Mushroom festivals are popping up all over the United States, celebrating everything from wild foraging and sustainable farming to gourmet cooking and fungi-inspired art. These gatherings are special because they bring together people who are passionate about the fascinating “third kingdom” of life – neither plant nor animal – that is finally getting the recognition it deserves. Whether you’re a curious nature lover, a home grower looking to level up your cultivation skills, or just someone who enjoys good food and community fun, there’s a mushroom event for you. And now is a great time to explore them: interest in mushrooms has never been higher, with enthusiasts eager to share knowledge about foraging, identification, ecology, and delicious recipes.

Below we highlight some of the most prominent U.S. mushroom festivals and conferences happening in 2025, focusing on the amazing world of culinary and medicinal fungi. Each event offers a unique flavor – from small-town morel hunts to big scientific forays – so grab your calendar and get ready for some fungi fun!

Here are the cities where big mushroom festivals are happening in the next 12 months:

Mesick, MI
Boyne City, MI
Morgan Hill, CA
Telluride, CO
Kennett Square, PA
Marlboro, VT
Euharlee, GA
Santa Cruz, CA

Presented in Chronological Order:

Mesick Mushroom Festival (Mesick, MI)

Dates: May 9–11, 2025
Location: Mesick, Michigan
Official Website: mesick-mushroomfest.org
Cost of Admission: Free (general admission; costs for rides/activities may vary)

Each spring on Mother’s Day weekend, the tiny town of Mesick, MI (known as one of the “mushroom capitals of the world”) comes alive with a family-friendly festival devoted to the elusive morel mushroom. This hometown celebration truly has something for everyone. You can join morel hunting contests in the woods, enjoy carnival rides and a flea market, and even witness the quirky local tradition called the “Blessing of the Jeeps,” where off-road vehicles and their owners get a good-luck sendoff before heading out to forage. There’s also a grand parade down Main Street and plenty of comfort food (yes, there will be morels in many dishes!). Mesick’s festival is all about adventurous, fun-filled days for all ages. It’s a chance to share the thrill of the hunt – and the joy of a bountiful find – with fellow mushroom lovers. If you’re new to morel foraging, locals are happy to share tips, and if you come up empty-handed in the woods, you can always buy a basket from a lucky hunter and savor the distinctive flavor of these wild spring delicacies.

National Morel Mushroom Festival (Boyne City, MI)

Dates: May 15–18, 2025
Location: Boyne City, Michigan
Official Website: bcmorelfestival.com
Cost of Admission: Many events free; ticketed activities vary (e.g. gourmet dinner $105)

Further north in Michigan’s lake country, Boyne City hosts the National Morel Mushroom Festival, a destination for hundreds of morel enthusiasts from around the world. This festival, now in its 65th year, celebrates the marvel of the morel in style. Mornings kick off with a competitive morel hunt – a friendly but serious competition to see who can gather the most morels (past winners have found impressive hauls!). Afternoons feature a lively downtown morel tasting event and an arts & crafts show, plus free seminars where you can learn morel-hunting tips from past champions. In the evenings, the town comes together for unique culinary experiences like the “Wine & Dine” morel dinner pairing local chefs and wineries. There’s even live music – 2025’s festival advertises a rock concert and a craft beer tent, making it a true community party. What makes Boyne City special is the mix of rustic foraging fun and gourmet flair: you might spend the day tromping through fragrant spring forests and the night enjoying morel ravioli or morel pizza made by top chefs. Festival proceeds support local student scholarships, so your mushroom revelry goes to a good cause. If you’ve never tasted a morel or want to sharpen your foraging skills, this is a must-attend event that captures the magic of springtime in the woods.

Morgan Hill Mushroom Festival (Morgan Hill, CA)

*The Santa Clara Valley has a thriving mushroom growing industry.*

Dates: May 24–25, 2025
Location: Morgan Hill, California
Official Website: morganhillmushroomfestival.org
Cost of Admission: $20 Adults (one-day); $17 Seniors/Military; Free for kids under 15.

