AJABU Cocktail & Spirits Festival November 2026

30+ World-Class Bars. One Festival. One Pass.

Africa’s most dynamic cocktail and spirits festival AJABU returns to Cape Town for its 6th edition, uniting some of the world’s finest bartenders with Africa’s most exciting bar talent to celebrate culture, community and the Art of the Cocktail.

Born from the Swahili word meaning miracle or something wondrous, AJABU continues to redefine Africa’s position on the global drinks stage — not just through its world-class events, but by building pathways for education, equity, and representation across the industry.

AJABU has become a festival that celebrates more than cocktails.

AJABU has evolved into a global movement that champions creativity, community, and connection. Each festival edition brings together leading local and international bars to collaborate on exclusive seminars, workshops, experiences and AJABU Mashups; unique one-night pop-ups designed to Celebrate the Art of the Cocktail through African ingredients, stories, and style.

Featuring 30+ world-class bars, including:

• Anthm - Cape Town
• Bon Vivants - The Bahamas
• Batanga - Cape Town
• Fable - Cape Town
• Front Back - Accra
• Hero - Nairobi
• Hiball - Cape Town
• La Mamounia - Marrakesh
• Mama Koko - Baltimore
• Naked - Athens
• Nkula - Cape Town
• Satans Whiskers - London
• Sin + Tax - Johannesburg
• Smoking Kills - Johannesburg
• Stone and Soil - New York
• Talking to Strangers - Cape Town
• The Drinkery - Cape Town
• The House of Machines - Cape Town
• Trade Bar & Social - Cape Town
• Unclaimed - Cape Town

This November, AJABU is getting bigger and offering more.

Your AJABU festival pass gives you exclusive access to the following:

• A chance to win a 5-day trip to Goa, India, for you and a friend in April with John Paul Whisky. This will include flights, accommodation, and a distillery tour. (Full details on registration).

• A half-price Porn Star Martini cocktail (R86) in over 30 bars for the duration of AJABU, as we celebrate the 25^th birthday of this global classic, born in Cape Town in 2001.

• Live music performances across the various venues

• Exclusive and educational cocktail and spirit masterclasses

• Limited AJABU Cocktail Festival Luxury Cotton Tote bags with special goodies and merch

• Seminars and workshops during the festival week.

We will celebrate collaboration and creativity, and a fusion of globally recognised local and international distillers, spirit makers, and bartenders as they join forces to curate a series of inspired menus that showcase the very best of Africa's bars, brands, and cocktail culture.

Tickets & Registration:

14 November: The Tasting Table Experience - R250

• Select your session 11 am-2.30 pm or 3.30 pm-7 pm.
• Meet the creators and taste over (20+) craft brands, sample mini cocktails, graze on local food and listen to DJs and live music.
• Take part in cocktail masterclasses to learn to make your favourite cocktail.

The festival pass - ZAR 150

Your ticket to all eight days of AJABU magic with bartenders from across Africa to Cape Town to work alongside the city's own bar teams. Expect guest shifts, where a visiting bartender takes over a local bar for the night, plus pop-ups and collaboration menus you'll only find during festival week.

Want to do both? The AJABU festival combo pass gets you access to both parts of the festival for a special price of R350.

What to Expect:

• Watch Cape Town come alive again with AJABU bar pop-ups, where world-class bartenders collaborate with South Africa’s finest bars to create once-in-a-lifetime cocktail experiences.
• Across the city, you’ll find over 30 unique pop-ups, collaborations, and events, all celebrating African ingredients, creativity and hospitality.
• Explore Cape Town with your AJABU festival pass for 8 nights from Tuesday 15th to Sunday 22 November.
• Sign up for free workshops, seminars, concerts, events and cocktail classes from Monday 16^th to Sunday 22^nd November.
• Celebrate the 25th Birthday of the Pornstar Martini by enjoying unique half-price twists on the iconic cocktail for R86 in each of the 30+ bars on any night during the festival.

What to do now:

• Purchase your AJABU festival pass
• Follow our social media platforms for updates. @ajabufestival #ajbufestival; ajabufestival.com to learn more about the participating bars, bartenders and local/international brands.

Before the festival you will:

• Receive a confirmation email with a QR code.
• Arrive at the welcome desk at any time from 14 November
• Scan your QR code at the Welcome Desk to unlock access to all things AJABU

We look forward to sharing all the friendship, love and pleasure of AJABU with you this November – a true celebration of African excellence in cocktails and spirits.

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