Grape Day Festival 2023

Come one, come all, Escondido’s oldest and most famous event, the Grape Day Festival, returns on Saturday, September 9th, 2023 from 10 am – 4 pm. The festival will take place in Grape Day Park, home to the original festivals in the heart of Escondido and next to our beautiful City Hall and the California Center for the Arts.

The Festival will once again celebrate the early days of Escondido, when agriculture was “King” and festival goers traveled from all across the state to see why Escondido was hailed as a great place to grow sweet grapes and a central hub of citrus and other crops. From 1908 to 1950, it drew thousands of Southern Californians and rivaled Pasadena’s Festival of Roses in attendance. Revived by the Escondido History Center in 1990, it ran through 2018, and then again in 2022 after the Pandemic. This year, the History Center is once again bringing the Grape Day Festival to life, with a focus on celebrating the traditions of Escondido’s glorious past. Robin Fox, from the Escondido History Center recalls, “Grape Day is Escondido’s one-day history lesson, as well as a fun time for the whole family. And it’s free”