Tag Archive
activity architecture art artist building Canada children city CostSaver downtown drive i-95 entertainment Europe event exhibit family festival Florida food fun historic History landmark local Museum music Nature New Zealand Ontario roadtrip sculpture Seattle show sights sightseeing tour tourist Trafalgar travel travelblogger view Washington Washington State water world
US: Annapolis, MD – Binge on Chocoholic Sushi with Chocolate Martinis at Annapolis Festival
Under the warm glow of lights you’ll be served a FREE toasty cup of hot chocolate while you enjoy listening to music. Indulge in some family-fun, there is something for everyone including shopping, art, drinks, food, prizes, and fun for kids of all ages and did I mention chocolate.
Take a chocolate tour along West Street with a dozens of vendors selling various chocolate specialties , including chocolate caramels, bars, truffles, fudge, cookies, rice crispies, fondue, chocolate fountain, candy apples, chocolate sushi, and even chocolate martinis. Chocoholics, get ready to binge!
Entertainment includes: Moon Bounce, Balloon Sculptures, Face Painting, Meet Santa, McGruff the crime fighting dog, and Sparky the fire department dog, Music performances, Comedy, Ugly Sweater Contest, holiday shopping, the lighting of the West Street Light Canopy. You can roast marshmallows and make s’mores at the fire pit in the middle of West Street sponsored by the Annapolis Fire Department.
Chocolate, holiday vendors, music, family friendly entertainment and holiday light canopy. All this makes for a great street party in Annapolis. Support the local arts and and We Care and Friends . Suggested $5 donation to the Annapolis Arts District-Kids are free with a paid parent donation.
Location: West St and Calvert St (Intersection) ,Annapolis, MD 21401
Date: Sun, Dec 4th, 2016
Time: noon-5pm
Tel: 410-858-5884
annapolischocolatefestival.com
For Regional Accommodations, Restaurants & Attractions: visitannapolis.org
US: Wilson, NC – Wilson Whirligig Festival and Cake Dive
The Wilson Whirligig Festival is a community celebration of people and art in motion held the first weekend in November, where everyone comes together for an energetic street festival focusing the whimsical North Carolina Folk Art, Vollis Simpson’s Whirligigs.
Don’t forget to check out the Cake Dive, the festival’s MESSIEST event, held on the Courthouse plaza on Sunday at 4 pm. Participants “dive” into a large10 ft x 10 ft anniversary cake for a variety of prizes.
With 35,000+ attendees , over 200 vendors, 3 stages of entertainment, arts & crafts
food vendors, FREE! Whirli-Kidz Zone and lots of Special events.
This commemoration is truly family-friendly and kid focused. FREE live performances all day long with a wide variety of dance and demonstrations, from hip hop to lyrical, from clogging to ballet, from singing to karate. Play carnival games, create a craft, slide down a giant 26 foot slide or bounce in one of the many inflatable activities. Children of all ages can enjoy a variety of activities. Kids shouldn’t have all the fun! Demo’s available for 16 and up. Virtual Reality is not just for gamers anymore, it is everywhere. Learn more about this technology.
Location: Historic Downtown Wilson, 112 Goldsboro E ,Wilson, NC 27893
Date: Sat, Nov 5 – Sun, Nov 6, 2016
Time: Sat 10 – 5pm, Sun Noon – 5pm
Tel: 252-289-9650
whirligigfestivalnc.org
For Regional Accommodations, Restaurants & Attractions: wilsonnc.org
US: Dunn, NC – Watch a Working Cotton Gin
November is peak season for cotton farmers and downtown Dunn was once known as the largest wagon cotton yard in the country. During the festival, the local cotton gin, that until recent years was located in downtown, offers free tours through the gin so that everyone can see cotton production unfolding before them. Shuttles are offered from the festival site to the gin and back every half hour. 
The Festival has two stages for entertainment: featured bands take the Main Stage throughout the day and festival goers also enjoy dancing and karaoke on the second stage. Highlights also include food and craft vendors, Kiddie Land, Petting Zoo and Antique Tractor Show . The event also coincides each year with the Dunn Shriner’s Car Show, where over 100 antique and custom cars compete for best in show.
Location: Downtown Dunn , NC 28334
Date: Sat Nov 5, 2016
Time: 10 – 4 pm
Tel: 910-892-3282
nccottonfestival.com
For Regional Accommodations, Restaurants & Attractions:
dunntourism.org
US: Darien, GA – Car Show, Water Race, Doggie Parade and Battle Re-enactment in Darien
Fall is in the air and the Darien Fall Festival is the place to be. Enjoy the Coastal scenery at this family- friendly event, offering tons to do; food, arts, and entertainment and taking place in the picturesque setting of downtown Darien.
