25 of The Best Fall Food Festivals You Need To Experience
Cranberries, apples, pumpkins, beer. There's something for everyone.

Harvest festivals are a traditional way to welcome autumn. Start off the season by booking a trip to experience one (or all!) of these 18 celebrations across America. From Okotberfests to wine harvests, each one celebrates the local crops and culture unique to an area. These festivals may even inspire you to embrace a new family tradition!
Breckenridge Oktoberfest

Where: Breckenridge, Colorado
When: September 9-11, 2016
What to expect: A Munich-style street party in the mountains complete with "oompah" dancers, schnitzel, and traditional polka music.
For more information, visit gobreck.com.
Circleville Pumpkin Show

Where: Circleville, Ohio
When: October 19-22, 2016
What to expect: Parades and delicious fall treats. Plus, more than 10,000 pounds of pumpkins, squash, and guards beautifying the streets!
For more information, visit pumpkinshow.com.
Cranberry Harvest Fest

Where: Wareham, Massachussetts
When: October 8-9, 2016
What to expect: A bright and colorful harvest on display, helicopter rides or tours of the surrounding bogs, cooking demonstrations, a farmers' market, and activities for the whole family.
For more information, visit cranberries.org.
Autumn at the Arboretum

Where: Dallas, Texas
When: September 17-November 23, 2016
What to expect: The highlight of this ongoing event is the pumpkin village, made out of 75,000 pumpkins, squash, and gourds.
For more information, visit dallasarboretum.org.
Sonoma County Harvest Fair

Where: Sonoma, California
When: September 30-October 2, 2016
What to expect: Award-winning wines, winery competitions, cow-milking contests, and best of all, the World Championship Grape Stomp, where participants of all ages can join in.
For more information, visit harvestfair.org.
Scarecrow Festival

Where: St. Charles, Illinois
When: October 7-9, 2016
What to expect: Vote for your favorite hand-crafted scarecrow while enjoying live music, a crafts show, carnival, and petting zoo.
For more information, visit scarecrowfest.com.
North Carolina Pecan Harvest Festival

Where: Whiteville, North Carolina
When: November 5, 2016
What to expect: Parades, musical entertaining, and house tours abound in the town known as one of the top pecan producers in the state.
For more information, visit ncpecanfestival.com.
Kona Coffee Cultural Fest

Where: Kona, Hawaii
When: November 4-13, 2016
What to expect: The oldest food festival in Hawaii celebrates the state's coffee pioneers, farmers, and artisans with farm tours, art shows, and a coffee cupping competition.
For more information, visit konacoffeefest.com.
Hood River Valley Harvest Fest

Where: Hood River, Oregon
When: October 14-16, 2016
What to expect: Seasonal food, local arts, live music, and family-friendly activities.
For more information, visit hoodriver.org.
Oktoberfest Zinzinnati

Where: Cincinnati, Ohio
When: September 16-18, 2016
What to expect: Experience southwest Ohio's rich German heritage with authentic food, music, and beer at the largest Okotberfest celebration in the U.S.
For more information, visit oktoberfestzinzinnati.com.
National Apple Harvest Festival

Where: Arendtsville, Pennsylvania
When: October 1-2 and 8-9, 2016
What to expect: This festival is a total dream come true for anyone who loves apple picking season.
For more information, visit appleharvest.com.
Warrens Cranberry Festival

Where: Warrens, Wisconsin
When: September 23-25, 2016
What to expect: The world's largest cranberry fest has become an international event with over 100,000 yearly visitors, thanks to marsh tours, local shopping, contests, seasonal treats and a parade.
For more information, visit cranfest.com.
Fall Back Beer Fest

Where: Estates Park, Colorado
When: November 5, 2016
What to expect: Beer everything, from demonstrations to home-brewing supply giveaways.
For more information, visit visitestespark.com.
Heritage Harvest Festival at Monticello

Where: Monticello, Virginia
When: September 10, 2016
What to expect: Garden tours, fruit and vegetable tastings, and gardening lessons to celebrate Thomas Jefferson's legacy as America's "first foodie." Oh, and did we mention the Beekman Boys are headlining this year's event?
For more information, visit heritageharvestfestival.com.
Vermont Pumpkin Chuckin' Festival

Where: Stowe, Vermont
When: September 25, 2016
What to expect: Three rounds of competitive "pumpkin chucking" where people of all ages launch pumpkins as far as they can using trebuchets.
For more information, visit vtpumpkinchuckin.blogspot.com.
St. Simons Food and Spirits Festival

Where: St. Simons, Georgia
When: October 5-9, 2016
What to expect: Enjoy a BBQ and beer pairing, seafood galore, a farmers market, a mixology tent, and live music, all in an idyllic setting underneath towering oaks. This is Southern hospitality at it's finest, ladies and gents.
For more information, visit saintsimonsfoodandspirits.com.
Music City Food + Wine Festival

Where: Nashville, Tennessee
When: September 17-18, 2016
What to expect: During the day, eat your way through samples of world class chefs' favorite dishes, and then at night rock out to live performances, music city-style.
For more information, visit musiccityfoodandwinefestival.com.
New Orleans Po'Boy Festival

Where: New Orleans, Louisiana
When: October 23, 2016
What to expect: A celebration of the Louisiana sandwich favorite with every variation you could possibly imagine. This will go way beyond crawfish and shrimp, y'all.
For more information, visit poboyfest.com.
Keene Pumpkin Festival

Where: Keene, New Hampshire
When: October 22, 2016
What to expect: Pumpkin-inspired everything. From a pumpkin express train, to pumpkin bowling, to pumpkin derbys—you will not forget that fall is the season of pumpkin. As for eats, indulge in mac & cheese, chili, fried dough, maple cotton candy, and, of course, pumpkin sweets.
For more information, visit facebook.com/pumpkinfestival.
Adirondack Balloon Festival

Where: Glens Falls, New York
When: September 22-25, 2016
What to expect: Ride in a hot air balloon, or watch from below as bright colors light up the Adirondacks.
For more information, visit adirondackballoonfest.org/.


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