Top New England Events
Dateline: 02/09/00
Each year, The American Bus Association (ABA) selects
North America's Top 100
Events. While the focus is on choosing those events that make great motorcoach
destinations, the top events are a diverse selection of festivals and celebrations that
you'll enjoy no matter how you get there! This year, the ABA's
Selection Committee tapped 10 New England events for the Top 100 List.
Here's a round-up of the New England events that made the Top 100 List:
May 20-21, 2000
Meet
the Artists and Artisans
Milford, Connecticut
(203) 874-5672
More than 200 fine artists and handcrafters congregate on the historic green in the center of Milford, Connecticut, to display, demonstrate, and discuss their original pieces. Participants include painters, photographers, sculptors, quilters, jewelers, wreath makers, carvers, and flute makers. The event also features food and baked goods and live classical music performances.
June 29 - July 2, 2000
Tall
Ships 2000
Newport, Rhode Island
(401) 847-8206
Tall Ships 2000 in Newport, Rhode Island, is part of the Tall Ships Millennium World Tour Celebration. The event features more than 30 vessels from five countries and is filled with celebrations, starting with a Parade of Lighted Yachts. Other events include concerts, fireworks, tall ships movies, block parties, sporting events, a tall ships art exhibit, and a ball. Ships that will visit Newport include: Asgard II, Ireland's national vessel; STS Lord Nelson, equipped for physically challenged sailors; The Pride of Many, a replica of a Spanish galleon; and HMS Rose, a replica of an 18th-century warship, Bounty, originally built by MGM Studios for the movie Mutiny on the Bounty.
July 8, 2000
Annual
Native American Festival
Bar Harbor, Maine
(207) 487-5387
This annual event celebrates the traditional art and culture of Maine's Native American tribes. Visitors can watch basket weavers at work and then shop for a unique brown-ash or sweet-grass basket, woven in traditional style. Other items for sale include jewelry, dolls, root-club carvings, drums, and beadwork. Storytelling, woodland-style drumming, dancing, and singing are also featured, and visitors will have the opportunity to dine on Native American food.
July 12-15, 2000
OpSail
2000
New
London, Connecticut
(860) 447-5201
The ABA selected OpSail 2000 as the top event in the U.S. for 2000. OpSail 2000 is the largest tall ship and maritime event in history. A flotilla of more than 200 tall ships from 60 nations, complemented by military and character vessels, will dock in eight port cities: San Juan, Puerto Rico; Miami, Florida; Norfolk, Virginia; Baltimore, Maryland; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; New York, New York; New London, Connecticut; and Portland, Maine. Gala celebrations will commemorate this spectacular historical event at each port city. The ships make their first New England stop July 12-15 in Connecticut. A schedule of events planned in conjunction with this stop in Connecticut is available at the OpSail 2000 Web site.
July 21-23, 2000
Vermont
Quilt Festival
Northfield, Vermont
(802) 485-7092
The annual Vermont Quilt Festival showcases more than 350 quilts, on display in two buildings on the campus of Norwich University. In addition to the displays, more than 65 vendors sell quilt-related items including fabrics, quilting supplies, old and new quilts, jewelry, clothing, gifts, and more. The festival also offers more than 70 classes and a series of lectures given by the quilting world's most notable quilters.
July 28-30, 2000
OpSail
2000
Portland,
Maine
(207) 541-7400
The ABA selected OpSail 2000 as the top event in the U.S. for 2000. OpSail 2000 is the largest tall ship and maritime event in history. A flotilla of more than 200 tall ships from 60 nations, complemented by military and character vessels, will dock in eight port cities: San Juan, Puerto Rico; Miami, Florida; Norfolk, Virginia; Baltimore, Maryland; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; New York, New York; New London, Connecticut; and Portland, Maine. Gala celebrations will commemorate this spectacular historical event at each port city. The ships make their second New England stop July 28-30 in Maine. A schedule of events planned in conjunction with this final stop in Maine is available at the OpSail 2000 Web site.
September 14-17, 2000
New
Hampshire Highland Games at Loon Mountain
Lincoln, New Hampshire
(603) 229-1975 or 877 564-7268
Bring the whole clan! The New Hampshire Highland Games are considered the premier Highland Games in the U.S., according to the ABA. This event features entertainment from Scotland and North America and combines the best of Celtic and Gaelic cultures. There will be 25 to 30 bagpipe bands on hand to entertain visitors during opening and closing ceremonies. These bands also merge to create Massed Bands--a gathering of more than 500 players who, marching and counter-marching, create an indescribable spectacle. Competitions include a golf tournament, a sheepdog competition, Highland dance championship, Scottish fiddling championship, various athletic events, and a tug-of-war.
September 23-24
Stowe
Oktoberfest
Stowe, Vermont
(802) 253-8506
Fall's crisp chill will just be closing in on Vermont when the Jackson Ice Arena in Stowe is transformed into a Bavarian village for this annual celebration of harvests, fall foliage, and the finest in local delicacies. Oompah bands, authentic German food, and fresh-brewed, local beer are on tap.
November 17, 2000 - January 7, 2001
Bright
Nights at Forest Park
Springfield, Massachusetts
(413) 733-3800
Historic 750-acre Forest Park in Springfield, Massachusetts, is transformed each holiday season into Bright Nights, a two-and-a-half-mile drive-through display featuring more than 350,000 lights. One of New England's largest holiday light displays, it features Seuss Land, Noah's Ark, North Pole Village, Winter Woods, Victorian Village, and a tribute to Kwanzaa.
December 1-31, 2000
Christmas
in Newport
Newport, Rhode Island
(401) 849-6454
While Newport was a summer playground for America's elite families at the turn of the century, Christmas time is perhaps one of the best times of year to visit this seaside town today. The town's magnificent mansions are decked out in holiday finery, and townwide festivities include concerts, candlelight tours, the Festival of Trees, the Turtle Frolic, the Holly Ball, caroling, the North Pole Express train ride, the Giant Gingerbread Lighthouse, and visits by St. Nick.
About the American Bus Association
The American Bus Association (ABA) is a trade organization of North American intercity bus companies. Members include bus companies that offer scheduled service, charters, and tours, as well as others who represent the travel and tourism industries.
To request a free copy of the ABA's "2000 Top 100 Events in North America," email the organization, or send a postcard to: American Bus Association, 1100 New York Ave., N.W., Suite 1050, Washington, DC 20005-3934 or a fax to: (202) 842-0850.
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