Great community event every year. Entertainment, carnival,…read moregames and food make this a fun event for all ages. School Of Rock Glenbrook Show Team rocked it on stage.

We went on a Saturday afternoon too see our granddaughter perform with the Glenbrook School of…read moreRock. It was not too crowded but parking was still a challenge. Mainly street parking so prepare to walk! There was no admission to attend. This is your typical community festival offering local foods and entertainment in addition to the typical carnival foods and rides. Prices are higher than other local festivals but it's a great way to bring the community together for 5 days!

This festival ran for 4 days until Mon, Sep 7. Parking wasn't so bad... parking in the neighborhood…read moreand took 20 mins to walk to the stage. I listened to the LP Vinyl band and they were pretty good playing rock music. There is no admission charges. Food trucks were around a few appeared popular, and the lines were not long. It's a super nice neighborhood surrounded by Mike Rylko community park with lots of police presence. Note that the pool toilets are closed so you have to use the porta potty but at least there are the touchless water and there is soap. Worth attending if you live close by.

Another typical suburban festival -- carnival rides, mixed with music stages, and food tents, and…read moresometimes, business vendors. To be honest, I enjoy em, and this one, called Buffalo Grove Days, or what the cool kids call it -- "BG Days" is A-OK with me. I do like how this is well laid-out. There are shuttle buses to take/drop you to where you need to be. I didn't bother looking for parking and ended up parking at wherever the Buffalo Grove Days parking signs pointed to, which ended up being at the Buffalo Grove Metra station, which was free. I do have to say that the offering of carnival rides BG Days have, compared to the other copious amounts of suburban festivals, was less. It was actually hard to use up our 22-tickets (this year it was 22-tickets for $25) and I'm glad I didn't go with the unlimited rides for $25 each. The carnival games included pop-a-shot, lucky ducks, and other typical games. Food-wise, the food tent was actually pretty big. Lots to choose from, from pizza, to Mexican, to Dairy Queen. Food prices were A-OK and definitely not like the $40 for a piece of lettuce prices you'd find at the Taste of Chicago. BATHROOM REVIEW: The couple of port-a-potties we visited were actually pretty clean! Many to choose from and there was no line on the evening we went. Sit or squat? It's still a port-a-potty after all. Squat.

Allways very well run and organized. Thery ahve a great carnival and large food offering. There is…read morea ton of different other activaties from bingo to hockey skills. One of the resons its so good is the quality of the volunteers, they are the heartbeat of the festival. We have been a vendor at the marketplace for the last few years and its the best one of any of the city festivals. Its worth the trip to check out, there is something for everyone.

A great Fourth of July festival. Frontier Days is a must see. The most fun you will have in five…read moredays. The activities during the day are geared toward families and great entertainment at night. The best part is that admission is free. Food and beer are available to purchase and at reasonable prices. The "Red Shirt" volunteers put in a great deal of care and effort and it shows. On Independence Day, I attended the parade and it is THE BEST parade that I have ever seen. The focus is on fun with a capital F. Before the band on the first night I saw them present scholarships. What a great way to give back to the community! Beyond the regular carnival activities are some very special and unique activities that make Frontier Days special. Among them are bingo, pony rides, pie eating contest, rib eating contest, cake decorating, dog frisbee, corn hole, water fights, soccer tournament, volleyball tournament, spikeball tournament, etc. The family fun stage is filled with lots of amazing entertainment such as the pet parade, magicians, reptile show, dancers, clowns, police demonstrations, and music acts. The best part of the festival for me is the Citizens with Disabilities day. This is a day where citizens with disabilities and their families can ride in the carnival without the big crowds and with accessibility considerations. This is followed by a great lunch and entertainment for the families. Frontier days is definitely a magical way to spend the Fourth of July weekend!

Beware it's cash only but there are plenty of ATMs to charge you service fees. You need six tickets…read morefor a beer, if you aren't a heavy drinker you will be left with extra tickets. Can you return unused tickets for cash back?

