Festivals

Annual Highland Games and Gathering O'Scottish Clans

The annual Grandfather Mountain Highland Games and Gathering of Scottish Clans (usually held in July), fosters and restores interest in traditional dancing, piping, drumming, athletic achievement, music and Gaelic culture, and establishes scholarship funds to assist students from Avery County High School to study at American colleges and universities. An amazing weekend of competitions, tartan, and food -- fun for all!

Bridge to Bridge Century Cycling Challenge

One of the toughest bicycle ride in America, the Bridge To Bridge Incredible Challenge in Caldwell County, North Carolina. 100 miles of pure hill starting in Lenoir, NC and ending at MacRae Meadows at Grandfather Mountain. Only 850 riders will be allowed to register.

Brushy Mountain Apple Festival

The Brushy Mountain Apple Festival is one of the largest one-day arts and crafts festivals in the Southeast. The streets of downtown North Wilkesboro, NC are filled with over 425 arts and crafts, 100 food concessions, 4 different music stages consisting of Blue Grass, Country, Folk, Gospel, and Appalachian Heritage. Cloggers, folk dancers, rope skippers, and square dancers provide additional entertainment venues for festival goers. Appalachian Heritage crafts are highlighted such as woodcarving, chair making, soap making, pottery throwing, and quilting. When walking through the streets of the festival observing and buying lots of the arts and crafts, Appalachian dulcimers can be heard while the smells of the variety of foods are enticing everyone's appetites. Let us not forget the apples, apples, and apples. Local apple growers set up throughout the festival selling their apples, apple cider, and dried apples. After all, this festival also pays tribute to the fruit grown and harvested each fall by apple orchardists from Northwestern North Carolina.

Carolina Balloon Fest

The National Balloon Rally—the second oldest balloon rally in the nation— became one of the largest, most successful hot air balloon events in United States hosting up to 160 hot air balloons and up to 80,000 spectators.Today, the spectacular event continues to amaze and delight tens of thousands of spectators annually with a full weekend of mass ascensions, sanctioned contests, balloon glow, live entertainment, arts & crafts, exhibits and great food and wine!

Carolina Renaissance Festival

Entering the Village of Fairhaven, you experience 22 acres of paths filled with 10 stages of non-stop entertainment, a tournament arena for jousts, an open-air market with 100 artisan shops, kitchens and pubs, games of skill and people powered rides...

Christmas in July

Christmas in July is a one-day-only, free-admission event featuring the very best in traditional mountain music and handmade crafts from throughout the Northwest Mountains of North Carolina.. Nowhere else will you find such an excellent array of food, fun and festivities for the entire family than at Christmas in July! One of the best, old-fashioned summer festivals in the south, drawing more than 20,000 visitors in one day, with more than 20 mouth-watering food vendors, juried crafts, fantastic children’s activities, foot-stompin’ bluegrass music and more!

Cross Roads Cycling Classic

Statesville has played host to the Giordana Crossroads Classic since its inception. The "L" shaped course in Downtown Statesville is a race favorite amount cyclists. Housing one leg of 9 criterium, professional bicycling events over 10 days, this event has fun rides for all levels of competition and offers a chance to see professional racers up close.

Crossroads Pumpkin Fest

Celebrate Fall with the Crossroad Pumpkin Festival.  This fall celebration features live entertainment, great food, arts and crafts, all the pumpkins you can imagine, a three city block children’s entertainment area with games, rides and activities such as pumpkin bowling, pumpkin painting and even pumpkin smashing.

Fiddler's Grove

Home of the oldest, continuous old time fiddling contest! Since its inception nearly a century ago, this fiddling event has focused on traditional American music. This dedication has earned the event a reputation as one of the most prestigious and authentic fiddling competitions in the United States. In May 2000, Fiddler's Grove received the Local Legacy award from the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C.

Merlefest

MerleFest is a high quality diversified American roots based musical festival that attracts a broad audience in an annual celebration of Americana music.The festival is held in a secure and substance-free setting and fosters an interest in a variety of musical forms representative of the repertoire of Doc and Merle Watson. Through the years, MerleFest has provided funds for its founding purpose, the Eddy Merle Watson Memorial Garden for the Senses; providing an interpretive, educational, artistic and cultural experience for visually impaired as well as sighted guests. Approximately 42,000 visitors from nearly every country in the world attend this four day festival.

Rural Hill, Center of Scottish Heritage

For more than 230 years, six generations of the Davidson family would make their home at Rural Hill. Stories about this remarkable extended family, their African slaves, share croppers and tenant farmers illustrate the ingenuity and perseverance of the people of our region as they triumphed over fate and changing fortune. Rural Hill is the home of many events throughout the year: The Loch Norman Scottish games, Revolutionary War re-enactements, Sheep Dog Trials, Corn Mazes, Tartan Day, and a US Flag Retirement Cermenoy. Open year round.

Blockhouse Steeplechase

The Block House Steeplechase, sponsored by the Tryon Riding and Hunt Club, has been run in Tryon every year since 1947 and moved to its new course at the Equestrian Center in 1988. This April event is a highlight of the spring steeplechase calendar and draws entries and crowds from all over the East coast.

Stoneybrook Steeplechase

Known as the official "Rite of Spring", Stoneybrook Steeplechase enjoyed enormous popularity. Drawing as many as 20,000 spectators, Stoneybrook has become a well-established stop for the best steeplechase horses, riders, and trainers on the East Coast.

Queens Cup

The Queen's Cup is like no other sporting and social event in the Charlotte region. The last Saturday afternoon in April each spring is greeted with great anticipation. Thousands come to see some of the most athletic thoroughbreds compete at speeds of up to 35 miles per hour. The jockeys, dressed in bright colored silks, push their sleek steeds to clear four foot jumps over a two to three mile rolling turf course. All for the prestige of thousands of dollars in purse money and the opportunity to bask in the glory of the winner's circle.

Yiasou Greek Festival

The Yiasou Greek Festival began in 1978 and since then has become one of Charlotte’s largest cultural events. Yiasou (the Greek word for Hello, Goodbye and Cheers) Greek Festival features Hellenic cultural exhibits, authentic Greek cuisine and pastries, entertainment, art, shopping and more. Experience the sights and sounds of Greece when you visit the Annual Yiasou Greek Festival (usually held in Septemeber).

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