SeafoodFest in Ballard started as a two-hour dinner in 1971. Today, it’s an iconic three-day event that draws over 75,000 people, where you can enjoy food vendors, local music, arts and crafts, family entertainment, a beer garden, lutefisk eating (or not), giant fish, skateboarding competition, oceans of seafood and loads of fun all day.
Free activities include playing in the water fountain, street games, yoga, drumming, lots of live local music, arts and crafts booths, and Festi-Bowl–the all ages skateboard competition with free clinics and lessons and a Lutefisk eating contest.
Not free: Activities that charge a fee include food of course (traditional salmon barbecue and more), a beer garden, face painting, big purple slide, and bouncy house. Free admission.
About the Ballard neighborhood
Ballard Chittenden Locks aerial view 1990 photo by unknown photographer at US Army Corps of Engineers (public domain)
Originally, the area was home to Duwamish peoples settled in villages along Salmon Bay and Shilshole Bay. A large immigration of Norwegians began in the mid-19th century, attracted by jobs in mills and fishing industries. The city of Ballard grew rapidly and was annexed to Seattle in 1906 and prospered due to the lumber mills along it’s waterfront.
In the early 20th century, the fishing and boat building industries grew in importance and a bustling commercial district developed just a few blocks away. In 1976, the Ballard business district was designated a Historic Landmark District.
Today, the neighborhood’s Scandinavian influence is felt in the Nordic-inspired festivals, the Nordic Heritage Museum, Norwegian flags gracing signs and buildings. Significant features of the neighborhood include the nation’s busiest Hiram M. Chittenden Locks (second only to the Panama Canal in boat traffic), a section of the Burke-Gilman Trail through the neighborhood to Golden Gardens Park on Puget Sound, and a bustling year-round farmers market.
Short history of Ballard SeafoodFest
In 1971, members of Ballard’s industrial and fishing community joined forces with the Ballard Elks to create a barbecue dinner to raise money for the Chamber of Commerce. By 1979, the event was a daylong festival to honor the Washington State Fishing Industry and the Scandinavian heritage of many of the settlers in the Ballard neighborhood.
By the next decade, more seafaring elements were added including crab boat and shipyard tours, seafood recipe contests. and seafood grilling competition. The name and date of the event changed a few times and the festival became a Seafair sanctioned event to coincide with the city-wide summer festival.
The festival continued to evolve to bring new audiences to the festival. Organizers added a music stage featuring local bands, family activities, a beer garden, and arts and crafts vendors.
Today, Ballard SeafoodFest is a three-day event that still reflects the authenticity of the Ballard neighborhood and its roots as a fishing and maritime community. SeafoodFest requires hundreds of volunteers and draws a crowds over 75,000 people.
About Ballard SeafoodFest
This free community food festival includes: internationally and nationally acclaimed music artists; a beer and wine garden, a cocktail and spirits lounge, a children’s area, the skateboarding competition called Festi-Bowl, a lutefisk eating competition, plus food vendors, arts and crafts vendors, all ages game area, pet play area, and more seafood than a whale could swallow.
- When: Every July, the weekend following the 4th of July (except the years when 4th of July falls on a Thursday or Friday)
- Location: Ballard neighborhood in northwest Seattle, just north of the ship canal
- Admission: Free and family-friendly
2024 Ballard Seafood Fest
- July 12-14, 2024
The smoked salmon BBQ is available on Saturday and Sunday only, in the heart of the festival on 22nd Ave and Market Street. It includes a generous portion of succulent smoked salmon, sizzled to perfection on the grill, a refreshing side of coleslaw, and some mouth-watering bread. Salmon BBQ tokens can be purchased at the Information Booth next to the BBQ area on Market Street. You can expect a beautiful outdoor setting with live music and plenty of fun activities for the whole family. All proceeds from the salmon BBQ go to support the Ballard Alliance, a non-profit organization dedicated to promoting and enhancing the Ballard community.
More information on the Ballard SeafoodFest website.
But wait, there’s more!
- Find more foods festivals in the Puget Sound region.
- There are more festivals of all kinds on our big list of annual festivals, fairs, and parades.
- And here’s a list of 101+ always free things to do for fun.
- Find free and cheap things to do every day on the Greater Seattle on the Cheap event calendar.
Event calendar of free and affordable things to do
Listed below are all types of free and affordable things to do in the next 30 days.
Featured Events are listed first each day, highlighted by a photo. These are unique, popular, or annual events that we or our advertisers don’t want you to overlook.
Find more events and ideas for affordable living at Greater Seattle on the Cheap – Free things to do, cheap fun, discounts and deals in the Seattle-Tacoma metro area
