FESTIVALS: Join the crowd for arts, food trucks, music and more
Festivals devoted to food, arts, music, wine and more return to their 2019 glory this year, with a few new twists: The Dollar Bank Three Rivers Arts Festival is moving out of Point State Park and into the Cultural District; the Pittsburgh Irish Festival is moving to the Carrie Blast Furnaces in Rankin; the music of Pittsburgh Pride will be at Stage AE; and Maple House Festival is a first-time event at Hartwood Acres.
Here is a roundup of the festivals, with the free ones indicated.
MAY
PITTSBURGH WINE & SPIRITS FESTIVAL: Indoor festival with 200 wines and spirits to sample, from tequilas and rosés to premade cocktails and liqueurs. Rivers Casino, North Shore (May 13); www.pittsburghmagazine.com.
PITTONKATONK: Music festival featuring brass bands, cumbia, hip-hop and more. Vietnam Veterans Pavilion, Schenley Park. Free (May 14); flow.page/pittonkatonk.
EQT CHILDREN’S THEATER FESTIVAL: The festival, in its 36th year, is back live for the first time since 2019 with arts groups and performers that hail from France, South Korea, Switzerland and the United States. Cultural District, Downtown (May 14-15); pghkids.trustarts.org.
SPRINGTIME FOOD TRUCK FESTIVAL: With sales, live music, kid zone. Tanger Outlets, South Strabane. Free (May 14-15); tangeroutlets.com/pittsburgh.
NORTH HILLS FOOD TRUCK FESTIVAL: More than two dozen Pittsburgh-area food trucks, craft beer and ciders, plus live entertainment. Our Lady of
Mount Carmel Parish (St. Teresa of Avila campus), Ross. Free (May 15); Facebook.
MILLVALE MUSIC FESTIVAL: Community festival with hundreds of acts on the streets and in the clubs. Millvale. Free (May 20-21); millvalemusic.org.
MAPLE HOUSE MUSIC + ARTS FESTIVAL: Music by Jason Isbell, Black Pumas, Lake Street Dive, Elle King, Ghost Hounds. Hartwood Acres, Hampton (May 21); maplehousefest.com.
FIRST CHOICE WINE FESTIVAL: Wine, chocolate, beer and other foods and music. Pittsburgh Shrine Center, Harmar (May 21); syriashriners.org.
SHADYSIDE … the Other Art Festival on Walnut Street: More than 100 fine artists with original handmade artwork. Walnut Street, Shadyside. Free (May 2122); artfestival.com.
WESTSYLVANIA JAZZ AND BLUES FESTIVAL: Vendor pop-up market
and music by Hugo Cruz and Caminos, Gentleman Brawlers and more. Downtown Indiana. Free (May 28); WestsylvaniaJazzAndBlues.org.
GREATER PITTSBURGH FOOD TRUCK FESTIVAL: Dozens of food trucks, live music and other entertainment along with regional artisans and vendors, plus craft beer and wine. Hollywood Casino at The Meadows, North Strabane. Free (May 27-29); pghfoodtruckfest.com.
SOUTHSHORE RIVERWALK & CHALK FEST: Chalk artists from 13 different states, live entertainment, local brews and food trucks. SouthSide Works. Free (May 28); Facebook page.
JUNE
DOLLAR BANK THREE RIVERS ARTS FESTIVAL: Artist Market with more than 300 artists, Juried Visual Art exhibition and performances by Nick Lowe and Los Straitjackets, Goodie Mob, Femi Kuti, Corey Henry, Devon Allman Project, Lizz Wright and more. Pittsburgh Cultural District, Downtown. Free (June 3-12); traf.trustarts.org.
PITTSBURGH PRIDE REVOLUTION: LGBTQ+ events Ball on the Bridge (Warhol Bridge, June 3), Pride on the Shore (June 3, Stage AE), Pride March (June 4, City County Building), North Side Festival (June 4) and Bloomfield Festival (June 5). Street events free. lgbtqpittsburgh.org.
BEERS OF THE BURGH FESTIVAL: More than 70 breweries, along with food trucks. Rivers of Steel: Carrie Blast Furnaces, Rankin (June 4 and 11); showclix.com.
MAMMOTH FEST: Food, children’s
activities and musical performances on the Lakeside Stage. Mammoth Park, near Greensburg. Free (June 5); co.westmoreland.pa.us.
WHISKEY REBELLION FESTIVAL: Spirits to taste from J&D Cellars, Red Pump Spirits, Wigle Whiskey, Quantum Spirits and more, plus food trucks, music, kid-friendly activities and live Whiskey Rebellion reenactments. 184 S. Main St., Washington. Free (July 9); whiskeyrebellionfestival.com.
