Whether it’s winter, spring, summer or fall, Loveland, Colorado certainly knows how to celebrate. Our beloved Sweetheart City hosts some of the region’s biggest and best annual events—from lakeside races to epic Valentine’s Day festivals to barbarian dinners and everything in between.
To make sure you don’t miss any of it, we rounded up Loveland’s major events happening every single year—and some have been going strong for more than half a century! You can click below to jump to the current season or just keep reading to plan ahead for your whole year. Enjoy!
Loveland Sweetheart Festival
February
Just one of the many ways Loveland celebrates Valentine’s Day, the Loveland Sweetheart Festival highlights our city’s rich history as the nation’s Sweetheart City and as one of the top art communities in the nation through art installations, attractions, contests and more. A few of the top attractions at the free, two-day festival include the Sweetheart Classic, a laser show each night, art shows, and live music as well as chocolate, beer and wine tastings which include the Grimm Brothers Brewhouse official Sweetheart City beer, Bleeding Heart.
Loveland Classic
April
Photo courtesy of Green Events
An annual tradition for more than 40 years, the Loveland Classic is one of the oldest races in the city. The event has cheered thousands of participants as they cross the finish line and has raised over $95,000 in the past 14 years to support early childhood education in our community. The course is set around the scenic Lakes at Centerra and includes a 5K and 10K option.
Rialto Summer Concerts
June – August
One of the highly anticipated summer series in Northern Colorado, Foote Lagoon is a series of six live concerts taking place each summer at the Rialto Theater. Free and open to the public, these events include food from local food trucks and kid-friendly activities like face painting, art activities and games. For full details, click here.
Loveland Loves BBQ, Bands & Brews
July
A summer tradition for more than a decade, Loveland Loves BBQ, Bands & Brews is an opportunity for Loveland to show off its love for BBQ, bands and beer every July. Over the course of two days, the music lineup features local bands in every genre from country to soul, the food lineup is packed with BBQ, and the local craft breweries come with their best brews. Admission is free, but food and adult beverages will cost a few festival tokens, and all proceeds benefit local charities like the Boys & Girls Clubs of Larimer County, House of Neighborly Services and Loveland Sertoma.
Cherry Pie Celebration
July
Photo courtesy of the Loveland Museum
Every summer festival needs cherry pie, and this one has plenty. This free, family-friendly event is hosted each year by Loveland Museum in Peters Park and includes live music, vendor booths, historic displays, a cherry pie contest, kid-friendly activities, and food. Admission is free, but pie by the slice, ice cream and drinks are always available for sale.
July 4th Festival
July
Hosted every year by the City of Loveland at North Lake Park, our July 4th Festival includes one of the best fireworks shows in the entire country! But the fun starts even before the sun goes down with the epic Battle of the Bands Competition, the Children’s Bike Parade, a beer garden and cornhole tournament, live music at Hammond Amphitheater, train rides and more. For full details, click here.
Loveland Liberty 5K
July
One of several annual events hosted by Sweetheart City Racing, the Loveland Liberty 5K offers an excellent way to celebrate Independence Day. The race has been a tradition for several years, always includes local beer and food, and always benefits a good cause. To learn the specifics of this year’s event, click here. And to see all of Sweetheart City Racing’s events, click here.
Larimer County Fair
August
The Larimer County Fair is one of Northern Colorado’s largest annual events. Throughout an entire week, guests can enjoy a parade through Downtown Loveland, catch concerts from big-name artists, play at Carnival Americana, shop the marketplace, cheer on competitors in the PRCA Rodeo, embark on pony rides, meet animals at the petting zoo, and see special demonstrations scheduled every day. For all the details and schedule information, click here.
Sculpture in the Park
August
Loveland’s Sculpture in the Park brings thousands of people and artists to Northern Colorado every August. Heralded as one of the finest outdoor juried exhibitions of three-dimensional artwork in the United States, the event showcases more than 2,000 pieces of sculpture created by 160 sculptors from around the world.
Art in the Park
August
A Loveland tradition for more than 50 years, Art in the Park is the Thompson Valley Art League’s largest fundraiser. Held in conjunction with Sculpture in the Park, this two-day event brings even more fine art to town and fills North Lake Park with more than 200 local, regional and national artisans. For all the details (and information on the beer garden), check out the website here.
Loveland Corn Roast Festival
August
Headquartered in Downtown Loveland, this annual event is a showcase of Loveland culture and a celebration of our small-town atmosphere. Highlights include tons of Colorado sweet corn and delicious food, live entertainment, contests, kid-friendly activities and, of course, the Corn Roast Parade.
Thunder in the Rockies
September
Held every year through Labor Day weekend, Thunder in the Rockies brings more than 100 food, drink and merchandise vendors, live music, performances and more to Thunder Mountain Harley-Davidson in Loveland. In addition to huge artists on the live music lineup, entertainment includes the Harley-Davidson demo fleet, the Miss Thunder in the Rockies Contest and more. General admittance is free, but some special events will require tickets. To learn about this year’s event, click here.
Pastels on 5th
September
Pastels on 5th is a one-day sidewalk chalk art festival that honors one of Loveland’s distinguishing factors: our passion for art. Each year, the event features incredible chalk artists creating works of art on our sidewalks, live music, food vendors, a special kids’ art area, an artist marketplace and more.
Loveland Oktoberfest
September
Photo courtesy of Grimm Brothers Brewhouse
Loveland Oktoberfest had humble beginnings and has grown into one of the year’s biggest events. Presented by Grimm Brothers Brewhouse and Loveland, Big Thompson, Kiwanis, the attractions include games, live music from local bands, local food vendors, tons of local beer and cider, and the must-attend Barbarian Dinner. The event also brings giant foosball and a giant collaboration from Grimm and all of Loveland’s breweries! For full details, click here.
Hot Metal Cold Brews
September
Free to attend, this annual Loveland Museum event combines Loveland’s history of artistic expression with our love for craft beer. Complete with live metalwork demonstrations, the evening festival is a great way to welcome the fall season with local food and local craft beer from Loveland breweries like Verboten Brewing & Barrel Project.
Halloween Family Fun Festival
October
This annual event, hosted by Loveland Museum for nearly two decades, brings tons of free, family-friendly fun to Peters Park every Halloween season. Highlights include trick-or-treating at local businesses, activity booths, local food, a costume contest and more. To find out when this year’s festival is, click here.
Winter Wonderlights
November – December
Photo courtesy of Richard Haro Photography via Visit Loveland
Every year, Chapungu Sculpture Park at Centerra transforms into Winter Wonderlights. From mid-November through December or early January, the 26-acre park is illuminated by holiday string lights, twinkling bulbs, LED mappable snowflakes, illuminated stone sculptures as well as a music and light show every single night. And the best part is it’s all free and open to the public! For complete information on this year’s event, including the live performance schedule, check out the event page here, courtesy of Visit Loveland.
Do you have an annual event to add?
Please tell us about it in the comments below!
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