In California’s Santa Clara Valley (an area famed for mushroom farms), the Morgan Hill Mushroom Festival is a lively Memorial Day weekend tradition. This is a true community street festival that blends mushroom appreciation with classic fair fun. The downtown streets fill with food vendors, arts and crafts booths, live entertainment, and even a beer and wine garden for the grown-ups. You’ll find plenty of mushroom-themed eats – think creamy mushroom soups, garlic sautéed mushrooms, and mushroom sliders – as well as non-fungi foods and treats for all tastes. Cooking demos by local chefs show you creative ways to use mushrooms in your kitchen, and you can check out educational displays about how mushrooms are cultivated by area growers. For kids, there are games and activities, making it a great family outing. Morgan Hill’s festival started over 40 years ago as the “Mushroom Mardi Gras,” and it remains a nonprofit event that gives back through scholarships to local students. The atmosphere is casual and welcoming – it’s as much about having a good time as it is about mushrooms. If you’re in Northern California, this festival is an easy, fun way to celebrate the fungus among us during the spring.

Telluride Mushroom Festival (Telluride, CO)

Dates: August 13–17, 2025
Location: Telluride, Colorado
Official Website: tellurideinstitute.org/
Cost of Admission: Festival Pass ~$465 (full 5-day pass; special events extra)

Since 1981, the Telluride Mushroom Festival (TMF) has been the go-to gathering for all things mycological in the United States. Set in the stunning mountain town of Telluride, CO, this festival is a five-day extravaganza that attracts scientists, foragers, growers, chefs, and mushroom enthusiasts of all stripes. Daytime activities include guided forays into the Rockies to hunt for wild mushrooms, hands-on cultivation workshops, mushroom identification tents, and a vendor fair selling everything from mushroom jerky to fungal art. In the afternoons, you can attend cooking demonstrations (the famed Wild Foods Dinner is a highlight) or free cultivation classes to learn how to grow mushrooms at home.

What really sets Telluride apart are the evening events and its vibrant culture. Each night, renowned mycologists and experts – past speakers have included Paul Stamets, Dr. Andrew Weil, Tradd Cotter, and Giuliana Furci – give keynotes and lead panel discussions on topics ranging from medicinal mushrooms to environmental activism. While Telluride does occasionally include talks on psychedelic mushroom research, but the overall scope is much broader, encompassing all aspects of mushroom science and cultivation. After the talks, the fun continues with live music, a fungi film festival, and even a zany “Mushroom Parade” where attendees dress up as their favorite mushroom and march down Main Street. In recent years, they’ve added a whimsical late-night “Puff Ball” costumed dance party for those who want to spore it up into the wee hours. Throughout the festival, there’s a strong sense of community and celebration in one of the most beautiful locations on earth. TMF does require a festival pass (attendance is capped and it sells out every year, due to Telluride’s small size), but for anyone serious about mushrooms – whether foraging, farming, or scientific study – this is a bucket-list event blending education, nature, and pure fungi-fueled fun.

Kennett Square Mushroom Festival (Kennett Square, PA)

Dates: September 6–7, 2025
Location: Kennett Square, Pennsylvania
Official Website: mushroomfestival.org
Cost of Admission: $5 per person (cash, good for both days)

Right in Ryza’s Philadelphia backyard, Chester County’s historic Kennett Square is considered the “Mushroom Capital of the World” – its surrounding farms produce over 500 million pounds of mushrooms a year, about half of America’s supply. So it’s no surprise that for 40 years this town has thrown one of the nation’s best mushroom festivals, a two-day street fair that draws tens of thousands of visitors every fall. The Kennett Square Mushroom Festival is packed with mushroom-themed events and family fun(more at visitphilly.com). The main street shuts down to host over 200 vendors offering mushroom foods (think breaded fried mushrooms, mushroom soup, mushroom jerky), arts and crafts, and mushroom growing supplies. There are cooking demonstrations by notable chefs (in 2024, Food Network star Carla Hall headlined the demo stage), mushroom eating contests that test the most avid fungus foodie (how many fried mushrooms can you eat in 8 minutes?), and even a “Mushroom Drop” celebration reminiscent of Times Square’s ball drop – except with a giant lit-up mushroom!

