toilets are available. There are no showers.

Water is limited — please bring a sturdy water container for your campsite and as much drinking water as you can carry.

No. It’s the height of summer in Margaret River and the site is in a total fire ban area, so there are strictly no open fires, no gas barbecues and no gas cookers. Please be very careful with any naked flame, including cigarettes.

Yes. There are campsites at Augusta and Hamelin Bay, and many accommodation venues between Margaret River and Augusta. You can also try Airbnb, or call the Augusta–Margaret River Tourist Bureau on (08) 9780 5911.

Yes, there’s day parking on site, and overnight camping is available.

At the festival

Circus performances and live music across multiple venues — circus, comedy, cabaret, live bands, kids’ shows, adult shows and everything in between.

Plus market stalls, food stalls, and two bars serving local wine and beer from Margaret River Beer Company and Leeuwin Estate.

Yes. The full 2027 line-up of shows is at Karnidale 2027 Shows and the music line-up at Karnidale 2027 Music.

Everything is also in the festival app, which updates live as the programme firms up.

Yes, and it’s free. The Karnidale festival app has the full programme, all the shows and bands, venue information, and a My List feature so you can build your own schedule.

Go to lunarcircus.com/app on your phone and add it to your home screen — there’s nothing to download from an app store.

The Edith is the festival’s spiegeltent — a 22-metre-diameter traditional mirror tent seating around 300 people.

There are numerous food outlets on site, plus market stalls.

You can bring your own food, and you can bring drink into the camping area. BYO is strictly prohibited on the festival site — we’re a licensed event, and there’s security at the gate between camping and the festival site who will search bags and check water bottles.

Yes, we take both cash and cards.

The property has mobile coverage. Telstra works; we can’t vouch for other carriers. There’s no public Wi-Fi.

The festival app works offline once you’ve opened it, so load it before you arrive.

There are clearly marked recycling bins around the site. Please don’t mix recyclable materials, and take your non-recyclable waste home. We appreciate your help creating a waste-free festival.

Families, access and rules

Yes, absolutely. There are kids’ shows during the day, lots of workshops to join in with, and activities around the grounds. Some evening shows are 18+ and are marked as such in the programme.

The child weekend ticket is for ages 4 to 12 and costs $80. Children aged 3 and under are free and don’t need a ticket.

The youth weekend ticket is for ages 13 to 17 and costs $120. Once someone turns 18 they need an adult ticket.

Yes. The site is accessible, with accessible parking and toilets. The ground is natural paddock, so it’s uneven in places.

If you have specific access needs, email fatso@lunarcircus.com before you book and we’ll help you plan.

No — there’s a strict no dogs and no pets policy. Please arrange for them to be looked after elsewhere for the weekend.

No fire on site, including fire sticks — it’s a total fire ban area. No gas cookers or barbecues. No BYO alcohol onto the festival site. No dogs or pets.

And please no loud sound systems: they clash with the shows, and afterwards with everyone trying to sleep.

Yes. At the festival, seven hours across the weekend earns you a festival ticket. During the International Training Project, volunteers work five hours a day in exchange for food and accommodation.

Apply at Volunteer Applications, or Crew Applications to join the crew.

Yes — apply at Market Stall Applications.

The complete International Training Project package includes a festival ticket. The shorter options don’t, so if you’re taking one of those you’ll need a weekend ticket as well.

Email fatso@lunarcircus.com or phone +61 439 999 793.

Any other questions?

Just email fatso@lunarcircus.com or louise@lunarcircus.com

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