Madison Events

Annual Events

Address: Alliant Energy Center of Dane County, Willow Island at the Alliant Energy Center • 1919 Alliant Energy Center Way, Madison, WI 53713 Category: Food / Drink Event - Festival Dates: May 22 - May 25, 2009 User rating:      (Rate It!)    |    Add to a Suitcase

The popular "World's Largest Brat Fest" is held each Memorial Day weekend at Madison's Alliant Energy Center. The festival spans 32 hours over four days and sees 190,000 brats consumed. Crowd favorites such as the "World's Largest Touring Grill" and the Oscar Mayer Weinermobile are usually present, as well as many...

Address: Olbrich Botanical Gardens • 3330 Atwood Avenue, Madison, WI 53704 Dates: June 2 - July 28, 2009 User rating:      (Rate It!)    |    Add to a Suitcase

You can enjoy a fun summer evening of great music and scenery on the Great Lawn of Olbrich's outdoor gardens. The concerts, which are held each Tuesday night in June and July, feature a wide variety of music, from jazz to folk to country. Don't miss this great chance at family friendly entertainment. You can pack...

Address: 2 E Main St, Capitol Square, Madison, WI 53702 Category: Fair / Festival - Music Dates: June 24 - July 29, 2009 User rating:      (Rate It!)    |    Add to a Suitcase

Bring a blanket and a picnic to the Capitol lawn for this popular performance series! A tradition for more than two decades, the well-attended concerts are held on six consecutive Wednesdays during June and July, and folks can't say enough about them. Each year, more than 120,000 visitors enjoy classical concerts by...

Address: 1625 Northport Dr, Warner Park, Madison, WI 53704 Category: Fair / Festival - Holiday / Seasonal Dates: June 27, 2009 User rating:      (Rate It!)    |    Add to a Suitcase

Annually pulling in more than 300,000 visitors, this huge Fourth of July celebration delivers family fun and the region's most spectacular fireworks display. Activities include events for children, carnival rides, bingo, musical performances, and skydiving exhibitions. Plus, there's plenty of food and drink to keep...

Address: Capitol Square, Madison, WI 53703 Dates: July 11 - July 12, 2009 User rating:      (Rate It!)    |    Add to a Suitcase

Benefiting the Madison Museum of Contemporary Art, this venerated event is a summertime mainstay and is regularly attended by more than 200,000 visitors. The juried show features hundreds of artists and a range of genres, including sculpture, jewelry, woodworking, painting, ceramics, and photography. Live bands...

Address: James Madison Park (start), Olin Park (finish), Madison, WI 53703 Category: Sports Event - Boating Dates: July 18, 2009 User rating:      (Rate It!)    |    Add to a Suitcase

Amateurs and serious athletes test their physical mettle at this annual summertime event. Especially suited to Madison, given its adjacent lakes, the competition begins at Lake Mendota with a mile-plus canoe paddle. Following that, participants shoulder their vessels for a mile-plus trek across the isthmus to Lake...

Address: State St, Capitol Square, Madison, WI 53703 Category: Performance - Concert / Music - Jazz / Swing Dates: August 5 - September 2, 2009 User rating:      (Rate It!)    |    Add to a Suitcase

On Wednesdays for five weeks, this popular concert series floods upper State Street with the awesome strains of local jazz. Folks take advantage of the after-work opportunity, with crowds often numbering in the thousands. Sax and bass players, pianists, drummers, and guitarists mix up the styles, and the concerts are...

Address: Olin Park • 1156 Olin-Turville Court, Madison, WI Dates: August 8, 2009 User rating:      (Rate It!)    |    Add to a Suitcase

Madison's annual Great Taste of the Midwest is one of the longest-running craft beer festivals in the country. It draws more than 100 regional and national breweries offering tastings of 500 different brews. The festival is held at picturesque Olin Park and features entertainment such as festive music and a...

Address: Capitol Square, Madison, WI 53703 Category: Fair / Festival - Food / Drink Dates: September 5 - September 6, 2009 User rating:      (Rate It!)    |    Add to a Suitcase

Culinary types swoon each year when it's time for this much-anticipated event. Set up around Capitol Square are stands representing more than sixty of Madison's most familiar restaurants. Folks can – for just a few dollars at each – sample signature dishes such as barbecue, jerk chicken, bratwursts, green curries, key...