Print this page.
Home / Browse / Category / Folklore and Folklife / Festivals and Parades
Arkansas hosts a variety of annual festivals, fairs, and parades throughout the year. Some of the more well-known affairs, such as the Hope Watermelon Festival or the Arkansas Apple Festival, celebrate the centrality of agriculture to both local life and the wider state economy. Others celebrate some aspect of industry that is central to town life, such as the Malvern Brickfest or the Fordyce on the Cotton Belt Festival. A number of festivals focus upon arts and crafts, music, and movies, as well as an array of holiday-related celebrations centering upon Christmas or Independence Day. In addition, such events as Toad Suck Daze or the Lepanto Terrapin Derby simply provide opportunities for amusement.
February
Daffodil Days
Hot Springs (Garland County)
Mid-Southern Watercolorists’ Juried Exhibition
Little Rock (Pulaski County)
March
Annual Quilt Show
Texarkana (Miller County)
Camden Daffodil Festival
Camden (Ouachita County)
Celebrate Art Shows
Springdale (Washington County)
Earth Day Celebration
Little Rock
Eureka Springs Gallery Association Showcase
Eureka Springs (Carroll County)
Eureka Springs Kite Festival
Eureka Springs
Governor Conway Days
Bradley (Lafayette County)
Jonquil Festival
Historic Washington State Park, Hempstead County
Mountain View Bluegrass Festival
Mountain View (Stone County)
Ozark Foothills Film Festival
Batesville (Independence County)
Pioneer Craft Festival
Rison (Cleveland County)
Quilt Show
Tyronza (Poinsett County)
Smoke on the Mountain Homecoming
Searcy (White County)
Valley of the Vapors Independent Music Festival
Hot Springs
Wild Cave Tour and Dripstone Trail Tour
Fifty-Six (Stone County); also occurs in April
Wye Mountain Daffodil Festival
Perry County
April
Arkansas Folk Festival
Mountain View
Blooms Blues Festival
Altus (Franklin County)
Calico Rock Homecoming
Calico Rock (Izard County)
Dogwood Festival
Siloam Springs (Benton County)
Fordyce on the Cotton Belt Festival
Fordyce (Dallas County)
Great Cotter Trout Festival
Cotter (Baxter County)
Harbor City Festival and Gumbo Cook-off
Pine Bluff (Jefferson County)
Hogskin Holidays Festival
Hampton (Calhoun County)
Old Hardy Town Spring Arts and Crafts Show
Hardy (Sharp County)
Promise Land Spring Fest
Wing (Yell County)
Spring Jammers Jamboree
Otto (Faulkner County)
Spring Fest
Heber Springs (Cleburne County)
Star Daze Festival
Star City (Lincoln County)
Thunder in the Mountains
Twin Rivers Festival
McNab (Hempstead County)
Wild Hog Music Festival and Motorcycle Rally
Helena-West Helena (Phillips County)
May
Augusta Days
Augusta (Woodruff County)
Bald Knob Home Fest
Bald Knob (White County)
Big Bass Festival
De Queen (Sevier County)
Big Woods Birding Festival
Clarendon (Monroe County)
Bradley County Pink Tomato Festival
Warren (Bradley County)
Camp Adams Civil War Reenactment
Yellville (Marion County)
Crawdad Days Music Festival
Harrison (Boone County)
Crawford County Festival Arts and Crafts Fair
Van Buren (Crawford County)
Dermott Crawfish Festival
Dermott (Chicot County)
Diamond Festival
Murfreesboro (Pike County)
Dinosaur Festival
Nashville (Howard County)
Esperanza Bonanza Festival
Marion (Crittenden County)
Eureka Springs May Festival of Arts
Fulton County Homecoming Festival
Fulton County
Hamburg Armadillo Festival
Hamburg (Ashley County)
Hillbilly Days
Witts Springs (Searcy County)
Hope Bluegrass Festival
Hope (Hempstead County)
Hot Springs Music Festival
Kingston’s Fair on the Square
Kingston (Madison County)
Loose Caboose Festival
Paragould (Greene County)
Magnolia Blossom Festival and World Championship Steak Cook-off
Magnolia (Columbia County)
Mount Ida Good Old Days
Mount Ida (Montgomery County)
Mustang on the Mountain
Morrilton (Conway County)
Old Time Days
Van Buren
Ozark Arts and Crafts Fair
Rogers (Benton County)
Peach Blossom Festival
Nashville
Petit Jean Show
Morrilton
Picklefest
Atkins (Pope County)
RiverFest Arts and Music Festival
Rough and Ready, Rhythm and Roots Festival
Monticello (Drew County)
Spanker Creek Farm Arts and Crafts Fair
Bentonville (Benton County)
Stars and Stripes Festival
Tyronza
Steamboat Days Family Festival
Witts Springs
Toad Suck Daze
Conway (Faulkner County)
Whistle Stop Festival
Ashdown (Little River County)
Yell Fest
Dardanelle (Yell County)
June
Buffalo River Elk Festival
Jasper (Newton County)
