We have officially closed the book on 2021 to write the next chapter that is 2022. So, grab your calendar and fill your new year with excitement and adventure throughout Wilmington and the Brandywine Valley with this bucket list of 35 amazing annual events.
Do you have a #VisitWilm getaway on your list of New Year’s resolutions?
1. Winter Wonder at Longwood Gardens
January 22, 2022-March 27, 2022
Start the new year off with a bang and a trip through the Brandywine Valley to the area’s most famous botanical garden. Beginning January 22nd, experience a vision of color throughout Longwood Gardens with hundreds of orchids in bloom. The winter months at the Gardens also bring the return of Conservatory performances. Experience an extraordinary lineup of artists from audience favorites to new talent, all bringing a world of music to the ever-changing beauty of the Conservatory.
2. The Louis Comfort Tiffany Exhibition at Delaware Art Museum
March 12, 2022 – June 5, 2022
This year, the Delaware Art Museum is taking on a new exhibition featuring the innovative workings of Louis Comfort Tiffany. Tiffany’s work will be on display this spring featuring stellar examples of his famous windows, lamps and vases. Learn more about this exhibition here.
3. Delaware Running Marathon Festival
April 24, 2022
The annual Delaware Running Marathon Festival will also be held on April 24th with a course through some of the most scenic and beautiful areas of Wilmington. Get ready for a 26.2-mile Full Marathon, a Half Marathon, 4-Person Relay, 5K, Fun Run, and Run for a Cause!
4. Annual Wildflower Weekend at Mt. Cuba Center
April 29, 2022 – May 1, 2022 (Rain or Shine)
At the first sign of spring, wildflowers begin to bloom in the Brandywine Valley. One of the best places to witness their peak beauty is at the Mt. Cuba Center during their annual Wildflower Weekend. Catch the colorful display with live music, garden activities and more! Register and check out more about the activities throughout the weekend here - mtcubacenter.org/wildflower.
5. Wilmington Garden Day
May 7, 2022
The annual tour of spectacular home gardens is a Brandywine Valley springtime tradition. For its 75th year, Wilmington Garden Day will take place on May 7th from 10:00am-4:00pm. Wind your way through woodlands, Japanese gardens, vegetable plantings and even a formal English garden. The ideas and inspiration for your own home garden are endless.
6. Festival of Fountains
May – September
The magnificent and jaw-dropping fountain show combining water, light, fire and music ushers in the start of spring at Longwood Gardens while giving Vegas’ Bellagio a run for its money. The Festival of Fountains runs from May through September and is one event you’ll want to catch once, maybe twice.
7-8. Presidents and Ponies at Winterthur Museum
From Winterthur to the White House Exhibition
Beginning May 7, 2022
This May brings an exhibition decorated with Presidential pride to Winterthur Museum. (Not in regard to the current Delaware Native in the White House) In 1961 an unusual partnership formed between First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy and Henry Francis du Pont. This duo took on the project of restoring the White House interiors from a public residence to a museum. For the first time, their story will be told. Through artifacts and archives the exhibition, beginning May 7, comes to life in the halls of Winterthur sharing with visitors the behind-the-scenes collaboration between the two during this captivating period in American history. Learn more about this exhibition here.
Point to Point
May 8, 2022
Winterthur Museum’s 44th Annual Point-to-Point Steeplechase takes off the Sunday after that other derby in Kentucky. This beloved tradition of the Brandywine Valley is coming May 8th with all the pageantry one might expect from a derby. You’re sure to see antique carriages, elegant tailgate parties, a Rolls Royce or two, and everyone dressed in their spring finest. Whatever will you wear?
Winterthur Museum, Garden & Library
Nestled in the rolling hills of the Brandywine Valley, Winterthur is a historic estate on par with some of the most famous estates in the…
9. The Grand Opening of Delaware Museum of Nature and Science
May 2022
Over the past year, the Delaware Museum of Natural History has taken on a metamorphosis like no other. This year, the museum will reopen as the Delaware Museum of Nature and Science! May 13, 2022, the museum’s 50th anniversary, will launch the newest museum in the Wilmington area. Learn more about what’s to come here.
10. Wilmington Grand Prix & Grand Fondo
May 13, 2022- May 15, 2022
First, watch the pros take to the streets of downtown Wilmington in what USA Cycling has ranked a top 10 criterium race. Then, spend Sunday on a Gran Fondo taking you through the gorgeous views of the Brandywine Valley. Wilmington Grand Prix & Grand Fondo weekend with time trials, race, street festival and Fondo will take place on May 13th-15th.
