The Elmwood Festival of the Arts remains one of my favorites from the Buffalo festival season…read morelineup! A good chunk of the Elmwood strip is closed down for two days of music, food, and, of course, lots of wonderful art. What I like about the Elmwood festival over Allentown Art Fest is that the lineup of artisans selling goods that are not only affordable, but could easily find a place in your home, too. At Allentown, there are a lot of "once in a lifetime" pieces that you'd *really* need a specific place for. But at the Elmwood festival, you can easily find wall art, pottery, and glassware that could fit right into your space. There's always a great lineup of food trucks and bands here, and I really like how all the small businesses on Elmwood stay open so you can shop there, too. It's a little crowded -- but I never really mind. I know summer is coming to a close whenever it's time for the Elmwood Festival of the Arts. But hey, at least I've got a lot of cool new artwork to brighten up my apartment just in time for Buffalo winter.

I spent a very enjoyable Sunday morning here this year. Much smaller than the Allentown Art…read moreFestival, its an easy 5 or 6 blocks of Elmwood - from St James Place to West Ferry. Pros: Id have to say each exhibitor was a high quality one. There really was none of the "junk" you may find at other festivals. The food options were in specific areas, I noticed two of them, one at the St James end of the festival, the other on one of the side streets. Id imagine there was a third, but I did not make note of it. The expected food trucks were available. Tons of "local tables", the BPO had one, Olmsted Conservancy another, Burchfield Penney a third. There were many others as well. A great way to learn more about the various attractions Buffalo has to offer year round. Cons: For these not living nearby or taking public transport, there was terrible parking organization, they had closed off most of the side streets nearby to "Local Traffic Only". If this had been a very humid hot weekend, that would have made for some long hot walks just to get there. As a result, there was really not a "disabled friendly" atmosphere about the festival. (If there was a designated disabled parking area, it was not well publicized enough to be easily found by me, searching for it on line). They sold water for $1 bottle. Really? Costs under $5 for a case (including the deposit costs), sell the water for .50 (even .75) and stop doing such a huge markup. And while you are at it, put a sign on the table of the cost so people don't have to ask about it. Other: There was music around as well, but I did not stay for long for any of that. Seemed like a great venue for it though, various stages and other covered areas throughout. While I found the quality of the vendors terrific, I can only give this 3 stars, I think it was A-OK. I am a fan, but the lack of easy disabled access brings it down a star for me.

I went to this event many years ago so thought I would check it out again. The event was fine…read more There was a $3 fee to enter so my $12 gyro was now $15. I realize this is an event to raise money but thought that was a little high priced. The gyro was good. We also got some fried dough...6 small rounds for $4...they were fine. Tickets need to be purchased and there are no refunds on tickets so you need to figure out exactly how many to get. Did bring home some baklava which I was told came from Florida...haven't tried that yet!!!

Wonderful experience! Live Music and the Dancers are exciting and awesome, The food is simply…read moredelicious. Everywhere you walked, inside and outside under the tents, was well organized, lines moved quickly, and there was lots to space to gather with friends! Bravo to all the volunteers and to the organizers and leaders. Nicely done! I only have one suggestion, is to have more chairs at the bar tent, where space was available, but chairs were needed. We attended on Saturday around 4 pm. 2025

It's fabulous here. Nothing else like it. And you will make lifelong memories with your family…read more First of all, there are animals walking among you. Literally goats & sheep just walking next to you like a weird Disney movie. And there are horses, dogs, bunnies and more that you can pet. And even a horse that the kids can ride. Giant pumpkin "bounce house" type thing. Free hayrides. And "barrel" rides for $3. And the desserts in the shop are yummy too.

We love this place ! The owners are always walking around and so friendly and really interactive…read morewith the families ! So much to do for the kids . My daughter (8) loves the barns, the new tubes , and brushing the animals .

It has been my dreams for years to attend this fair. Finally, this year, I made it. It did not…read moredisappoint. My friend and I got to the outer harbor around 11:45 a.m. and there was a lot of parking. When you first entered the fair, there were many food trucks, and makers tents. I was so impressed by that. I made a stamped metal necklace, that came with a chain (what?!), and a shibori bandana, which I will be using as a decorative setting on my kitchen table. There were galaxy tiles, and a needle working class, that unfortunately, we didn't get to do as well. The volunteers working the booths were amazing, thank you for spending your day with us!!! The vendors are awesome. There is something unique and fun for everyone. I can't wait for the next one in 363 days.

Jack Kraft is one of the sons of Robert Kraft, I think - the owner of the Patriots. But I could be…read moremistaken. He runs this fair annually. In 2016 it took place at the wonderful old Grand Central Terminal. An abandoned railroad station in the heart of Buffalo's East Side, which is slowly being renovated from ruin into a haunting and useful place. It was a pleasure to be part of the event, I got to sample several of the food trucks outside (Lomo Lomo, Tuk Tea, and more), and check out all of the stalls selling every little kind of trinket and ornament and craft-type item you can imagine. The people at the stalls were generally really great, and I had a good long chat with the musician playing on stage, who had been on X Factor or The Voice (can't remember which) at some point in the past. He knew a lot of pop hits and it was fun listening to him. If you're into Crafts, or guys named Jack, then make sure you come to the JCF next year or at some time in the future.

