Park City Kimball Arts Festival: A Three-Day Family Plan

Park City's Biggest Summer Weekend

If you ask anyone who lives in Park City what the biggest weekend of the summer is, they will say one of two things - the Sundance Film Festival in January, or the Kimball Arts Festival in August. The Kimball is the summer answer. Three days, 200 artist booths spanning 13 different mediums, 30,000 visitors, live music on multiple stages, food trucks lining Swede Alley, and a Kids Creation Station that is one of the best things the Kimball Art Center does all year.

The 2026 festival runs August 7-9. Friday evening is preview night with smaller crowds and lower energy; Saturday is the main event with the biggest crowds; Sunday is mellow and family-friendly with shorter lines and a closing-day vibe. If you have one day, do Sunday. If you have two, do Friday evening and Sunday. If you can be there all three, you will not regret it.

How the Festival Lays Out

The Kimball takes over the entire length of Main Street and parts of Swede Alley. Artist booths line both sides of the street, food trucks cluster on Swede Alley and at the Town Lift plaza, and the Creation Station and main music stage sit at Miner's Park (the lower end of Main Street near the Egyptian Theatre).

The Art

The 200 artists are juried - this is a real art festival, not a craft fair. Mediums include painting, ceramics, jewelry, sculpture, photography, glass, mixed media, leather, fiber, and more. Prices range from $20 ceramic mugs to $20,000 paintings. Most artists are happy to talk about their work, and they are unfailingly kind to kids who want to ask questions.

The Creation Station - The Reason to Bring Kids

This is the headline kid feature. The Kimball Art Center education staff runs hands-on art activities all weekend, designed for all ages and tied to the year-round education programs. Past activities have included wheel throwing (small fee), printmaking, mosaic-making, mural painting, and face painting. Most are free; wheel throwing and face painting have a small fee.

Plan to spend at least an hour at Creation Station. Some kids spend three.

The Music

Two stages run live music all three days - typically one at the top of Main Street and one at Miner's Park. Lineups are local Utah bands plus a few regional acts, all family friendly. Music typically runs 11 AM to 8 PM Saturday and Sunday.

The Food

Food trucks line Swede Alley. Park City's restaurants on Main Street are also all open, but with festival weekend prices and waits. The smarter family move is the food trucks. Expect the usual food truck spread - tacos, BBQ, lobster rolls, ice cream, lemonade, kettle corn.

The Three-Day Family Plan

Friday Evening - Preview and Settle In

Friday evening is the soft opening. Smaller crowds, all the artists are at their booths, the food trucks are out, the music is playing. Arrive at 5 PM, walk the full length of Main Street to scout booths you want to come back to, eat dinner from a food truck on Swede Alley, listen to a band at the lower stage. Home by 8:30 with happy kids.

Saturday - The Big Day

Saturday is the marquee day. Crowds peak between noon and 4 PM. The way to do Saturday with kids is to arrive early.

• 9 AM - park free at the Old Town Transit Center (the Park City free bus runs on extra capacity all weekend) and walk down to Main Street. The artists are still setting up; the streets are quiet.
• 10 AM - Creation Station opens. Be the first family in line.
• 11 AM - early lunch at a food truck, then walk the artist booths in the cooler upper section of Main Street.
• 12:30 PM - this is when crowds peak. Either retreat to your hotel for a midday rest, or escape to a quieter spot like the Town Lift plaza where the music keeps playing but the booth crowds thin out.
• 4 PM - back for the second push. The afternoon light on Main Street is gorgeous; the crowds start to ease; the music ramps up.
• 6 PM - dinner from food trucks or a restaurant patio. Festival closes at 8 or 9 PM Saturday.

Sunday - The Quiet Day

Sunday is the locals' favorite day. Crowds are 30 percent of Saturday. Artists are happier to chat. The Creation Station has shorter lines. Music continues. Festival closes at 5 or 6 PM. If you can only do one day, do Sunday.

What to Pack for the Festival

Sun Hats and Sunscreen

Main Street is paved and reflects heat. There is shade, but not enough. Wallaroo wide-brim sun hats for the adults and a kid sun hat for each child. Sun Bum mineral SPF 50 applied before you leave the car and reapplied at lunch.

Insulated Water Bottles

Refill at the water stations the festival sets up at Miner's Park and at the top of Main Street. A Hydro Flask 32 oz per adult and a kid bottle for each child. The combination of altitude, sun, and walking will dehydrate you faster than you expect.

A Folding Camp Chair (For the Music Stage)

The lower music stage at Miner's Park has lawn seating. A Coleman camp chair with built-in cooler is the move - you sit comfortably for the music set, your drinks stay cold, and you have a base camp to return to between booth-walks.

Cash for Tip Jars and Small Purchases

Most artists take cards, but the food trucks sometimes have card minimums and the tip jars at the music stages run on cash. Bring $40 to $60 in small bills.

A Stroller (or Not)

If you have a kid under 4, bring a stroller. The crowds make it a pain to push, but it is harder to carry a tired kid. Park City's free buses are stroller-friendly.

Where to Stay and Park

The festival is right in the middle of Old Town. The best lodging is anything walkable - the Marriott Mountainside, Park City Peaks, the Treasure Mountain Inn, or any vacation rental within 6 blocks of Main Street.

If you are driving in from Salt Lake or another part of the area, park free at the Old Town Transit Center (Bonanza Drive) and ride the free bus shuttle to Main Street. Driving and parking near Main Street on festival days is a punishment.

What to Buy as a Souvenir

If you are going to buy something at the Kimball Arts Festival, here is what we have learned over the years:

• Original art under $200 - small framed prints, ceramics, jewelry. Worth way more as a memory than as a financial investment.
• Something the kids choose - let each kid pick out one thing under $25. They are unbelievably proud of these choices for years afterward.
• Something for the house - a piece of pottery, a small painting, a fiber piece. The Kimball Festival pottery in our kitchen still triggers "remember when we got this" conversations a decade later.

Tax is collected on site. Most artists ship; some will hold purchases for you to come back at the end of the day so you do not carry them around.

Free Parking and the Free Bus

Park City's free bus runs all weekend at festival capacity. The closest stops to Main Street are the Old Town Transit Center, the China Bridge garage, and the bus stop at the bottom of Main Street near Park Avenue. From any of those, the festival is a 5-minute walk.

Why the Kimball Arts Festival Is Worth Building a Trip Around

The Kimball is one of those events that captures everything good about Park City in summer - the alpine setting, the artistic community, the family-friendly culture, the free buses, the food trucks on the historic brick street. It is the weekend that locals plan their summer around. If you can be in Park City August 7 to 9, do not miss it.

Bring the kids to Creation Station. Buy a piece of pottery you will use every day. Eat too many lobster rolls from the food trucks. Sit on the lawn at Miner's Park and listen to a band you have never heard of and probably will not remember by next week. That is the festival, in summary.