Maine Lobster Festival

The Maine Lobster Festival is a five-day celebration on Maine’s beautiful beach! This seafood carnival is celebrated on the first weekend of August. The event is celebrated from Wednesday till Sunday. 

Maine is the capital of Portland. Every year, lakhs of people visit Maine for the Lobster Festival, which guarantees delicious native lobster meals, big performances, food events, and various other events for all age groups.

The Maine Lobster Festival operates as a non-profit organisation that contributes all of its proceeds to the Maine community every year. Since 1947, the Maine Lobster Festival has donated over $500,000 to the regional marine people of Maine.

History

It all started on August 16, 1947, two years after the Second World War. The idea was drafted by a group of local people and tourists in the region to rejuvenate the activities that used to happen before the war. 

This Maine lobster festival is a replica of Nova Scotia’s lobster festival.

In 1948, it was organised for two days (July 20-21, 1948). The festival consisted of a parade and cooked lobsters and a concert performed by the Rockland City Band.

That year, the festival received a lot of attention, and it was extended for three more days.

Maine Lobster Festival 2020

In 2020, the Maine Lobster Festival was postponed due to the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic. It was the first time the festival was cancelled. 

However, the organisers have decided to hold the lobster festival in 2022 from August 3-7, 2022. 

The organisers plan to introduce some new eye-catching schemes to bring back visitors in 2022. For example, there won’t be any admission fees charged this year. 

Maine Lobster Festival Attendance

The Maine lobster festival is attended by approximately 30,000 visitors every year. More than 1,300 volunteers from the community take part in the festival.

Attractions of the Maine Lobster Festival

• Food corners and Seafood Cooking Contest

The taste of regional seafood is the main attraction, and you can get lobster dinners in the main tent. However, some food sellers also set up food stalls with a variety of other dishes, such as fried bread, potato fries, hot dogs, etc.

There is a seafood cooking contest organised on Friday. Anyone above 18 can participate in the competition. The prize money is $525.

Participants can choose a dish of their own. However, it must be cooked using what is available locally.

The winner is selected on the basis of how simple and creative the dish is.

• The parade and Sea Goddess

Since 1948, there has been a sea goddess in the festival. A big parade is conducted on the 4th day of the festival. 

Hundreds of high-school students participate to become the goddess.

• Wines and beers and spirits

The next big attraction of the Maine lobster festival is tasting local wines and drinks. Drinks can be enjoyed while listening to live performances by the country’s well-known entertainers.

The only condition is that people attending should be 21 and above and must carry their ID cards during the festival.

• Road Race and Crate Race

The festival also has a road and crate race conducted by the organisers. The road race is organised on the last day of the festival.

There are also prizes if you are among the first 200 people to register.

• Free shuttle 

The festival is world-famous, and there is a provision for free parking and free shuttle for visitors to reach the various events on time.

Conclusion

The Maine Lobster Festival is five days of pleasure. This fish festival is held in the first week of August, from Wednesday through Sunday.

It started as an idea for a local marine festival to revive networks in midcoast Maine after the second world war but has transformed into a wholesome celebration. The Maine Lobster Festival attracts visitors from nearby areas as well as from other countries. It started in 1947.