21 festivals in North Carolina happening this spring
Pig out on BBQ, shop for local art, and sway to the sound of live music at these spring festivals in North Carolina.
Spring is the season of rebirth and renewal, making it an excellent time to make new memories with friends and family. This spring, there are plenty of festivals in North Carolina that’ll keep your social calendar fully booked. From music and art to food and environmentalism, whatever your interests are, there’s a festival or event for you happening in the Tar Heel State this spring. Keep reading to learn more about the best events in North Carolina to check out this season.
1. Tacos N Taps Festival
Treat yourself to more than 30 types of tacos and other delicious Mexican-inspired dishes, plus margaritas, mezcal, and craft beer at Tacos N Taps Festival. Other event highlights include a hot pepper eating contest, performances by mariachi and local bands, lawn games, and boutiques selling jewelry, hot sauce, and other items.
Ticket prices range from $25 for a taco-only ticket to $75 for a VIP experience.
When: April 12
Where: Koka Booth Amphitheatre, Cary
2. ‘Cuegrass Festival
‘Cuegrass Festival brings together mouth-watering BBQ, live bluegrass music, and local brews. Now in its 15th year, the event also features a kids zone, silent auction, and vendor area where you can shop for handcrafted goods made by local artisans.
Menu highlights include chopped BBQ sandwiches, cheesy BBQ fries, pork rinds, and banana pudding. Admission to the festival is free, but proceeds from food and beverage sales benefit various local children’s causes.
When: April 19
Where: Fayetteville Street between Morgan and Martin streets in Downtown Raleigh
3. Fayetteville Dogwood Festival
Fayetteville Dogwood Festival, celebrating its 43rd year in 2025, is a free community event with fun for the whole family. The three-day event features carnival rides, food trucks, a classic car cruise, live music, and vendors selling crafts and jewelry.
When: April 25-27
Where: Festival Park and Downtown Fayetteville
4. Brewgaloo 2025
Brewgaloo 2025—North Carolina’s largest craft beer festival—is the event of the season for hops lovers. Sample brews from 110 craft breweries from around the state, indulge in treats from multiple food trucks, and enjoy live music by local bands.
Tickets for the Friday night kick-off party cost $55 onsite. Saturday admission is free, but you’ll need to purchase drink tickets if you want to sample any beers.
When: April 25-26
Where: Downtown Raleigh
5. North Carolina Pickle Festival
The North Carolina Pickle Festival is a free event with a tasty theme. There are tons of activities to participate in (or watch), including a 5K, pickle eating contest, recipe competition, pickleball tournament, car show, live music, and pickle princess pageant.
When: April 26
Where: Downtown Mount Olive
6. Spring Daze Arts and Crafts Festival
Admire and shop for artwork created by North Carolina artists at Spring Daze Arts and Crafts Festival. In addition to the artist market, there’s live entertainment, food and beverage vendors selling BBQ, pizza, tacos, and more, plus fun festival activities.
When: April 26
Where: Bond Park, Cary
7. Earth Day Festival
This year’s Earth Day Festival theme is Our Power, Our Planet, highlighting everyone’s power to have a positive impact on the environment. Festival highlights include a market featuring eco-friendly businesses, a parade, free document shredding, a book giveaway, and a family fun zone.
When: April 27
Where: Durham Central Park
8. Shakori Hills Grassroots Festival
The Shakori Hills Grassroots Festival is an annual celebration of music, dance, art, and education. Event headliners include The California Honeydrops, Los Lobos, and Donna the Buffalo.
Aside from the live music, attendees can participate in music and dance workshops and shop for goods from various craft, food, and wellness vendors.
Four-day admission purchased at the gate starts at $199. Single-day tickets are also available.
When: May 1-4
Where: Pittsboro
9. BBQ Fest on the Neuse
BBQ Fest on the Neuse is a whole-hog cookoff event that BBQ lovers won’t want to miss. The free event features plenty to do and see in between bites of BBQ, such as carnival rides, live music, a bike and car show, dance demonstrations, more than 150 vendors, and an adult beverage garden.
When: May 2-3
Where: Downtown Kinston
10. Spring Folly
The 32nd annual Spring Folly event is set to bring three days of food, shopping, and fun to Kernersville in early May. This event provides a gathering space for businesses and commercial vendors to sell and promote their goods and services. Shop for artisan crafts, clothing, jewelry, games, and more. Local civic clubs will also be on-site serving up food to fuel your shopping, and there will be live music on two stages, plus rides and entertainment for kids.
When: May 2-4
Where: Kernersville
11. Multicultural Festival
No passport, no problem. You can still travel the world at the 29th annual Multicultural Festival. This free event highlights African American, European, Asian, Latino, and Native American cultures through food, music, and entertainment. Enjoy live music and performances from across the world, indulge in global-inspired eats, and educate yourself at one of the many exhibits highlighting cultural traditions, art, and clothing.
