2012 Calendar of Annual Traverse City and Grand Traverse Events
January
Festival of Trains: Delightful and imaginative working model train layouts fill several rooms at the History Center of Traverse City. (231) 995-0313.Downtown Chili Cook Off: Warm up your winter at Annual Downtown Chili Cook-Off. Sample many chilies and vote for your favorites. (231) 922-2050.
Beer & Boards Festival: Sample a variety of microbrews while bonding with fellow enthusiasts and brewers. (800) 678-4111.
Annual Downtown Bridal Show: Wedding Bells are ringing in Traverse City. Bridal fashion show, vendors representing all aspects of wedding planning. (231) 922-2050.
Village Indoor Farmers Market: Experience fresh food all year long! Each week, local farmers bring the bounty of the season straight from the farm to you. Choose from fresh eggs, fish, meats, milk, and cheese, fruits, vegetables, homemade breads, pasta, sweet treats, honey, preserves, maple syrup, herbs, and more. (231) 941-1900 x30.
February
Mid-Winter’s Chocolate Therapy Fest: Join chocolatiers from around Michigan for an afternoon of everything chocolate! Enjoy chocolate samples, chocolate-making demos, a cupcake competition, Valentine's gifts, chocolate spa treatments, and live jazz. (800) 678-4111.Taste the Passion: Wineries of Leelanau Peninsula present this special weekend celebrating wine, chocolate and love in anticipation of Valentine's Day! Enjoy winter's beauty in Leelanau as you collect souvenir glasses and taste special pours and chocolate treats on this wine tour.
Soup-er Bowl, Women & Snow
National Masters’ Championship & 36th Annual N. American VASA: The National Masters Championships and the Annual North American VASA, 12km, 27km and 50km -- Freestyle and Classic, 6km Freestyle (14-19 yrs only); Gran Travers' 16km and 6km Classic. Race distances are specified for each age category. Team points and championships will only be recognized for those registering in the appropriate race distance for their age. Skiers may elect to enter a different race distance for their age, however, they will not be eligible for Masters' points and championships. (231) 938-4400.
Annual White Pine Stampede: This Michigan Cup cross-country ski race (in 10k, 20k and 50k loops) starts in the village of Mancelona and travels a hilly course through the wooded forests around the Shanty Creek Resorts. (231) 587-8812.
Traverse City Winter Microbrew & Music Fest
Village Indoor Farmers Market: Experience fresh food all year long! Each week, local farmers bring the bounty of the season straight from the farm to you. Choose from fresh eggs, fish, meats, milk, and cheese, fruits, vegetables, homemade breads, pasta, sweet treats, honey, preserves, maple syrup, herbs, and more. (231) 941-1900 x30.
Downtown President’s Weekend Sale
Annual Traverse City Restaurant Week
March
Suds & SnowAnnual Traverse City Restaurant Week
Village Indoor Farmers Market: Experience fresh food all year long! Each week, local farmers bring the bounty of the season straight from the farm to you. Choose from fresh eggs, fish, meats, milk, and cheese, fruits, vegetables, homemade breads, pasta, sweet treats, honey, preserves, maple syrup, herbs, and more. (231) 941-1900 x30.
Slush Cup Weekend @ Shanty Creek Resorts
April
Village Indoor Farmers Market: Experience fresh food all year long! Each week, local farmers bring the bounty of the season straight from the farm to you. Choose from fresh eggs, fish, meats, milk, and cheese, fruits, vegetables, homemade breads, pasta, sweet treats, honey, preserves, maple syrup, herbs, and more. (231) 941-1900 x30.Celebration for Young Children
May
Village Indoor Farmers Market: Experience fresh food all year long! Each week, local farmers bring the bounty of the season straight from the farm to you. Choose from fresh eggs, fish, meats, milk, and cheese, fruits, vegetables, homemade breads, pasta, sweet treats, honey, preserves, maple syrup, herbs, and more. (231) 941-1900 x30.TBAYS Cherry Capital Cup Soccer Tournament
Spring Sip & Savor
Old Mission Blossom Days: A Celebration of Blossoms, Beauty and Bounty on Old Mission Peninsula. Old Mission winemakers invite you to their tasting rooms to give you a sample of unreleased wines! Barrel and Reserve wines are showcased in addition to each winery’s standard tasting list. Your ticket price includes a souvenir glass and tasting at all seven wineries. Tickets are available at any Old Mission Peninsula Winery on the days of the event. (231) 223-4110. Wineries of Old Mission Website
Empire Asparagus Festival
Annual Bayshore Marathon
Antrim County Petoskey Stone Festival
Leelanau Bird Fest
June
Annual Leland Wine & Food FestSara Hardy Downtown Farmers Market
Leelanau Bird Fest
Suttons Bay Summer Solstice Art Walk
July
Cedar Polka FestHorse Shows by the Bay
National Cherry Festival: Traverse City is still proud to be America’s Cherry Capital. The National Cherry Festival celebrates this heritage every year during the first week of July with an eight-day party featuring over 150 family activities: air shows, fireworks, parades (including the nation’s largest all-children parade) games, races, midway rides, demonstrations, nightly outdoor concerts and lots of chances to taste delicious cherry products. The Cherry Festival is Traverse City’s signature event, drawing as many as 500,000 attendees from around the country. Almost all the events are free, offering more than a week of affordable family fun.(231) 947-4230.
Sara Hardy Downtown Farmers Market
Friday Night Live
Traverse City Film Festival: Summertime is “outside time” in Traverse City, so it might seem odd that one of the area’s most popular new summer festivals takes place almost entirely indoors. Founded in 2005, the Traverse City Film Festival provides movie buffs with an outstanding selection of independent, foreign, and documentary films, as well as premieres, parties, panel discussions and lectures about the world of film. Most events are held near downtown -- at the vintage State Theatre, the City Opera House, and the Old Town Playhouse – but there are also free family movies shown each night at an outdoor screen at Open Space Park on the shore of West Grand Traverse Bay. (231) 392-1134.
August
Traverse City Film Festival: Summertime is “outside time” in Traverse City, so it might seem odd that one of the area’s most popular new summer festivals takes place almost entirely indoors. Founded in 2005, the Traverse City Film Festival provides movie buffs with an outstanding selection of independent, foreign, and documentary films, as well as premieres, parties, panel discussions and lectures about the world of film. Most events are held near downtown -- at the vintage State Theatre, the City Opera House, and the Old Town Playhouse – but there are also free family movies shown each night at an outdoor screen at Open Space Park on the shore of West Grand Traverse Bay. (231) 392-1134.Sara Hardy Downtown Farmers Market
Friday Night Live
Suttons Bay Annual Community Arts Festival
Cherry Roubaix Bike Race
Annual Buckley Old Engine Show
Annual Traverse City Triathlon
Traverse City Summer Microbrew & Music Festival
September
Sara Hardy Downtown Farmers MarketNHL Prospect Tournament
Red Wings Training Camp
October
Sara Hardy Downtown Farmers MarketFall Festival Sale & Happy Apple Days
Downtown Halloween Walk
November
Shop Your Community DayDecember
Santa’s Arrival Downtown Traverse City & Downtown Open HouseFestival of Trains: Delightful and imaginative working model train layouts fill several rooms at the History Center of Traverse City. (231) 995-0313.
