Spring is almost here! Now is the time to start dreaming and planning for home and yard improvement projects. At the 35th annual Spokane Home and Yard Show, you can see hundreds of displays and demonstrations to inspire you. Some of Spokane’s best landscapers will be on hand to answer questions and show the latest products and services. The show will be held February 28–March 3 at the Spokane County Fair and Expo Center. Parking is free, and adult admission is $7 for the entire weekend. Children 12 and under are free. Hours are noon–9:00 p.m. Thursday and Friday, 10:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. Saturday, and 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Sunday. Thursday only, adult admission is buy one get one free.
Once you have figured out what you want to do to your house and yard this spring, come back to the Spokane County Fair and Expo Center for Custer’s 36th annual Spring Arts and Crafts Show to pick up a hand-crafted bird house, metal sculpture, fountain, or wall hanging. You can find myriad arts and crafts items from over 300 professional artists from around the U.S., including gourmet food items, hand-painted furniture, pottery, unique jewelry and clothing pieces, nature photography, and more. With over 78,000 square feet of exhibit space, this is the largest show of its kind in the Inland Northwest. This show runs March 8–10. Hours are Friday 10:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m., Saturday 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m., and Sunday 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Admission is $7 for adults for the entire weekend; children 12 and under are free. Parking is free.
If you are traveling to town for either of these shows, check out Stratford Suites’ beautiful rooms and great rates. All rooms offer fully equipped kitchens and 50” HDTVs. The convenient location is just minutes from the airport and downtown Spokane.
Photo in the LeDuc Benefit Show at the Liberty Building.
The first Friday of every month, downtown Spokane galleries and a handful of galleries in other Spokane neighborhoods stay open late to host receptions for a wide variety of art exhibits. But twice a year, this fun monthly art walk is something bigger—the Spokane Visual Arts Tour, one of the biggest nights of the year for art in Spokane. Galleries, wineries, stores, bars, and restaurants showcase excellent artists from around the region. Many venues offer light refreshments, and admission to everything is free! Add dinner at one of the many delicious local restaurants downtown, and you have the makings of a great date night, family outing, or evening out with friends. There are over 30 locations for the event. Most are open from 5–9 p.m. Click here for a schedule. You can download a walking map of downtown here. Here are a few of the larger exhibits featuring multiple artists you won’t want to miss.
Chase Gallery in City Hall, 808 W. Spokane Falls Blvd.
Explorations 13 is comprised of a wide variety of media from some of the best college-age artists in the region, drawn from five area colleges. Light refreshments will be served, and the band Canned Music will play.
The LeDuc Benefit Show will benefit the family of Gabby LeDuc, a 6-year-old artist-in-the-making who is undergoing treatments for leukemia. Works on display and for sale include sculpture by Richard Warrington, paintings by Kirsten Stobie, Kathleen Secrest, Bill Werle, Benjamin Grant, Owl Jones, and Christina Deubel, photography by Schindler Photography, and more. Check out more than 12 artists displaying on four floors with live music 5:30–8:00.
Kress Gallery (3rd level, Riverpark Square), 808 W. Main Ave.
A Child’s Eye from West to East features the work of Japanese students age 6–12 of the Nishinomiya UNESCO Association through a Sister City relationship with Spokane’s school district. Ensembles from the Spokane Public Schools presented by First Night Spokane Rising Stars, 5:30–7:30.
Spokane is a vibrant, fun, beautiful city to visit any time of the year. Something is always going on! Below is a list, by no means complete, of some of the most popular annual events that draw people from all over the region.
From Garden in the Sea, one of the films being shown at the 2013 Spokane International Film Festival.
This is a golden opportunity to see some of the previous year’s best films from all over the world on the big screen. Some of them may not ever be available on DVD in the United States. Festival passes are available. Individual tickets go on sale online January 12 and range from $5.00–$10.00. Films will be shown downtown in the Magic Lantern Theatre and the Bing Crosby Theater. Click here for a list of this year’s selected films.
Spokane celebrates all things Irish as well as a sense of community with a festive parade through downtown Spokane. Marching bands, creative floats, school groups from around the region, and dancing are some of the sights to be had. Come early to stake out a good place to watch! Click here for the parade route.
The first Sunday of every May, runners, walkers, and people using wheelchairs trek 12 km (7.46 miles) in and around downtown Spokane, WA in one of the nation’s largest annual foot races. Elite runners competing for the championships come from all over the world, but many more people are there for the fun of it. Flamboyant costumes, creative team themes, and great on-course entertainment are guaranteed to help distract you from the physical exertion. You can register online anytime through April 21 for $17 plus $1.69 online processing fee. Beginning March 1, mail-in forms will be available at various locations around town (must be postmarked by April 16).
