North Carolina Watermelon Festivals in 2024: Find a Watermelon Festival Near You!

Looking for a Watermelon festival in North Carolina in 2024? (just scroll down the page)There is no other listing as complete and current as this list, just updated! All the Watermelon festivals in North Carolina we can find are listed on this page! If you love strawberries, look for a festival near you below! And I'm always looking for more Watermelon festivals! Please write me, if you know of any to add! I update the dates as soon as the festivals publish their information, but you can always click on the links (usually the name of the festival) to see the current information on the festival's own website.

Always click on the links to the festival to confirm this year's dates; weather and other conditions could cause a change at the last minute. They may change or cancel at the last minute. . If they don't have a website, call the phone number provided, but ALWAYS CONFIRM THIS YEAR'S DATES AND TIMES BY EITHER VIEWING THEIR WEBSITE OR CALLING.

Click here for the form to add a festival and have detailed information; or click here if you have general information and are not connected with the event!

North Carolina 2024Watermelon Festivals Festivals - Where, When and More Details!

North Carolina

Watermelons typically ripen from June (in northern Florida and Texas) through July, August and September in the mid-Atlantic, Midwest and New England. July and August dominatesas the months for Watermelon production (and festivals) Unlike strawberries, which grow almost anywhere, watermelons are grown commercially far fewer states, since they require warmer temperatures and a much longer season.

There are two general types of Watermelon festivals 1) community festivals, usually organized by a church, school, local Chamber of commerce or a town and 2). Watermelon festival held at and by a farm. They are different in what they offer, and community festivals tend to be less expensive so they are grouped separately. (of course not all states and areas have both.)
Following the festival listings are links to our easy to follow directions about making Watermelon jam, freezing watermelons, Watermelon pies and much more.

