Festivals & Events

The Ozark Gateway Region plays host to a variety of festivals and events throughout the year. Festivals celebrating the culture that is unique to the Ozark happen year-round. Harvest time celebrations occur throughout the area in the fall, allowing visitors to see both the history and present of agriculture. Film festivals for adults in the spring and children in the summer provide a unique opportunity to experience local art. Golf tournaments for the ardent golfer are always interesting as are the unique races and contest that occur throughout the year. Carnivals and homecoming festivals occur year-round throughout the region and the Fourth of July celebrations (and the fireworks displays that follow) are always worth a visit. Seasonal events like heritage festivals draw crowds from around the world and special events even occur underground amid the beautiful caverns of the region. With something interesting happening in the region virtually every day, there is always something to see or do. The Ozark Gateway Region truly has something for everyone, so plan your visit today!

Arkansas Craft Gallery

The Arkansas Craft Gallery offers fine handmade arts and crafts made by Arkansas artists who are members of the Arkansas Craft Guild.  You will find many items, like pottery, baskets, quilts, photography, bath and body products and crafted wood items, as well as many other fine handmade items for sale at the Gallery. There are featured artist events, with members of the Guild giving demonstrations and information about their craft, throughout the year. The Gallery is at 204 E., right off the courtsquare in Mtn. View, Arkansas. Hours are 10:00 am until 5:00 pm, Tuesday through Saturday. The Gallery is owned and operated by Guild members, and managed by a Board of Directors elected annually. The Guild was incorporated as a cooperative in 1962 to promote and preserve the traditional crafts of Arkansas. Phone 870-269-4120 Email arkansascraftguild@gmail.com they are located at 104 E. Main St., PO Box 800, Mountain View, AR 72560  For events and current news visit their Facebook Page for other information visit their Website

Arkansas Folk Festival

Mountain View presents the Arkansas Folk Festival, highlighted by an old-fashioned hometown parade complete with school bands, patriotic veterans groups, show horses and decorated floats. Live folk music seems to never stop in the friendly, inviting atmosphere of the town’s courtsquare. Come out and share the fun, bring your own instrument and sit in during Pickin’ on the Square. Take a trip back to the good old days, and see firsthand why Mountain View is known as the Folk Music Capital of the World. [Visit their website…]

Arkansas Pie Festival

The Arkansas Pie Festival is set to return to Cherokee Village on April 29, 2023 as a partner of the World Food Championship, the biggest Food Sport event in the world. As an official qualifying event for WFC, the Arkansas Pie Festival will award one Golden Ticket to its champion making them eligible to compete in the Dessert category at the international cooking tournament this fall. https://www.arkansaspiefestival.com

Living Windows

On the second Saturday of December Calico Rock comes alive. Each of the store fronts on Main Mains are transformed to Christmas Scenes. Each are decorated in a Christmas theme with living people in the windows.  The event opens at 5:30 pm and goes until 6:30 pm.

At 6:45 pm the Lighted Christmas Parade will start at the Museum on Main Street and end at the Calico Rock Fire Department. They bring Santa to town.  Santa will see kids at the Fire House.

Neighbors visiting and carolers caroling the Season of plenty is here. For additional information call 870-297-6100

BeanFest & Great Championship Outhouse Race

Autumn is a time for celebration, and there’s none bigger in Mountain View than the Arkansas Bean Fest and Great Championship Outhouse Race. For more than 23 years, thousands have flocked to the town to enjoy 2,000 pounds of free pinto beans and cornbread along with lots of great folk, bluegrass, Cajun and gospel music. Then comes the Parade of Outhouses, where crowds cheer for their favorite “people-powered potty” team as they maneuver their wheeled outhouses into place for a race the likes of which you’ve never seen before.

For complete information including an entry form for this year’s talent show please visit the Mountain View website: www.yourplaceinthemountains.com or check out the schedule at www.yourplaceinthemountains/schedule

Mountain View Bluegrass Festival

The Mountain View Bluegrass Festival kicks off in high gear with some of the hottest bluegrass music you’ll find anywhere in the country. Indoor and outdoor jamming areas at the beautiful Ozark Folk Center Auditorium and Grounds showcase top-notch national music groups across three full days of fun for the whole family. Plenty of food and lodging and possibly more friendly people than you’ll ever meet in one place ­ what a great way to spend a weekend! The Mountain View Bluegrass festival is held the second weekend in March and second weekend in November.

www.MountainView-Bluegrass.com.

Annual Cave City Watermelon Festival

“Welcome Home” to this year’s Cave City Watermelon Fetival! For three Days the last weekend of July, we hope you’ll join us for a celebration of friendships, family, and the world’s sweetest watermelons. There’s something for everyone and the admission is free! Mark your calendars now!

Connect with us on facebook and twitter.
Email us at watermelonfestival@cavecity.us
Ring us @ 870-283-5301

Cave City Watermelon Festival, PO Box 663, Cave City, Arkansas 72521

Caroling in the Caverns

Without a doubt one of the most popular special events of any Ozark holiday season is Caroling in the Caverns, where an evening of traditional Christmas carols are performed deep within the earth at Blanchard Springs’ Cathedral Room. The blend of area folk musicians’ voices and instruments rises from the darkened room with perfect acoustics to magically create the true spirit of Christmas, Ozark-style.

