Aberdeen City Council are committed to improving the experience for visitors with accessibility requirements or additional support needs and, following feedback from last year’s event, has been working with local partners to develop these arrangements.
For 2026, Spectra will once again partner with We Too! Â and Abledeen to provide on-site support for those that need it. Abledeen will be based at the Town House during Spectra, providing mobility equipment for those that require it.
Spectra will continue to provide an alternative entry system for visitors who are unable to queue due to disabilities, mobility issues or additional needs. This will help reduce waiting times , but please note some queuing will still be required to enter the sites due to the volume of attendees.Â
Resources and information is available from our Accessibility Welcome Desks at The Town House and The Trinity Centre. Visitors who need to use alternative entry must first visit an Accessibility Welcome Desk. These desks are also there to help and support visitors who have additional needs or accessibility requirements, providing advice, and signposting to facilities around the site. The Accessibility Welcome Desks will be open from 5:30pm – 8:30pm Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday at Spectra.
We Too! will be on hand throughout Spectra this year to support visitors with additional support needs, hand out visual guides as well as any sensory aides which may be required. Look out for their Ninjas wearing bright green across the Spectra sites!
Accessible parking provision is available this year, with spaces made available on Blackfriars Street, Queen Street and Littlejohn Street. These spaces are for blue badge holders and available on a first come first served basis each evening. Normal city centre parking is available outwith the main event footprint. Any traffic management restrictions will be shared on Aberdeen City Council’s news page ahead of the event.
Accessible toilets will be available at Marischal College, Aberdeen Art Gallery and the Town House. Event accessible toilets will also be available within Union Terrace Gardens and on Union Terrace.
A Pamiloo will be located on Rosemount Viaduct near the William Wallace Statue.
Each of the event sites is fully accessible for those in wheelchairs, with sites using routes that avoid stairwells. Attendees are reminded to extra care on uneven paths, especially around St Nicholas Kirkyard. Attendees are also reminded to take extra care when entering Union Terrace Gardens. We’ve spent the year since the last festival listening and looking at ways to improve the overall visitor experience, including making Spectra more accessible. There will be a range of improvements big and small, but please remember that this is a learning process and the festival attracts tens of thousands of visitors each night. The Spectra team welcomes all feedback that will help us further improve the festival for all visitors in future years and a survey link will be published following the festival.
Binky Bus update
The Binky Bus won’t be rolling into Spectra this year – our favourite bus is off on a well-deserved holiday. After plenty of miles and magical moments, Binky’s taking a little time to recharge the batteries and enjoy a rest. We hope to see it back in the future.
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