Festivals in Maine
Lobsters, lupine, blueberries, and bluegrass —Maine is home to an eclectic mix of festivals and special events all year long. Whether you’re here for a week or a lifetime, you’re bound to find something to celebrate.
Undoubtedly, the state’s most famous annual event is the Maine Lobster Festival, a four-day event held in the mid-coast town of Rockland. Every August, thousands of people flock to the seaside festival for fun, music, and, of course, food. Last year, festival-goers ate nearly twelve tons of lobster, along with a delectable array of clams, shrimp, mussels, and other summertime treats. The town also hosts a huge parade down the center of Main Street, live bands, and a crate race, in which competitors step from one lobster crate to another in Rockland Harbor — whoever gets farthest before falling off into the water is the winner. If you’re in the mood for four straight days of lobster, ocean views, and great times, buy your ticket for the Lobster Festival Today.
Photo from Maine Lobster Festival by David Phillips
Maine Lobster Festival
August 4th – 7th, 2007
www.mainelobsterfestival.com
If chowing down on giant, clawed crustaceans isn’t your thing, maybe bluegrass is. From August 30th to September 2nd, Thomas Point Beach is home to some of the world’s best bluegrass performers and their thousands of fans when it hosts the 29th annual Thomas Point Beach Bluegrass Festival. From nine in the morning to eleven at night, the air is filled with the sound of bluegrass music. You won’t even have to go back to a hotel at the end of the festivities — there are numerous campsites right on Thomas Point Beach. If you’d love to see famed artists like Marty Raybon, Dan Paisley, and the Lewis Family all in one beautiful spot, Brunswick is the place to be this summer.
Thomas Point Beach Bluegrass Festival
August 30th – September 2nd, 2007
www.thomaspointbeach.com
For a more intoxicating affair, don’t miss the Maine Brewers’ Festival, held each year in November. For $23, or $28 at the door, attendees (21 and over, please) can taste twelve of Maine’s best microbrews, listen to some great live music, and take home a souvenir tasting glass. Some of the award-winning breweries featured include Gritty McDuff’s, Sea Dog Brewing Co., and Sparhawk Brewers. If you know your lagers from your pale ales, this is the festival for you. Tickets for the 2007 Brewers’ Festival go on sale in August — don’t miss out.
Maine Brewers’ Festival
November 3rd, 2007
www.mainebrew.com
A watermelon seed-spitting contest, a high-wire motorcycle act, a blueberry pancake breakfast, and an endless array of games and rides — you’ll find it all at the Union Fair, held each summer in the midcoast town of Union. This six-day event is a good, old-fashioned country fair, pure and simple. For wholesome family fun complete with a Ferris wheel, fried dough, and plenty of crazy contests, make the trek out to the boonies for the Union Fair.
Union Fair
August 19th-25th, 2007
www.unionfair.org
If none of these festivals take your fancy, there’s no cause for concern. Whether you’re a hot air balloon lover, a jazz fan, or an antiques aficionado, there’s a celebration in Maine for you. For more details on the hundreds of fairs, festivals, and special events held in the northernmost state each year, see www.maine.info/festivals.html.
Written by Kathy Hawkins on April 15, 2007
Filed Under Maine, Events
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