Picture this: thousands of people gathered in small-town squares, their faces sticky with fruit filling and their hearts full of competitive spirit. America’s pie festivals aren’t just about dessert—they’re full-blown celebrations that turn ordinary weekends into deliciously chaotic adventures. From whoopie pie eating contests to horned toad races alongside pecan pie competitions, these gatherings showcase the wonderfully weird side of American food culture.
These festivals prove that pie isn’t just a dessert; it’s a reason to bring entire communities together for some seriously sweet fun. Here is a list of 20 quirky pie festivals that’ll make you want to pack your stretchy pants and hit the road.
Maine Whoopie Pie Festival – Dover-Foxcroft, Maine
The Maine Whoopie Pie Festival has been gathering the best bakers from around New England since 2009 to offer samples and compete for prizes and bragging rights. Even though whoopie pies aren’t technically pies (they’re more like cake sandwiches), Maine doesn’t care about technicalities when it comes to its official state treat.
Festival attendees have the opportunity to sample the whoopie pie in a wide variety of creative flavor combinations and vote for their favorites. The day kicks off with an “Earn Your Whoopie Pie 3K Race” because apparently, you need to work for your sugar fix.
Rutland Whoopie Pie Festival – Rutland, Vermont
Vermont takes the whoopie pie rivalry seriously, and Megan Wagner and her team from Dream Maker Bakers in Killington, VT, made history on September 14, 2024, by creating the world’s largest whoopie pie, weighing in at a whopping 1,187 pounds! This festival goes all-out, with Star Wars characters mingling with Ghostbusters while visitors judge whoopie pie creations.
The magic shows and caricature artists add to the carnival atmosphere, making it feel like a county fair devoted entirely to oversized cookies masquerading as pies.
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Arkansas Pie Festival – Cherokee Village, Arkansas
The Arkansas Pie Festival is set to return to Cherokee Village on April 26, 2025, as a partner of the World Food Championship, the biggest food sport event in the world. This isn’t just about casual pie tasting—winners get golden tickets to compete internationally.
The festival combines serious competition with small-town charm, featuring pie-throwing contests alongside the pie-eating, because sometimes you want to wear your dessert instead of consuming it. The 5K run helps justify the inevitable pie coma.
Pie Town Festival – Pie Town, New Mexico
Pie Town is a tiny little community located about 20 miles west of Datil, New Mexico. The town was named after a baker who made pies in the 1920s. The annual festival features the legendary green chile apple pie, which sounds like an identity crisis but tastes like genius.
After the pie-eating contest, it was time to enjoy the horned toad races. Only in New Mexico would you follow up a pie competition with lizard racing—and somehow it makes perfect sense.
APC National Pie Championships – Orlando, Florida
The 2025 APC National Pie Championships were held in Orlando on April 14 and 15 at the Embassy Suites South of Lake Buena Vista. This is where pie gets serious, with commercial/independent, professional, and amateur pie makers from throughout North America invited to compete for the coveted blue ribbon.
Think of it as the Olympics of pie, but with more butter and significantly higher chances of food comas. The R&D category lets bakers experiment with completely wild flavor combinations.
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Key Lime Festival – Key West, Florida
In the Florida Keys, we like to celebrate the things that make our islands unique: citrus, eccentrics, people, and pie. 2025 is shaping up to be the best Key Lime Festival yet, with a full five days of culinary events for every taste.
The festival includes Key Lime Cocktail Sip & Stroll events and Key Lime Pie Hops because apparently, one venue isn’t enough to contain Florida’s enthusiasm for this tart treat. It’s basically spring break for pie lovers.
Murphysboro Apple Festival – Murphysboro, Illinois
The Murphysboro Apple Festival is Southern Illinois’ longest-running family festival, featuring the largest parade in the region. Other events include apple pie eating contests, arts and crafts, live entertainment, and special exhibits.
The high school marching band competition, “Drums at Appletime,” adds musical flair to the pie-centric chaos. Between the Miss Apple Festival Queen Pageant and carnival rides, it’s like a Norman Rockwell painting came to life.
Morton Pumpkin Festival – Morton, Illinois
Join the fun and compete in our pumpkin pie eating contest, which has age groups and cash prizes: Elementary School: $50, Junior High & High School: $100, Adult (18 years+): $150. Morton takes pumpkin pie seriously since Illinois grows more pumpkins than any other state. No hands can be used.
The first person to finish their pie will be declared the winner. Watching adults faceplant into pumpkin pie for $150 is peak American entertainment.
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Silver Lake Sand Dunes Apple Festival – Silver Lake, Michigan
The homemade Apple Pie Contest takes place alongside this smokin’ hot Apple BBQ Festival, which features two days of live music, a beer tent, a huge selection of food vendors, kids’ activities, over 100 arts and crafts vendors, a classic car show, and more. Michigan’s cherry pie reputation gets run for its money when apple season hits.
The combination of dunes, apple pie, and BBQ creates a uniquely Michigan flavor profile that works perfectly together.
New Paris AppleFest – New Paris, Ohio
Bring your family and friends to the friendly little Village of New Paris, Ohio, for a three-day fun-filled street fair festival featuring Craft Vendors, Artists, an Apple baking contest, Food vendors, a beer and wine garden, ziplining, carnival games and a parade, Car and tractor shows, a Kiddie tractor pull, and a Battle of the Bands!