Check out their website for more information on this fun event!

Arkansas Scottish Festival

The Arkansas Scottish Festival, held every year at Lyon College in Batesville, celebrates Lyon’s Presbyterian and Scottish roots. Admission is free. Festival highlights include competitions for pipe bands, individual bagpipers, drummers, Highland dancers and Scottish athletics; sheepdog demonstrations; Scottish food music, and merchandise; a traditional Feast and Ceilidh on Saturday night; and the Iona Scottish Worship Service on Sunday morning. A Celtic Concert is held on Friday evening. The festival opens at 8 a.m. Saturday and Sunday. For more information, visit www.lyon.edu/scotfest.

Fulton County Homecoming Festival

The Fulton County Homecoming Festival is held in Salem and is one of the longest running festivals in the area. The festival provides a time for former residents to return to Fulton County and enjoy a wide variety of activities including street dances, the Mark Thomas Memorial Apple Pie 5K Run, a squirt race for youth, horseshoe pitching, terrapin race, street market and food booths, music, and a parade. The festival provides a convenient time for class reunions and families to get together. Visit Fulton County and enjoy the celebration of the Annual Fulton County Homecoming Festival. www.salemAR.com.

Treasures In The Ozarks

Treasures In The Ozarks is a juried Arts and Crafts Show nestled in the foothills of the Ozarks.

Call 901-326-2092 or visit their facebook page.

 

 

Hardy Homesteaders Day

Hardy Homesteaders Day takes place the last Saturday of September. Hardy Homesteaders is a all volunteer organization. We have sponsored a family oriented annual event for 29 years. Pioneering skills are our focus.  We have a blacksmith who works his trade. Our outfitters cook with dutch ovens. We have events for the kids, like a terrapin race, and cloth dolls they can make.

(870) 847-5273

https://www.facebook.com/Hardy-Homesteaders-Day-794516757307799

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Loco Ropes

Loco Ropes is a high wire forest adventure for fun loving folks of all ages. Our 3 Loco Lines, made up of 30+ elements, such as ziplines, tarzan swings, rope bridges, and swinging logs, offer challenges from the mildly cautious to the seriously adventurous! If you’re looking for an introduction into our adrenaline fueled world, try our Tower Adventures: the 300 foot Flying Pig Zipline with a bonus round trip cable ride to the tower platform, the 35 foot HotShot FreeFall that cable drops you straight to the ground, and the Planks Peak Climbing Wall giving you 5 attempts with beginner to advance climbing choices. Stay long or stay short – come to Loco Ropes for an adventure you’ll long remember, talk about, and want to experience all over again! Visit their website for more information.

Depot Days

The annual Depot Days music festival each September on historic Front Street in downtown Newport, Arkansas. The festival is a showcase of local, regional, and national talent paying tribute to the early history of Rock and Roll. Old U.S. Highway 67, which runs through the heart of Newport and Jackson County, was the home for dozens of roadhouses and nightclubs which hosted early shows by rock pioneers in the 1950’s and 60’s. Music legends such as Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins, Roy Orbison, and Sonny Burgess all frequented the venues along the highway when Rock music was in its’ infancy. Festival goers from Europe, Australia, and all over the U.S. make annual pilgrimages to Front Street to catch a glimpse of living legends from the 50’s as well as younger generations of musicians who were inspired by the elders.

The festival also offers food vendors, crafts, children’s activities, a BBQ contest, and free prizes given away from the stage all day! Coolers are welcome. Admission is FREE! For more information see our Depot Days Facebook page, our website at www.depotdays.org or contact the Newport Area Chamber of Commerce at director@newportarchamber.org or call 870-523-3618. Visit their website for more information on events schedule.

Off the Beaten Path Studio Tour

The Off the Beaten Path Studio Tour held each September. There are several studios on the tour, all located within 30 miles of the Court Square in Mountain View. The tour was offered free of charge to the public then, and it still is today. It is funded by artists’ fees, the sponsorship of local businesses, and lots of volunteer labor!

Each year new artists have been added to the tour through a peer review process which considers the type and quality of work produced and the geographic location and accessibility of the artist’s studio. Eligible studios must be within 30 miles of the Court Square in Mountain View and are limited to artists who have private working studios.

An open studio tour such as this provides visitors a unique opportunity to connect with local artists and craftsmen in their working environments. It allows the visitor to see not only what the artists make but to see how their lives and working spaces reflect and influence their work.

The “Off the Beaten Path” Studio Tour showcases the creative artists in and around Mountain View and provides an opportunity for visitors to purchase work directly from these artists. When you choose to buy a handmade product, you are not only buying a unique piece of art but you are supporting Arkansas artists who make their living creating unique traditional and contemporary crafts with their own hands in their own studios in the beautiful Ozark mountains.

For more information visit

http://www.offthebeatenpathstudiotour.com/