For four days in July the City of Oswego hosts Harborfest, Central New York’s favorite summer festival. Harborfest brings more than 100 choices of admission-free entertainment to stages located at scenic venues throughout the city. These stages feature local, regional and nationally known recording artists and entertainers. From reggae, jazz, Dixie, blues, hip-hop, swing, folk and rock ‘n roll Harborfest offers a diverse menu of entertainment for every possible musical taste.
“Awesome” doesn’t quite describe the festival’s world-class music choreographed Entergy Nuclear Northeast Fireworks Spectacular, one of only seven such continuous presentations in the Northeast. It’s an annual Saturday night Harborfest event that brings more than 100,000 spectators
Harborfest’s traditional Friday night feature concert has spotlighted a “who’s who” list of popular national recording artists including The Drifters, Don McLean, Martha Reeves and the Vandellas, Frankie Vallie and the Four Seasons, the Buckinghams, Dion, The Four Tops, Kenney Chesney, Blood Sweat and Tears, Delbert McClinton, Three Dog Night, The Temptations, Mary Wilson, KC and the Sunshine Band, Arturo Sandoval, Wilson Pickett, Bad Company’s Paul Rodgers, Al Jardine, The Neville Brothers and many more.
For young families, Harborfest provides activities and entertainment for children at its popular Children’s Stage and Children’s Activity Area. The Children’s Stage features entertainment carefully chosen to inform, entertain and educate youngsters. The Harborfest Children’s Activity Area features supervised arts and crafts activities for young boys and girls. In addition, children have the opportunity to design their own costumes and march in the Harborfest Children’s Parade, a Friday tradition at the festival that is tied to the yearly in-school cultural component.
For serious shoppers, there’s plenty to do at Harborfest. Enjoy walking along the scenic park areas flanking the Oswego River as you browse and shop at the Juried Arts and Crafts area. The hand-made items offered for sale meet the highest standards for quality and innovation. Shop at the Harborfest Marketplace where you’ll find manufactured merchandise to fit any size budget. While shopping you just might be entertained by buskers (street entertainers) who add to the festive atmosphere.
For those who enjoy the fun of amusement rides, the Harborfest Midway offers an exciting array of games and rides from the traditional carousel, bumper cars and Ferris wheel to the latest technological marvels in a traditional American midway setting.
Getting around Harborfest is easy. The festival provides several Park and Ride facilities with convenient bus service to and from the parking areas to the festival programming area. For those who plan to arrive by boat, there are several local marinas that can accommodate vessels of all sizes. Within the programming area a Harborfest Trolley will take you from one venue to another. Food and beverage service is available at most Harborfest venues. The festival employs a non-refundable food ticket system.
When you come to Harborfest you’re going to enjoy one of the premier festivals in the Northeast. Harborfest has earned 10 International Festival and Events Association Awards, has been named an American Bus Association Top 100 North American Event for 1996, 1998 and 2005 and was voted as the “Best Festival in Central New York” in a poll conducted by WSTM-TV3, a major regional television broadcast station.
