I enjoy visiting festivals and special gatherings, especially in smaller cities and towns (where the crowds aren’t so overwhelming). Fodors recently featured a listing of some of their favorites in the USA, many of which I’d not heard of before. It’s worth a look at this link.
Are there any others you know of that are worthwhile? Perhaps from your hometown? I can think of 2 from my former home city of Spokane. One of them is hoopfest, and the other is the Bloomsday Walk/run. Oh, I almost forgot Pigout in the Park!
I’m sort of surprised that the Gilroy Garlic Festival wasn’t listed: http://gilroygarlicfestival.com/
Free garlic ice cream! Worth an honorable mention at least.
It has been nearly 15 years since I’ve been, but maybe this summer I will head down there for a day.
Not everyone loves garlic, but I do. The smell of driving through Gilroy when the garlic is ripe is like walking into the kitchen of a fine Italian restaurant. Lovely!
But I’m not a fan of odd=flavored ice cream. The festival is fun — went many many years ago.
One of the most unassuming places for a festival is Clarksdale, MS. “You’ve GOT to go,” they said. “It will change your life!” It is not a supersonic, hyped up, over the top festival, though it has grown over the years, but there is not another that presents you with true local Mississippi Delta culture all at once, than the Juke Joint Festival. You wouldn’t believe it, but it has international fame. Even if you don’t like blues, you will absolutely love it, live!
http://www.jukejointfestival.com/
https://www.flickr.com/photos/maximac222/albums/72157680179215694