For More Than 100 Years, This City Has Hosted One Of The Longest-Running Festivals In Pennsylvania
By Beth Price-Williams|Published August 25, 2023
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Beth Price-Williams
Author
A professional writer for more than two decades, Beth has lived in nearly a dozen states – from Missouri and Virginia to Connecticut and Vermont – and Toronto, Canada. In addition to traveling extensively in the U.S. and the U.K., she has a BA in Journalism from Point Park University (PA), a MA in Holocaust & Genocide Studies from Stockton University (NJ), and a Master of Professional Writing from Chatham University (PA). A writer and editor for Only In Your State since 2016, Beth grew up in and currently lives outside of Pittsburgh and when she’s not writing or hanging out with her bunnies, budgies, and chinchilla, she and her daughter are out chasing waterfalls.
Labor Day weekend is quickly barreling toward us, which means we’re about to bid a fond farewell to summer. Marking the season’s unofficial end, the first weekend in September generally means three days jam-packed with events and activities. We squeeze in as much as we can until we turn our sights to fall fun. Carve out some time this Labor Day weekend for a visit to the Kipona Festival, a long-running festival in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.
Start a new or continue a treasured tradition with a visit to the Kipona Festival, a popular annual event in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, that dates back to 1916 and draws more than 70,000 visitors each year.
Billed as a multicultural celebration, the Kipona Festival boasts a full menu of fun for the whole family. One of the highlights of the weekend is the Native American Pow Wow.
The Pow Wow will include, among others, a flutist, a storyteller, Aztec dancing, Iroquois social dancing, and intertribal drumming and dancing. Stop by City Island for the Pow Wow, which starts daily at 10 a.m.
Join the multicultural celebration near Market Street, too, where you can check out the McGinley Irish School of Dance, the Trinidad and Tobago Baltimore Steel Orchestra, and the African Diaspora Initiative, among others.
The weekend festival will also feature plenty of kid-friendly activities, such as face painting, carnival games, balloon animals, mobile escape rooms, magic shows, and a bubble festival.
Wirewalkers will also take to tightropes high above the city several times throughout the weekend and on Saturday at 8:15 p.m.
Carve out plenty of time to check out the many vendors who will be selling a variety of goods. Food vendors will serve everything from cheesesteaks to crab cakes.
Have you been to this long-running festival in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania? Will you go again this year? Let us know in the comments! While you’re in town, plan a trip to this old-growth forest, a natural wonder in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.
All of that exploration means only one thing: You’ll be doing a whole lot of walking. Wear a pair of comfy shoes on your adventures.
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