Events ~ Festivals ~ Parades
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ANNUAL FESTIVALS & PARADES EVENTS 2012 |
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March 3rd- 10th 2012-Taste of Downtown Spring |
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Downtown locally owned restaurants offer specials throughout the week to entice you to taste downtown. This is THE week to eat out! Downtown Harrisonburg restaurants will showcase their finest cuisine with wallet-friendly creative menus. Find time to have lunch or dinner and Do Downtown. |
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April through October 2012 5PM – 7PM - First Fridays Downtown Harrisonburg |
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Free downtown art walks and open houses are featured every first Friday of the month beginning in April and ending in October. Experience live music, art exhibitions, and performing arts. Visit with other art and music lovers as you stroll through downtown from venue to venue to meet and greet local artists. Visitors can shop and stroll, see art and listen to music, taste wine and find somewhere delicious to dine. |
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April 4, 2012, April 11, 2012 10AM, Annual Daffodil Walk |
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The Annual Daffodil Walk occurs in the first weeks of spring with over 50 varieties of daffodils in hues of yellow, orange, and peach. Daffodils grace the circular gardens of the Edith J. Carrier Arboretum as visitors wind through the grounds. Explore over 125 acres of natural beauty and experience the glory of spring. Guided tours are available, or just bring a blanket and relax. |
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April 14, 2012 - Blacks Run/Downtown Clean Up Day |
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Celebrate our local waterways and volunteer your time with a couple of hours of good cleanup fun. Events include presenters, educational exhibits, the GreenScene and music. If you just want to stop by and can't volunteer to clean up, feel free to stop, bring a lunch and blanket, and enjoy the festivities with us! Help us celebrate the quality of life we have come to enjoy. Eco-enthusiasts welcome. |
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April 21 – 28, 2012 - Harrisonburg-Rockingham County, Historic Garden Week |
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Garden Week in Harrisonburg (April 16-23, 2011) features historic gardens and homes. Eclectic modern architecture in contemporary settings, mountain homes, and pastoral views have all been part of past Harrisonburg-Rockingham Historic Garden Week. Join us in Harrisonburg as the Spotswood Garden Club greets visitors with inspired arrangements amid the beauty of the Shenandoah Valley. |
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April 21, 2012 - Rocktown Beer & Music Festival |
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The Festival will offer thirty true-blue American micros from across the country. In 2011 we hosted national names like Stone and Dogfish, as well as local favorites, Blue Mountain and Devil’s Backbone are just a few. Snarky Puppy, Hackensaw Boys, Yarn, and Larry Keel and Natural Bridge will rock you. Event location, Turner Pavilion in the heart of Downtown Harrisonburg, walking distance from great restaurants and entertainment spots. |
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May 12 – 13, 2012 – Mothers Day & Commencement Carriage Rides |
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Mothers Day & Commencement Carriage Rides at the Edith J. Carrier Arboretum create an occasion that goes beyond the ordinary to surprise Mom. The Carrier Arboretum was voted Harrisonburg and the region's favorite place to bring out-of-town guests. While relaxing in the luxurious vis-Ã -vis carriage, riders are drawn through the woods by beautiful Belgium horses and an experienced coachman. |
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May 19, 2012 – 9AM – 3PM Herb and Garden Festival- Edith J. Carrier Arboretum |
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Your garden shopping experience won’t be typical. From 9-3pm hear lectures, ask the experts at the Native Plant Society & Master Gardener chapter, experience live music and butterfly release program. There’ll be plenty of culinary and medicinal herbs to shop from too. Don’t miss the Annual Herb and Garden Festival! |
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May 26, 2012 – 11AM – 7PM ValleyFest |
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ValleyFest, the Harrisonburg-Rockingham Chamber of Commerce’s annual beer and wine festival, is a celebration of life in the Valley. Enjoy Virginia wines, a variety of craft, micro, domestic and imported beers, and friendly people. Hear live bands on the picturesque slopes of Massanutten Resort, sample delicious food while you're sipping on beer and wine, and do a little shopping! Quality crafters and specialty vendors offer some unique treasures. |
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June 2012-August 2012- Fridays on the Square Music and Movies |
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Celebrate this 20 year summer tradition on Court Square! Beginning the first week of June and ending the last week in August. Live musical groups alternate with films every Friday evening on Courthouse Square in downtown Harrisonburg. Music starts at 7pm. Films start at 8pm or dusk. Bring your picnics, blankets, lawn chairs, and all the kids. Free summertime fun on the lawn of Court Square! |
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June 2, 2012 - Court & Market Days |
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Court & Market Days is the first Saturday in June. Old friends from the 1850s gather together with the local farmers market to recreate the Court & Market Days of years past. From live performances to historic arts and music, this event is fun for the whole family. Enjoy music, fun and food in1850s Harrisonburg recreated. |
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June 10 – 17, 2012-The Shenandoah Valley Bach Festival |
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Bach Festival is a week-long summer music festival devoted to promoting an appreciation and understanding of the music of Bach. The festival takes place on the campus of Eastern Mennonite University as well as other venues in Harrisonburg. Three featured concerts, six daily noon chamber music concerts, open rehearsals, and a Sunday Leipzig service infuse the Valley with an unequaled musical richness. Show times vary. |
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June 23, 2012 – 12 PM – 8 PM Harrisonburg-Rockingham African-American Festival |
