The St Piran’s Day parade returns to Truro on March 5th 2026
Truro City Council and Truro Old Cornwall Society, in partnership with Salt Projects Ltd, are putting the finishing touches to the joyful celebrations of Cornish culture as Truro prepares to mark St Piran’s Day on Thursday 5th March 2026.
Residents and visitors to Truro are warmly invited to gather on Lemon Quay from 12.30pm, ahead of the parade setting off at 1.00pm. With traditional music, dance and a strong sense of community pride, the annual St Piran’s Day procession brings a lively and welcoming celebration for all ages.
For 2026, the parade will follow a revised route, starting on Lemon Quay and finishing at High Cross outside Truro Cathedral. A dedicated accessible viewing area will be available at High Cross at the end of the procession.
The vibrant celebrations will extend beyond parade day itself. In the lead-up to St Piran’s Day, Cornwall Dance School will be delivering traditional Cornish dance workshops in local schools, giving young people the chance to learn about Cornwall’s heritage and take part in the parade.to the day as it’s a very evocative part of Truro’s heritage. Many people remember it working, and we walk, ride and drive over the roads it rolled. There is great affection and admiration for steam technology, and we are excited to see it, if only stationary, back in Truro for this very special day.”
St Piran’s Day is held annually on the 5th March. It is a celebration of the life and legacy of the patron saint of Cornwall. Piran came from Ireland, sailing across the Celtic Sea on a millstone. He showed Cornish miners how to smelt tin, and built an oratory at Perranporth (Piran’s Beach) which today is an ‘at critical risk’ monument, from which he would travel through Truro to visit Perranaworthal (Piran’s Wharf) and his well nearby.
Piran, who could converse with animals, was a champion of the natural environment and had a respectful relationship between human society and its surroundings. He was the patron saint of miners, an industry which touched every aspect of Cornish life, and so he became the patron saint of Cornwall. Today, he is associated with caring, creativity, inclusion, diversity and peace, and his Feast Day is celebrated wherever people of Cornish origin are to be found.
Truro City Council and Truro Old Cornwall Society are very grateful to Cornwall Councillors and Truro Cathedral for their support and finance of the parade.
For further updates, please visit the Visit Truro website and social media channels – www.visittruro.org.uk, @visittruro