This festival throws everything at the wall to see what sticks, and ziplining alongside apple pie contests makes perfect sense. The kiddie tractor pull adds farm charm to the apple-centric celebration.
Oak Harbor Apple Butter Festival – Oak Harbor, Ohio
Oak Harbor Apple Butter Festival features a weekend of family fun, food, entertainment, vendors, grand parade, apple dumplings and apple pies, apple treats, crafters, contests, and a car show on Sunday. Apple butter might not be pie, but Ohio doesn’t let technicalities stop it from celebrating all things apple.
The combination of apple dumplings and pie creates a carb-loaded paradise that would make any nutritionist weep. The car show adds horsepower to the Apple Power.
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Alpena Apple Pie Contest – Alpena, Michigan
This will be our second annual Apple Pie contest and will take place along with the Alpena Farmers’ on Oct 5th from 9–12. 1st place $100, 2nd place $50, 3rd place $25. Afterward, pie and ice cream will be available. This newer festival proves that any town can start a pie tradition.
The prize money might be modest, but the community spirit is priceless. Plus, pie and ice cream combo deals are always a win.
Pleasantville Apple Pie Contest – Pleasantville, New York
Our Annual Apple Pie Contest is back with pie drop-off from 8:15 – 9:00 AM, judging from 10:00–11:00 AM, and winners announced at 11:00 AM. Pies go on sale at the conclusion of the awards ceremony. Shoppers will be invited to purchase a delicious slice of pie ($3 per slice, $5 for two).
This farmers market competition keeps things simple and sweet, proving that not every pie festival needs horned toad races to be special.
Bucktown Apple Pie Contest – Chicago, Illinois
Amateur bakers and pastry pros will be out in force as they compete for the coveted blue ribbon in the 7th Annual Bucktown Apple Pie Contest, a fundraising event held in Holstein Park. Chicago brings urban sophistication to apple pie competitions.
The mix of amateur bakers and pastry professionals creates an interesting dynamic, like watching your grandmother compete against trained chefs armed with molecular gastronomy techniques.
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Long Grove Apple Festival – Long Grove, Illinois
Long Grove Apple Festival features FREE admission, and so is the parking. Long Grove restaurants serve apple pies (4,000 were sold last year), apple cider, apple muffins, apple cinnamon pretzels, apple salsa, and taffy apple beer mug sundaes. Selling 4,000 apple pies in one weekend is serious business.
The apple salsa shows creative thinking, while taffy apple beer mug sundaes sound like something you’d invent at 2 AM and somehow work brilliantly.
Huckleberry Festival – Whitefish, Montana
Montana’s wild huckleberries create pie magic that can’t be replicated anywhere else. These purple gems grow only in the wild and taste like a cross between blueberries and pure mountain air.
The festival celebrates everything huckleberry, from jams to the crown jewel: huckleberry pie that locals claim is worth the 50-mile drive up winding mountain roads. Glacier National Park provides the backdrop for this purple-stained celebration.
Marionberry Festival – Salem, Oregon
Oregon’s marionberry is the Cadillac of blackberries, and Salem celebrates this with a festival that’s equal parts agricultural pride and dessert decadence. These lab-created berries (thanks, Oregon State University!) produce pies with a perfect sweet-tart balance.
The festival features pie-eating contests where contestants emerge looking like they’ve been in a very delicious crime scene, their faces stained purple with Oregon’s finest fruit.
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Shoofly Pie Festival – Lancaster County, Pennsylvania
The Pennsylvania Dutch don’t mess around when it comes to molasses-based desserts. Shoofly pie gets its name from the sticky-sweet molasses in its filling that would attract flies that would have to be ‘shooed’ away. This festival celebrates the pie that’s so sweet it’s basically edible fly paper.
The Pennsylvania Dutch community showcases traditional baking methods alongside horse-drawn buggy rides, creating a time-travel experience centered around very sticky pie.
Bourbon Pecan Pie Festival – Bardstown, Kentucky
Kentucky combines its two greatest loves—bourbon and hospitality—into one perfect pie festival. Bardstown, the bourbon capital of the world, hosts competitions where bakers incorporate local spirits into classic pecan recipes.
The result is pie that might require an ID check and definitely requires a designated driver. Live bluegrass music and bourbon tastings make this festival feel like a delicious party that just happens to involve competitive baking.
Coconut Cream Pie Festival – Myrtle Beach, South Carolina
South Carolina’s coastal charm meets creamy dessert perfection in this beachside celebration. Myrtle Beach’s festival features pie-eating contests with an ocean view, where contestants battle coconut cream while seagulls plot strategic pie theft.
The combination of beach vibes and dairy-based desserts creates a uniquely Southern celebration that proves pie isn’t just for landlocked locations. Beach volleyball tournaments between pie rounds add athletic balance to the cream-heavy menu.
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From Orchard to Oddity
These festivals represent more than just America’s sweet tooth—they’re time capsules of community spirit wrapped in pastry. From Maine’s whoopie pie warriors to New Mexico’s horned toad racing pie enthusiasts, each celebration reflects local character while honoring the universal truth that pie makes everything better.
Whether you’re chasing blue ribbons in Orlando or sticky fingers in Pennsylvania Dutch country, these festivals prove that sometimes the best journeys begin with the simple question: ‘What’s for dessert?’ The answer, across 20 states and countless sticky situations, remains beautifully consistent: pie, and lots of it.
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