The Maine Lobster Festival is a beloved summer tradition that brings five days of food, entertainment, and family fun to Rockland each year. Held annually from Wednesday through Sunday (7/29-8/2/2026) during the first weekend of August, the festival draws tens of thousands of visitors eager to enjoy fresh Maine lobster, live entertainment, cooking competitions, artisan vendors, and activities for all ages.
The event began as a community effort to celebrate Maine’s maritime heritage and help boost the Midcoast economy. Over the decades, it has grown into one of the state’s best-known festivals, attracting guests from across the United States and around the world.
Since its founding in 1947, the nonprofit festival has returned more than $800,000 to Midcoast Maine communities. Proceeds support local food pantries, emergency services, youth sports programs, community organizations, and scholarships for graduating high school seniors.
The festival is powered entirely by volunteers. More than 1,300 people from Maine and beyond donate their time each year, helping with everything from planning the event to serving lobster dinners. Their dedication helps create a memorable experience for visitors while supporting Maine’s iconic lobster industry. Anyone interested in volunteering is encouraged to sign up and become part of the tradition.
The festival schedule is here.
Of course with all the fun comes some controversy in the form of PETA, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals. Not just pets like dogs and cats as you might expect, but ALL animals.
According to PETA’s website:
Just outside the main entrance of the Maine Lobster Festival on Wednesday, a woman body-painted as a lobster will lie across a giant dish, next to a lemon wedge and butter, reading, “Try to Relate to Who’s on Your Plate.” The display will urge attendees to skip the carnage inside the festival—where around 16,000 lobsters will be steamed alive—and instead of taking a life for a fleeting taste, go vegan.
Though it will be sight that stands out and parents will, naturally, try to keep their young kids from seeing it, it’s doubtful that the display will change the minds of most who are there for Maine’s most popular export.
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