6 Must-Attend Summer Festivals in Denver!

Denver: Capital city of the Rocky Mountain State and quite possibly the coolest city in America to visit. Why? Well, for starters Denver is home to a litany of major sports teams. It has a thriving arts scene, as well as features an impressive amount of breweries. The city is famous for being a bicyclist’s’ paradise and is a perfect starting point for pretty much year-round outdoor fun.

But if none of those reasons are enough to inspire you to visit Denver, then maybe you need a specific event to justify your trip to the Mile High City. And there’s no better reason than a festival  (which are kind of like Denver’s specialty)! Here are six early festivals that go down in Denver and may make you begin planning your next trip.

Five Points Jazz Festival

WHEN: Saturday, May 19, 2018

There was a time when Denver’s Five Points neighborhood was so filled with jazz clubs that it was known as the Harlem of the West. Sadly, since jazz’s decline in popularity – that’s no longer the case. But for the past decade, the city has celebrated it’s hip history with a one day festival in Five Points every May. There are food vendors, street artists, and around three dozen musical acts, playing, you guessed it…jazz.

Held every year in June, the Denver Chalk Art Festival famously invites over 200 artists to help turn the city’s Larimer Square into a gallery/museum of chalk artwork.

Looking for more things to do in Denver? Check out everything the Mile High City has to offer to start planning your next trip!

Taco Festival

WHEN: June 23 & 24, 2018

A relative newcomer to the list, the Denver Taco Festival is exactly what it sounds like–a festival centered around Tacos. With dozens of vendors specializing in the tasty Mexican treats taking over the streets for two days in June, it’s a must-stop for any taco lovers. There’s also live music and tequila expo.

 

Global Dance Festival

For the last thirteen years, the largest music festival in the Rocky Mountain region has gone down every July not only in Denver, but also in the city’s most famous event space – the Red Rocks amphitheater. For the one weekend every year, the biggest names and best acts in dance music take over the performance space built out natural rock structure and give it one of its best shows.

A quintessential Denver event. The Denver County Fair is notorious for being an event that recognizes the city’s uniqueness — it prides itself on being “the craziest county fair in America”. Organizers see it as a venue for Denver residents to share ideas, traditions, creativity, local culture and intellect, as well as a way to showcase the city’s talents, trends, diversity and interests of the residents. It’s a huge celebration brimming with live events, music, exhibitions, competitions, food, and much much more! It all goes down in July at the National Western Complex.

Founded in 1982 and held every September in Denver’s Colorado Convention Center, the Great American Beer Festival (or GABF) is the premiere exhibition and celebration of American beer. It continuously holds the record for the largest selection of American beer served at one time. Do you even need to know anything else?