11. - 21. Summer Festivals!
Come to one or come to all, there’s something for everyone. (Dates are tentative.)
Bellefonte Arts Festival
The Bellefonte Arts Festival celebrates local art in its many forms on a Saturday in May. While musicians busk on the streets, you can stroll Brandywine Boulevard and visit…
Separation Day & Colonial BBQ Competition
Near Separation Day (technically June 15, but usually celebrated a week earlier), the people of Delaware come together in Historic New Castle and celebrate 230+ years of not…
St. Anthony's Italian Festival
Tens of thousands come to Wilmington for the St. Anthony’s Italian Festival in the second week of June. Every year has a theme specific to a region of Italy, but the core…
Holy Trinity Greek Festival
Summer simply cannot start in Wilmington until you’ve tasted the spanakopita, moussaka and loukamades at the Holy Trinity Greek Festival, Wilmington celebration of Greek…
22. Pennsylvania Guild Fine Craft Fair
July 30, 2022 – July 31, 2022
The Pennsylvania Guild Fine Craft Fair is the largest premier fine craft market in Wilmington and the Brandywine Valley. Master Artisans of the Pennsylvania Guild of Craftsmen show their wares over the two-day festival held July 30-31.
23. Delaware Burger Battle
August 27, 2022 (tentative)
Delaware Burger Battle is just as it sounds, an amazing battle between the buns with classic ingredients and inventive flavor combinations from numerous Wilmington chefs. Be sure to come prepped and ready with an empty stomach and stretchy pants!
24. Historic Odessa Brewfest
September 10, 2022
Welcome fall with the Historic Odessa Brewfest, your opportunity to sample some of the best regional and national craft beers, wines and spirits. Great food, live music and unlimited beer samples…need we say more?
25. Hagley Museum’s Car Show
September
Explore the wonders of automotive innovation on an historic du Pont residence! Hagley Museum’s Car Show features a vehicle parade, music, video and of course classic cars dating back to the early 20th century.
26. Art on the Green
September
For five decades, Art on the Green, has taken place on the banks of the Delaware River in Historic New Castle. As sailboats glide by, more than 200 artisans and craftspeople fill their tents with everything from pottery to metalwork.
27. River Towns Ride and Festival
October
The River Towns Ride & Festival is a one-day joint festival held between Delaware’s two historic waterfront towns, Historic New Castle and Delaware City. This ride will take place in October.
28. Seasonal Fun on the Rail
November – December
The Wilmington and Western Railroad spreads holiday cheer throughout the month of December with two extraordinary events. Hop on board the Santa Claus Express and get the chance to talk to Santa himself as he stops by with a treat for every good boy and girl. Then, take advantage of a beautiful winter night on board and ride along through hundreds of twinkling lights on the Holiday Lights Express ride. Be sure to grab your tickets quickly as these are a few favorite events for all who plan a #VisitWilm holiday getaway.
29.-35. Holiday Magic in Wilmington and the Brandywine Valley
November – January 2023
Holidays in Odessa
Throughout the holiday season in Historic Odessa, guests will find seasonal interpretations from classic literature in the storybook trees, can step back in time for candlelit…
Noël at Nemours Estate
Alfred I. duPont built “America’s Versailles” for his wife on a 3,000-acre plot in Wilmington in the early 20th century, and they started opening their home at…
Yuletide at Winterhur
This premier museum of the American decorative arts, each room on the Yuletide Tour tells a story of how Americans have celebrated the holidays, starting back in the days when…
A Longwood Christmas
Longwood Gardens shines brightly in the Brandywine Valley throughout a Longwood Christmas, from Thanksgiving through the Epiphany, with more than 500,000 sparkling lights…
A Brandywine Christmas
At the Brandywine Museum of Art, the holidays arrive to the sound of a train horn and the chug-chug-chug of this remarkable Brandywine Railroad O-gauge model train that travels…
The Spirit of Christmas in Historic New Castle
Historic New Castle gets downright Dickensian during the second weekend of December, as the cobblestone streets host a town-wide celebration.
Holidays at Hagley
There’s a different theme every year, but the focus on family and the traditions of a holiday at home remain constant throughout the years. Holidays at Hagley runs from…
Come to one... come to all... plan your next Wilmington and Brandywine Valley getaway today around one of these amazing events and be sure to share your photos with us using by tagging @visitwilmingtonde and use #VisitWilm.