• Relax with a pint of real ale or cider while watching all the action on the rails • Enhanced timetable with both steam and diesel traction in service at the event • Real ale bars at Winchcombe & Toddington with up to 28 ales and 8 ciders
The 21st Ale & Steam event is to take place at the Gloucestershire Warwickshire Steam Railway (GWSR) between Friday 16th & Sunday 18th June 2023 in partnership with the North Cotswold Branch of Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA). The event offers visitors the opportunity to relax with a pint of real ale or cider while watching all the action on the rails. As with previous years, bars will be available at both Winchcombe and Toddington stations, with an enhanced timetable of trains on both the Friday and Saturday of the event.
To make purchases at the bars, all event visitors must purchase beer tokens from CAMRA representatives. These will be valid at both bars and on all days of the festival. Unused tokens can be refunded or donated to charity at the end of the visit. Visitors to the bars are also required to purchase a glass from CAMRA representatives at £2 each.
Steam and Real Ale Bars at Winchcombe and Toddington will be open between 1030 and 1800 (extended to 1820 at Toddington and 1830 at Winchcombe on Saturday). With up to 28 ales and 8 ciders available at Winchcombe and 17 ales and 5 ciders at Toddington, there will be something for everyone’s tastes. Refreshments and soft drinks will be available to purchase at Winchcombe and Toddington, including a griddle offering hot food at Winchcombe during the event.
Normal train fares apply and there will be free entry to the festival with a valid train ticket for the day. Members and Shareholder vouchers will also be valid. If visitors do not wish to travel on the trains, but would like to sample the beer at either station, we ask that a platform ticket is purchased priced at just £3.
A modified green timetable will operate on Friday and Saturday, with additional trains between Toddington and Winchcombe operated by a diesel railcar (this will also call at Hayles Abbey Halt).
A late train will operate back to Cheltenham Racecourse on both Friday and Saturday. On the Saturday there will be an additional later train operating to & from Broadway.
On the Sunday, both bars (subject to availability) will be open to sell any remaining beer from 1100. While we cannot guarantee a full range of beer will be available, every effort will be made to ensure a good selection of ales remain and this will offer an ideal way to finish the weekend. Bars will close at 1500, or earlier if beer supply is exhausted. On the rail side, a normal pink timetable will operate with one steam locomotive and one diesel locomotive operating.
Join us for a journey through the Cotswolds countryside, and stop off at Winchcombe where you will be able to purchase and enjoy a range of real ales and ciders. For tickets and further details about the event, please visit www.gwsr.com. A 5% discount is automatically applied to all tickets purchased online.
Please note that the beer and ale available at the event are subject to change.
