The wait is finally over! The Westbourne Motor Show is just over a week away, so it’s time to circle the 16th of May on your calendars for a day of classy cars and bikes, old to new, great food and drink, being offered all day by the numerous pubs; bars, restaurants and cafes that stream through Westbourne’s high street, live music, and all-round fun – whether you’re planning on coming on your own, with friends, or with the family, the 2026 Westbourne Motor Show is not to be missed.
There are a few key things to be covered in this blog; the multiple options for food and drink, supported by live music in a number of different restaurants and pubs, as well as additional entertainment being provided in areas such as the ‘Vintage Corner’, showings of the FA Cup final, a kid’s zone to ensure fun for all the family, and how you can get to the event, including a 20% discount on bus fares using code WEST20 on the day.
The event is bigger than ever before this year, wrapping around the whole Westbourne high street. This has opened up so many opportunities for more activities, cars, and fun for everyone visiting the Motor Show this year. As you walk through the Show, there will be various opportunities to enjoy some live music and take a quick break to get yourself some refreshments. The Porter House will be offering live music, Camden’s are hosting a comedy evening as well as folk music during the day, Circo Lounge offer outside seating for food, as well as live music later in the day, the Colosseum will have a bit of the Blues for those looking to slow down from the fast-paced action of the day, and the Duck will have live music from 4-6pm. And for any football fans concerned about the Motor Show’s running time of 10-4pm – don’t worry, The Libertine has you covered with screens showing the FA Cup Final from 3pm.
In terms of food and drink, all the aforementioned places will be offering refreshments, with Big Wigs also doing special offerings for the day, Moka Pot will have Aperol and Italian Street Food, as well as Indian street food being available at Indi, fresh ice cream to cool yourself down at Ete, and £5 draught pints as well as great burgers at the Lazy Fox.
The added space this year has allowed for not only more cars to be displayed, but whole new sections. This includes a ‘Vintage Corner’, where the Motor Show’s most distinguished and vintage cars will be on display, accompanied with live singers performing the classic songs, so for those looking for a retro-atmosphere, look no further! Just up the road from Vintage Corner you can find the ‘Distinguished Gentlemen Bikes’, which of course should go without saying – is open to everyone! Here for the first time at the Westbourne Motor Show, there will be motorbikes on display! The Westbourne Motor Show has every petrolheads’ needs covered this year, with bikes of old and new on display. Additionally, for those of you thinking of bringing the family, fear not about how to entertain the kids with this year’s addition of a Kid’s Zone, they certainly won’t be short of fun. Funfair rides and games will be available for kids to keep them busy during the day! Finally, there will be a British Motor Show HQ, which will act as an event hub, where you can take any questions you may have during the day.
Some things have remained though, and importantly Sporting Bears is one of them. As has been in previous years, Sporting Bears will have a section of Robert Louis Stevenson Avenue to themselves, where they will offer their Dream Rides, and will be available for donations, so if you can donate, it would be a real help if you can give whatever you can!
Now for the boring (but very important!) part. The Motor Show will enforce a closure of Poole Road, Seamoor Road, Prince of Wales Road-Milburn Road, and Landseer Road. There will also be restricted access routes around Alumhurst Road and Robert Louis Stevenson Road. Parking will not be available on Poole Road or Seamoor Road from 7:30am-5pm on the day. Vehicles will also not be able to exit driveways on Poole and Seamoor Road during event hours. For those of you travelling by bus, bus stops on the closed roads previously mentioned will not be used, Eastbound buses will instead be diverted via Milburn Road, and Westbound buses will be diverted via Grosvernor Road and Alumhurst Road. Bus travel is encouraged due to a likely lack of parking on the day, and a 20% discount on the MoreBus app for any day rider when you use the code WEST20 – valid only for the 16th May.
All in all, this year’s Westbourne Motor Show is set to be the best and biggest yet, and the perfect away to kick off the Summer. This event would not have been possible without the Coastal BID, and the fantastic collaboration with the British Motor Show and WBA, so a huge thanks to all of Westbourne’s local businesses, and the organisers at BMS. So what better way to spend a day in the sunshine than beautiful cars, great food and drink, and live music all day? I certainly can’t think of one, and here’s to hoping you can’t too and that we’ll see you on the 16th May!
