Antique & Classic Boat Festival & Coastal Arts Fair

ANTIQUE & CLASSIC BOAT FESTIVAL AND COASTAL ARTS FAIR

Friday-Sunday, June 19-21

CBMM MEMBERS CLICK HERE TO BUY SUNDAY TICKETS

NON-MEMBERS CLICK HERE TO BUY SUNDAY TICKETS

The 38th Antique & Classic Boat Festival and Coastal Arts Fair is coming to the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum on June 19-21, inviting guests to celebrate the craftsmanship, history, and enduring appeal of timeless vessels and the people dedicated to preserving them.

Hosted by the Chesapeake Bay Chapter of the Antique & Classic Boat Society, the festival brings a sense of nostalgia to CBMM’s waterfront campus along the Miles River with one of the largest classic boat shows in the Mid-Atlantic region and more fun for the whole family.

The festival runs from 10am-5pm on Friday and Saturday and 10am-3pm on Sunday. Two-day tickets are on sale now, with discounted pricing for CBMM members. Save $2 by purchasing your tickets in advance online. ACBF FAQs and the festival map are now available.

Join this Father’s Day weekend tradition

The three-day Antique & Classic Boat Festival celebrates the past, present, and future of antique and classic boating with examples spread across CBMM’s 18-acre campus and docks. This year’s theme is “Boats Built in Michigan & the Midwest.”

The festival annually showcases wood, fiberglass, and metal vessels in all phases of restoration representing the historic (up to 1918), antique (1919-1942), classic (1943-1975), late classic (1976-1997), and contemporary (any wooden boat built since 1997) classes.

Celebrating this year’s theme, guests will enjoy the rare opportunity to see iconic Midwest runabouts and cruisers such as Chris-Craft, Lyman, Century, Larson, Gar Wood, Matthews, among many others.

The Antique & Classic Boat Festival is accompanied by a juried Coastal Arts Fair with vendors exhibiting and selling unique artwork, jewelry, home décor, and other merchandise inspired by boating and life on the water. The festivities also include a Field of Dreams with vessels for sale, a nautical flea market, and children’s activities.

Throughout the weekend, the local chapter of the Antique & Classic Boat Society will host a series of boating history talks sponsored by PropTalk Magazine in the Van Lennep Auditorium.

The featured speakers will share their knowledge on a range of topics, many of which explore this year’s festival theme. The lineup includes a presentation from CBMM’s Chief Historian Pete Lesher on “Ohio’s Matthews” on Friday at 1pm. Click here to view the full schedule.

Take a boat ride

Guests have a variety of ways to get out on the water during the festival. The Antique & Classic Boat Society will offer free boat rides aboard featured vessels on Saturday and Sunday from 1-3pm.

CBMM is also offering three ticketed sails aboard 1955 skipjack Rosie Parks on Saturday. Tickets for these 90-minute cruises, at 10am, noon, and 1:30pm, are $35 for CBMM members and $45 for non-members and include festival admission. (June 12 update: All Rosie Parks sails are now sold out.)

In addition, Patriot Cruises will present Narrated Historical Cruises on the Miles River at 12:30pm and 2:30pm on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, plus an Evening River Cruise at 5pm on Saturday. Combo tickets that include festival admission and a PATRIOT cruise are also available for all three days through our online ticketing portal.

More family fun

Children will stay busy with activities across campus, highlighted by a boat building station on Saturday (1-4pm) and Sunday (1-3pm) with CBMM’s Model Guild next to the ACBS Ship Store on Navy Point.

There’s also a family-friendly scavenger hunt, offering an interactive exploration of campus. Pick up your instruction sheet in CBMM’s Welcome Center or ACBS Ship Store throughout the festival.

Be sure to stop by the Phillips Wharf Fishmobile traveling aquarium to meet and learn about Chesapeake Bay creatures (Saturday & Sunday) and Woodworks on Wheels for hands-on fun (Friday & Saturday). Both will be set up on Fogg’s Landing.

On Saturday at 10am, a local chapter of the Sea Scouts will present a flag raising ceremony on Fogg’s Landing.

Food & drinks

A variety of local food vendors will be spread across campus throughout the weekend, including BBQ, seafood, gourmet sandwiches, ice cream, shaved ice, and coffee.

There will also be a beer truck stationed across from the Small Boat Shed offering craft and domestic selections as well as canned cocktails. Windon Distilling will be on hand to offer free LYON rum tastings and to-go bottle sales.

Buy your tickets now & save

Two-day tickets for the Antique & Classic Boat Festival and Coastal Arts Fair can be purchased in advance online or at the door. Guests who purchase their tickets in advance will save $2. No single-day tickets will be sold to this rain-or-shine event.

For those purchasing online, festival admission is set at $22 for adults, $19 for seniors (65+) and students (17+), $10 for active and retired military members, and $9 for children ages 6-to-17, with all children 5-and-younger admitted free. At the door, the cost is $24 for adults, $21 for seniors (65+) and students (17+), $12 for active and retired military members, and $11 for children ages 6-to-17, with all children 5-and-younger admitted free.

CBMM members receive discounted pricing for this annual festival and others throughout the year. Adult member tickets are $10 in advance and $12 at the door, and all children of members (17-and-younger) receive free admission. CBMM members at the Family & Friends level and above can also receive discounted admission for two additional adult guests.

CBMM members become a part of the Chesapeake story, joining CBMM’s mission as stewards of the region’s rich cultural heritage. To discover all the terrific benefits of membership and join today, click here or contact Membership Services Coordinator Debbie Ruzicka at 410-745-4991 or druzicka@cbmm.org.

More to know

For information on how to register a boat, become a vendor, or sign up to sell in the Field of Dreams or nautical flea market, visit chesapeakebayacbs.org.

For safety reasons, non-service dogs need to be kept home during CBMM festivals, including the Antique & Classic Boat Festival and Coastal Arts Fair. Carry-on alcohol from dock or land is prohibited.

Antique & Classic Boat Festival and Coastal Arts Fair
Date/Time: Friday, June 19, 10am-5pm; Saturday, June 20, 10am-5pm; Sunday, June 21, 10am-3pm

CBMM MEMBERS CLICK HERE TO BUY SUNDAY TICKETS

NON-MEMBERS CLICK HERE TO BUY SUNDAY TICKETS