The first big event of the summer is the annual downtown Flower Festival! From Friday June 6 through Sunday June 8th, you can enjoy the many beautiful floral displays throughout downtown Alpena. There will also be many floral themed activities and specials like themed beverages, a Petal Pub Crawl, Flower Fest Bike & Walk Parade, flower trucks, live music and much more! You can find all of the information on the Flower Festival here.

If you’re looking for something fun to do downtown on the 4th of July you should definitely watch the Stars, Stripes & Summer Nights 4th of July Parade hosted by the HPC Credit Union! The parade begins at 11am at the Alpena County Fairgrounds and ends in the parking lot right before the Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary. Anywhere downtown will be a great spot to bring the kiddos and sit and watch the parade! You can also watch the Alpena fireworks July 3rd along Lake Huron! For all of the information on the parade click here or call Ellis Hoes VP of marketing at the credit union at 989-340-1923.

The next fun annual event is the 51st Annual Michigan Brown Trout Festival, which goes from July 18th until July 27th. If you’re an angler you can enjoy the different fishing tournaments they have to offer like the Super Tournament, The Ladies Classic, High Stakes tournament and more! If fishing isn’t your thing, you can still enjoy the festival by listening to one of the many different live bands, checking out the beer tent, bringing the kids to Family Fun Day and more! To find more information on the Brown Trout Festival click here.

The last big event of the summer downtown is the annual Sidewalk Sales event! Friday August 8th and Saturday August 9th, come to downtown Alpena and explore all of the many sales and specials local downtown businesses have to offer. Find everything from clothing, home decor, books, jewelry and more! When your done shopping you can grab a drink or a bite to eat at one of our bars or restaurants. For updates on this event be sure to check our Facebook or website.

If you’re not able to make it downtown this summer for any of these events or if you’re just simply looking for something else to do, don’t worry! There are plenty of things to do in downtown Alpena! You can fish offshore or on a vessel in the Thunder Bay River or Lake Huron, have a picnic in of our many parks, grab some ice cream or just take a walk throughout downtown while enjoying a social district drink.

These are all just some of the events happening this summer and things to do downtown. So be sure to check our things to do and events page on our website for a full list of what’s going on this summer in downtown Alpena!