Summer in Columbus doesn’t need a passport. Grab a plate, follow the music, and let five different cultures come to you before Labor Day even hits.
If you already caught the Asian Festival or Juneteenth Ohio back in May and June, nice work. Here’s everything still ahead on the calendar.
Columbus Cultural Festivals This Summer
Jazz & Rib Fest Kicks Off the Real Summer Run (July 24 to 26)
233 S Civic Center Dr, Columbus, OH 43215
The Scioto Mile turns into three days of world class jazz and serious barbecue smoke. Look for Keiko Matsui, Jonathan Butler, Jeffrey Osborne, and PJ Morton across the West Bank Park and Bicentennial Park stages.
A brand new Brass Band Stage brings New Orleans style horns to the riverfront for the first time this year. There’s also a tribute set honoring Columbus jazz legend Nancy Wilson.
Bring a chair, grab a rack of ribs from one of the competing pitmasters, and stay for the music. It’s free, and it’s the unofficial start of Columbus’s cultural festival season.
Dublin Irish Festival Brings the World’s Biggest Irish Party to Coffman Park (July 31 to Aug 2)
5200 Emerald Pkwy, Dublin, OH 43017
This one needs no introduction if you grew up in Central Ohio. The Dublin Irish Festival is the largest three day Irish festival in the world, and it takes over Coffman Park with seven stages, more than 800 performers, and enough fish and chips to feed 100,000 people.
Highland games, sheep herding demonstrations, and a Wee Folk Area for kids round out the weekend. Sunday morning offers free admission before 11 a.m. if you bring a donation for the Dublin Food Pantry, so plan around that if you want to save a few bucks and help a good cause.
Festival Latino Moves Downtown for a Bigger, Bolder 29th Year (Aug 22 to 23)
160 S High St, Columbus, OH 43215
After years at Genoa Park, Festival Latino relocates to Columbus Commons and the Ohio Theatre this year. The new setup means more room and easier access for the crowds who come out for two days of music, food, and dance rooted in Latin America.
This year’s headliners include Cuban Afro jazz group OKAN, Mexican Durangense act Mazizo Musical, and Dominican merengue legend Oro Sólido. It’s still free, still family friendly, and still the biggest Latino celebration in Ohio.
Labor Day Weekend’s Culture Fest Extravaganza
Columbus Greek Festival (Sep 4 to 7)
555 N High St, Columbus, OH 43215
If you only pick one weekend to go all in, make it Labor Day. The Columbus Greek Festival marks its 53rd year at the Annunciation Greek Orthodox Cathedral from Sept 4 through 7, with cathedral tours, live folk dancing, and enough spanakopita and pastries to make you forget you’re in Ohio.
CBUS Soul Fest (Sep 4 to 5)
233 S Civic Center Dr, Columbus, OH 43215
Just a few minutes away at Bicentennial Park, CBUS Soul Fest closes out the summer on Sept 4 and 5 with performances from Stokley and Lalah Hathaway, celebrating Columbus’s Black music, food, and culture. Split your weekend between the two and you’ve covered two continents without moving your car far.
Plan Your Cultural Festival Summer
Here’s the full lineup at a glance:
- Jazz & Rib Fest: July 24 to 26, Scioto Mile
- Dublin Irish Festival: July 31 to Aug 2, Coffman Park
- Festival Latino: Aug 22 to 23, Columbus Commons & Ohio Theatre
- Columbus Greek Festival: Sept 4 to 7, Annunciation Greek Orthodox Cathedral
- CBUS Soul Fest: Sept 4 to 5, Bicentennial Park
Most of these festivals are free to attend, which makes for an easy weekend plan. Bring cash for food trucks since not every vendor takes cards, and check each festival’s website closer to the date for parking and shuttle details.
Don’t wait until September to look back and wish you’d gone. Pick a weekend, pick a culture, and go experience it.
Which festival is going on your calendar first? Tell us in the comments, and tag Step Out Columbus in your festival pics all summer long.
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