Get a sneak peek of NC’s best spring & summer festivals
Mark your calendars for these can’t-miss spring and summer 2026 festivals in North Carolina.
Once the holiday season is over, it’s time to start thinking about our other favorite time of year—festival season. In North Carolina, the spring and summer months are packed with fun festivals of all types. Whether you’re into music, craft beer, barbecue, or the great outdoors, there is a festival in North Carolina for you.
Keep reading to learn more about the most exciting spring and summer festivals in North Carolina.
1. North Carolina Azalea Festival
Kick off the spring festival season at the North Carolina Azalea Festival. This multi-day community event celebrates spring and Mother Nature. The 2026 event will a street fair with a stage for performers, a beer garden, a kids’ area, a parade, a garden tour, a luncheon garden party, a dance party for kids, fireworks, and a headlining performance by Lil Jon.
Date: April 8-12
Location: Various venues and locations throughout Wilmington
Cost: Tickets for each event are sold separately, with pricing starting at $30 for the fireworks show.
2. MerleFest
North Carolina music lovers won’t want to miss MerleFest. This four-day festival celebrates the traditional music of the Appalachian region, featuring more than 80 performers across 12 stages. The 2026 lineup includes The Waybacks, Kruger Brothers, Blackberry Smoke, and The Jerry Douglas Band, to name just a few.
In addition to the musical performances, the festival will feature a kids’ area, backstage tours, guided nature walks, open jam sessions, and other activities.
Date: April 23-26
Location: 1328 S. Collegiate Dr., Wilkesboro
Cost: Single day, general admission tickets start at $90.
3. Brewgaloo
Brewgaloo is North Carolina’s largest craft beer festival, bringing together more than 100 breweries from throughout the Tar Heel State, plus about 50 local food trucks and live music.
The fun begins with the Friday Night Block Party, during which guests are treated to unlimited samples of limited releases, barrel-aged, and sour beers. The party continues the next day with a street festival, which is where the breweries, food vendors, and performers will be set up.
Date: April 24-25
Location: Downtown Raleigh
Cost: Admission is free, but you must purchase tickets to sample beer (prices vary by the number of beers you want to try).
4. BloomFest
BloomFest is Roseboro’s most highly anticipated annual event, attracting about five times the town’s population every year. The family-friendly event begins with a kick-off concert on April 24. Other highlights include local food trucks, arts and crafts, local merchants, and musical performances.
Date: April 24-25
Location: Downtown Roseboro
Cost: Free
5. Fayetteville Dogwood Spring Festival
Fayetteville Dogwood Spring Festival is a weekend-long event full of food, fun, and music. While details for the 2026 festival haven’t been released yet, the 2025 festival featured more than 110 vendors, 25 food trucks, live music, a car show, fitness classes, and a kids’ zone.
Date: April 24-26
Location: Festival Park, 335 Ray Ave., Fayetteville
Cost: Free
6. North Carolina Pickle Festival
Be prepared to have a dill-lightful time at the 40th annual North Carolina Pickle Festival. This festival features tons of fun, pickled-themed activities, such as the Cuke Patch 5K, a pickle-eating contest, a recipe contest, a pickleball tournament, the Tour de Pickle cycling race, a costume contest, and the Pickle Princess Pageant. There will also be live music and a beer and wine garden.
Date: April 25
Location: 123 N. Center St., Mount Olive
Cost: Free
7. Shakori Hills GrassRoots Festival
Shakori Hills GrassRoots Festival is a weekend-long celebration of music, dance, and art. In addition to live music, there will be arts and crafts activities, such as pottery throwing and mask making, a guided drum circle, food and craft vendors, and other entertainment.
The 2026 performer lineup hasn’t been announced yet, but you can view past lineups here.
Date: May 7-10
Location: 1439 Henderson Tanyard Rd., Pittsboro
Cost: Single-day adult tickets start at $52.
8. The Cheerwine Festival
The Cheerwine Festival celebrates the uniquely southern soft drink that North Carolinians know and love—Cheerwine. A date or schedule for the 2026 festivities hasn’t been set yet, but last year’s event featured tons of Cheerwine-inspired food and drinks, multiple beer gardens featuring local breweries, arts and crafts, kid-friendly activities, a History of Cheerwine Trolley Tour, and live music.
Some of the Cheerwine-inspired treats sold at the 2025 festival included Cheerwine cheesecake, Cheerwine Cherry empanadas, Cheerwine-infused smoked ribs, pepperoni pizza with a Cheerwine hot honey glaze, and churro sticks with a Cheerwine glaze dipping sauce.
Date: The 2026 festival date hasn’t been announced yet, but the event is usually held in mid- to late May.
Location: 101 N. Main St., Salisbury
Cost: Free
9. Bear Shadow Festival
Enjoy live music surrounded by beautiful mountain scenery at Bear Shadow Festival. Performers at the 2026 music festival include Trombone Shorty, Margo Price, and Charley Crockett. In addition to music, there are other daytime activities to keep attendees entertained, such as fly-fishing excursions and guided hikes.
Date: May 29-31
Location: Highlands-Cashiers Plateau
Cost: Single day, general admission adult tickets start at $175.
10. NC Trail Days
NC Trail Days is a festival for lovers of the great outdoors. This four-day event takes place in two trail towns, Elkin and Jonesville, and features a schedule full of outdoor fun. Some activities guests can expect to participate in include themed hikes—both guided and self-guided—Yadkin River paddles, rock climbing outings at Pilot Mountain State Park, a 5K, and group road and mountain bike rides.
