Explore these Unique festivals in U.S. Towns

By Pennie Spruill Last updated Nov 28, 2023

8. Pirate Fair Contraband Days (Lake Charles, Louisiana)

A story says that the pirate Jean Lafitte hid a huge wealth somewhere along the sandy shore of Lake Charles. The tale has been honoured every May at the Contraband Days Pirate Festival, which has been going on since 1958 and draws more than 100,000 people.

When pirates take over the town and make the mayor walk the plank, it might be one of the funniest things to see at the event. Lucky for him, the brave city chief is quickly saved. He can then enjoy the rest of the festival, which includes a funfair, arm wrestling matches, a sailboat racing and bed races. The American Bus Association often picks Contraband Days as one of the Top 100 Events in North America because it has so many unique events.

7. Faux Film Festival (OR, Portland)

For people who love fake ads or movie trailers, the Faux Film Festival in Portland is like going to a funny but strange movie never-never land. Mockumentaries and other silly films are shown in the famous 460-seat Hollywood Theatre, along with dozens of other silly films. It Came from the Lint Trap, a silly classic, and The Lady from Sockholm, a quirky film noir with sock dolls have been seen in the past. The festival usually takes place at the end of March, and every showing is sold out.

6. Barnesville Potato Days (7 Days in Barnesville, Minnesota)

Around 14,000 people visit Barnesville, Minnesota, in west-central Minnesota in late August for Barnesville Potato Days. This small town celebrates the humble potato with a lot of fun things to do. People come to the Potato Salad Cook-off to see the winning recipe and compare it to how their grandmother used to make this famous picnic food. When you do mashed potato wrestling, things can get messy, but the Miss Tator Tot competition is a lot cleaner. You can try a lot of different foods, such as Norwegian lefse, potato pancakes, potato sausage, potato soup and traditional German potato rolls. There’s even a free French Fry Feed on Friday. Barnesville is tucked away in the rich Red River Valley. Since 1938, this event has been held to honour the crop that many farmers in the area grow.

5. Wild Snake Hunt (Freer, Texas)

Every May, the Freer Rattlesnake Roundup is held with nationally known country and Tejano acts, as well as loads and loads of snakes. It’s called the biggest party in Texas. There are daredevil snake shows, snake spinning displays, a funfair, arts and crafts and fried rattlesnake to chaw. There are also prizes for the longest and shortest rattlesnakes, as well as the most nonvenomous snakes that one person brings to the fest.

4. BugFest

It is said to be the biggest event with bugs in one day in the country, and every September, about 25,000 people come to Raleigh for BugFest. There are now flea circuses, roach races, and beekeeping displays at the event, which began in 1997. At the event, there are many displays about bugs, such as live spiders and centipedes and displays about how bugs see. Festivalgoers can try the appropriately named Buggy Bean Dip with Crackers, Quivering Wax Worm Quiche, Stir-fried Cantonese Crickets over rice, and Three Bug Salad at Café Insecta. These and other tasty treats are made with worms, ants, and other bugs that are raised for food.

3. Festival of the Seas in Nanaimo, British Columbia

The Great International World Championship Bathtub Race takes place at the Nanaimo Marine Festival in the middle of July. Up to 200 “tubbers” race over a 36-mile track. Contestants must cross the Straits of Georgia in almost any kind of boat, though most of them look a bit like bathtubs. Their goal is to get to Fisherman’s Cove in Vancouver. Since the first race in 1967, there has been a food fair, an art show, a Kiddies’ Karnival, and a waiters’ race, among other events.

2. Secret City Festival

The Secret City Festival, which happens every year, shows how important Oak Ridge was during World War II. Researchers there made the top-secret atomic bomb in the 1940s, which is how the city got its name. Today, people can visit Manhattan Project places to see where the bomb was made. A lot of people like to see one of the biggest reenactments of World War II in the country, which has loud tanks, motorbikes, and other old military gear. About 20,000 people come to Oak Ridge, which is in the middle of the beautiful Cumberland and Great Smoky Mountains, every June for the event.

1. Frozen Dead Guy Days

Every year in March, Colorado is usually cold, but the fun at the Frozen Dead Guy Days event heats up Nederland. The festival honours a Norwegian man whose body has been kept frozen in a shed by his grandson since 1994. People are welcome to dress up as a frozen or dead figure for a dance called “Grandpa’s Blue Ball.” A parade with old hearses, coffin races, salmon tossing, and a volleyball game on a frozen beach are some of the liveliest events. The event began in 2002 and gets about 7,000 people every year.