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Lucas Himovitz
Top Food, Beer, & Wine Festivals
A real-life cornucopia, California is one of the world’s most productive agricultural regions—for example, we’re by far the country’s top grower of avocados and strawberries. Unofficially, the state is also the national leader in food festivals. That’s because Californians not only excel at growing and preparing food, they love to celebrate it, too. Attend events throughout the year that honor everything from Dungeness crab to tamales, artichokes, and dates. And—of course—plenty of California wine and craft beer, too. Watch cooking demonstrations by star chefs, enjoy live entertainment, and sample surprising specialty foods. Garlic ice cream, anyone?
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Sep 1 - Sep 30
September is prime time for toasting California’s world-class wines—all over the state
Sep 7 - Sep 9
Rub elbows with craft-beer makers and sample all manner of California brews at this annual three-day event
Beyond being the state capital, Sacramento has staked its claim as one of California’s nerve centers for great craft beer. The annual...
Courtesy of California Craft Brewers Association
October
Honor the harvest season this October at the Hoes Down Harvest Festival, a family-friendly event hosted at the beautiful...
January-February
Experience one of California’s most magical winter settings, The Ahwahnee Hotel (formerly The Majestic Yosemite Hotel),...
Courtesy of DNC Parks & Resorts at Yosemite
Apr 20 - Apr 23
April
Get ready for the Central Coast’s ultimate gathering of the culinary world. First launched in 2008, Pebble Beach Food & Wine is one of those...
Gina Sinotte
July
Vampires beware: the Gilroy Garlic Festival is one garlic-infused weekend that the creatures of the night may want to avoid....
Bill Strange Photography
June
So amazingly popular that it has had to move out of its namesake town 18 mile south to Monterey, the two-day Castroville Artichoke Food...
This four-day event embraces San Francisco’s global status by keeping the flavor super-local
Revel in the flavors of the ultimate foodie city as San Francisco’s premier chefs—many of them movers and shakers in the sustainability movement—strut their stuff at the...
Courtesy of Eat Drink SF
February
Want a date? You’re guaranteed to get one at the Riverside County Fair & National Date Festival, the nearly 100-year-old extravaganza...
Kate Bolin/Flickr
Joey Hernandez/SD Bay Wine & Food Fest
October
Get dressed up to party at the multitude of special events that make up the Newport Beach Wine & Food Festival, in the...
September
With the nickname “America’s Farm-to-Fork Capital,” it’s only appropriate that Sacramento celebrates the bounty sourced from 1.4...
Courtesy of Sacramento Convention & Visitor's Bureau
October
The first avocado trees in California were planted around 1871, and now the state grows a whopping 90 percent of the crop harvested in the U.S. So it makes sense that one of the state’s top...
Olle Svensson/Flickr
Jun 3
August
Showcasing the city’s prowess as a seriously great food destination, the Los Angeles Food & Wine Festival is an epicurean spectacular showcasing...
Stefanie Parkinson
December
If you have never unwrapped the corn husk of a tamale to reveal the delicious, steaming masa inside—well, you have a good thing coming. Head for the...
Omid Tavallai/Flickr
Aug 14
June
Raise a cold one to the world’s hottest brewers at this annual craft-brew bonanza every June. The San Diego International Beer Festival...
Dave Lauridsen
California: Family
From cool ways for your kids to learn about wildlife, to an insider’s look at a space station, to a chance to walk through a rain forest or learn about the...
CALIFORNIA
Each of the California Welcome Centers scattered throughout the state are staffed with personal travel concierges. These knowledgeable experts are ready to provide information that will enhance and enrich your visit including suggestions on where to eat, what to see, and where to stay. Welcome Centers also offer free maps and brochures on local attractions and things to see and do.
Spotlight: Santa Barbara
The Santa Ynez Valley, just north of Santa Barbara, is one of most diverse grape-growing regions in the county. Near the Pacific, fog and cool air rolls in at dusk, ideal...