Marquette Events Calendar

Labor Day brings the crowd-pleasing Blues Fest, sponsored by the Marquette Area Blues Society, back to the people. This event offers live blues music, free workshops, food, vendors and more. One of the most popular blues festivals in the Midwest, it draws music lovers from all over. You can get discounted tickets online before you go, and lodging packages are available on the web site.

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Every July, up to 200 regional and national artists descend on Mattson Lower Harbor Park for an enormous juried art show. Artists include photographers, jewelry makers, painters, sculptors, ceramic artists and many more. The crowds can swell, but it’s always a festive atmosphere and most patrons leave with a unique treasure tucked under their arms.

Bikers, runners and hikers who love the Noquemanon Trail Network will come out to raise funds for and celebrate these treasured paths. There are races for all ages and skill levels, bonfires, s’mores and hotdogs on Friday night and a party and awards on Saturday and Sunday. Online registration gets you a less-expensive ticket, and ticket proceeds go right to helping the trails. It’s a win/win!

July 21 marks the start of the three-day Hiawatha Music Festival, a celebration of traditional American, acoustic music. The lineup will please visitors who love bluegrass or Cajun music as well as those looking for some Gospel tunes or Celtic melodies. There are arts and crafts for kids and special activities for teens, including a henna booth and a chance to meet the bands. Camping during the festival is quite popular and up to 1,000 camping sites are available to festival-goers. If you like music and you’re in Marquette, settle in for an excellent experience.

From a 48-mile “Hard Rock” race to a 1-mile “Littlest Rock” race, hundreds of mountain bikers love to participate in this muddy, rugged bike race that ends on the shore of Lake Superior. You can register the whole family to take part in an epic ride, or you can plan to spend the day cheering on the (really, really) muddy bikers from the clean comfort of the sidewalk.

The Marquette West Rotary plans the biggest party in town when it throws Harbor Fest every summer. This annual fundraiser has provided more than $500,000 to meet the needs of the Marquette community! There’s a classic car and motorcycle show, a fishing derby, a beer tent, food vendors and live music. 

Labor Day brings the crowd-pleasing Blues Fest, sponsored by the Marquette Area Blues Society, back to the people. This event offers live blues music, free workshops, food, vendors and more. One of the most popular blues festivals in the Midwest, it draws music lovers from all over. You can get discounted tickets online before you go, and lodging packages are available on the web site.

The U.P. Fall Beer Festival is a favorite event for anyone who loves craft beer: the festival features more than 100 different Michigan-crafted beers. Local restaurants provide the nibbles, and there’s live entertainment to accompany the imbibing. Tickets are less expensive if purchased online (and more certain, as the event sells out) and include 15 drink tokens, each redeemable for a three-ounce sample of beer. Designated driver tickets are really inexpensive but those patrons aren’t allowed to sample the hops. Last tip? Get a babysitter; this is strictly a 21-and-over event.

Science Fair meets Shark Tank’ in this ten-day competition staged March 31st – April 9th, 2017 in downtown Marquette, Michigan. Entrepreneurs and innovators put their innovation, start-up or expansion ideas on display in venues throughout Marquette’s Downtown District. In addition to juried prizes, a Crowd Favorite category allows onlookers to vote for their top choice.

Categories Include:

Concept, Start-Up, Growth, Technology, Tourism, & Crowd Favorite

New for 2017, Smartprize Jr. invites our littlest inventors to showcase their big ideas or inventions at the UP Children’s Museum on April 2nd, 2017.  Kids ages 6-12 years old can enter to win over $1000 in prizes.

Each year in April as the frozen grounds of Lake Superior’s shore attempts its thaw, Festival of the Angry Bear comes out of hibernation and takes over Spring Street in downtown Marquette. Modeled after some of the great beer festivals of Europe, the festival is a showcase of barrel aged beer, live music, delicious food and community involvement. It truly is a celebration of spring.

Teams of four ($25/per person) will compete for cash and prizes as they travel from hole to hole throughout the Downtown District in this indoor miniature golf tournament. All tournament participants must be 21 years of age or older. Registration and payments will be accepted online starting Wednesday, March 15, and are nonrefundable. Space is limited!

Proceeds from this event benefit the Janzen House, a transitional housing facility for men in Downtown Marquette.

Congratulations to the upcoming graduating class. The May 2017 graduation ceremony will take place on Saturday, May 6 at 10:30 a.m. in the Superior Dome. 

Bikers, runners and hikers who love the Noquemanon Trail Network will come out to raise funds for and celebrate these treasured paths. There are races for all ages and skill levels, bonfires, s’mores and hotdogs on Friday night and a party and awards on Saturday and Sunday. Online registration gets you a less-expensive ticket, and ticket proceeds go right to helping the trails. It’s a win/win!