Spokane is known for its gorgeous, though short-lived, lilacs that bloom in the spring. Each year, at around the time the lilacs are blooming, the community celebrates with a big torchlight parade, a car show, and several other events featuring the Lilac Royalty (princesses and a queen). The main events are on Saturday, May 18. The Cruzin’ the Falls Classic Car Show runs 10 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. downtown on Spokane Falls Boulevard, and the 75th Spokane Lilac Festival Diamond Anniversary Armed Forces Torchlight Parade starts at 7:45, also downtown. Click here for a full list of Lilac Festival events.
Coeur d’Alene’s IRONMAN triathlon course is one of the most scenic in the nation. Competitors swim two loops (2.4 miles total) in beautiful Lake Coeur d’Alene, cycle two loops (112 miles total) through rural, scenic North Idaho, and run two loops (26.2 miles total) parallel to the lake. Spectators cheer on the athletes during the running course. There will be 50 qualifying Age Group slots to the IRONMAN World Championship on offer at the 2013 IRONMAN Coeur d’Alene. About 2,800 people participate.
This very popular event is already sold out for general entries, but there are still Ironman Foundation entry fee spots available ($1,250, half of which goes to the Ironman Foundation). Come and support a competing athlete you know or just watch this incredible feat of endurance!
This is the largest 3-on-3 street basketball tournament in the world, with over 7,000 teams and almost 28,000 players in 2012. People of all abilities can put together a team and register, but the youngest players must be entering the third grade in fall of 2013. From the 3BA Elite Division to occasional players, there is a bracket for everyone, and prizes are awarded to the winners in each bracket. Registration opens March 15. If you want to be actively involved without playing, volunteer! Hoopfest is made possible by 3,000 people who volunteer their time.
Independence Day Festival, July 4
Music and other live entertainment, food, vendors, community booths, and fireworks at dusk at Riverfront Park.
At the Riverside State Park Equestrian Area on July 13, you can stomp in puddles all you want, whether you are 8 or 80, and no one will care that you are ruining your shoes and splattering everyone around you. In fact, it’s actually the point of the event to get just as filthy as you possibly can while negotiating a slippery, 3.5 mile obstacle course of walls, mud hills, pipes, giant slip ‘n slides, and more features. There is even a “Beer Chug Obstacle” (root beer also available) where you will chug a beer before attempting the challenge (for beer, you must present your ID and get a wrist band before the race starts). There is also a shorter Piglet Plunge for ages 2–12 (must be accompanied by a parent, $20 to register), a 1-mile course with kid-friendly obstacles and features like the “Hog Wash” and the “Pig Sty.”
Register as a team or an individual. Costumes, bad mustaches, and outrageous hair are highly encouraged, and you might just win prizes for them, along with other creative categories. Cost is $35.00 through January 31, then it goes up gradually until July 10, when it is $55.00.
Don’t miss one of the best free music festivals in the Northwest, held in Riverfront Park. This huge, six-day celebration begins on the Wednesday before Labor Day. Three stages plus roving entertainment provide something for everyone. Of course, there are also about 54 food booths offering up all kinds of cuisine, from foot-long hot dogs to samosas. Local and regional bands as well as national headliners play.
It’s all here—farm animals, amusement rides, rodeo, live music, art, crafts, giant produce, wickedly good junk food, trinkets, antique machinery, and much more. The fair ushers in the fall; it’s the last big summer weather event. Watch the website for details of the 2013 fair as they become available!
The exact dates have not been announced yet, but in the second half of September, the 4th annual Spokane Oktoberfest will be held in Riverfront Park. This 21-and-older event features a large variety of Washington state beers for tasting. Live music, German concession food, and an Oktoberfest costume contest are all part of the fun.
Green Bluff Growers Festivals, May through December
Green Bluff, home to a few dozen farms, is located about 15 miles north of Spokane in the scenic foothills of Mt. Spokane. During the summer and fall, you can visit growers and buy food directly where it is grown. You can even pick your own berries, tree fruits, pumpkins, and more. On festival weekends, farmers and shops offer live music, farm-fresh cuisine, tours, and more. Some farms have play areas for kids, petting zoos, wagon rides, and corn mazes. There are even wineries and candy makers to visit.
