11 of the Best Food Festivals in the US to Start Planning For Now

For the traveling gourmand, the United States offers a smorgasbord of food festivals worth crossing state lines for. From the coasts to the mountains to the desert, the best US food festivals are a chance to discover new dishes, meet talented chefs, and learn new cooking techniques. They’re definitely food festivals WTF (worth traveling for) — though when you see some of the creative dishes on display, you may think “WTF” in the more traditional sense, too.

The best food festivals in the US are immersive experiences, ranging from enormous free festivals in urban parks to exclusive, high-end events where ticket costs can reach into the four figures. Some festivals highlight just one dish or ingredient, like New Mexico’s Green Chile Festival, while others offer a global spread at attendees’ fingertips. You can keep it elegant with a weekend in Aspen, or embrace the Midwestern spirit by participating in a cheese curd-eating contest in Wisconsin.

So pack your bags, book your Airbnb, and loosen your belt — these are the best US food festivals worth traveling for in 2025 and beyond.

Photo: Patrick L. Pyszka/City of Chicago

• Dates: September 5-7, 2025
• Cost to attend:  Free
• Where to stay: The 15 Coolest Airbnbs in Chicago

The Taste of Chicago, known locally as “The Taste,” is the world’s largest food festival, held annually in Grant Park along Chicago’s beautiful lakefront. Since its inception in 1980, the event has grown from attracting 250,000 people to welcoming approximately 3 million hungry attendees each year. It showcases Chicago’s local specialties like deep-dish pizza, Chicago-style hot dogs, and Eli’s Cheesecake, plus international cuisines representing the city’s multicultural heritage. Beyond the food, visitors can enjoy free nightly concerts with A-list performers, join group dance parties and demonstrations, attend cooking classes, and relax in the festival’s expansive beer hall. Food tastings from vendors typically cost about $5.

Read more about Chi-Town’s food scene:

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Photo: South Beach Wine & Food Festival

• Dates: February 19-22, 2026
• Cost to attend: $40-$550, depending on event
• Where to stay: 12 Airbnbs in Miami Near the City’s Best Beaches and Neighborhoods

There’s something undeniably appealing about escaping to Miami in the middle of winter, so the fact that it’s home each February to the “Foodie Super Bowl” is just icing on the cake. The South Beach Food and Wine Festival takes place just steps from the sugary white sand and is known for signature events like the “Burger Bash,” where attendees vote for their favorite burgers. The festival attracts more than 65,000 visitors annually for events that showcase the talents of over 500 chefs, along with dozens of culinary experts and celebrity guests. Highlights include walk-around tasting events, intimate dinners with Michelin-starred chefs, and themed experiences like “Noche Cubana,” featuring Cuban-inspired cuisine, cocktails, and salsa dancing. Most events are for adults 21 and older, though some daytime activities are family-friendly.

Read more about Miami’s food scene:

• How the Women Behind Hy Vong Helped Miami Fall in Love With Vietnamese Food
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• The Best Miami Restaurants for Latin American Food
• The 24 Best Experiences to Have During Your First Trip to Miami
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Photo: New Orleans Food & Wine Experience

• Dates: June 12-15, 2025
• Cost to attend: $75-$1,000, depending on event
• Where to stay: 9 New Orleans Airbnbs Near the French Quarter

The Big Easy has no shortage of festivals, but the New Orleans Wine and Food Experience — now in its 33rd year — has become one of the most prestigious and well-known food festivals in the US. It attracts nearly 2,000 gourmands and wine connoisseurs from around the world who come to enjoy high-end activities celebrating the city’s gastronomic culture. The festival celebrates quintessential local dishes like crawfish étouffée, boudin sausages, beignets, and seafood gumbo, alongside international cuisines that reflect the city’s global food influences, which are some of the most varied in North America.

Beyond eating, visitors can attend the “Tournament of Rosés,” where guests dress to impress while sampling premier rosés, participate in interactive labs led by wine professionals and chefs, attend cooking demonstrations, and experience the “Burlesque, Bubbly and Brunch” event with bottomless sparkling wine and performances by renowned burlesque and burlesque-adjacent acts.

Photo: Rut Luecha/Shutterstock

• Dates: October 5-6, 2025
• Cost to attend: $15-$120, depending on event
• Where to stay: 9 New Orleans Airbnbs Near the French Quarter

If the New Orleans Wine and Food Festival celebrates the elegance of food, the just-as-popular Fried Chicken Festival has more of an everyman feel. It’s affectionately known as FCF and is a two-day culinary celebration also held in picturesque New Orleans. It was founded in 2016 with the simple concept that “everybody loves fried chicken,” and now attracts more than 120,000 attendees per year.

