Due to 3rd Street construction, there may be some traffic congestion during Riverfest. The easiest ingress and egress to Water St. will be from the northern end, MLK to Front to Nutt to Water. 

The Old Wilmington Riverfront Celebration, Inc. the organization responsible for the Annual Wilmington Riverfest, has been established as a charitable organization to benefit the Cape Fear River environment.

To that end, it is our goal to actively participate with the community to raise capital for reinvestment in the human resources necessary to research and develop river preservation methods and technology.

We will strive to promote the Annual Wilmington Riverfest to successfully raise funds for donation to the Cape Fear Community College Marine Sciences Division in the form of the Riverfest Endowment fund.

The endowment fund will be used to award scholarships based on academic achievement and desire to benefit the Cape Fear River and surrounding community.

*Schedules subject to change without prior notice.

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Today Riverfest has evolved into a three-day celebration with 150,000 visitors.  It’s a family-fun shindig along the Cape Fear River with live music, arts and crafts, exhibits, dance performances, contests, children’s activities, food, river events, friendly competitions and fireworks.

Wilmington’s Riverfest is celebrated in October and runs from the foot of Market Street to Cape Fear Community College. Currently drawing nearly a quarter-million people, Riverfest began in 1979 as a modest two-day event and has expanded to three fun and food-packed days.

Wilmington’s Riverfest is celebrated in October and runs from the foot of Market Street to Cape Fear Community College. Currently drawing nearly a quarter-million people, Riverfest began in 1979 as a modest two-day event and has expanded to three fun and food-packed days.

Riverfest has about 200 craft and food vendors plus fireworks, entertainment on two stages, the Great Waiters Wine Race, Run the River 8K Race, various exhibits and a children’s area. Additional Riverfest activities include skateboard competitions, street dance, wakeboard competition and a musical Battle on the River by a number of bands, a film festival, and Art in the Garden tours of gorgeous private and public gardens enhanced by art and music.
Pirates Invade

During Riverfest, the Invasion of the Pirates is a kind of festival within a festival, beginning with the arrival of the “pirate ship” on Friday evening, followed by the Pirates Ball. On Saturday, kids can participate in a treasure hunt and pirate costume contest.

We will strive to promote the Annual Wilmington Riverfest to successfully raise funds for donation to the Cape Fear Community College Marine Sciences Division in the form of the Riverfest Endowment fund. The endowment fund will be used to award scholarships based on academic achievement and desire to benefit the Cape Fear River and surrounding community.

Wilmington Riverfest Donation to Cape Fear Community College

Flashback to 1978.. Downtown is deserted… retailers have moved to “The Mall” and other shopping centers, with only a few old-timers remaining on Front Street. Farsighted developers have made stores and warehouses on the northern end of town into the Cotton Exchange, a collection of specialty shops, pubs, and restaurants. Old abandoned homes and shops located on the southern end of the retail area have become Chandler’s Wharf. The restoration of these two anchors of downtown were acts of fate. Located between these restorations were shabby warehouses, long forgotten wharves, and a parking deck. The historic old buildings, marvelous architecture, and the majestic river were not appreciated or enjoyed. Wilmington’s downtown needed a miracle.
In February 1979, a group of Wilmingtonians interested in Historic Downtown and the arts, began the organization of a cultural street festival designed to bring residents back downtown. This would be a free, family oriented celebration called Riverfest.

The first Riverfest was October 4-6, 1979. Forty volunteers participated, and the budget consisted of $5500, all donations. There were four concessions, trolley rides, and fireworks. Riverfest was a roaring success! It was decided to continue the festival the next year, and again, and again on the first weekend in October.

Over thirty years later Riverfest consists of: Twenty plus committees, over 300 volunteers, a budget of $90,000, over 200 craft vendors, 35 concessions booths, entertainment on various stages, Saturday night fireworks, Run the River 8K, the Great Wine Waiter’s Race, A Children’s Area, and more than 6 sporting events with contests for all ages. The end result is a half mile of free family entertainment, dependant on sponsorships and donations from community businesses and organizations. The economic impact on Riverfest on the surrounding community has been estimated at over three million dollars with attendance in excess of 100,000 per year.

As delightful as the festival outcome is, the end result is awarding of scholarships for marine related studies at Cape Fear Community College. The ultimate goal of Riverfest is to increase the amount of scholarship funds each year to Cape Fear Community College.

The greatest part of this miracle called Riverfest is not only the bits and pieces that come together in such a grand way, but the people who make it happen. We are a family united in celebrating our heritage and the beautiful Cape Fear River. The spirit to continue this tradition has been with us all these years, and for that we are very grateful.

Much change has happened to Historic Downtown Wilmington during the history of Riverfest. There are shops, galleries, restaurants, river cruises, The River Walk, and Riverfront Park. Front Street is once again a viable business district, not wholly by Riverfest, but by the efforts of the business community who were and are interested in preserving and enhancing our heritage. Riverfest helped to bring the interest back to downtown Wilmington. People who had not been on the riverfront for many years now brought their families to enjoy the fireworks, stayed for the entertainment, and began to enjoy what had been here all along.