Green Bluff farms open up to the public beginning with the Blooms on the Bluff (flowers, plants, crafts) on Mother’s Day Weekend. At the end of June and beginning of July, you can enjoy some super fresh, sweet, local strawberries during the Strawberry Festival. Next is the Cherry Festival, two weekends in July, including the Cherry Picker’s Trot annual fun run. The Peach Festival runs late August through Labor Day, and the Apple Festival is late September to the end of October. You can even come back for holiday shopping during Holiday Memories November 23 through December 24 and cut your own Christmas tree or pick up unique, local food gifts. Each farm has its own hours and events. Click here for the growers’ map, from which you can access information pages for each farm
The biggest, most inclusive New Year’s Eve party in Spokane starts at 6:00 p.m. (some kids’ activities start at 3:00 p.m.) It runs until midnight, but you won’t run out of things to do and probably will not have time to see everything you want to! Click here for a description of the dozens of performance and attractions at First Night Spokane 2013. Admission buttons are just $12 through December 30 or $15 on December 31. Kids 10 and under are free when accompanied by a button-bearing adult. Get your buttons at Cenex Zip Trip stores, the River Park Square concierge desk, Auntie’s Book Store, or Mountain West Bank. Not going to be near any of those places in the next few days? Just order online and pick up your buttons at the Spokane Convention Center beginning at 3:00 p.m. on New Year’s Eve. Your button gets you into all First Night events.
The evening begins with a masquerade parade at 6:10 p.m. from the Spokane Convention Center to the Riverfront Park Fountain and ends at midnight with a fireworks show that starts at 11:50 p.m. In between, there is a large variety of entertainment for everyone. As always, First Night Spokane is alcohol free and family friendly. To help you decide, here are some great choices, one for each hour counting down to 2013.
Bring the kids to the Spokane Convention Center for three hours of fun. Activities are centered around this year’s First Night theme: Across the Universe: the Year of the U.F.O. Kids can create their favorite “Martian Marmot,” launch a rocket, get a robot hat, and put on a washable tattoo. There will be dancing, a “moon surface walk,” “space writing wall,” and music. There are even special activities just for tots 2–4 years old.
7:00 p.m.—Outrageous Wild Women Crown Making
Stop by first, or anytime throughout the evening, to decorate a personalized crown. Not just for kids! Grown-ups need to feel like royalty, too! Located in the Crescent Court, 2nd floor.
8:00 p.m.—SCC Players at the Spokane Public Library
Check out live theatre performances by the Spokane Community College Players at 7:00, 8:00, or 9:00 p.m. Last year’s show included actors performing unique folk stories from faraway lands; this year is sure to be equally interesting. While you are there, check out the photographs of Afghanistan by Casey Johnson.
9:00 p.m.—Blue Door Theatre, Convention Center Conference Theatre
Check out Spokane’s great improvisational comedy group, Blue Door Theatre. They will perform every hour all night. Every show is different because it is influenced by audience participation and random, on-the-fly ideas. Very entertaining, with jokes that require creativity rather than crudeness—it’s all clean humor.
10:00 p.m.—48 Hour Film Festival, Produced by NXNW
Each year, local film makers are invited to enter short films that must be written, filmed, and edited in just 48 hours. In case you are wondering (I was) how they prevent cheating, NXNW keeps the storyline requirements secret until the 48 hour timeline begins. Come watch the contestants’ submissions anytime throughout the night in the Spokane City Council Chambers meeting room in the lower level of City Hall. If you don’t have time to catch them during First Night, you can watch them on YouTube.
11:00 p.m.—Ice Skating and Looff Carousel Rides
End your night in the park to be close by when the fireworks begin. Your button provides free rides on the carousel and free ice skating at the Ice Palace (skate rental is not free, though). As you stroll through the park, stop at the many bonfires to warm up, or warm up by dancing to DJ music at the Riverfront Park Fountain. Visual artists will also be showing their work in the area.
Parking
Get a happy start to your night, rather than an irritating one, by choosing the easy, free parking option for First Night Spokane! Park at the Riverpoint Campus just east of downtown at 412 E. Spokane Falls Blvd. in the yellow lot for free. Then catch a free STA bus, which will run every 10 minutes from 3:00 p.m. until 1:00 a.m., to various venues of First Night. Catch a bus back at the end of your evening. Click here for a parking and shuttle service map. Easy peasy!