LIVING DEAD WEEKEND: Horror movie convention celebrates George Romero’s “Living Dead” series. Monroeville Convention Center (June 10-12); eventbrite.com.
BANTAM JEEP FESTIVAL: Celebration of the Jeep in Butler with live entertainment, food, vendors. Cooper’s Lake Campground, Slippery Rock (June 10-12); bantamjeepfestival.com.
HOLY CROSS PITTSBURGH GREEK FOOD FESTIVAL: Indoor and outdoor festival with Greek dishes, music and a marketplace. Holy Cross Greek Orthodox Church, Mt. Lebanon. Free (June 14-17); pittsburghgreekfestival.org.
JUNETEENTH CELEBRATION: Music by Talib Kweli, Arrested Development, WAR, The Dazz Band, EWF tribute, Rose Royce, DJ Fatman Scoop, Klymaxx, Sons of Mystro and more. Point State Park and Market Square, Downtown. Free ( June 17- 19); stoptheviolencepgh.com.
WINE TIME AT THE COLONY: Wine tasting and gourmet food shopping with live entertainment. Grounds of Penn’s Colony, 365 Cochran Road, Saxonburg (June 18 and Aug. 20); winetimeatthecolony.com.
SQUIRREL HILL NIGHT MARKET: I Made It! Market pops up on Murray Avenue with food trucks, 80+ artists, live music, activities and more. Free (June 25 and Aug. 27); imadeitmarket.com.
WYEP SUMMER MUSIC FESTIVAL: Featuring Jukebox The Ghost, Seratones, Bill Deasy, The Living Street, Sierra Sellers, Ashley Marina. Schenley Plaza, Oakland. Free (June 25); wyep.org.
CRUISE-A-PALOOZA: Car cruise, music, DJs, dash plaques. Downtown Butler. Free ( June 26); therodfathers.com.
WESTMORELAND ARTS AND HERITAGE FESTIVAL: Music, entertainment, artist market, hands-on activities. Twin Lakes Park, east of Greensburg in Unity, 40 miles east of Pittsburgh. Free (June 30-July 3); artsandheritage.com.
ANTHROCON: The annual gathering of Furries includes the Fursuit Parade. David L. Lawrence Convention Center, Downtown ( June 30- July 3); anthrocon.org.
JULY
BIG BUTLER FAIR: Features animals, motorsports, games, Fourth of July fireworks, Bike Nights, concerts and more. 1127 New Castle Road, Prospect (July 1-9); bigbutlerfair.com.
FOURTH OF JULY CELEBRATION: Fireworks at Point State Park. Free (July 4).
CRANBERRY TWP. COMMUNITY DAYS: Features Art in the Park, car cruise, concerts, free kids area, carnival and more. Cranberry Township Community Park. Free (July 14-16); yourctcc.org.
PITTSBURGH VINTAGE GRAND PRIX: Annual vintage grand prix car races and show in Schenley Park and other locations. Free ( July 15- 24); pvgp.org.
TEKKO 2022: Japanese pop culture event with games, food, J-Fashion, J-rock, cosplay and anime. David Lawrence Convention Center, Downtown (July 21-24); tekko.us.
DEUTSCHTOWN MUSIC FESTIVAL: Free music festival with more than 400 acts at multiple venues, indoors and outside. North Side. Free (July 22-24); deutschtownmusicfestival.org.
FAYETTE COUNTY FAIR: Circus, petting zoo, monster trucks, performances by Little Texas, The Hillbilly Way, Tracy Byrd and more. Fayette County Fairgrounds (July 28-Aug. 6); fayettefair.com.
PICKLESBURGH: Bridge festival with international foods, flying Heinz pickle balloon and music. Downtown. Free (July); picklesburgh.com.
FLOOD CITY MUSIC FESTIVAL: Two days of music with Spin Doctors, Railroad Earth, Big Something, Brandon “Taz” Niederauer, Ally Venable Band, Vanessa Collier, Buffalo Rose and more. People’s Natural Gas Park, Johnstown. Free (July 29-30); floodcitymusic.com.
PITTSBURGH SUMMER BEERFEST: Stage AE, North Shore (July 29-30); promowestlive.com.
PITTSBURGH BLUES AND ROOTS FESTIVAL: Music festival with proceeds benefiting the Autism Society of Pittsburgh and Band Together Pittsburgh. Syria Shrine Center, Harmar (July 30-31); pghbluesrootsfest.com.
AUGUST
REGATTA AT LAKE ARTHUR: Vendor marketplace, recreation, car cruise, cornhole tournament, fireworks. South Shore at Moraine State Park, Butler County. Free (Aug. 5-7); morainestateparkregatta.org.
AUGUST FUN FEST: Car cruise, arts and crafts market, flea market, bingo and live music. Cedar Creek Park, Rostraver. Free (Aug. 7); co.westmoreland.pa.us.