Celebrate the nation’s independence in the heartland, Marquette-style! The Kiwanis club sponsors a fun-filled, noon parade featuring more than eighty participants and miles of colorful floats. At dusk, head to Lower Elwood Mattson Park for a spectacular fireworks display funded almost entirely by donations. The day also features a food festival, bike rodeos, baseball games and live entertainment.   

July 21 marks the start of the three-day Hiawatha Music Festival, a celebration of traditional American, acoustic music. The lineup will please visitors who love bluegrass or Cajun music as well as those looking for some Gospel tunes or Celtic melodies. There are arts and crafts for kids and special activities for teens, including a henna booth and a chance to meet the bands. Camping during the festival is quite popular and up to 1,000 camping sites are available to festival-goers. If you like music and you’re in Marquette, settle in for an excellent experience.

The 16th annual Blueberry Festival, is set for Friday, July 28, 2017 from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. in Downtown Marquette. Washington and Front streets will be bustling with sidewalk sales, food vendors, artists, demonstrations, pony rides, inflatable arcade games, and activities for children and families. Downtown restaurants will satisfy your cravings for blueberry fare, from blueberry pizza to blueberry beer, while many downtown shops offer will offer “blue” specials. Local farmers will be on-hand throughout the day selling fresh produce, including mounds of plump blueberries and music fills the streets as live musicians perform throughout the day.

Every July, up to 200 regional and national artists descend on Mattson Lower Harbor Park for an enormous juried art show. Artists include photographers, jewelry makers, painters, sculptors, ceramic artists and many more. The crowds can swell, but it’s always a festive atmosphere and most patrons leave with a unique treasure tucked under their arms.

From a 48-mile “Hard Rock” race to a 1-mile “Littlest Rock” race, hundreds of mountain bikers love to participate in this muddy, rugged bike race that ends on the shore of Lake Superior. You can register the whole family to take part in an epic ride, or you can plan to spend the day cheering on the (really, really) muddy bikers from the clean comfort of the sidewalk.

The Marquette West Rotary plans the biggest party in town when it throws Harbor Fest every summer. This annual fundraiser has provided more than $500,000 to meet the needs of the Marquette community! There’s a classic car and motorcycle show, a fishing derby, a beer tent, food vendors and live music. 

Labor Day brings the crowd-pleasing Blues Fest, sponsored by the Marquette Area Blues Society, back to the people. This event offers live blues music, free workshops, food, vendors and more. One of the most popular blues festivals in the Midwest, it draws music lovers from all over. You can get discounted tickets online before you go, and lodging packages are available on the web site.

The U.P. Fall Beer Festival is a favorite event for anyone who loves craft beer: the festival features more than 100 different Michigan-crafted beers. Local restaurants provide the nibbles, and there’s live entertainment to accompany the imbibing. Tickets are less expensive if purchased online (and more certain, as the event sells out) and include 15 drink tokens, each redeemable for a three-ounce sample of beer. Designated driver tickets are really inexpensive but those patrons aren’t allowed to sample the hops. Last tip? Get a babysitter; this is strictly a 21-and-over event.

The fifth annual Baraga Avenue Harvest Fest, will take place on Saturday, October 7, from 3 p.m. to 8 p.m. on the 100 block of Baraga Avenue in Downtown Marquette. It is Bustling with harvest-themed activities for all ages, the festival features food and drink, live music, street dance, children’s activities and much more. Returning this year is the popular pasty eating contest. Downtown district businesses will highlight their offerings with sales and information booths. The younger set is invited to explore large equipment, emergency response vehicles and construction trucks at the “big truck petting zoo”, while the Upper Peninsula Children’s Museum will once again sponsor a chalk art exhibition and contest featuring street-canvas harvest-themed paintings by local artists, individuals and groups. For more information on the chalk painting or to sponsor a square, visit www.upchildrensmuseum.com. The return of past favorites will be complemented by new additions to this year’s festival. The big truck petting zoo will be joined by a live animal petting zoo, bounce house and miniature golf course, and the adventurous of heart can even ride a mechanical bull. Come celebrate fall and its bountiful beauty at the Baraga Avenue Harvest Fest. For more information, contact the DDA at 906-228-9475.

The Fresh Coast Film Festival is the first of its kind: a documentary film festival celebrating the outdoor lifestyle, water-rich environment and resilient spirit of the Great Lakes and Upper Midwest. The festival will gather the best in adventure cinema from around the world while creating a venue for, and building a culture of, Great Lakes storytelling

On Saturday, October 28, the City of Marquette and the Marquette Downtown Development Authority will host a large-scale community outdoor performance of giant puppetry, percussion and theatrical dance.  As the evening grows dark, the community is invited to join in the celebration on the 100 Block of W. Washington Street in Downtown Marquette.

For more information or questions on the Halloween Spectacle, please contact (906) 228-0472 or email arts-culture@mqtcty.org.

This year will mark the 29th anniversary of the Downtown Marquette New Year’s Eve Ball Drop! Don’t miss it!