This weekend, the City of Spokane Valley will host its biggest celebration of the year, with a parade, hot air balloons, gourmet food and wine tasting, bicycling and running events, live music, and more. Valleyfest began in 1990; its mission “is to showcase the talent that enriches our community and give exposure of the visual and performing arts, education, science, and recreation to those families who might otherwise not have the means to experience them.”
Friday night, bring your family to see the Hearts of Gold parade, which starts at 7:30 p.m. at Sprague Avenue at Appleway Florist and travels east to the Spokane Heritage Museum. The parade will feature lighted floats, mascots, dancers, classic cars, and fire trucks.
Start your day with a pancake breakfast from 7:00 to 10:30 a.m. Volunteers will be preparing and serving a hot breakfast of pancakes, eggs, sausage, and bacon, plus your choice of coffee, juice, or milk. The price is $7 for adults, $3 for kids 3–6, and free for kids 2 and under. Click here for a $1 discount coupon!
Parents and expectant parents can attend educational workshops and movies and visit baby-themed exhibitions at BabyFest 2012. BabyFest runs from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Admission is free.
Look at the stars under a roof at the Stargazer Planetarium from 11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.
At Taste of the Valley, 6:00 to 9:00 p.m., you can sample regional wines, enjoy hors d’oeuvres, and listen to live music on the patio. Tickets are $30 and must be purchased by Friday.
Valleyfest Car Show will be held on the grass outside CenterPlace. Registration is 8:00 to 11:00 a.m. and is $10.00 per vehicle. Lowco’s car club is hosting and judging the event, with awards given at 3:30 p.m.
Throughout the day, the CenterPlace patio stage will offer live music and comedy. Click here for a schedule.
Mirabeau Point Park, located next to the CenterPlace Event Center, will have plenty of fun things to do and see:
The Spokane Astronomical Society will be around all day Saturday to hand out free DVD’s and other prizes and to let people look through telescopes of all different sizes. You can view sunspots and solar flares with special telescope filters, and in the evening, from 7:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. Saturday, the group will host a night sky viewing. Come see the galaxy and learn what you are looking at in the night sky!
Weather permitting, Balloons over Valleyfest will launch hot air balloons from the park at 6:40 a.m. on Friday. At 5:00 a.m., you can come and view the “Morning Glow” of the lit balloons before takeoff. Saturday and Sunday, the balloons will launch at 6:35 a.m. Saturday night at 8:00 p.m., the lit balloons will be on display for “Night Glow.”
Sunday, bring your bike for the Spokane River Centennial Trail Bike Ride. Meet at the Mirabeau Point Park North Centennial Trail Head at 11:00 a.m. for check-in ($10.00 for ages 11 and over and $5.00 for ages 10 and under). The ride starts at noon, and you can choose from four routes ranging from 6.8 to 15.6 miles. All routes are loops that finish back at Mirabeau Park. Pre-register here.
If walking is more your style, you can register for the Step up for Down Syndrome Walk, which starts Saturday at 10:00 a.m. at the Discovery Playground at Mirabeau Point Park. Or race in the 5k/10k Run for a Cause on Sunday at 8:30 a.m., which benefits education, research, and advocacy programs for Down Syndrome. Registration for the run is $15 before Sept 20 or $25 if registered after September 20, 2012.
Saturday and Sunday, the Family Stage will feature performers of various kinds, including music and dancing. Click here for a schedule.
The Meadow Festival Stage will also feature live music and dancing Saturday and Sunday. Click here for a schedule.
The next two weekends are perfect for spending in Spokane, with a lot of live music, art, and fun for the low admission price of $0.00. The 27th annual ArtFest runs June 1–3, and the annual indie music celebration Elkfest will be held June 8–10. Both of these popular events are outdoors in Browne’s Addition, and both are free! In previous years, both festivals occurred on the same weekend, causing dilemmas of which shows to choose. This year, you don’t have to miss anything at Elkfest because your favorite band is playing at ArtFest.
The MAC Museum of Arts and Culture ArtFest consists of three days of fine music, good food, the fun children’s hands-on art making area, and over 160 fine artists and craftspeople. Come see and buy unique furniture, glass, ceramics, fiber art, drawings, paintings, jewelry, leather art, food, and more. The event is held in Coeur d’Alene Park, just west of downtown in Browne’s. Hours are Friday, noon–8 p.m., Saturday, 10 a.m.–8 p.m., and Sunday, 10 a.m.–5 p.m. There will be live music and beer gardens until 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday. Click here for a list of participating artists. Some of Spokane’s best bands will be performing, including Six Foot Swing, Angela Marie Project, and Sammy Eubanks.