BUTLER FARM SHOW: Music, animal shows and more. Butler Farm Show Grounds (Aug. 8-13); butlerfarmshow.com.
WASHINGTON COUNTY FAIR: Washington County Fairgrounds, Washington (August); washingtonfair.org.
BARREL & FLOW FEST: Black brewers, crafters market, music by Black Hippie, Shade Cobain & Rob Rhodes, Chris Allen, Nash.V.ILL, Livefromthecity, Soulful Femme, Elias Khouri, and more. The Stacks at 3 Crossings, Strip District (Aug. 13); barrelandflow.com.
BLOOMFIELD LITTLE ITALY DAYS: Food and craft vendors, bocce, three stages of music. Free (Aug. 18-21); littleitalydays.com.
EAST PITTSBURGH GREEK FEST: Greek food, with live music. Christ Greek Orthodox Church, Olympia Hall, East Pittsburgh (Aug. 18-20); greekburgh.com.
WESTMORELAND FAIR: Monster trucks, demolition derbies, tractor pulls, talent contest and animals. Westmoreland Fairgrounds, Greensburg (Aug. 19-27); westmorelandfair.com
ROCK, REGGAE & RELIEF: Music festival with UB40, Original Wailers, The Movement, Maxi Priest, Big Mountain and more. Forbes Avenue and Market Square, Downtown ( Aug. 20); rockreggaerelief.com.
LAUREL HIGHLANDS BLUEGRASS FESTIVAL: Seven bands, artisans, food vendors, period reenactors, children’s activities, and wagon rides. 1454 Laurel Hill Park Road, Somerset. Free (Aug. 20-21); golaurelhighlands.com.
PITTSBURGH RENAISSANCE FESTIVAL: Medieval festival featuring combat jousting, games of skill, rides, period foods, costumed performers and artisan marketplace. Off Interstate 70, six miles west of New Stanton (weekends Aug. 20-Sept. 25); pittsburghrenfest.com.
HOOKSTOWN FAIR: Fairgrounds at 1198 Route 168, Hookstown (Aug. 23-27); hookstownfair.com.
PITTSBURGH VEGFEST: The eighth annual festival, hosted by Justice for Animals, offers vegetarian dishes, cooking and food demonstrations, shopping, live music and speaker engagements. Allegheny Commons East Park, North Side. Free. (Aug. 27); PittsburghVegFest.org
SHADYSIDE ... THE ART FESTIVAL ON WALNUT STREET: Shadyside. Free (Aug. 27-28); artfestival.com.
INDIANA COUNTY FAIR: Indiana County Fairgrounds (August); indianacountyfair.com.
SEPTEMBER
PENNSYLVANIA ARTS & CRAFTS LABOR DAY FESTIVAL: More than 200 exhibitors. Westmoreland Fairgrounds, Greensburg (Sept. 2-5); familyfestivals.com.
LABOR UNITED CELEBRATION: Flea market, food, arts and crafts show, entertainment, carnival. Northmoreland Park, Allegheny Township, Westmoreland County. Free (Sept. 4-5); co.westmoreland.pa.us.
PITTSBURGH PIEROGI FESTIVAL: More than two dozen pierogi vendors, Kennywood rides, a marketplace with pierogi-themed goods, family-friendly games, live entertainment and beer gardens. Kennywood Park, West Mifflin (Sept. 9); kennywood.com.
PITTSBURGH IRISH FESTIVAL: Celtic music, Irish food, Irish marketplace, children’s activities, storytelling, Irish dance workshops and performances. Carrie Blast Furnaces, Rankin (Sept. 9-11); pghirishfest.org.
A FAIR IN THE PARK: Contemporary crafts festival presented by Craftmen’s Guild of Pittsburgh. Mellon Park, Shadyside. Free (Sept. 9-11); afairinthepark.org.
ALPHABET TRAILS AND TALES: Festival that promotes reading and literacy. Frick Park Blue Slide Playground, Squirrel Hill (Sept. 10); pittsburghpa.gov/ citiparks
PITTSBURGH TACO FESTIVAL: Tacos from well-known restaurants, street vendors and food trucks, music and other family-friendly entertainment. Strip District Terminal, Strip (Sept. 10); pghtacofest.com.
PITTSBURGH INTERNATIONAL JAZZ FESTIVAL: Performances by Ron Carter Foresight, Ledisi, Stanley Clark, Samara Joy and more. Liberty Avenue and August Wilson African American Cultural Center, Downtown. Street events free ( Sept. 16- 18); pittsburghjazzfest.org.
LIGONIER HIGHLAND GAMES: Pipe bands, Highland dancing, athletic competitions, dog exhibits. Arts and crafts, food, music and more. Idlewild Park, Ligonier (Sept. 17); ligonierhighlandgames.org.