One highlight is the Mushroom Growers Exhibit, where local Pennsylvania growers set up displays of various mushroom species (think rows of Shiitakes, Oysters, Maitakes, and exotic varieties) and give Mycology 101 lessons on how mushrooms are grown, their nutritional value, and tips for growing your own at home. For those interested in foraging and identification, festival experts host guided ID walks and displays of wild mushrooms found in the region. And it wouldn’t be a proper festival without some friendly competition: the festival’s Chopped-style cooking contest “Mushroom Cook-Off” has amateur chefs race to create the best mushroom dish on the spot, while judges crown a champ. With live music, a car show, and kids’ activities, Kennett’s festival truly offers something for everyone. Admission is just $5 (covering both days), and proceeds support local nonprofits in the community. It’s a fantastic way to experience this town’s rich mushroom heritage, taste new mushroom dishes, and even take home a box of freshly harvested Kennett Square mushrooms.

NAMA Annual Foray 2025 (Marlboro, VT)

Dates: September 11–14, 2025
Location: Potash Hill Campus, Marlboro, Vermont
Official Website: namyco.org (North American Mycological Association)
Cost of Admission: ~$300–$400 (approx. full event registration; NAMA membership required)

For a more immersive, scholarly mushroom experience, the annual foray of the North American Mycological Association (NAMA) is the event to attend. Each year, NAMA (a nonprofit dedicated to fungal education and science) holds a multi-day gathering in a different region of the country, bringing together amateur and professional mycologists from all over North America. In 2025, the NAMA Annual Foray will convene at Potash Hill in southern Vermont – a beautiful 560-acre former college campus with lush forests renowned for their fungal bounty. This setting offers the perfect outdoor laboratory for mushroom hunters: attendees will spend each day going on guided forays through hardwood forests and meadows, collecting specimens with the help of regional experts.

Indoors, the foray features an impressive lineup of lectures and workshops. You can learn about mushroom taxonomy, microscopy techniques for identifying obscure fungi, fungal ecology and forestry, and current research from leading scientists. There are typically ID tables where the day’s finds are sorted and labeled (often hundreds of species are identified over the weekend!), and you might find folks crowding around to see a rare coral fungus or a colorful amanita that someone discovered. Evening programs include presentations by notable mycologists and slide shows of the day’s finds, and there’s plenty of social time to swap stories with fellow enthusiasts. One of the best parts of a NAMA foray is the camaraderie – you’re basically living, eating, and breathing mushrooms for the whole event alongside a few hundred people who are just as crazy about fungi as you are. If you’re not a NAMA member, you’d need to join to attend (most local mushroom clubs are NAMA affiliates), and a registration fee covers lodging, meals, and all activities. For anyone looking to deep-dive into mycology, the NAMA foray is an unparalleled experience – you’ll come home with new knowledge, new friends, and maybe a few new stains on your hiking boots from all that tromping in the woods.

Georgia Mushroom Festival (Euharlee, GA)

Dates: October 17–19, 2025
Location: Historic Euharlee, Georgia
Official Website: georgiamushroomfestival.com
Cost of Admission: $40 for single-day pass; $100 full-weekend pass

The Georgia Mushroom Festival is a unique event that combines down-home Southern charm with mushroom education and a bit of musical flair. Held in the small historic town of Euharlee, GA, this fall festival offers a full weekend “edutainment” program – from guided forest forays in search of local chanterelles and puffballs, to cultivation workshops for aspiring mushroom farmers, to lively bluegrass concerts and a Saturday night Mushroom Jam (yes, a mushroom-themed music jam!). The organizers are an educational nonprofit, so there’s a strong focus on learning and community. The goal here is to celebrate culinary, medicinal, and ecological mushrooms.

During the day, you can attend talks by regional mycologists and growers on topics like medicinal mushroom extracts, mushroom gardening, and the role of fungi in forest ecosystems. (Recent festivals have even hosted discussions on emerging science, reflecting the growing interest in mushrooms in health and sustainability.) Local vendors and farmers set up booths with fresh cultivated mushrooms, mushroom coffees and teas, grow-your-own kits, and all sorts of fungal crafts. It’s a great place to network with growers and homesteaders – the festival explicitly aims to create networking opportunities for mushroom growers and the public, so you’ll find plenty of knowledge-sharing. And of course, there’s fun: the Bluegrass Friday concert gets everyone tapping their feet, and kids enjoy the guided nature walks and hands-on activities like mushroom dyeing and art. With camping options available, many attendees make a weekend out of it. The Georgia Mushroom Festival might be newer on the scene, but it’s quickly gaining a reputation as a friendly, informative gathering for the Southeast’s mushroom community. If you’re in the region, it’s an ideal way to plug into the fungi scene, meet fellow enthusiasts, and enjoy a weekend of good music, good food, and good fungus vibes.

