Top 10 Festivals on Cape Cod

Below are some of the festivals you should attend on Cape Cod:      

Wellfleet Oysterfest   

People on the Cape love seafood. In celebration of the town’s oysters and shellfishing traditions, Wellfleet town center hosts an annual festival where people come to enjoy unlimited food, music, dance, and games. The festival takes place mid-October every year. Lovers of live bands will find the festival thrilling as several great music bands get to perform during the festival. If you love art, you should also consider attending as artists get to display some of their creations during the festival.

The festival is suitable for the whole family. A family fun area is always made available and this is where some of the live bands get to perform. Safety is assured since Wellfleet Center is closed to traffic during the festival.  A fun part of the festival is the oyster shucking contest. During the contest, the town’s oyster shuckers enter into a competition to determine who the fastest oyster shucker on the Cape is.

Yarmouth Seaside Festival

Columbus Day weekend brings life to Cape Cod in the form of Yarmouth Seaside Festival. The seaside festival features a lot of fun activities including a 5k run, kayak racing, bonfires, fireworks, pie-eating contests, and an arts and crafts fair. Attendants also get to enjoy live music from great bands. You can bring children along as children’s entertainment is provided.

Yarmouth Country Festival

Every July, the Yarmouth Country Festival treats fans of country music to an amazing festival of music and fun at the old drive-in in Yarmouth. The location is along route 28 at Captain Parker’s. The event takes place on Saturday and Sunday. Six bands perform on Saturday while five perform on Sunday.

Attendants enjoy beer, shopping, live country music, and local Cape Cod food.  There are food trucks with several vendors offering delicious treats for foodies who wish to sample various dishes. The gates open at noon on both Saturday and Sunday. On Saturday, the festivities run until 10 p.m. while on Sunday the festivities run until 8 p.m.

Brewster in Bloom Festival

This annual festival happens in early May to celebrate the coming of spring. The festival takes place over three days and the streets of Brewster offer visitors and residents a chance to enjoy great music and opportunities to sample art. You can visit antiques and art galleries. If you are feeling energetic, feel free to take part in the 5k race. The race starts at Brewster Inn and Chowder House, 1993 Main Street.

On Sunday, the Brewster in Bloom Parade takes place and everyone gathers on Brewster Street to witness it. The 2019 version of the festival will also feature Kids Fest at Drummer Boy Park. The festivities are totally family-friendly and it is okay to bring children along. The festivities at Drummer Boy Park feature a food concession, a dance floor, a bounce house, and golf ball drop.

Barnstable County Fair

The Barnstable County Fair is an annual festival that takes place in East Falmouth at the Cape Cod Fairgrounds. It is an elaborate 7-day event where people get to enjoy a series of live music shows, livestock shows, art and craft displays, amusement park rides, and magic shows. This fair is part and parcel of Cape Cod tradition and culture. It has been running every year since 1844.

There is plenty of food available from small-time and commercial vendors for those who want to sample various dishes. Regular admission to the event is just $12 for adults and $5 for children aged 11 and below.  The Monday to Thursday events start from 4 p.m. and run till 10 p.m. On Friday and Saturday, the shows start at noon and run till 10 p.m. On Sunday, the last day of the festivities, the shows start at noon and end at 9 p.m.

Harwich Cranberry Festival

Cranberries are a pillar of Cape Cod’s agricultural economy. Every year, the Cape celebrates the harvest of Cranberries during the Harwich Cranberry Festival. This festival has been organized since the mid-1970s and no year has passed when Cape Cod did not organize the festivities. The festival now raises money for various causes and scholarships for students.

The festivities usually feature live music, arts and crafts, and cranberry-based delicacies. Food booths are run by locals and people from outside the Cape. You can join the festivities at Harwich Community Center, 100 Oak St. Tickets are free and the city offers free shuttle buses that run from Harwich Elementary School to the festival grounds.

Harbor to the Bay Bike Ride

Every year in mid September, cyclists cover between 68 miles and 125 miles to raise money for charities involved in the care of people living with HIV/AIDS.  Check out Harbor to the Bay – An AIDS Benefit Bike Ride for details on this years event and learn how to register and get updates on the excellent work they are doing. The bike ride is from Provincetown to Boston and the race starts at 6 a.m. If you are not a cyclist, you can be part of the event by cheering on the participants. Also, you can donate money to support the causes the event promotes.

This is a great event to be part of especially because of what it stands for. The goal of the event is to improve community awareness of HIV/AIDS care services, raise money to support organizations that advance care to people living with AIDS, help prevent new HIV infections, and positively impact the lives of people living with HIV/AIDS in the commonwealth. 100% of the proceeds from the event go to charity. Since its launch in 2003, it has raised over $5 million and most of the money has gone to local Cape Cod organizations such as Fenway Health Center, AIDS Support Group of Cape Cod, AIDS Action Committee of Massachusetts, and Community Research Initiative.

Hydrangea Festival

If you live on the Cape, you have probably noticed that the environs look stunning in July. July is peak bloom time for the Hydrangea plant that has become a very big part of Cape Cod’s look and feel. The Hydrangea Festival seeks to celebrate this plant. The festival is organized every July. All the programs are free and you don’t need to buy advance tickets to gain entry into any event. You can just show up and join in on the action.

To be part of the action, you can go see the North American Hydrangea Test Garden, tour the garden, buy plants, and participate in workshops. The garden located in Sandwich, Mass offers the largest collection of Hydrangeas in the United States. During a tour, horticultural experts will explain the various aspects of the plant’s care. Discussions cover topics such as pruning, pest and disease control, reblooming, propagation, bloom color control, and fertilization.

Cape Cod Restaurant Week

If you love food and you enjoy exploring the culinary options Cape Cod has, the Restaurant Week may be your favorite time to be on the Cape. All the towns from Harwich to Barnstable have amazing restaurants that participate in the week-long festivities. The festival takes place every year in May.

The participating restaurants offer three- and four-course meals at very affordable prices. The prices usually range from $25 to $35 per person. The official website for the festival is capecodrestaurantweek.com. You will find the names of the participating restaurants on the site. You can then go ahead to investigate the menus of the restaurants during Restaurant Week to figure out the venues that will most appeal to your taste buds. This is probably the best time to explore restaurants in Cape Cod because of the fixed-price menus. You might just discover amazing new spots that might become your new favorite eateries.

Truro Agricultural Fair

Truro agricultural fair educates attendants on Cape Cod’s locally grown agricultural produce. The agricultural fair is organized every September in Veteran’s Park, 20 Truro Center Rd, Truro, MA 02666 by Sustainable CAPE (Center for Agricultural Preservation and Education). This is a great event to attend if you are interested in agriculture or seafood. The event features local farmers and fishermen with fun events being crafting tables, pony riding, a pie-eating contest, and zucchini racing.