Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Festivals and Events
An excellent resource for finding specific events during your visit to Billings is
www.Billings365.com , which highlights every sort of daily happening from concerts and
food-related events to sports and recreation.
Few artificial objects enhance a skyline as spectacularly as a flock of hot-air balloons.
Billings's annual Magic City Hot Air Balloon Rally (Amend Park off King Ave. E., 406/
671-3104, www.magiccityhotairballoonrally.com , $175 for a ride), held on a weekend in
late July or early August, lights up the sky with early-morning flights, dusk Balloon Glows,
and plenty of camaraderie.
Sponsored by the Yellowstone Art Museum, Summerfair (Veteran's Park, corner of
Poly Dr. and 13th St. W., 406/256-6804, ext. 239, www.artmuseum.org , 10am-5pm Sat.-
Sun., $2 adults, $1 students, $5 family) is the largest juried arts and crafts festival in the
region. Typically held on a weekend in mid-late July, the fair includes more than 100 artist
booths, loads of activities for kids, live entertainment, and a food court.
The state's largest annual event, MontanaFair (MetraPark, 308 6th Ave. N., 406/
256-2400 or 800/366-8538, www.montanafair.com , $8 adults, $5 seniors, $5 children 6-12,
free for children 5 and under, call ahead for special deals and concert tickets), running for
nine days starting the second week of August, is an agricultural fair in the classic tradition.
In addition to arts and crafts competitions and displays in everything from pigs and tomato-
growing to pickles and crochet, MontanaFair events include major concerts, motorsports,
bull riding, rodeo, and a good old-fashioned carnival.
For beer lovers, Ales for Trails (at changing venues in downtown Billings, 406/
281-1244, www.bikenet.org ) in late September offers 40 microbrews, local food vendors,
and great local music. The event benefits the Heritage Trail System's 36-plus miles of
pedestrian-friendly bike trails throughout Billings, which have earned Billings the “Green
City” title in Organic Gardening magazine.
Growing like mad since its origins in 2001, the four-day Magic City Blues (downtown
Billings, www.magiccityblues.com ) music festival held in mid-August offers an impressive
lineup of big-name artists in unique outdoor settings.
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