Get ready for the ultimate autumn celebration taking place in Central Pennsylvania over the course of the next four days. I am, of course, referring to the long-awaited return of the one and only annual Covered Bridge & Arts Festival. With 2025 marking the yearly event’s 43rd season, the Covered Bridge & Arts Festival now ranks among the largest craft festivals in the Mid-Atlantic/greater East Coast region. Furthermore, it’s even been awarded the 10-time honor of one of the 200 Best Arts & Craft Shows in the country by Sunshine Artist Magazine.
The event features a plethora of family-friendly fall follies. Well over 300 fine arts and crafts vendors make the trek out here each year to set up shop and offer a broad range of products and services.
Featured favorites include traditional handmade home goods, turned and carved wood mastery, woven and sewn textiles, glassworks, artist prints, original paintings, professional photography, jewelry, pottery, new and restored primitives, and home décor (seasonal and everyday selections alike).
Other participating interests comprising the setup include 38 delicious food vendors, spirited (wine, beer, libations) tastings, and more. Featured food options will be profuse and varied, providing a wide range of scrumptious suggestions sure to suit even the pickiest palate.
Select artisans and artists will even lead enthralling onsite demonstrations. While these demos are entertaining and mesmerizing to watch, be sure to take note of all the other entertainment offerings that will also be happening throughout the festival’s multi-day run.
There will be plenty of pleasantries to keep the kiddies satisfied, including a bounty of classic fall festivities appropriate for and timelessly appreciated by folks of all ages. And you can’t miss the petting zoo running all weekend!
Special guided bus tours of the area’s noted covered bridge will again be featured this year. Buses depart directly from the festival location on Saturday, October 4, making it convenient for attendees who choose to embark on scenic tours, whether planned for or made as a last-minute spur-of-the-moment decision.
This year marks the premiere of several new features, which will also be offered. One new endeavor to delight in is the PA Farms to Families Immersion Lab. Made possible by the Pennsylvania Friends of Agriculture Foundation and the Pennsylvania Farm Bureau, these labs provide hands-on experiences and activities for folks of all ages to explore the fascinating process of how food makes its way from local fields to family tables all across the state of Pennsylvania.
Other delights to delve into include a live strolling saxophonist and a fun festival scavenger hunt. The latter has been thoughtfully organized by the Bloomsburg Children’s Museum, a 501(c)3 non-profit that’s been providing unique, sustainable, and dynamic learning opportunities for children of all ages for more than 40 years.
Each year, the Covered Bridge & Arts Festival attracts close to 150,000 attendees—an impressive feat that only grows more impressive with every consecutive season. Held on location at Bloomsburg Fairgrounds in Bloomsburg, Pennsylvania, both admission and parking are always free!
The festival will run from October 2 through 5. Hours of operation are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, and from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sunday. There will also be a preceding Vesper service at 8 a.m. before the festival’s official opening on Sunday.
The Bloomsburg Fairgrounds is located at 620 W. Third Street, Bloomsburg, Pennsylvania 17815. All other information and additional details can be found on the website.