Chicken and Egg Festival
Prescott (Nevada County)
City of Shirley Homecoming
Shirley (Van Buren County)
Emerson Purplehull Pea Festival and World Championship Rotary Tiller Race
Emerson (Columbia County)
Freedom Fest
West Memphis (Crittenden County)
Great Arkansas Pig Out
John Huddleston Day
Murfreesboro
Johnson County Peach Festival
Clarksville (Johnson County)
Leslie Homecoming, Arts and Crafts Festival
Leslie (Searcy County)
Lum and Abner Festival
Mena (Polk County)
Malvern Brickfest
Malvern (Hot Spring County)
Mount Magazine International Butterfly Festival
Paris (Logan County)
North Arkansas Rusty Wheels Old Engine Club
Harrison
Oil Town Festival
Smackover (Union County)
Portfest “Rollin’ on the River” Festival
Jacksonport (Jackson County)
Red, White, and Blue Festival
Mountain Home
Riverfront Blues Festival
Fort Smith (Sebastian County)
Turpentine Creek Native American Pow Wow
Valleyfest
Russellville (Pope County)
July
4th of July Celebration
Fairfield Bay (Van Buren County)
Altus Grape Festival
Altus
City of Caraway 4th of July Picnic
Caraway (Craighead County)
Ding Dong Days
Dumas (Desha County)
Fantastic 4th Celebration
El Dorado (Union County)
Homecoming Picnic
Corning (Clay County)
July 4th Celebration
Horseshoe Bend (Izard County)
Pops on the River
Summer Gospel Festival
Otto
Watson Homecoming Days Festival
Watson (Desha County)
August
Arkansas Old Time Fiddle Championship Contest
Bryant Fall Fest
Bryant (Saline County)
Cane Hill Harvest Festival
Cane Hill (Washington County)
Cave City Watermelon Festival
Cave City (Sharp County)
Festival Latino
Frisco Festival
Rogers
Gravette Day
Gravette (Benton County)
Hope Watermelon Festival
Hope
Hot Springs Blues Festival
Hot Springs Jazz Fest
Maynard Pioneer Days
Maynard (Randolph County)
Mount Nebo Chicken Fry
Dardanelle
Mulberry Mountain Harvest Music Festival
Ozark (Franklin County)
Pigtrail Motorcycle Rally
Ozark
Tontitown Grape Festival
Tontitown (Washington County)
Tudor Rose Renaissance Faire
Wrightsville (Pulaski County)
White River Days
Bull Shoals (Marion County)
Wiederkehr Weinkeller Weinfest
Wiederkehr Village (Franklin County)
September
Antique Automobile Festival
Arkansas State Championship Hillbilly Chili Cook-off
Bull Shoals
Bluegrass Festival
Texarkana
Cotton Picking Contest
Caldwell (St. Francis County)
Crawford County Festival, Arts and Crafts Fair
Depot Days
Newport
Four States Fair and Rodeo
Lick Skillet Day
Brinkley (Monroe County)
Mountainfest
Mena
National Championship Chuckwagon Races
Clinton (Van Buren County)
Petit Jean Fall Swap Meet and Car Corral
Pinnacle Hills Arts Festival
Prairie Grove Clothesline Fair
Prairie Grove (Washington County)
Rector Day Picnic
Rector (Clay County)
Rock and Blues Festival
Fayetteville (Washington County)
Smoke on the Water Festival
Pine Bluff
Southwest Arkansas District Livestock Show and Rodeo
Time and Traditions Festival
Newark (Independence County)
Tribute to Grandpa Weekend
Trumann Wild Duck Festival
Trumann (Poinsett County)
World Fest
October
Apple Fest
Lincoln (Washington County)
Arkansas Blues and Heritage Festival
Helena-West Helena
Arkansas Rice Festival
Weiner (Poinsett County)
Arkansas State Fair and Livestock Show
Cabotfest
Cabot (Lonoke County)
Fall Festival
Harvest Fest
Mount Magazine Frontier Day
Paris
October Fest
Old Applegate Autumn Arts and Crafts Festival
Old Time Rock and Roll October Fest
Cherokee Village (Sharp County)
Pea Ridge Mule Jump and Show
Pea Ridge (Benton County)
Timberfest
Sheridan (Grant County)
War Eagle Fair
Hindsville (Madison County)
Wing Ding Festival
Jacksonville (Pulaski County)
November
Festival de Otoño
Lit’l Bit of Christmas
Jonesboro (Craighead County)
Original Ozark Folk Festival
December
Arkansas Craft Guild Christmas Showcase
Festival of Trees
Horseshoe Bend
Holiday Extravaganza
Winter Blast of Blues
Mountain Home (Baxter County)
For additional information:Arkansas South. http://www.arkansassouth.com/ (accessed September 16, 2009).
Arkansas Tourism Official Site. http://www.arkansas.com/ (accessed September 16, 2009).
Department of Arkansas Heritage. http://www.arkansasheritage.com/ (accessed September 16, 2009).
Tour Arkansas. http://www.tourarkansas.com/index.asp (accessed September 16, 2009).
Doris Russell FosheeMurfreesboro, Arkansas
Last Updated 3/14/2012
About this Entry: Contact the Encyclopedia / Submit a Comment / Submit a Narrative