I'd rate it a solid 3.5 but for the sake of the stars, I'm giving it a 4 - especially for a free…read morefair! Friday around noon was so busy, but it was expected since the weather was gorgeous. There are mostly good vendors above all else, but it's also the best blooming onion (and I look forward to it every year!) We park for free and walk a bit of a distance. I love seeing the homes decorated for Halloween! We don't ride fair rides, but we do live to people watch and, this year, we caught the pet parade which was really great! So much bigger than I ever expected and some very sweet pets in adorable costumes!! Love trying the different treats. Though it's not homemade, I got a pumpkin roll from the Shriners booth and it was pretty tasty and for a good cause. Also purchased some homemade buckeyes from a church group that were awesome. Always love seeing the giant pumpkins, too! I do wish they had more local vendors for buying gifts. The vendors are mainly cheap mass produced junk shop goods (and a lot of gross political things.) Just not my vibe at all. I still think it's worth a visit though! It's well run and a great way to get into the spooky season!

It's okay now it is way more food vendors than anything it's not a lot of pumpkin exhibitions and…read moreit's not a lot of other things going on you will find small places of people singing and things like that but if you like carnival food this is the place for you to be

The 2018 Lancaster Festival ended on a high note--literally! Martina McBride and the Lancaster…read moreOrchestra brought down the house with a lively and epic performance. The weather was perfect for the outside event. The grounds behind OUL provide the perfect place for concerts with the hill providing natural stadium-like seating. The full moon set the stage for a wonderful night--even Martina commented on it. I can't wait until next year!

Apparently the Lancaster Orchestra aren't actually native Lancasterans! They may not even be…read moreAmerican. I heard they need places to stay in the dead period after the festival. Does anyone know how to foster one? Preferably a flutist?

Always a fun time, and although this year it was a little gray, it seemed at it's largest so far. I…read morehave been 3 times I think now and I always walk away with lots of honey and bee-themed goodies, being as we keep bees at our house too (its a lifestyle, just bee :). The end of the summer is a perfect time to stock up on beeswax candles for the upcoming cozy, mystical autumn days-- I'm so glad I did that this year! After we shopped, we checked out a mead tasting in the library just off of the main road and had a blast trying all the different flavors. I walked away with a bottle of orange blossom honey raisin mead for myself plus an extra bottle to include in a wedding gift. A new vendor addition was a shaved ice truck that had honey drizzle for all of the shaved ice. Yum! It's, of course, always a little more fun if it's sunny given the theme, but I still had a great time this year too.

Super fun, quite a large festival for a small town. Loved how involved the whole fest was…read more Attractions, educational demonstrations, honey samples galore, meade tastings, popcorn, corn dogs, bubble tea, artisinal crafts, and face painting, live music, and Im sure I am forgetting a lot. Great traffic averting as well because it was blocked off in a way that didn't disrupt the flow of traffic. Lithopolis Ohio showed itself off with this honey festival.

FINALLY! I've known about the Pawpaw Fest for several years, and always managed to miss the…read moreweekend. This year, I made sure to mark it on my calendar and check it out. NOTE: single-day tickets are a bit on the higher side - $20, but a healthy portion of the proceeds goods toward the preservation of pawpaws in Ohio which is always a win-win situation. Tee shirt feen, right here! You bet I picked up a shirt (or two)! Love the cool design logo for this year's festival. Integrated Acres is a huge pawpaw farm in Athens, so I'm glad I went this year, got to taste the fruit - a cross between mango and banana. Got a big 'ol pouch of frozen pawpaw pulp to enjoy through the cold winter months - it's good to dream of tropical climates, folks! Oh, and Snoweville Creamery was at the fest selling their vanilla ice cream with pawpaw pulp on top, and let me tell you, mmmm mmm mmmmmmm!!

