Part of what RealFoodTraveler.com is all about is experiencing authentic culinary and travel experiences where you get to meet the people, go to the places, and enjoy the food the locals do. Building your travel itinerary around a destination’s fairs and festivals is a great way to do just that. You get to step into their culture, meet the local artisans, hear the local music, see the local scenery, and eat the food that is quintessential to that region. It’s a great way to have an authentic slice of life. We visited Sonoma County, California and found such a variety of things to do and experiences to be had. See our article, Editor’s Pick: 4 Perfect Days in Sonoma County to get a glimpse. Imagine enjoying all of that and more, surrounding a fun festival! We took a peek at a year of Sonoma County festivals and picked the ones we thought were the most unique to the area, that would give a real taste of all that the County has to offer. To get the full list of offerings, visit the Sonoma County Tourism website, here.

Experience Sonoma County Festivals throughout the year. Photo of Lynmar Estates by Courtney Drake-McDonough.

Plan your year of Sonoma County Festivals

JANUARY

Winter Wineland: Get to know more than 100 wineries across several wine regions. Meet winemakers, tour wineries, and sample wine over the course of this weekend.

FEBRUARY
Lake Sonoma Steelhead Festival: Celebrate the return of the Steelhead Trout with family-friendly activities plus beer, wine, and live music.

MARCH
California’s Artisan Cheese Festival: Meet local cheesemakers and enjoy tasting samples. Learn during seminars and go on farm tours.

APRIL
Redwood Coast Whale & Jazz Festival: Celebrate the annual grey whale migration during four days of jazz, food, beer, wine, poetry, and art.

MAY
Castles & Kites: Amateurs and experts can do some sandcastle building and kite flying at Doran Beach in Bodega Bay. Partake or sit back and watch. Free sandcastle-building tools are available if you want to give it a go.

Make a sand castle, fly a kite or just observe both on the beach during Castles & Kites in Sonoma County in May. Photo coutesy Pixabay.

JUNE
Country Summer Music Festival: Hear some of the country’s top musical performers plus enjoy Western-themed attractions, food and beverage.

JULY
Fort Ross Festival: Attend a multicultural celebration featuring costumed historical re-enactments, militia cannon firings, international food, music and dance such as a balalaika ensemble and Alaska Native drumming.

AUGUST
Gravenstein Apple Fair: Celebrate an historic apple variety with food, arts, wine and beer, entertainment, and farm life activities.(Listen to our podcast that tells you all about the Fair, here.)

The Gravenstein apple is worth celebrating at the Gravenstein Apple Fair in August. Sonoma County Farm Trails/ Photo courtesy Sonoma County Farm Trails.

SEPTEMBER
National Heirloom Exposition: Attend this key event for everyone interested in seed-saving, home gardening, farming, and heirloom produce. See more than 250 garden vendors and farm producers; taste hundreds of varieties at America’s largest heritage produce event.

Taste of Sonoma
We’re told it’s one of the top food and wine events in the country. Enjoy a day of sampling some of the best that Sonoma has to offer, plus entertainment.

OCTOBER
Sonoma County Harvest Fair: This wine country harvest celebration includes wine tasting from more than 100 wineries, food pairings, craft beer and cider tasting, chef demos, harvest games, and the World Championship Grape Stomp.

NOVEMBER
Wine and Food Affair: More than 75 wineries post a favorite winery recipe online in advance of this event which guests can then enjoy, paired with the perfect wine.

BONUS: Holidays Along the Farm Trail: While not a festival, we love the concept of this opportunity so much, we’re slipping it in. November 14, 2019-January 1, 2020, farmers and producers open their gates and barn doors to offer a behind-the-scenes glimpse of life on the farm. Make crafts and shop the freshest goods at their farmstands. Come for the holidays and gather ingredients for your own meal or take things back home for a Sonoma County-inspired holiday. 

DECEMBER
Lighting of the Snowmen: When you don’t have snow on the ground, you create a winter wonderland with illuminated snowmen, a snowflake-filled courtyard, plus live music, wine, and food.

In the absence of snow, one creates a winter wonderland in Sonoma County, with the Lighting of the Snowmen. Photo courtesy Sonoma County Tourism.

PIN our list to Pinterest so you can remember it all year long.