Photo courtesy Carytown Watermelon Festival
If you’re looking for a crisp summer treat, the 42nd annual Carytown Watermelon Festival is the place to be. The free event runs from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 11, and will feature a kids’ zone, food vendors, shopping, a beer garden and performances from over 80 musicians. But the main attraction is, of course, the fresh bowls of sliced fruit sold to benefit the Shriners Hospitals for Children.
Booths will line Cary Street from the Carytown Exchange to The Byrd Theatre. This popular summer event draws more than 100,000 attendees annually and even earned a mention from CNN in a June 2024 article citing the festival as one of the reasons Richmond is included in “America’s Best Towns to Visit in 2024.”