Just a small hop and skip from Athens sits Lake Snowden. A small lake, but notoriously known for…read moreone major event that pops up every September, Paw-paw fest! I've been going for years... mostly to stock up on paw-paw fruits. What's a paw-paw? It's Ohio's native fruit. It's actually one of the few fruits that grow in our part of North America. The fruits have particular growing environments that they need to thrive.... particularly, wet, ravine areas with shade, but still some sun. Perfect conditions for those who live in Hocking county & south.... in the north? Not so much, although some have been spotted in Clintonville area. The fruits range per the region they are cultivated, but Ohio's is typically a green avocado shaped fruit, which tastes like a mix between a very rip banana meets mango. They are related to the papaya family.... I believe. So, the festival itself is like something straight from a Mother Earth News magazine. Lots of workshops & presentations on permaculture, horticulture & pawpaws. Pretty informative stuff, if you're looking to learn. Across the grounds is a stage with locals stringing up some music. On one side of the festival you have crafters/artisans selling prints of their pawpaw masterpieces, ceramics, jewelry, glass, lawn ornaments, etc. On another side you have food vendors dishing up just regular food truck fare, and if you're lucky, some of them have paw-paw items to purchase. in between, you have vendors selling Ohio native plants, including paw-paw tree saplings and much more. Note**There are shuttles that run here, as once parking fills up in the main area, you're forced to shuttle. If you drive just a few hundred yards up the road, across from a gas station will be a large lot to park, and shuttle buses stop frequently. Going here is just easy going. Everyone's pretty laid back in true Athens county fashion. It's really easy to just sit back and get absorbed into all of it, and not to mention, Paw-paws are a delicious treat that Ohio gets to experience for a minuscule period of time. Worth a stop for all you hippie-earth-ohio-loving people.

There are some cute vendors but I'd say only about 20% of them were of interest to me. Lots of…read morestuff that collects dust. Lots of food options and I've had things in years past that were delicious! The he bourbon chicken isn't one of them. It was spicy and most bourbon chicken isn't and the flavor was off. The funnel cake we got was really crunchy and overcooked. They also had some live music.

This is a huge event with lots of vendors to look through. Disappointed that majority are old…read morecountry crafts, would love some more modern designs. We eat healthy & Backwoods can be challenging, but when we went to get a pork butt plate they were eager to get us one without BBQ sauce & no buns. Gave us a huge portion too! Very appreciated! Love that mostly the event is in the woods & is a nice family atmosphere.

A small community with a festival named after the High School football team. The somewhat small…read morevillage park is taken over by all things Viking for a weekend. Lots of craft and souvenir vendors. A few interactive venues and rides. Comedians, performers, historical commentary, and many, many workers and visitor getting their Viking spirit on in period finery. And a number of various food vendors to entice us! It's a free admission, but, they ask for a canned food donation for the food pantry. It's a small town event. Fun, cheerful, small enough to see and participate at most any age without exhaustion.

We stayed here All. Day. That says something…read more It's a small to medium size festival, in a small town. I'd heard of it but never gone. Baby K for some reason liked watching a Viking group do mock fights at the Ohio History Center last year, so we made a point to come. She loved it, I liked it, we met friends and family for part of the time, and ended up being here from 1030am-6pm, and they opened at 10am. Mock fights here, too, and you can (pay to) do it yourself as well, with rubber weapons (at least for kids.) There are jousts, other battles in armor, and more. Wandering reenactors plus guests dressed in period clothes. Vendors of old-style gear and art. Food trucks and a dining hall. Bubbles and crafts and games for kids. Dogs everywhere. Magicians, sword swallowers, troubadours. A full schedule of entertainers on half a dozen stages. Held in a nice park, beside a school that has a decent playground. A little parking onsite, most in the surrounding streets; we found some without much trouble. The dining hall food was cheap and decent. Turkey legs, plus pretty standard fair/fundraiser food. More interesting fare at food trucks, including bbq, bourbon chicken, sandwiches, and more. An ice cream truck doing brisk business. A root beer/ginger ale stand. They ask for canned (or boxed) food donations in lieu of admission, at a tent near the middle. There you can get a map and schedule. Park is pretty open so you can wander in anywhere though. Definitely going next year.