Santa Cruz Fungus Fair (Santa Cruz, CA)

Dates: January 10–12, 2026 (expected)
Location: London Nelson Community Center – Santa Cruz, California
Official Website: ffsc.us (Fungus Federation of Santa Cruz)
Cost of Admission: ~$10–$15 (daily ticket, price TBA for 2026; 2024 was a paid event)

When winter rains soak the California coast, mushrooms spring up in abundance – and in Santa Cruz, that’s cause for celebration. The Santa Cruz Fungus Fair is a beloved annual event now over 50 years old. After a brief hiatus, it returned to huge crowds, with thousands of people flocking to see the impressive fungus displays. What makes this fair famous is its incredible presentation of local wild mushrooms. In the days leading up to the fair, volunteers scour Santa Cruz County’s forests and parks to collect over 200 species of fungi. These specimens are then artfully arranged in a recreated woodland habitat under the roof of the community center – literally bringing the forest indoors. Walking into the Fungus Fair, you’ll see tables covered in chanterelles, porcinis, amanitas, colorful turkey tails, strange slime molds – a cornucopia of fungi with labels and experts nearby eager to answer questions. It’s an amazing chance to see the diversity of mushrooms up close, especially species you might never find on your own.

But it’s not just an exhibit. The fair is packed with hands-on activities and entertainment. There are cooking demonstrations where you might sample treats like candy cap mushroom cookies or the infamous Santa Cruz mushroom ice cream (surprisingly tasty, with a flavor often described as “maple syrupy”!). Lectures and slide shows run throughout the weekend – topics range from basic mushroom identification, to medicinal uses of fungi, to mushroom dyeing workshops. Kids have their own section with fun crafts (mushroom button-making, spore print art, etc.), keeping the next generation engaged. Local artists and artisans sell fungus-inspired creations: expect to find mushroom-themed jewelry, artwork, kits to grow mushrooms, and books. The vibe is very “Santa Cruz” – a little weird and wonderful (in the best way). You might even see folks dressed as mushrooms or a friendly giant Amanita mascot roaming around. The fair is organized by the Fungus Federation of Santa Cruz (a local mushroom club) in partnership with the city’s natural history museum (more information at ksbw.com), and it embodies their motto of keeping the “fun” in fungus. For West Coast mushroom lovers, this January gathering is the perfect kick-off to mushroom season, offering education, inspiration, and community in a festive atmosphere.

Oregon Truffle Festival 2026 — *Oregon’s lush coastal areas are famous for their bounty of truffles, so it’s no surprise they are home to one of the strongest mycological communities in the country.*

Oregon Truffle Festival (Oregon – various locations)

Dates: Winter 2026 (late January to February 2026, TBA – traditionally held over multiple weekends)
Location: Oregon (2025 events in Astoria & Corvallis; 2026 locations TBD)
Official Website: oregontrufflefestival.org
Cost of Admission: Varies by event: e.g. $30–$40 for tasting events, up to several hundred for deluxe packages.

For those more drawn to the culinary side of mushrooms, the Oregon Truffle Festival (OTF) is a must-experience celebration of the prized truffles that hide beneath the Pacific Northwest soils. Founded in 2006, OTF has grown into the premier truffle event in North America – it’s often described as the foremost wintertime culinary festival in the PNW (more information at northcoastfoodtrail.com). Unlike the other festivals listed (which focus on above-ground mushrooms), this one is all about truffles – those aromatic underground fungi that chefs adore. The festival usually spans several weekends in late January and February, with events ranging from truffle forays with trained truffle-hunting dogs, to gourmet dinners prepared by renowned chefs, to marketplace events where you can taste and buy Oregon’s native truffles. In 2025, for example, OTF hosted a Valentine’s Masquerade Truffle Dinner in Astoria’s Liberty Theatre – a fancy costume ball featuring truffle-infused creations from multiple chefs. They also had a Fungi Film Fest (screening fungi-themed films with truffle popcorn) and an Oregon Fresh Truffle Showcase, which was essentially a grand tasting event with cooking demos, truffle products, and experts teaching about truffle cultivation.

