Orange Beach's Festival of Art is vying to be named the best art festival in the country after USA Today named it in the top 20. Again.
Voting for the media company's 10 Best Readers' Choice …
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Orange Beach's Festival of Art is vying to be named the best art festival in the country after USA Today named it in the top 20. Again.
Voting for the media company's 10 Best Readers' Choice Awards 2026 continues until March 2 in the national contest, which Orange Beach won last year in addition to the Alabama Tourism Award for the Governor's Choice for Event of the Year, according to a news release from the city.
The festival has been the "fine arts crown jewel on the Gulf Coast" for 52 years, Show Director Desiree Hodge wrote in the release. This year — the event is always held the second weekend of March — over 90 jewelry makers, clay artists, photographers, authors, metal work sculptors, painters, glass blowers, canvas artists and more will be juried into a show that draws over 20,000 people from around the country.
The show, which is consistently featured in magazines like Sunshine Artist Magazine, is competing against festivals in cities such as Atlanta, Detroit, Philadelphia, Laguna Beach, Chicago and Austin.
"Our focus is to find and showcase the best fine artists in America. Any patron attending can find work that they will understand, appreciate and enjoy. Whether you are a buyer or just browsing, the show is filled with quality, fun and affordable original art," Hodge said.
Live music, food trucks, readings by Gulf Coast children's authors, glass-blowing, pottery making and fire dancers are a few of the interactive options attendees can enjoy. This year, the nationally award-winning Orange Beach Police K-9 unit will host demonstrations throughout the weekend.
Orange Beach prides itself on its family-friendly environment, and the festival has a special area (Kids Art Alley) created for children and their parents. It is a space set aside for art creation and education.
This year's event is set for March 14-15, 10 a.m.-5 p.m. on Saturday and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sunday. There is no entrance fee, and shuttle service is available.
Vote once per day at https://10best.usatoday.com/awards/best-art-festival/ until March 2 at 11 a.m. The 10 winners will be revealed on Wednesday, March 11.
The 20 finalists are:
