Nottingham works year-round. The mildest months are May to September, with June and July the warmest and longest-evening months — handy if you want to combine the city with the Peak District or Sherwood Forest.
The single most distinctive event is the Goose Fair, a 700-year-old funfair that takes over the Forest Recreation Ground for the first weekend of October — far more a working-class amusement park than a heritage occasion, but a Nottingham institution. Light Night, in February, opens museums and galleries for a free evening of installations across the city centre. December brings the Christmas market in Old Market Square. The least rewarding time is probably late January and early February, when the daylight is short and a lot of the outdoor pleasure of the city's parks and walks is unusable.