What makes OTF special is that it attracts top culinary talent and truffle experts. Attendees can learn the difference between Oregon winter white truffles and black truffles, see how truffle dogs are trained (the festival kicks off with the Joriad Truffle Dog Championship, a competition for truffle-hunting dogs), and of course indulge in decadent truffle dishes – from truffle mac’n’cheese to truffled chocolates. Some events are exclusive and intimate (like a winemaker’s dinner in wine country or a truffle hunt on a truffle farm), while others are casual and open to the public (like the marketplace tasting with an entry ticket). If you’re a foodie, the truffle cooking classes and demos will delight you – you’ll pick up tips on coaxing the most flavor out of these $800-per-pound treasures (check out oregontrufflefestival.org northcoastfoodtrail.com). Even beyond food, the festival often includes talks on truffle science and cultivation (hosted at Oregon State University in Corvallis in recent years, focusing on the emerging truffle farming industry). The Oregon Truffle Festival is a bit of a splurge, but you can choose events à la carte to suit your budget. It’s a rare chance to immerse yourself in the luxurious world of truffles and meet a community of chefs, growers, and mycophiles who are passionate about these fragrant fungi. Keep an eye on their website for the 2026 schedule – it usually gets announced by late fall. And if you go, follow your nose and bring your appetite!

Closing Thoughts

There you have it – a tour of some of the most exciting mushroom gatherings coming up in the next year. From tracking down morels in a friendly Midwest competition to feasting on truffle-infused delicacies in Oregon, these festivals and conferences showcase the incredible variety in the mushroom community. At their core, all these events share something important: they’re about connecting people through a love of mushrooms. When you attend a mushroom festival, you’ll meet folks from all walks of life – chefs, gardeners, hikers, scientists, artists – but suddenly you’re all speaking the same language of spores, gills, and mycelium. It’s a chance to learn (in workshops, on forays, or just chatting with vendors), to taste new flavors, to see rare and beautiful species up close, and to become part of a welcoming community that’s eager to share knowledge.

If any of these events piqued your interest, consider planning a trip or even volunteering – many festivals rely on volunteers and will gladly have you join the crew. And don’t worry if you’re a total beginner. Mushroom enthusiasts are some of the friendliest (and punniest) people around; they’ll be happy to show you the ropes, whether it’s how to make a spore print or where to find that elusive chanterelle. So grab your calendar, lace up your hiking boots, and join the mushroom-loving community! By exploring these festivals, you’re not just having a fun weekend – you’re participating in a growing movement that treasures nature, sustainability, good food, and lifelong learning. In the spirit of fungi, come connect and “network” (pun intended) with others – you might just find it’s the start of a fruitful new hobby and friendships that mushroom into something special. Happy festival foraging, and see you on the shroomy trail!

Sources:

Telluride Mushroom Festival – official info and historytelluride.comevents.humanitix.com
Kennett Square Mushroom Festival – event details and highlightskennettcollaborative.orgvisitphilly.com
National Morel Mushroom Festival (Boyne City) – official site and schedulebcmorelfestival.combcmorelfestival.com
Mesick Mushroom Festival – festival description (NW MI Arts)nwmiarts.org
Morgan Hill Mushroom Festival – official site and event overviewmorganhillmushroomfestival.org10times.com
NAMA Annual Foray 2025 – announcement and site detailsnamyco.orgrhodeislandmycologicalsociety.org
Georgia Mushroom Festival – official site (education focus)georgiamushroomfestival.comgeorgiamushroomfestival.com
Santa Cruz Fungus Fair – news coverage and official descriptionsksbw.comksbw.com
Oregon Truffle Festival – event schedule and highlightsnorthcoastfoodtrail.comnorthcoastfoodtrail.com

Mushroom Festivals & Conferences in the US: 9 Events to Check Out in 2025