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Enjoy an afternoon of entertainment, fellowship, activities, crafts, art, music, food, exhibitions and more! The Harrisonburg-Rockingham African-American Festival (HRAAF) began as a grassroots effort to bring attention to and celebrate the heritage, achievements and contributions of Harrisonburg's and Rockingham's African-American communities. Join us for an event that creates unity, promotes family and celebrates heritage and diversity through expressions of faith and love. |
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July 3, 2012 – 4:30 – 10:00 PM Summer Jam at Massanutten Resort |
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Celebrate on the slopes of Massanutten with live music, great food and a fireworks finale that will light up the mountain. Activities begin at 4:30 and music plays until 10:00pm with fireworks to follow. Tickets available at the General Store, Massanutten Resort. |
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July 4, 2012 - Valley 4th |
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Valley 4th celebrates our independence in a big way with all day activities, a parade, and live music. You'll find children’s activities, walking tours, food, beer garden, and more. The day kicks off with a public reading of the Declaration of Independence and continues until the grand fireworks display over Court Square in historic downtown Harrisonburg. |
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August 2012 - Rockingham County Fair |
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The week-long event brings agriculture, great music and traditional fair fun together for one of Virginia’s largest agricultural fairs. Grandstand events include Tractor Pulls, Demolition Derby and a variety of music including Gospel, Pop, Country, and Rock. Experience free family shows and events in the Showcase tent along with traditional agricultural events, carnival rides, and fabulous food. |
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August 2012- Taste of Downtown Summer |
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Downtown Harrisonburg's locally owned restaurants offer specials throughout the week to entice you to taste downtown. This is THE week to eat out! Downtown Harrisonburg restaurants will showcase their finest cuisine with wallet-friendly creative menus. Find time to have lunch or dinner and Do Downtown. |
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September 2012 - Harvest Day at CrossRoads |
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The annual Harvest Day at CrossRoads offers something for the whole family with special activities for children – old-time games and crafts, painting pumpkins and gourds, hay rides, shelling and grinding corn to feed barnyard animals, making pancakes and butter, fabricating toothpicks and yarn dolls, etc. Adults enjoy Civil War era stories, special music, boiling molasses, pressing cider, sawing logs with a crosscut, spinning thread and quilting, blacksmithing, making homemade foods including ice cream, and more. |
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September 29, 2012-Harrisonburg International Festival |
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The Harrisonburg International Festival is a free day of family fun that celebrates the many cultures that make up our community. We feature international foods, music, and dance, activities for all ages, a multi-language area, and a World Bazaar featuring traditional folk art. Our attendance numbers are currently around 6,500 people and we are accessible to disabled individuals and older adults. Come Celebrate with us. |
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Saturday, October 6, 2012 Dayton Days Autumn Celebration |
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The first Saturday in October celebrates the beauty and artistry of the Shenandoah Valley at the annual Dayton Days Autumn Celebration with over 300 vendors with handmade crafts & goods. Enjoy festival food and music set in historic downtown Dayton. Come and celebrate in Dayton, Virginia. |
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October 5, 2012 – October 6, 2012 Virginia Mennonite Relief Sale |
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Virginia Mennonite Relief Sale– This annual event will celebrate its 45th year and includes popular food items as homemade glazed donuts, pancake breakfast, Brunswick stew made on the premise, canned goods, and pies. The event is located at the Rockingham County Fairgrounds and offers auctions on donated goods including quilts, handmade furniture and other items to benefit relief opportunities. |
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October 13, 2012 – 11AM – 5PM Massanutten Fall Festival |
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Come and celebrate the changing of the seasons at the 19th annual Massanutten Fall Festival. Often called Autumn Peak because the fall colors are in their glory. Over 60 arts vendors, live music, chairlift rides to the top of the Peak, kids activities, wine sampling, beer garden, food, petting farm, and more! |
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October 2012 – Halloween On The Square |
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Wander down Main Street on a crisp autumn afternoon with your little goblins when downtown merchants open their doors to trick-or-treaters. Then enjoy music from a live DJ, free carnival games, crafts and face painting on the square. Costume contests for kids and dogs! Vendors will also offer pumpkin painting, hayrides and other spooky goodies! |
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November 2012 – Harrisonburg Veterans Parade |
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Head down to the flag-lined streets of downtown Harrisonburg to honor those who have served their country. The parade begins at 2pm at the Municipal Building on South Main Street and marches north to the Rockingham County Administration Building. |
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December 2012 - Harrisonburg Christmas Parade & Holidays on Main Street |
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Traditional holiday festivities on Court Square hearken back to a simple time of wandering carolers, carriage rides, Father Christmas, tree lighting by the Mayor, musicians, and cups of hot cocoa. Combine this with Harrisonburg Recreation Department's annual Christmas parade and you have an evening filled with the sights and sounds of the season. |
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December 2012 - Christmas Arts & Craft Show at the Rockingham County Fairgrounds |
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More than 130 exhibitors show handcrafted items only at the Rockingham County Fair Grounds. Thousands attend this annual favorite for holiday gifts, handcrafted furniture, crafts and more. Commercial Vendors, Unique Crafts, Designated Parking, Handicapped Access, and Public Transportation available. |