I recently attended a music festival at Legend Valley (Lost Lands) and with it being my first time…read morethere, I was really impressed with the venue and how everything was run. It's located right off interstate 70 in Thornville. Being that it's in a smaller town, traffic got a little backed up arriving but it moved fairly fast and leaving wasn't an issue at all. Getting into the venue was also pretty easy. There was only one day (out of four) where the entrance line was a little backed up and by little I mean maybe five minutes. The space is huge, with a ton of space to walk around and room for all sorts of vendors. From food and facilities to merch and medical, everything flowed pretty well. I know a lot of this depends on the fest and who runs it but I know the venue has a lot to do with that. I didn't camp, but I did catch word that there's a new tunnel that connects campers to the entrance, which I can only imagine makes the experience much easier. I have no doubt that I'll be back!

@( * O * )@*500TH REVIEW*@( * O * )@…read more Wow, on a three WEEK roadtrip that I did from California to New York, Lost Lands was my Grand Prix, the triple crown, or whatever parallel you'd use for the biggest of music festivals. Really fun 4 day camping with 130k other people so enjoy the full festival while you're at it. Legend Valley is a venue about 30 minutes from downtown Columbus, and Lost Lands is just one of many events here. The venue itself is pretty far out there and has some intense traffic to get in, but they do have a general parking area if you are coming from a hotel in Columbus. One big negative that I do have to mention was the camping entry times which was HORRENDOUS. This particular year (2021) was brutal af because of the 13 hour wait time from 6pm to 7am just to enter the venue and setup camp because the organization was rusty and police were just taking people in circles. That was the only bad part of the event and hopefully you don't have to wait that long just to setup your tent because that's the longest I've ever waited for a camping festival. However, that negativity pretty much ended with how everything else went SMOOTHLY. The venue seemed bigger than ever, the event ran without much issues, and the music was good. YES, showers are $10. Bring your own. Yes, the food options are typical overpriced crumbs you call food. Bring your own. need good vibes? BRING YOUR OWN. Now in comparison of the other big festivals like EDC, Bass Canyon, Forbidden Kingdom, I do want to point out that the vibes imo are pretty good, though I think Bass Canyon tops Lost Lands unsurprisingly. Still, tons of space and you never feel overwhelmed like you do at EDC due to Columbus being a much smaller town to host than Las Vegas. There's no shortage of grass to sit and it's nice overall. The dinosaurs add a nice touch to the venue, so enjoy the 60 ft brachiosaurus in the middle of the crowd while walking towards mainstage. It's hard to describe without being there yourself. Overall, great time with friends , dubstep fans, and camping trips if you're in Ohio in September.

What's not to like. Fireworks, food, drinks and family. Oh, a concert with stuff for the kids. Wait…read morea minute, there is also fair food. I'm there. My man and I have been going for years. But would not have if it wasn't for his sister. She gets a spot each year. She goes early to mark her territory/spot. Usually there is another family there, but not this year. Also usually some friends of the kids also come, but alas no one else this year. There is a different act each year, we have seen some bands that I would not have been able to see in my youth. So I am thankful for that as well as my country, my health and my family. Peter Frampton was this year. We saw Little Richard a few years ago. Two years ago we took my mother, all the walking wasn't good for her. But she did have a good time watching the band and the fireworks. The only thing she had a problem with were the dogs. Go figure we had dogs my whole life and I didn't know my mom doesn't like dogs.

These were great for just small town fireworks. I headed over here with a friend on the 4th on a…read morewhim--we'd spent the day poolside and decided to check it out. I don't know a lot about fireworks, as I didn't grow in China nor am I a scientist/physicist type of person, but these looked good to me. Here's the trick: it's really crowded and there's no where to park. We got to the Dublin rec center just before they started and then stayed in the car in the air conditioning right next to a great viewing area. It was super hot this year--hottest 4th I can remember, so watching from the car worked out perfect. I wouldn't travel too far to see these, but if you are already close by they are worth it.