The Classic Coastal Cruisers of Darien Car Show will be on display in Vernon Square, The rescue group, HART of McIntosh, will hold its Doggie Day Parade along Broad Street where you’ll find costumed participants and their owners, kayakers, canoeists, and paddle boarders will compete along a 2.4-mile course from the Darien River Bridge to Fort King George Historic Site. Be entertained by the McIntosh County Line Dancers and musical performances while Fine Arts vendors, Craft and Antique Vendors, and Food and Drink vendors will be set up along the streets.
Spend the day strolling the streets of historic Darien while enjoying the arts, antiques, food, and music or watching a battle re-enactment at FortKingGeorge , the Trailhead Center -Burning of Darien; Museum will be open and there will be horseback rides for children. Ashantilly Mansion and Print Shop will be open. There will be a Lime Burn with a talk on the history of Ashantilly, and then a historian led walking tour through historic St. Andrews Cemetery.
Diverse outdoor demonstrations including: yard and garden art, furniture and home decor, jewelry and clothing will take place on the grounds of the Old Jail Art Center during Fall Fest. Come out and celebrate the rich history and heritage of Darien.
Location: Downtown – Darien, GA 31305
Date: Nov 5, 2016
Hours: 8am – 5pm
Tel: 912-617-7299
darienfallfest.com
For Regional Accommodations, Restaurants & Attractions: visitdarien.com
US: Bridgeville, DE – Pumpkin Launchings Test Pumpkin Physics
Pumpkins have many uses…as jack-o’-lanterns , for baking muffins or pies and believe it or not as a projectile at the signature pumpkin-launching event held each year since 1986. The World Championship Punkin Chunkin is where “backyard engineers” test the limits of pumpkin physics, fueling innovative engineering and science-based ideas all through a three-day festival in Bridgeville, drawing thousands of visitors to the area and is aired on the Discovery Channel every Thanksiving. 
Teams compete in divisions such as air cannon, centrifugal, catapult, human power, trebuchet, theatrical and torsion. The competition is divided into three classes: Adult (18 and older), Youth (11 to 17) and Youth (under age 10).
Each category shoots 1 of their 3 competition shots each day. The firing of machines starts at 8am each day and continues until dusk. There will be a Cookin’ contest, a Punkin Chunkin Pageant, an Outlaw Punkin Chunkin Chili Cookin Competition and awards ceremony, also local bands will provide live music on stage throughout the 3 days of the festivities.
Location: The Woodlands, 18598 Rd 591, Bridgeville, DE 19933
Date: Nov 4- 6, 2016
Time: Gates open at 7am until dusk
punkinchunkin.com
US: Walterboro, SC – Polo For a Cause in Walterboro
Walterboro, SC Exit 57: Mark your calendars for the Colleton Center’s 8th Annual charity game- Polo for the Point. Learn all about this exciting sport while watching an exhilarating polo match, all for a great cause.
Each polo team consisted of four people on horses and the game lasts for eight chukkas, each of which is seven minutes long. Gate open at noon, pre-game activities begin at 1 pm, with the actual Benefit Game taking place from 2 – 4pm.
Festivities include: Best Tailgate and Best Hat Contests, Foxhunting Demonstrations, Benefit Match and Stomping of the Divots and wonderful children’s activities: Facepainting, Pony Rides, Balloons by Becky and Trick or
Treating.
Don’t forget to bring your tailgate, as no other foods or drinks will be sold. Proceeds will be used to continue the preservation and restoration of the Colleton Center.
Location:Limehouse Polo Grounds, Highway 15 North, 7201 Jefferies Highway Walterboro, SC
Date: Sun, Oct 30, 2016
Time: Gates open at Noon: 1pm – 4pm
Tel: 843-549-8360
thecolletoncenter.org
For Regional Accommodations, Restaurants & Attractions: walterborosc.org
US: Hope Mills, NC – Come Out and Learn Hollerin’
Learn a lost art from people who have been holding on to hollerin’ for over 47 years keeping the North Carolina staple “Hollerin’” alive at the Worldwide Hollerin’ contest on October 8th. 
“Hollerin’,” a traditional form of communication used in rural areas to convey long-distance messages, is considered by some to be the earliest form of communication between humans. “Hollers” exist for virtually any communicative purpose imaginable. The hollers featured at the World Wide Hollerin’ festival fall into one of these four categories: distress, functional, communicative or pleasure.
Enjoy a wide variety of fun activities and entertainment, including: the Hollerin’ Contest, Paradise Acres BBQ & Chicken, assorted food vendors, live music, crafts and Children’s activities. Visitors are invited to bring their chairs, blankets and coolers and enjoy the contest on the 12-acre Paradise Acres facility. 
Eighty percent of the proceeds from the event are donated to Wags4Tags.org , an organization that matches trained shelter dogs with veterans suffering from psychological and emotional injuries.
