NORFOLK, Va. - Harborfest is going digital.
Norfolk Festevents, Ltd. announced Friday that this year's Harborfest, a weekend-long celebration of America’s largest, longest-running, free maritime festival, will be virtual due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. The 2020 Virtual Harborfest will take place from Friday, June 5 to Sunday, June 7.
The 44th Annual Norfolk Harborfest: Music, Food & Maritime Festival was one of many local events to be canceled due to the pandemic. Despite the cancellation, the iconic festival will live in spirit this year through a series of digital content throughout the first weekend in June.
Encompassing all of the elements that make Harborfest one of the region’s greatest traditions, the 2020 Virtual Harborfest will include historic photos, videos and behind-the-scenes footage from the festival’s 43-year history.
All digital content will be shared on the Norfolk Festevents social media channels, including Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube.
The Virtual Harborfest weekend will begin with the unveiling of the winner of the 2020 Official Norfolk Harborfest Poster Contest, currently taking place on social media.
The content will continue with a look back at some of Harborfest’s famous traditions, including the Parade of Sail, fireworks, musical performances, military tributes and much more.
A complete schedule of events for the 2020 Virtual Harborfest weekend can be found below:
Friday, June 5
10 a.m. – Poster Contest Winner Announcement
12 p.m. – 2016 Parade of Sail Video
3 p.m. – Specialty Entertainment Spotlight
6 p.m. – Local Entertainment Spotlight
8 p.m. – Harborfest Pirates Spotlight
Saturday, June 6
12 p.m. – International Tall Ships Spotlight
2 p.m. – Military Tribute Spotlight
4:30 p.m. – Tug Muster Spotlight
7:30 p.m. – Tastes of Harborfest Spotlight
9:30 p.m. – 2016 Fireworks Video
Sunday, June 7
12 p.m. – Harborfest Mermaids Spotlight
2 p.m. – National Entertainment Spotlight
3:30 p.m. – Build-A-Boat Video
5 p.m. – Local Tall Ship Spotlight
6 p.m. – Thank You Video
For additional updates on the 2020 Virtual Harborfest and for more information on Norfolk Festevents, please visit Festevents.org [festevents.org].