During the festival, more than 40 restaurants from across the country compete to create innovative fried chicken dishes like macaroni-stuffed wings, chicken and funnel cake combinations, fried chicken cocktails, and chicken-shaped ice cream desserts with “skin” made from waffle bits. There’s also big-name entertainment, cooking demos, celebrity chefs, and a chicken wing eating contest, as well as a coveted people’s choice award for best wings.

Read more about the New Orleans food scene:

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• The 10 Best Bars in New Orleans for Strong Drinks and Good Times
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• To Understand New Orleans, Eat Like a Chef
• The 11 Best Airbnbs in New Orleans for a Bachelorette Getaway

Photo: Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership/Renee Rosensteel and Emery Meyer

• Dates: July 11-13, 2025
• Cost to attend: Free
• Where to stay: The 11 Coolest Airbnbs in Pittsburgh’s Trendiest Neighborhoods

It’s easy to guess what food is held in highest regard at the Picklesburgh festival. It’s a celebration of all-things-pickled, attracting about 250,000 attendees each year. The blend of pickle-themed food, drinks, merchandise, and live music makes it a one of the best food festivals to travel to for anyone looking for a fun and quirky experience. Attendees can look forward to a variety of pickle-infused delights, including pickle-flavored beer and cocktails, pickle ice cream, and pickled foods like dilly beans and kimchi. There’s an annual pickle juice drinking competition (the winner is crowned the “Mayor of Picklesburgh”), a 35-foot-long Heinz pickle balloon towering over the festivities, and a kids area focused on pickle-shaped crafts.

Read more about Pennsylvania’s food scene:

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• Experience Pennsylvania’s Best Getaway Spots From These Gorgeous Airbnbs
  

Photo: Bogdan Sonjachnyj/Shutterstock

• Dates: August 9-10, 2025
• Cost to attend: Free
• Where to stay: Exhale and Relax at These Cannabis-Friendly Airbnbs in Chicago

Veggie Fest started in 2005 with 500 guests and now attracts more than 50,000 people each year, making it the biggest vegetarian festival in the US. It celebrates both the vegan and veg lifestyle, as well as the general idea of trying to eat less meat and live slightly healthier. There’s an international food court with veggie dishes from around the world, workshops on meditation and sustainable living, speakers and cooking demos, classes on how to cook with meat substitutes, live music, complimentary yoga, and more. It caters to seasoned vegetarians, curious newcomers, and flexitarians. The festival is held just outside Chicago in a huge outdoor park in Lisle, and is accessible from the city on public transit.

Photo: C2 Photography/Food & Wine

• Dates: June 20-22, 2025
• Cost to attend: $2,950+
• Where to stay: 11 Aspen Airbnbs to take in the country’s most glamorous town

The Aspen Food and Wine Classic isn’t the only food and wine festival in a mountain town, but it may be the most exclusive. Annual attendance is limited to 4,000 people, with a ticket price of $2,950 person. It’s an extremely intimate and high-end experience where attendees can interact with world-renowned chefs, sommeliers, and industry experts. The festival includes more than 80 cooking demonstrations, wine seminars, panel discussions, and spirits tastings, all centered around the Grand Tasting Pavilion.

The festival has helped shape Aspen into a culinary destination beyond the festival dates, so you can have a fantastic meal no matter when you visit the town. If you’re there during the festival and don’t want to shell out for a ticket, some restaurants and shops in town hold their own unaffiliated events at the same time, so you’ll still find plenty of interesting menus. Try to make your dining reservations as far in advance as possible, as many restaurants sell out early or close for festival-specific events in the evenings.

Read more about Colorado’s food scene:

• The 10 Top Rated Restaurants in Denver
• This Ritzy Aspen Hotel Is Famous for Its Personalized Butler Service
• This Gorgeous Colorado Distillery Makes the First Single Pot Still Whiskey Outside of Ireland
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• Stunning Aspen Airbnbs to Take in the Country’s Most Glamorous Mountain Town

Photo: Maine Lobster Festival

• Dates: July 30-August 3, 2025
• Cost to attend: Free to attend, but some activities have fees

The Maine Lobster Festival is a celebration of coastal culture — and the state’s most famous local crustacean. It spans five days of programming that are equal parts irreverent summertime festival and deep-rooted connection to the local community and state’s maritime heritage. One of the most unique features is the “Marine Experience Tent,” where visitors can interact with sea life, learn about marine ecosystems, connect with the source of their seafood, and get a better understanding of the importance of sustainable fishing practices.