Location: Paradise Acres, 1965 John McMillan Rd, Hope Mills, NC 28348
(Exit 41 off the I-95)
Date: Nov. 5th, 2016
Time: 10 am to 6 pm
Tel: 910-633-4735
worldwidehollerinfestival.org
For Regional Accommodations, Restaurants and Attractions: visitfayettevillenc.com
US: Baltimore, MD – 200 Authors, Cooking Demos, Costume Parade at Baltimore’s Book Festival
Don’t miss the mid-Atlantic’s premier celebration of the literary arts, The Baltimore Book Festival, featuring more than 200 celebrity and local authors appearances and book signings, non-stop readings on multiple stages, cooking demos by celebrity chefs, poetry readings and workshops, panel discussions, more than 100 exhibitors and booksellers, walking tours, storytellers and hands-on projects for kids, street theater, live music, and a delicious variety of food, beer and wine.
For the kids, or the kids at heart there’s a Pop Culture Parade where superheroes, storybook characters, BmoreFit Dancewalkers, and special guests dress up in costume and march down the promenade, starting at Pratt & Light streets traveling down to the Geppi’s Entertainment Museum Comic Pavilion.
Some of the feature presentations include: Terry McMillan, author of “How Stella Got Her Groove Back“; NPR correspondent Glen Weldon, talking about his “The Caped Crusade: Batman and the Rise of Nerd Culture“; and local pundit D. Watkins, who has an essay collection called “The Beast Side: Living (and Dying) While Black in America” and his memoir ‘The Cook Up,’ takes us deeper into his former life, and Comic writer Carl Hiaasen will read from his newest novel, “Razor Girl” to mention but a few.
Whether it’s Health & Wellness , Cooking (The Food for Thought), Science Fiction & Fantasy or Children’s with a Stage featuring interactive programs for the whole family, this FREE event highlights 13 stages offering something for everyone. 
Location: Baltimore Inner Harbor, 201 E. Pratt Street,Baltimore, MD 21202
Date: Fri – Sun Sept 23-25, 2016
Hours: 11 – 7pm
Tel: 410-752-8632
baltimorebookfestival.org
For Regional Accommodations, Restaurants & Attractions: baltimore.org
Phot0 Courtesy of The Baltimore Office of Promotion & The Arts
US: Providence, RI – 3 Days of Fun: National and Local Improv
Providence, RI Exit 21: Three days of amazing national & local improv talent at The 13th Annual Providence Improv Festival taking place in the heart of downtown Providence on September 22-24, 2016. 
This year’s Fest will feature top improv comedy troupes from throughout the country including Susan Messing and Rachael Mason as “The Boys”. The FEST remains dedicated to showcasing a broad spectrum of theater artists who excel at creating scenes, characters, and situations in the moment offering shows by top performers in the local, regional, and national improv comedy scenes.
Be a part of the festival, rub elbows with some incredible performers, partake in the workshops, after-parties and other fun events at their downtown theatre spaces. Experience some of the world-class food, art, and entertainment that Providence can offer within an intimate and picturesque cityscape.
- Location: AS220
- 95 Empire Street, Providence, RI
- 115 Empire Street, Providence, RI
- Providence, RI 02903Dates: September 22 – 24, 2016
Times: Various check schedule
Tel: 401-241-9556
providenceimprovfest.com
For Regional Accommodations, Restaurants & Attractions: goprovidence.com
Photo credit – David Rickerby
US: Elkton, MD – Elkton’s Fall Fest
Celebrate autumn in Elkton’s historic downtown, where 18th-century buildings are now filled with art galleries, cozy cafes and antique shops. Since 1997, the Elkton Fall Fest has attracted thousands of families to visit the small-town shops, watch special county contests, and participate in community activities. The outdoor, pedestrian-only street festival event is held on Main and North streets.
The commemoration gets underway with Fall Fest Friday Night Kick Off Party; on main street souped-up hot rods line the streets for a car show and live entertainment is performed by a Neil Diamond tribute band throughout the evening.
Saturday’s festivities includes a compilation of contests including: Cecil 500 Push Cart Derby, Elkton’s Pretty Baby Contest, Miss Fall Fest, The Voice of Elkton singing contest, and a Delmarva DockDogs event featuring 3 areas of competition, horizontal and vertical jumping abilities as well as their speed in the water. The Downtown Festival of the Arts is new to Fall Fest, a juried row of art from the Courthouse to Cecil County Arts Council. 
The Fall Fest weekend will be filled with a variety of food, crafts, games, children’s activities, live musical entertainment and fun for the whole family.
Location: 101 East Main Street, Elkton, MD 21921
Dates: Sept. 16 – 17, 2016
Hours: Fri 5 – 9 pm, Sat 8- 8 pm
Tel: 410-398-5076
elktonfallfest.com
For Regional Accommodations, Restaurants & Attractions:
elktonalliance.org
ccgov.org/tourism