The coolest place! I love animals and the outdoors, so when my parents decided to take me to Hawk…read moreCreek's fall festival, I got so excited. I loved it the last time over 10 years ago. As soon as we walked past the gift shop, I was greeted either by a unicorn or a gorgeous white Shire horse with a fake horn, I'm not sure which. Either way, I knew it was going to be a special day. We watched a few bird shows, one with hawks (natch) that we saw from far and one with owls that we watched up close. All the animals here are incredible. My particular favorite was the little armadillo that ran around his cage. The whole time it was impressed upon us how important conservation and rehabilitation is for these animals. The highlight was the crow that kept screaming "WOW!" He was so funny! The bummer was that we had to leave eventually... You must go here, especially if you love animals! It's extremely well kept and the volunteers clearly love what they do. I highly recommend coming here some weekend. It's worth the trip!

My family came here for the Enchanted Wild Fest on a Saturday in September. It was our first time…read morevisiting and we were very impressed by the knowledge and dedication of the volunteers we encountered. The hawks and falcons that we saw were incredible. There were many other animals available for viewing, and an entire section dedicated to cats. We visited the Aerie with its Harry Potter theme and experienced an armadillo, cane toad, tortoise, and snake. We were able to participate in a live Raptor show, and learn about the Snowy Owl that was born at Hawk Creek. There was even a beautiful unicorn that we were able to pet. This is an incredible place worth visiting. I learned so much, and will definitely be coming back.

This is a festival I try to attend every year. I love the different art that is there and the…read morefestival vibes. Most years there are the same vendors there, but it is comforting. There is always something new to discover. Also, it is in Lewiston, which is one of the cutest villages in the area. During the festival, most of the stores are open, and it is nice to also shop there. I absolutely love the chalk drawing competition every year that the students create. This year's theme was Woodstock, peace and love. The students have so much talent.

If your looking for true local art, look no further and one booth after the next will feed your art…read morehunger to no end! Every year this festival seems to get bigger & better. Please keep it coming & thank you to this stunning historical village for your warm welcoming atmosphere! Also check out their side street shops! There's this amazing health/ herbalism shop tucked away on 9th street thats a gem & unlike any other in WNY, Crazy Train Apothecary! The owner was so friendly & answered our endless questions. We'll be back to visit Lewiston to attend their classes! Keep on keeping on, what a versatile community!

Was invited by my sister to Canal Fest and I'm glad I decided to go. This was my first time ever…read more It was really fun we all had a good time. They had rides for all ages, games, food, snacks, and live music. It literally was something for everyone to do. Only issues I had was there were not enough sitting areas for people to sit and enjoy the food and like 90% of all the vendors only accepted cash which I normally don't carry around with me. Thank God I did that day. Also parking can be an issue if there is a huge crowd. Overall really nice festival to attend every year.

If it were a festival of boring idiosyncracies, it would be Banalfest. And if it were the San…read moreFernando Valley it would obviously be an*lfest. However it's actually the flagship fair & carnival of the Tonawandas, and it really really rocks. I came here many times, in fact I performed here once or twice thanks to a friend, and it was always a great time, in the summer, by the Erie Canal in the Tonawandas, with good food, excited people, interesting music (unless I was playing in which case it was crap), and lots and lots and lots of very good looking people. If you live in WNY or are visiting at the right time of year, and you've never been to Canalfest, you should come down. There are a thousand reasons to have a great time here and only one reason not to, which was me performing live music here, which no longer is a problem. At some point it'll be purchased by a conglomerate and watered down, at which point it'll become Clearchannelfest. You don't want that to happen, so get here and enjoy it before it does.

What an interesting night! I had as much fun watching all the visitors AKA characters walking…read morearound as I did checking out the different booths and products. A little bit of something for everyone. I've never been to one of these before but was glad I went. My favorite was the puppets, including Big Bird. I missed who the creator was. My 1st time getting to hold a real live Emmy! Strict no pictures allowed there at that booth. 2024-59

Since Nickel City has come back to Buffalo, I have made it a point to try to be there all weekend…read moreif possible. With all of the fun vendors, celebrities, and things to see and try, it's one of the most fun weekends of the summer. This year I went on Friday and Sunday and it was a blast. So many great celebrities there. From American Pie, WWE, and even some of the X-Men voice actors, it was so cool seeing and chatting with some of them. My favorite part though is going through all the vendors and seeing all of the great art pieces and businesses showcasing some of their best things for the weekend. I always try to add a few things to my wall every year from this event and this year was no different. It was such a fun weekend. Thanks to all the vendors and everyone who is part of this event. It really is one of my favorite weekends of the year!