Community Watermelon Festivals

• Denton Watermelon Festival and Cornhole Tournament - Saturday in early August from 9 am to 2 pm
  Harrison Park, 43 S Main Street, Denton, NC. Are you looking for good old fashioned family fun? Can you do the Watermelon Crawl? That's just one of many fun contests. There will be watermelon seed spitting, watermelon eating, the biggest watermelon and of course the watermelon crawl pictured above. All contest are free to enter and the winner in each category (adult, junior and child) wins a cool festival t-shirt and a whole watermelon. Our Cornhole Tournament is always a big hit, cash prizes (half the entry fees) are awarded t0 the first, second and third place teams along with a free festival t-shirt. Our tournament is double elimination style. Watermelon Festival Pageant! Our current reigning royalty, Katie Crook and Karsyn Layne will be crowning our new watermelon Princess and Queen! Festival Food! Hot-dogs (cooked and served by our own small town Mayor, Larry Ward) chips, drinks, watermelon lemonade, watermelon freezy pops, popcorn, pork skins, baked goods and of course watermelon by the slice! Lots of homemade goodness will be available, come hungry! Our food sales are a big part of our fundraising efforts. What you spend will stay local and help fund an art summer camp for kids in Denton.
  Artisans Market - We will have vendors galore. All vendors will be showcasing their handcrafted items. Click here for a link to our Facebook page.
• Fair Bluff North Carolina Watermelon Festival - Friday, Saturday and Sunday in late July (Saturday is the main festival day)
  Fair Bluff, North Carolina. Phone: (910)234-0756. Email: ncwatermelonfestival@gmail.com.
  7:00 - 9:30 am -Entries for Best Tastin' Watermelons, Riverside Drive Call (910)207-1698 to pre-register.
  8 am - 4 pm- Arts & Crafts Booths, Dunking Booth -Entertainment:
  10 amBEST TASTING WATERMELONS OF THE CAROLINAS CONTEST
  Watermelon Slices Available All Day, Riverside Drive, Fair Bluff
  Line Up for Watermelon Parade at Causey Road (pass Fair Bluff Baptist Church on Main Street going towards South Carolina, follow Hwy. 76 pass the river, take the first road to the right before you get to the overpass bridge which is Causey Road)
  11 am NC WATERMELON FESTIVAL PARADE, Parade Route: Starts on Causey Road, Continues down Main Street.
  1 pm NC WATERMELON FESTIVAL AUCTION FOLLOWED BY THE FAMOUS FAIR BLUFF LARGEST WATERMELON CONTEST at Riverside Drive, Fair Bluff
  3 pmDuck Race, near Fair Bluff Boat Landing, $10 per ticket, Call (910)649-6121; Sponsored by: Fair Bluff Rotary
  6:30 pm- NC Watermelon Festival Teen Miss & Queen Scholarship Pageant.
• North Carolina Watermelon Festival - late July through early August
  Main Street, Murfreesboro, NC. Phone: 252-398-7695. Email: melons@watermelonfestivalnc.com.. The festival and nightly street dances will be held in the Murfreesboro Historic District, one block north of Main Street. Enjoy a complimentary slice of the State's finest melons in Historic Murfreesboro, NC! 2013 will celebrate our 28th anniversary of the Watermelon Festival! Save the date -- and plan to be a part of the festivities. (ADDED: July 29, 2013X)
• Outer Banks Watermelon Festival - August
  Kitty Hawk, NC. Phone: (252) 441-1719, ext. 206. Email: events@kittyhawk.com. Come to the Kitty Hawk Kite store in Nags Head (mile post 12.5) for a big outdoor summer bash with a homegrown backyard feel. The Watermelon Festival is so much more than fun. It is one of the most unique festivals on the Outer Banks! We ll have tons of fun activities for kids and parents like: the splash tank, moon bounce, inflatable obstacle course, watermelon seed spitting distance contests, ice cream eating contests, face painting, and of course, tons of watermelon! Kitty Hawk Kites staff will be on site teaching kids how to use juggling sticks, balance boards, and letting them try out all of our top selling toys. We ll also have great music, food vendors on site, and one of the best raffles on the beach! Prices from activities will vary from $1-$10. Remember, proceeds benefit Wright Flight of NC. Proceeds from the Watermelon Festival go directly to the Wright Flight of NC a local non-profit that rewards 5th graders, who achieve their academic goals, with flight! The foundation has helped improve performance in local school districts and has given children the opportunities to do things like hang gliding, tandem hang gliding, and plane rides, that they may have not been able to do before. Students are also educated about the history and basic principles of flight. For more information on the 6th Annual Watermelon Festival, or other events held by Kitty Hawk Kites, please contact our Events Coordinator.
• Winterville Annual Watermelon Festival - Over 32 years, Thursday: 6 pm to 11 pm, Friday: 6 pm to 11 pm, Saturday: 8 am to 11 pm, August 23 - Thursday Night, August 24 - Family Fun Night, August 25 - Watermelon Jam
  324 Sylvania Street, Winterville, NC 28590. Email: wintervillemelonfest@gmail.com. Winterville Watermelon Festival is a multi-day event featuring activities the whole family can enjoy. You can hear local and nationally known music acts throughout the event. One of the biggest events of the festival is the Watermelon Parade through town. The watermelon-eating contest is always a favorite. Festival-goers young and old can enjoy carnival rides and midway games all weekend. In addition, visitors can checkout the flea market and commercial vendors setup through the festival grounds. Food vendors serve both watermelon treats and classic fair food such as funnel cakes, turkey legs, and corn dogs.

Farm Watermelon Festivals

In addition to community and church festivals, some private farms have their own Watermelon festivals. See each farm for this year's dates (they often do not announce them until the end of May). They usually have PYO strawberries then, too. Also, scroll down to see the links to recipes, freezing, canning and jam making directions at the bottom of the page.

• We will be adding these as we find them; Please write me, if you know of any to add!

Related Watermelon Information: Watermelon jelly and Pickled watermelon rinds

Besides eating them fresh, watermelons make two great preserves which are really easy to make with these illustrated, step-by-step instructions:

• Pickled watermelon rinds are sweet and delicious!. See this page for the easy recipe).
• Easy watermelon jelly recipe.

For other fruit and vegetable festivals, see this page!