Welcome to the Top 10 Events in Nebraska
Explore the selection of the top 10 annual events and festivals, fairs and celebrations (listed in calendar priority) across the State of Nebraska including events in Omaha, Burwell and Valentine.Arbor Day Celebration
April
Nebraska City, Nebraska
Celebrated each year on the last Friday in April, every state has their own Arbor Day, a celebration of tree planters around the world that encourages tree planting and care.
It is a celebration that is particularly important to Nebraska because the event originated in Nebraska where it was founded by J Sterling Morton in 1872.
Citywide, the event includes children's activities and live entertainment, Family Fun Festival at Wildwood Historic Center, a parade and a 5K trail run.
For more information visit: www.nebraskacity.com
Nebraska Aland Days
June
North Platte, Nebraska
NEBRASKAland DAYS, the largest event in western Nebraska is a celebration of the state of Nebraska and its heritage.
Complete with top name concerts, parades, athletic contests, food events, micro brew festival, boxing, art shows and rodeos, the event attracts more than 100,000 people to North Platte for 12 action-packed days of fun.
For more information visit: www.nebraskalanddays.com
Buffalo Commons Storytelling Festival
May
McCook, Nebraska
Award-winning festival brings nationally-known storytellers, poets and musicians to the stage in celebration of ordinary people living extraordinary lives.
Usually held the first weekend after Memorial day each year, the festival is organized each year by the Buffalo Commons Storytelling Committee which falls within the umbrella of the McCook Arts Council.
Also under the auspices of the event, there is a story book project to raise stories, publish them on the Internet and eventually in a book.
For more information visit: www.buffalocommons.org
Intertribal Gathering at Fort Robinson State Park
June
Crawford, Nebraska
The Intertribal Gathering, a local American Indian Pow Wow held at Fort Robinson State Park, is an annual event attracting more than 3,500 people, designed to celebrate and promote cultural awareness in northwestern Nebraska.
Participants observe and display traditional Native American music, dance, crafts, and other traditions.
The Gathering focuses on American Indian heritage and artistic performances including drumming, singing, storytelling, and dance.
For more information visit: www.panhandlercd.com
Summer Arts Festival
June
Omaha, Nebraska
The annual Omaha Summer Arts Festival, a tradition for over 33 years, fills the streets along downtown Omaha’s Gene Leahy Mall with three days of art, music, children’s activities, food and more.
Previously selected as Omaha’s Best Annual Festival and one of the Top 100 Fine Arts Festivals in the country, the Omaha Summer Arts Festival was named one of 2007’s Top 100 Events in North America by the American Bus Association - the only event in Nebraska to receive this honor in 2007.
For more information visit: www.summerarts.org
Wayne Chicken Show
July
Wayne, Nebraska
A local tradition since 1981, the Chicken Show is a fun event held annually on the second Saturday in July.
The Wayne Chicken Show received the 1996 Nebraska Outstanding Tourism Award and was selected in 1999, along with four other community events in America, to be featured in the Library of Congress.
The Wayne Chicken Show 2005 was the winner of two Nebraska State Pinnacle Awards given by the Nebraska Festival and Events, Inc.
The Wayne Chicken Show and Henoween involve nearly 1,000 volunteers throughout the community who donate time, talents, and financial support, helping to make this festival fun and “cheep” for all who attend.
Attractions include a National Cluck-Off, World's Largest Chicken Dance, children's games, kite flying, fireworks and live entertainment.
For more information visit: www.chickenshow.com
Nebraska Star Party
July
Valentine, Nebraska
The Nebraska Star Party is a large regional star party held each summer in North Central Nebraska.
The remote and sparsely populated area of Sanke River Campground at Merritt Reservoir at a 3,100 foot altitude is the perfect location for this premier star party. Also, the fact that the Sandhills are a dry, sandy, upland plateau helps to keep the haze low and the transparency high
Events also include a beach party, contests, canoe and tubing trip, and educational activities for kids.
For more information visit: www.nebraskastarparty.org
Nebraska's Big Rodeo
July
Burwell, Nebraska
An annual event in Burwell, Nebraska for more than 86 years, Nebraska’s Big Rodeo held at Burwell’s Rodeo Grounds features seven professional rodeo events, professional rodeo clown acts, motor cycle dare devils, chuck wagon races, chariot races, wild horse race, junior steer riding, bull riding, dinner bell derby, trick riders,and midway.
For more information visit: www.visitburwell.org
Kool-Aid Days
August
Hastings
, Nebraska
Celebrating the invention of Nebraska’s Official Soft Drink by Edwin Perkins in Hastings, Nebraska more than 80 years ago, Kool-Aid Days attarcts over 20 thousand visitors to enjoy more than 30 different events including including a parade, games, entertainment and the world's largest Kool-Aid stand.
In 2006, Kool-Aid Days won the Governor’s Award for Most Outstanding Nebraska Event in a city of 20,000 or more.
For more information visit: www.kool-aiddays.com
Husker Harvest Days
September
Grand Island, Nebraska
The world's largest totally irrigated working farm show, Husker Harvest Days has become one of the nation’s premier working farm shows, with exhibitors and field demonstrations geared to Nebraska and Western Corn Belt agriculture. It is the nation’s largest farm show in which all field crops and plots are irrigated.
Visitors from Nebraska and more than 20 other states have attended the three-day event. They are welcomed by 500 exhibitors, offering a wide range of ag products and services.
Events include more than 80 acres of exhibits, field demonstrations, seminars, crafts and artwork and more.
For more information visit: www.huskerharvestdays.com
Nebraska's Junk Jaunt
September
220 miles along NE Hwys 11, 91 & 2, Nebraska
The Nebraska Junk Jaunt is a 300 mile continuous yard sale event in central Nebraska that encourages both residents and businesses to participate by having yard sales, sidewalk sales, special promotions, and events.
Two of Nebraska's most beautiful Scenic Byways, The Sandhills Journey Byway and the Loup Rivers Scenic Byway, form the basic "looping route" of the JUNK JAUNT. Also included, and a very important part of this fun event, are the numerous small towns and villages on the west, on the east and inside the "looping Byway/JUNK JAUNT route.
Each of 35-40 towns organizes a 3-day yard sale. Most towns will have at least one “Central Set-Up” location for vendors. Last year, this fun event drew 20,000 people from 32 states and 70 of 93 Nebraska counties.
For more information visit: www.junkjaunt.com