There will also be activities for children, live music every night, and a vendor village with locally made apparel and products, regional outdoor gear brands, and conservation organizations.
Date: June 4-6
Location: Elkin and Jonesville
Cost: Free
11. Greensboro Summer Solstice Festival
Commemorate the start of summer at the Greensboro Summer Solstice Festival. The one-day event was created to celebrate the local community’s diversity through music, costumes, and merriment. (Attendees are encouraged to dress up in colorful, elaborate costumes.)
Information for the 2026 event hasn’t been released yet, but the 2025 celebration featured live musical performances on two stages and food trucks selling a wide variety of eats, ranging from tacos and pizza to Korean-style corn dogs and gelato. Other types of entertainment included a drum circle, stilt walkers, mermaids lounging by a fountain, where you can make a wish or pose for a photo, and a wooden pirate ship for kids to play on.
Date: While the 2026 date hasn’t officially been announced, the festival notes on its website that the event is always held on the Saturday closest to Summer Solstice, which takes place on June 21.
Location: Lindley Park, 3299 Starmount Dr., Greensboro
Cost: At the 2025 event, the entrance fee was $10.
12. Ocean City Jazz Festival
Head to Ocean City Jazz Festival to experience an excellent lineup of talented jazz musicians, plus food trucks, beverage vendors, and merchandise booths. The 2026 schedule and performance lineup haven’t been released yet, so be sure to check the event’s website closer to the festival date for updates.
Date: July 3-5
Location: The lot across from 2649 Island Dr., North Topsail Beach
Cost: Tickets weren’t on sale at the time of writing.
13. Enofest
Enofest is a live music festival and juried craft show that serves as a fundraiser for the Eno River Association. Information for the 2026 festival hasn’t been shared yet, but the 2025 event featured more than 60 performers on four stages and artisans from the Carolinas, Virginia, Georgia, and Tennessee showcasing their jewelry, textiles, paintings, pottery, and more.
There was also plenty of food from local restaurants at the event, ranging from barbecue sliders and vegan comfort food to authentic Mexican dishes and gourmet ice cream sandwiches.
Date: The 2026 festival date hasn’t been announced yet. The 2025 event took place from July 4-5.
Location: West Point on the Eno City Park, 5101 N. Roxboro St., Durham
Cost: In 2025, single-day adult tickets sold for $35.
14. Grandfather Mountain Highland Games
Transport yourself to Scotland without leaving North Carolina at the Grandfather Mountain Highland Games. The annual celebration of Scottish culture features Celtic cuisine, sheep herding demonstrations, a parade with marchers clad in full Scottish attire, a cultural village where educational presentations will be held, live music, and a Celtic harp competition.
Additionally, there will be plenty of traditional Scottish athletic competitions and track and field competitions.
Date: July 9-12
Location: MacRae Meadows, Blowing Rock Highway, Linville
Cost: Single-day adult tickets start at $25.
15. GalaxyCon
GalaxyCon is a festival of fandom celebrating pop culture, comic books, gaming, anime, and the like. Attractions and activities include comic creator panels and workshops, a game room, voice actor question-and-answer sessions, cosplay competitions, and a market area where you can shop for custom artwork, comic books, and more.
Special guests include voice actors, writers, and celebrities from movies and TV shows, including “Star Wars,” “Star Trek,” “Guardians of the Galaxy,” and “Invader Zim.”
Date: July 23-26
Location: 500 S. Salisbury St., Raleigh
Cost: Single day adult tickets start at $45.
16. Beer, Bourbon & BBQ Festival
Beer, Bourbon & BBQ Festival brings together more than 60 beers, more than 40 bourbons, and plenty of barbecue, including pulled pork, ribs, brisket, and all the fixings. There will also be seminars with pitmasters, brewmasters, and master distillers, games like cornhole and giant Jenga, and live rock, blues, and bluegrass music. Attendees can also shop for items like hot sauces, cookware, and barbecue accessories at the event.
Date: July 31 to Aug. 1
Location: Koka Booth Amphitheatre, 8003 Regency Pkwy., Cary
Cost: General admission ticket prices start at $39.
17. NC Apple Festival
At the NC Apple Festival, you can wander through the street fair where vendors sell apples and apple treats like slushies, donuts, and pies, plus other festival food. You can also check out the arts and crafts vendors, live music, and other entertainment, or head to the family fun zone with games, rides, and inflatables for younger attendees.
Date: Sept. 4-7
Location: Downtown Hendersonville
Cost: Free
18. Hog Day
Barbecue pork lovers should make plans to attend Hog Day in 2026. This barbecue festival, which acts as a fundraiser for local youth programs and services, features plenty of pulled pork and other barbecue dishes, as well as a car show, performances by local musicians, and the Pigs on Parade art project, where people decorate life-size pig statues and vote for their favorites.
Date: Sept. 11-12
Location: River Park, 144 E. Margaret Ln., Hillsborough
Cost: Free
19. Hopscotch Music Festival
Hopscotch Music Festival is known for its diverse lineups featuring more than 100 performers representing a wide range of genres, from hip hop to punk. (My Morning Jacket, Earl Sweatshirt, and Superchunk all performed at the 2025 event.) The 2026 lineup hasn’t been revealed yet, but you can view lineups from previous years here.
In addition to music, there were multiple-day parties, VIP parties, goodies from local vendors, and an area for skateboarders and BMX riders to show off their skills.
Date: According to the festival website, the 2026 event will take place in September, but the exact date hasn’t been released yet.
Location: Multiple venues throughout downtown Raleigh
Cost: In 2025, three-day general admission tickets started at about $180. Single-day passes weren’t available.
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