Web Summit 2026 Side Events: Your Guide to Lisbon Week

TL;DR:

• Web Summit 2026 runs November 9-12 at the MEO Arena in Lisbon, and last year's edition drew 71,386 attendees and a record 1,857 investors. Much of the networking happens outside the arena, at side events: breakfasts, dinners, pitch nights and parties hosted around the conference.
• They are scattered across Luma, Eventbrite and private invites, so we mapped all 169 Web Summit side events in one free sheet, with date, time, venue, cost and registration link for each, from October 28 to November 14.
• 80% are free, but most need registration and half reveal the venue only after you're approved. Monday and Tuesday hold 84 events between them, so register for those first.
• Want your event on the list, or want to host one? Message our team on Telegram, and if you'd rather not run it yourself, Lunar's event team and Lisbon office can.

Every November, Web Summit turns Lisbon into the busiest week on the tech calendar. The talks happen inside the MEO Arena, but a second program runs across the city: more than 160 side events hosted by startups, funds, communities and brands, most of them free and most of them invisible unless you know where to look.

This guide puts that second program in one place. It covers why Web Summit is worth the trip, the full sheet of side events with links to register, the picks worth a look, and how to get into the ones that fill up.

Why Web Summit is still worth the trip

Web Summit is one of the largest tech conferences in the world, and its numbers keep growing. In 2025 it welcomed 71,386 attendees from 157 countries, a record 1,857 investors (up 74% on the year before) and 2,725 exhibiting startups, with AI and machine learning as the top industry (Web Summit). Few other weeks put that many founders, funds, brands and journalists within a taxi ride of each other.

The essentials for 2026, from Web Summit's own pages:

• Dates: Monday, November 9 to Thursday, November 12, 2026.
• Venue: MEO Arena, Lisbon.
• Tickets: general attendee from €1,295 and VIP from €1,950 on the ticket page (prices checked October 21, 2026; they change in stages).
• What the ticket includes: 17 content tracks plus Centre Stage, masterclasses, meetups, the exhibition floor, the Night Summit evening events and the Web Summit app.

For crypto and Web3 teams, the case is different from Token2049 or Consensus. Only 3 of the 169 side events in our map are crypto events, so the crowd is mostly generalist investors, brand marketers and media. If your project needs to reach people outside crypto, this is one of the few weeks a year they are all in one city.

All 169 Web Summit side events in one sheet

Web Summit side events are gatherings that companies, investors and communities organize around the conference, outside the official venue and program. Most don't require a Web Summit ticket. We collected every public listing we could find into one Google Sheet, kept up to date by the Turtle group.

The sheet is organized by day. Each row gives the date, start and end time, event name, location, cost (free or paid) and the registration link, so you can scan a day, open the events that fit, and register on Luma or Eventbrite in a couple of clicks. Here's how the 169 events spread across the week:

Of the 169 events, 136 are free (80%) and 149 are listed on Luma (88%), so one Luma account covers almost everything. 88 start at 5 PM or later, and 87 (51%) show the address only after you register.

The side events worth a look

With 169 options, most people manage 2 or 3 a day. These are the ones we'd shortlist, grouped by who they suit. They are picks from the public listings, not events we run or endorse, and times can change, so check each listing before you go.

How to get into the side events that fill up

Free doesn't mean open. Many hosts approve each guest by hand, cap the room and run a waitlist, so the registration is the real ticket. A few habits make the difference:

1. Register for Monday and Tuesday first. They hold half of the week's events, so competition for spots is highest there.
2. Fill in the optional fields: company, role and one line on why you're coming. Hosts approving by hand read them.
3. Use the same name and photo as your LinkedIn or X profile, so the host can check who you are in seconds.
4. Save the address as soon as it's revealed, and cancel if you can't make it, so your spot goes to someone on the waitlist.

Hosting your own Web Summit side event

Attending gets you into other people's rooms. Hosting gets you the guest list: you choose who comes, set the format and own the follow-up, which is why one well-run evening can do more for a project than a week of walking the floor.

Lunar's office is on Avenida Duque de Loulé in central Lisbon and is available for hosting events; it has already hosted the Base Founders Afterwork during BUIDL Europe. Our team also ran the brand campaign for Crypto AI: Con 2024, a two-day AI × Web3 conference in Lisbon that brought together more than 1,250 attendees and 70+ partners, with 2M+ PR views and 7M+ social impressions. After working with more than 300 crypto projects, our crypto event management team covers the full cycle:

• Strategy and design: who should be in the room and why they'd come.
• Venue and production: including our own space in Lisbon.
• Promotion: KOL campaigns and crypto PR to fill the room with the right people.
• Follow-up: content, reporting and results after the night.

Plan your side event with Lunar →

Tell us the conference, the audience you want and your budget, and we'll map the event with you.

Frequently Asked Questions

When is Web Summit 2026?

Web Summit 2026 takes place from Monday, November 9 to Thursday, November 12, 2026, in Lisbon. Side events start earlier and finish later: the first one in our map is Stellar's Meridian on October 28, and the last ones run on Saturday, November 14. Most cluster between Sunday, November 8 and Thursday, November 12.

Where is Web Summit 2026 held?

The conference takes place at the MEO Arena in Lisbon, Portugal (Rossio dos Olivais, 1990-231 Lisboa), according to Web Summit. The arena was previously called the Altice Arena, a name you'll still see on some maps and listings. Side events happen all over the city, from rooftops and restaurants to coworking spaces and Lisbon City Hall.

How much does a Web Summit 2026 ticket cost?

On October 21, 2026, a general attendee ticket cost €1,295 (reduced from €1,595), a VIP ticket €1,950 and a Chairperson ticket €24,950, all including sales tax (Web Summit). Prices rise in stages as the event gets closer, and Web Summit also sells separate packages for startups, investors and groups.

Do you need a Web Summit ticket to attend side events?

For most of them, no. Side events are organized independently, and registration usually happens on Luma or Eventbrite, not through Web Summit. The exception is the official meetups held inside the venue, which require a conference ticket. Each listing states its own rules, so read it before you register.

Are Web Summit side events free?

Mostly. In our map, 136 of 169 side events are free (80%). The paid ones tend to be standalone conferences, delegations, curated dinners and investor programs. Free events often still require approval, so register early, especially for Monday and Tuesday evenings.

Where do Web Summit side events take place?

Almost all are in Lisbon, spread across the city, and 87 of the 169 share the exact address only after your registration is approved. A handful of pre-week events take place elsewhere in Portugal, in Porto, Viana do Castelo, Coimbra and Lamego, between November 5 and 7.

How do I add my event to the list?

Message Jess on Telegram, from the Lunar and Turtle team, to add or edit an event. If you're looking to host a side event, message Luka on Telegram, Lunar's Head of BD. New events are added as hosts publish them, so check the sheet again during the week.