The Maine Lobster Festival is five days of fun and feasting on the fabulous coast of Maine. This annual event takes place on the first weekend of August, from Wednesday to Sunday. The Maine Lobster Festival attracts tens of thousands of visitors to Rockland, Maine each year, promising dinners with fresh local lobster, world-renowned entertainers, cooking competitions, carnival rides, Maine artisans and artists.
Obviously, the main theme of the festivities is lobster. Every year (since 1991), the Atwood Lobster Company exclusively supplies more than 20,000 pounds of lobster for cooking. Visitors here can enjoy freshly caught, freshly cooked lobster under the Maine Eating Tent while enjoying the cool breezes of Penobscot Bay. If you’re confident in your lobster cooking skills and think your recipe is worthy of attention, we encourage you to enter the Maine Lobster Festival’s seafood cooking contest. Winners receive a substantial cash prize, fame, and the honor of victory. If you don’t like lobster, don’t worry. There are plenty of other food options you can enjoy.
Before enjoying all the delicacies, tune up your appetite by participating in the Maine Lobster Festival Road Race. More than 200 athletes compete each year in the 10-kilometer road race that stretches from Rockland to Rockport. To keep your momentum going, thousands of spectators cheer you on to the finish line.
If you still have the energy, how about a lobster trap race? The annual William Atwood Great International Lobster Trap Race challenges you to run through a series of 50 partially submerged lobster boxes without falling into the water. Thousands of people gather to watch a few daredevils jump, run, leap and scream their way through the rope of slippery floating lobster traps. Regular visitors to the festival will tell you that if you start falling, do it well. The crowd loves a creative way into the water!
If you’re art-focused, visit the fine arts tent to view the creations of local artists, or browse the adjacent tent with crafts by Maine locals. The festival also offers all kinds of music, every day, even from major headliners. Some music events require advance ticket purchases, so be sure to plan ahead.
Maine Lobster Festival Craft TentMany people who attend the Maine Lobster Festival come with their families because there are so many activities for children. The children’s tent offers a variety of activities such as: cod carrying, diaper derby, and lobster eating. Children are also invited to participate in the “opening” of the adult road race. The Kids’ Fun Run is a one-mile run down Rockland’s main street.