If you’re attending, don’t miss the “International Great Crate Race,” where participants attempt to run across a string of lobster crates in Rockland Harbor. If you’re traveling with little kids in tow, you may want to enter them in (or at least take them to) the “Little Lobster Diaper Derby” crawling race. Of course, there’s also a seafood cooking contest, where chefs compete to create innovative lobster dishes.

The Maine Lobster Festival isn’t the biggest of the public US food festivals, but it’s one of the most fun, with a grassroots spirit that feels authentic to the culture of coastal Maine.

Read more about Maine’s food scene:

• Why Portland, Maine, Is the Ultimate Fall Food Getaway
• Where to Eat in Maine Before Lobster Season Ends in December
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• Tasting Maine: A Guide to the Local Food Movement
• These Airbnbs in Portland, Maine, Showcase the Best of New England’s Coolest City

Photo: Cheese Curd Festival

• Dates: June 27-28, 2025
• Cost to attend: Free to attend, but some activities have fees
• Where to stay: ?

The Ellsworth Cheese Curd Festival is an annual celebration of the town’s title as the “Cheese Curd Capital” of Wisconsin, as well as the whole state’s rich dairy heritage. It attracts about 30,000 attendees each year who come for the food, music, and Wisconsin community spirit. Naturally, the festival has plenty of creative cheese curd dishes to try, including fresh hand-battered and deep-fried curds, along with an exclusive dessert curd that rivals the mini donut. In past years, there have been more than 250 types of cheeses at the festival, plus local music acts on three stages ranging from folk to blues performances. There’s also a classic car show, a milk and cookie pairing, and ice cream tastings.

Of course, this is Wisconsin, and it’s known for something beyond dairy: beer. The festival includes the “Corks and Kegs” tasting event, where attendees can try local beer, wine, and hard cider, plus a “Craft and Curd” pairing event where attendees can judge local breweries’ perfect brew and cheese curd pairings. There’s a cheese curd eating contest, too, though you probably shouldn’t waste stomach space with those local beers if you’re trying to win.

Read more about Wisconsin’s food scene:

• A Wisconsin Master Cheesemaker Explains How To Find the Best Cheese in the State
• The Real Story Behind Why Some Wisconsinites Eat Raw Meat Sandwiches Around the Holidays
• The Midwest Is Obsessed With Frozen Custard. Here’s Where to Try It
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• Live Your Best Lake Life at These Top-Rated Wisconsin Airbnbs

Photo: kenelamb photographics/Shutterstock

• Dates: August 30-31, 2025
• Cost to attend: Free to attend, but some activities have fees
• Where to stay: Where to Stay Near White Sands National Park

New Mexico’s Hatch Chile Festival celebrates the region’s renowned green chile peppers, a staple of New Mexican cuisine. It’s held over Labor Day weekend each year and transforms the small town in a lively tourist and culinary hub. There’s a carnival with rides and games, live music, and a “Chile Queen” pageant. Visitors can sample various dishes featuring green chiles, from traditional roasted chiles to more innovative recipes. It’s also a great place to buy a variety of chile-themed products, including ristras (strings of dried chile peppers often used as decoration).

Hatch is known as the “Chile Capital of the World,” and visitors to the area can also visit chile farms and try local favorites like green chile burgers. It’s also close to plenty of outdoor attractions, including White Sands National Park, as well as everything from local wineries to hot springs.

Read more about New Mexico’s food scene:

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• 9 Santa Fe Airbnbs That’ll Make New Mexico’s Capital Feel Like Home

Photo: Kirk Lee Aeder/Island of Hawaii Visitors Bureau

• Dates: Oct. 17-Nov. 2, 2025
• Cost to attend: $295+
• Where to stay: 19 Dreamy Airbnbs in Hawai’i Just Steps from the Beach

The Hawaiʻi Food and Wine Festival (HFWF) is not just one of the best food festivals in the US, but also one of the most expansive, spanning across three islands. It was co-founded by James Beard Award-winning chefs and showcases the state’s culinary bounty. Using local ingredients isn’t just encouraged, but mandatory. Participating chefs are required to use at least one locally grown, raised, or caught ingredient in their dishes to help ensure the festival benefits Hawaii’s farmers, ranchers, and fishermen. Local producers also benefit by being event hosts, as many open their farms, ranches, and production facilities to visiting chefs and guests.

Events of the festival range from high-end tastings to kids’ cooking classes and approachable wine seminars. More than 150 master chefs, culinary personalities, sommeliers, and mixologists are expected to participate in some capacity in 2025. This year, the Big Island will host the festival October 17 and 18, Maui will host October 25 and 26, and things will wrap up in Oahu from October 30 to November 2.