When: May 3
Where: Davidson County Fairgrounds, Lexington
12. NC Butterfly Festival
Minimal details for this year’s NC Butterfly Festival have been shared on the official website, but last year’s event featured a butterfly exhibit in which attendees could interact with and feed butterflies and a live metal pour, which allowed guests to carve designs into butterfly-shaped molds and watch as they were poured. The 2024 event also featured an art contest, live music, and food vendors.
Admission is free, but you’ll have to purchase tickets to participate in some of the onsite games and exhibits.
When: May 3
Where: Hudson
13. Ham & Yam Festival
Ham & Yam Festival celebrates two tasty agricultural products that Smithfield and Johnston County are known for. Fun festival features include a 5K and “piglet stampede,” a classic car show, a BBQ competition, live music on three stages, local artisan and craft vendors, and a kids zone with a petting zoo, rides, and games.
When: May 3
Where: Smithfield
14. Ocean Fest
Ocean Fest was founded with the goal of educating the community about ecological threats to marine environments, and proceeds from the event benefit like-minded nonprofit organizations. Participate in water activities and environmental initiatives, listen to live music, and support local creators in the vendor market, where you can also find eco exhibits, food trucks, and adult beverages.
Tickets for the Ocean Fest music festival can be purchased for $25 plus fees. Admission to the vendor market is free.
When: May 3
Where: Surf City
15. NC Potato Festival
The NC Potato Festival kicks off with an opening ceremony and beer and wine tent on Friday. On Saturday and Sunday, visitors can explore the street fair and indulge in free French fries. Don’t forget to check out the potato peeling contest, the 5K, the car and motorcycle show, and the search and rescue demonstration at Pasquotank River. But that’s not all. The free event also features a farm and tractor show, a cornhole tournament, live music, and other activities celebrating the potato.
When: May 16-18
Where: Downtown Elizabeth City
16. The Cheerwine Festival
North Carolinians love their Cheerwine—so much so that the iconic soft drink has its own festival. The Cheerwine Festival celebrates the South’s favorite cherry soda with Cheerwine-inspired beer, crafts, and food from local and regional vendors. Live music is a major component of the free festival as well, with previous performances from nationally recognized groups including Smash Mouth, Neon Trees, and The Spin Doctors.
When: May 17
Where: Salisbury
17. Cold Mountain Music Festival
Cold Mountain Music Festival’s setting may be the star of the show—from the 300-acre outdoor space, you can enjoy views of Lake Logan, Shining Rock Wilderness, and Pisgah National Forest. In between performances, you can fill your time with outdoor activities like hiking, boating, and swimming. There are also food trucks, a beer garden, and a vendor village where you can do some shopping.
As for the music, in addition to headliners on the main stage, performances by local youth musicians take place on another stage. On top of all that, festival organizers are also hosting a golf tournament at nearby Laurel Ridge in Waynesville.
Weekend adult general admission tickets start at $90. Single-day and youth tickets are also available at discounted rates.
When: May 30 to June 1
Where: Lake Logan
18. Outer Banks Rogallo Kite Festival
Go fly a kite—literally—at the 43rd annual Outer Banks Rogallo Kite Festival. Watch as Kitty Hawk Kites flies kites ranging from 30 to 100 feet long over Jockey’s Ridge State Park—the Atlantic Coast’s highest living sand dune system—or fly one of your own. You can also take part in free walk-up stunt kite lessons or let the kids try their hand at kite coloring.
When: June 6-7
Where: Jockey’s Ridge State Park
19. National Black Bear Festival
The organizers of the National Black Bear Festival invite you to “come party like an animal” at the 11th annual event, which was created to celebrate and educate the public about black bears. The festival takes place on the banks of the Roanoke River in Plymouth, home to the world’s largest black bears.
The schedule changes from year to year, with new surprises and activities added to keep things fresh, but past events have featured pontoon boat rides, a rowing race, fireworks, a bear train ride for kids, and a foot race, playfully titled “Can You Outrun a Black Bear?”
When: June 7
Where: Plymouth
20. Raleigh’s International Food Festival
Be sure to bring your appetite to Raleigh’s International Food Festival, where you’ll find more than 130 vendors selling savory bites, delicious desserts, and more. Local vendors will serve up authentic food from across the globe. Countries represented at the free festival, which also features cultural performances on two stages, range from Australia and Nigeria to Cuba and El Salvador.
When: June 7
Where: City Plaza, Raleigh
21. Juneteenth Festival of the Carolinas
The Juneteenth Festival of the Carolinas celebrates the end of slavery with a carefully curated schedule of activities, including a drum circle, youth culture camp, a prayer session, and live performances and speakers.
When: June 12-15
Where: Plaza Midwood, Charlotte
Our stories may be republished online or in print under Creative Commons license CC BY-NC-ND 4.0. We ask that you edit only for style or to shorten, provide proper attribution and link to our web site. Please see our republishing guidelines for use of photos and graphics.