A great upscale arts festival (with wine!), that is set up near a quaint little historic downtown…read morearea. Open 8/24/13 and 8/25/13. Get your wine and then walk around the art booths! If you visit, you can get the best of the permanent downtown shops as well. The downtown stores and restaurants were bustling from the art festival crowds. Parking wasn't an issue, but you may have to park on the main street (just past downtown) and walk a block or two. This is a juried art festival, which means that a jury must review an artist's qualifications and portfolio before the artist can participate as a seller. This allows for much higher quality art and crafts than at a non-juried festival. The show was heavy on jewelry, photographs and paintings, but did have a good variety of other mediums (textiles, ceramics, leather). There were no handcrafted soaps or foods (but maybe those don't fit with "fine art"). I wished there were some paper crafts, like handmade cards, but I saw none. I purchased earrings and a necklace from two different vendors. I love them! There weren't too many people, and the booths were spaced well, so you could see everything. Food vendors and musicians were there, which made for a more enjoyable experience. 4.5 stars Visited 8/24/13

Fun summer event with lots of great Irish themed booths, music, activities, drinks, and food…read more Throughout the event, there's plenty of great dancing and bands that play starting from the afternoon that goes till the evening. Admission is very reasonable at only $5, with proceeds benefiting the Arlington Heights Historical Museum. There are some nice photo taking opportunities as well with several setups for leprechaun themed pictures. Nice place to spend an evening listening to some great music and celebrating Irish culture. Don't forget to try some of the special soda offered here as well.

From the owner: Irish Fest with beer, food and bands. $5 admission.read more

While I feel like the Long Grove Chocolate Festival seems to have a little less great vendors as…read morethey have in past years, we still like to go here every year. Highlights, for me, include the parking for donations at the friendly Church of Long Grove lot on Robert Parker Coffin Road, chocolate martinis at Enzo & Lucia's, chocolate covered strawberries and cider donuts, drinks on the patio at Buffalo Creek Brewing and of course, we love that this fest is dog-friendly. While I feel there are too many vendors offering home improvements, like new windows or bathtubs, I get that the fest needs vendors to support their efforts. The businesses of Long Grove are always lovely to visit with employees and staff who appreciate their customers. An annual tradition we proudly support.

This festival is basically a summer street fair and it's quite nice for that. Despite the name of…read morethe event, just don't come expecting a lot of chocolate themed offerings. It's an oft mentioned comment in the reviews and it's true. With the kiddos in tow though, it's a nice summer outing for activities like their reptile show, some face painting, some kids' arts and crafts, browsing for kids' knick-knacks, and a bit of street food. They also had a separate setup of carnival rides for pay. There were only a couple of chocolate related offerings I saw - a chocolate martini drink, and a couple of chocolate snacks and such. They also had some small music stage acts that we did not try to see. Admission is $5 for adults (plus a $2.14 online purchase fee) and it's free for age 12 and under. There was limited free parking in their smallish public lots but there was a $5 donation lot a couple blocks away that would be your best bet. The fair is set up with only a modest amount of walking. The carnival rides involve purchasing separate ride tickets out of an unmanned dispenser which worked just fine. Rides are about $3-4 pp. This fest makes for a fine and delightful summer outing in quaint Long Grove if you just set your bar down appropriately.

We love going to Art in the Park in Northbrook at the Village Green.  This year it happened during…read morethe Mother's Day weekend on May 9 and May 10.  There were over 80 artists covering many categories.  I have observed that there was more art in the homey and traditional style and less modern art, targeting a more mature and senior audience.  Of course, it was suitable for art-goers of all ages, even for kids.  There was even a Kids Art Zone that featured  bingo, spin art, and sand sculpture.  When we were there, there was live music by a 2-men band on stage belting out songs that were rhythmic and very pleasing to the ears.  For us, dog spotting is always fun!  Many dogs walked in the art fair with their humans.  We love getting to socialize with some outgoing ones.  There are many eateries and restaurants around the park, and it's not hard finding free parking nearby.  This year the weather was perfect, making it a very enjoyable walk in the park!

Too many dogs. Need more different medias. Much too much jewelry. More music venues. All in all s…read morenice day to be out.

What a fun festival! It is in the Ace parking lot in Northbrook, so easy to get to off 294. There…read moreis a huge set up with giant Big Green Eggs cooking all types of food. Awesome traditional BBQ, pizza, lobster and even cookies. You can taste it all for a $10 donation to the Lurie Children's hospital. There are a ton of knowledgeable grill masters to answer your questions. Also, 10% off all accessories so stop by and jazz up your Big Green Egg. It is a great day for a great cause!

I come here every year, including this year. GREAT time, and above all, AWESOME weather. At first…read morewe weren't going to go because the kids were sick, but after having a bit of cabin fever, and since it was sunny in the 60s, we had to venture out. The event was somewhat smallish... they had 3 or 4 food tents, a wine tent, and the rest of the tent was for sitting. The place wasn't too crowded and the music was awesome. It's a good ol' time in the burbs.