Elkfest indie music festival
The Elk restaurant in Browne’s Addition will serve up good food and drink along with an incredible three days of live music at the 8th annual Elkfest on June 8–10. Over 10,000 people come every year to listen and dance to local and regional indie bands. The event is free and open to the public, and kids are welcome. The festival has the feel of a neighborhood block party, with the street blocked to traffic and the stage set up right next to the restaurant. The line up of bands includes My Goodness, Emily Wells, Whiskey Dick Mountain, the Camaros, and the Globes. Elkfest runs Friday, June 8, 5–10 p.m. and Saturday/Sunday 1–10 p.m.
This weekend, you have a chance to find out what those antiques you’ve been keeping are really worth. At Custer’s 37th annual Spring Antique and Collector’s Sale, experts will be on hand to appraise your hand carried items (no firearms or musical instruments; for large items, just bring photos that show detail), so you can decide to keep, toss, or sell your collectibles. The MAC Appraisal Days runs Saturday 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. and Sunday 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Spokane County Fair and Expo Center. The fee for each item appraised is $7 and benefits the MAC Northwest Museum of Arts and Culture. Bonus: everyone who has an item appraised will receive a 2-for-1 admission coupon for the MAC! Since the price of adult admission for the MAC is the same as the appraisal fee ($7), it’s like getting one item appraised free.
Plan to arrive early as appraisals are first come, first served. There is a limit of five items per person. In order to have your items appraised, you must pay admission to the Spring Antique and Collector’s Sale ($6 for adults all weekend long, kids 12 and under free, free parking), the largest indoor antique and collector’s sale in the Inland Northwest. Over 200 dealers participate, and there are thousands of vintage pieces in all price ranges to choose from, including kitchenware, industrial, jewelry, furniture, primitives, rustic garden, elegant glass, shabby chic, prints, and retro items. Show hours are Friday 4 p.m. to 9 p.m., Saturday 10 a.m. to 7 p.m., and Sunday 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. The appraisers will only be on hand Saturday and Sunday, but as your admission is good all weekend, you can browse the show on Friday and come back Saturday or Sunday to have your items appraised.
Not sure what you are doing for New Year’s? Celebrate the end of 2011 at First Night Spokane. At various locations throughout downtown, all within walking distance of each other, you will find an amazing variety of shows and activities to please all ages and tastes. The cost for an admission button that covers all events is just $12, or $15 the day of the show. You can purchase them online or at many businesses throughout Spokane. First Night runs from 7 p.m. to midnight.
Several great performers will entertain you with juggling, comedy, boogie-woogie piano, jump-rope acrobatics (from Rene Bibaud, who has performed with Cirque du Soleil) and old vaudeville style clowning. Shows are at 7, 8, 9, 10, and 11 p.m.
From 7 to 10 p.m., pick up a passport from one of four locations. At each location, you will receive a clue to solve before moving on to the next location. Once a clue is solved, you will receive a stamp on your passport. When you have all four stamps, drop your passport into a Yoke’s Dinosaur Egg Safari enter-to-win box to be entered into drawings for prizes.
Start your healthy resolutions a few hours early with a 5k run through downtown Spokane. Runners line up at 6:30 p.m., and the run begins at 6:45 p.m. An optional bag drop makes it easy to get your coat and purse afterward. Fill out and bring the waiver form before you go. Click here for a map of the course.
Don’t let fear of downtown parking keep you from First Night! Just park at the Riverpoint Campus just east of downtown Spokane (412 E. Spokane Falls Blvd.) in the yellow lot and catch a bus to one of several First Night venues. Buses run every ten minutes from 3 p.m. to 1 a.m.
Free Carousel Rides and Ice Skating
From 7 to 11 p.m., you can skate free at the Ice Palace in the heart of Riverfront Park (you still have to pay for skate rental) and take free rides on the beautiful Looff Carousel, also located in Riverfront Park.
The Comedy Show at the Spokane Masonic Center
Four comedians will perform in the ballroom. Show times are 7, 8, 9, 10, and 11 p.m.
You can also check out plenty of live music, theatre from Stage West Community Theatre and the Spokane Community College Players, Spokane Theatre Ballet, improv comedy from Blue Door Theatre, and much more! Check out the full schedule on the website.
Travel Spokane is a website built to inform Spokane visitors about the latest news, events, and opportunities in Spokane. The information is provided free courtesy of Stratford Suites. If you are looking for a Spokane Hotel be sure to check out our website at www.stratfordsuites.com
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