Festivals / Events

SHEPHERDSTOWN, W.Va. — About an hour’s drive from Washington, D.C., a West Virginia university will mark the 30th anniversary of a festival founded to challenge stereotypes about Appalachia and introduce audiences to the region’s cultural traditions. Shepherd University will celebrate its 30th Appalachian Heritage Festival Sept. 24-27 with music, dance, history, workshops, and other events … Read more

LEWISBURG, W.Va. — The State Fair of West Virginia will open Thursday for its 101st year, beginning a 10-day run of concerts, carnival rides, livestock competitions and agricultural exhibits that annually draw visitors to the Greenbrier Valley from across West Virginia and surrounding states. The fair will run Aug. 13–22 at the State Fairgrounds in … Read more

MARLINTON, W.Va. — The annual Perseid meteor shower arrives during one of the busiest travel months of the year, and for millions of people across the eastern United States, one of the best places to experience it may be hiding in plain sight: the mountains of West Virginia. While much of the East Coast contends … Read more

CLIFFTOP, W.Va. — Every summer, thousands of musicians carrying fiddles, banjos, guitars, mandolins, and dulcimers wind their way up a narrow mountain road in southern West Virginia. They come from nearly every corner of the United States and from countries as far away as Japan, Australia, England, Germany, and Sweden. Few are household names, and … Read more

PAW PAW, W.Va. — Every autumn, a remarkable fruit ripens quietly beneath the forests of Appalachia. It has a creamy texture, a flavor often compared to banana, mango, and vanilla, and a history stretching back thousands of years. Yet many Americans have never tasted one. In the tiny Morgan County community of Paw Paw (410 … Read more

MOUNT HOPE, W.Va. — Tens of thousands of scouts, volunteers, leaders, and family members are arriving in southern West Virginia this week as Scouting America’s National Jamboree transforms the mountains of the New River Gorge region into one of the nation’s largest youth adventure camps. Held at the 14,000-acre Summit Bechtel Reserve in Fayette County, … Read more

LEWISBURG, W.Va. — For many West Virginians, memories of the state fair begin in childhood—first rides on the midway, cotton candy shared with family, prize-winning livestock, and long summer evenings spent beneath the glow of carnival lights. For some children in foster care, those memories have never had the chance to begin. This August, a … Read more

CHARLESTON, W.Va. — If you’re organizing a fair, festival, concert, race, museum exhibit, or community event, you know that attracting visitors can be as challenging as planning the event itself. Social media no longer reaches people the way it once did, and too often, great events go unnoticed beyond their own followers. That’s why West … Read more

LEWISBURG, W.Va. — From prize-winning quilts and homemade jams to champion livestock and towering garden vegetables, the competitive exhibits at the State Fair of West Virginia have long been among the event’s biggest draws. With the fair’s 101st annual celebration just weeks away, organizers are reminding exhibitors that entry deadlines are rapidly approaching. Livestock entries … Read more

CHARLESTON, W.Va. — One of West Virginia’s largest Independence Day weekends in years is set to unfold in Charleston, where the state’s official America250 Capital City Celebration will coincide with the annual Charleston Sternwheel Regatta, creating four days of concerts, fireworks, history, and family entertainment. The free celebration, July 2-5 on the West Virginia State … Read more