I have been coming to the Dublin Irish Festival for decades. How much it's grown is really amazing!…read moreCoffman Park has really turned I to a beautiful spot, too, with lots of playgrounds and landscaping. The fest itself is full of great vendors, food options, and so many talented performers and musicians. You can't fault any of the food or performance options! A few things of note: it's not cheap. Online price is $25 for over 12 years old. 11 and under are free and don't require tickets. A lot of free parking options nearly, too, which helps. We came at 4pm Friday, right at opening. It is honestly inexplicable how dirty the portajohns were already. There are so many but twice in two different locations, both pretty grody. Prices for food and drinks aren't cheap, either. Tokens for water/soda at the beverage tent are $4 per drink equivalent and beers are $8-9 as the cheapest option. Food trucks are a wide range, but I'd say a beef hot dog $7 and most meals $14-15. Maybe I'm stuck in 90s prices, though! All in all, if the weather is nice, it's a great way to hear music and shop some lovely vendors. Fun night out! I don't prefer to stay at night anymore because I'm not much of a partier, but it can be great fun.

The Dublin Irish Festival is an institution for a reason! To be honest, it's not an every year…read moreevent for me, there is a LOT going on, but it's definitely a must see. I think the festival is really well laid out. There are about 6 main stages, and some smaller event tents scattered throughout, in addition to the athletic area (don't miss the Highland Games, they're fascinating!). There is always music somewhere, but the tents are spread out enough that you don't get a lot of overflow. I like to go to the Games, the Police and Fire Pipe and Drum Corps, and this year, we spent a lot of time at the Celtic Rock stage. If you're going for the evening performances at the Rock stage, it's a good idea to bring a chair, though I don't know what you'd do with it earlier in the day..... Gaelic Storm on Saturday night was PACKED, and they weren't the headliner! There is a ton of food to chose from, and again, it's kind of scattered across the park to keep things moving. It's ALWAYS hot as heck for this festival. They have water refill stations, several, and again, throughout the park, which was an awesome option. I brought extra water, but really only needed one bottle. Parking is a pain in the butt - various business have paid parking to capitalize on the crowd (and who could blame them), and you can park for free a quarter to half mile away at various city owned properties. There are also one or more shuttle lots (also free) that I did not use, but my friend said was really easy. It's hot, it's crowded, you walk a lot, but the music and the people watching are great. No joke - I saw a group of Storm Troopers in kilts. Where else can you find that?!

Finally got to actually see the festival after 6 years of marching it!! The Jackson Apple Fest…read moreholds a special place in my heart as one of the biggest parades I got to march in middle and high school, and the true appreciation the community has for the bands and other groups that perform. Actually walking through the festival, I have to admit, was a little disappointing. I love fair food as much as the next person, but I was really hoping to see more booths about the community, the apples, and maybe more music considering what an important role the marching bands play in this celebration. I saw only one booth selling apples, out of dozens of booths. I didn't see anything explaining the significance of apples to the festival or Jackson. Most of the booths were the same fair foods, church advertisements, or cheap Ali Express knick knacks sold at a higher price. The rides were squeakier than my hometown county fair's, so you definitely couldn't catch me on them. I definitely didn't hate the festival, but I just wish it had more community and celebration aside from the parade. From the band/marcher side, I was sad to see after several years, they still have not invested in more covers for the wires on the ground. Even as a pedestrian, I was tripping over them, and I remember how dreaded these wires were during parade marching. I really hope they cover these to avoid accidents and just provide easier mobility. The groups that perform deserve that. In my opinion, the parade is what makes this festival. Bands compete for ratings, but they also have fun and celebrate each other. I recommend coming after 7 for the parade. There are lots of floats, lights, and fantastic musicians. That is where I really feel community.

Where are the APPLES?! The Apple Festival has slowly turned into a fair. Good luck finding a candy…read moreapple in that place! Only found 2 places at the entire event that sold candy/caramel apples. What a let down. If someone opened an apple only kiosk they would corner the market. Truly a let down. There's always the pumpkin show which never fails to disappoint.