Fairgoers take in the view on the swing ride at the Great New York State Fair in August 2019. (Photo by Michael J. Okoniewski for the Great New York State Fair.)
The pandemic caused events around the globe to be canceled, from concerts to fairs. With vaccines becoming widely available, some events are coming back—although in altered ways or with limited capacity. Here are a few of Central New York’s most exciting events that you can attend this year.
Taste of Syracuse: Picnics at the Park
This is a 13-week event featuring over 80 vendors at Onondaga Lake Park from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. every Thursday of June, July and August. Several vendors will be featured each week along with live performances. This event is taking the place of the usual Taste of Syracuse event, which usually takes place in downtown Syracuse and draws massive crowds. This smaller event gives people the opportunity to taste local vendors in a safer manner. Check back for weekly updates on vendors and performers on its website and Facebook page.
New York State Blues Festival
The New York State Blues Festival is planning to return on June 24-26 this year. This free festival brings together local and national blues artists for a celebration of blues music. Any fan of the blues or music in general should check this one out.
St. Sophia’s Greek Cultural Festival
St. Sophia’s Greek Church, 325 Waring Road, DeWitt, holds an annual Greek Cultural Festival. However, this year’s Greek fest will be a “drive-thru Greek food fest.” Festival goers can pre-order food online to get a quick pick up, or they can drive up and decide there. The festival is taking place at St. Sophia’s Church from Thursday, June 10, through Sunday, June 13. There is a wide selection of classic Greek foods, including gyros, souvlaki, spanakopita and baklava.
Great New York State Fair
The Great New York State Fair has been happening every year in Syracuse since 1890, up until 2020. In 2019, over 1.3 million people attended the fair, this year it is making a return from Aug. 20-Sept. 6. Fairgoers can enjoy a wide array of live entertainment options, choose from hundreds of food vendors and see some incredible exhibitions, like sand sculptures and butter sculptures. This year, the fairgrounds was converted into a vaccination site, and in the summer it will pivot to hold one the largest annual events in New York State to celebrate culture, agriculture, entertainment and, of course, food.
ONC Crawfish and Food Truck Festival
The 2021 Operation Northern Comfort (ONC) Crawfish and Food Truck Festival will take place on May 1 from noon to 6 p.m. at the Syracuse Inner Harbor. Festival goers will be able to get food to go from food trucks and enjoy flavorful crawfish. The event is sponsored by Operation Northern Comfort, a nonprofit that brings together organizations from around Central New York to help provide labor, donations and support to communities in need. Entry is free and all proceeds benefit ONC.
Syracuse Arts and Crafts Festival
From July 23-25, Syracuse will host a showcase of 160 of the state and country’s finest arts and crafters at the annual Syracuse Arts and Crafts Festival. The festival usually draws over 50,000 visitors, who had to view last year’s festival virtually. In addition to the arts and crafts, there will be dozens of food vendors at the festival.
