There’s no admission fee for The Maine Oyster Festival! Plus, parking is free and plentiful in Freeport.
Below is the schedule for official Festival events. You’ll find plenty of other related activities in and around Freeport over the weekend as well as deals and special offers in our stores and restaurants. Plus, there’s no better way to learn about oysters and the people who cultivate them to visit a farm. The festival is rain or shine, in the event of severe weather check our social media channels for updates. 
Friday, June 23
5PM: Kick Off Party at Freeport Oyster Bar to benefit the Sea Meadow Marine Foundation, Tickets will be available for a donation amount of your choice and will include passed appetizers and oysters. Cash bar. 43 Main St.
Saturday, June 24
9AM-1PM: Wolfe’s Neck Center, 184 Burnett Rd. Let’s collect the invasive European green crab from our intertidal zone! Enjoy a presentation and a wagon ride to the coast, and learn how to repurpose green crabs in tasty culinary treats and for composting! Click here to sign up.
10AM – 6PM: Meet sea farmers & eat oysters, learn to shuck, shop with the vendors & food trucks, watch or participate in public shucking contest heats, kids can make a craft or two to take home, and find out more about seaworthy organizations. L.L.Bean Moose Parking Lot, Nathan Nye, and the Parking Lot behind Freeport Oyster Bar
10AM – 12PM: Live Music by Dirty McCurdy. Rockin “4-piece Power Trio” that packs a whole road case full of musical spiked-punch with implements of melodic carnage like Bagpipes, Saxophone, Banjo, Keyboards, Flute, Fiddle, and Blues Harp. FMI: https://dirtymccurdy.com/ Free. L.L.Bean Discovery Park Stage
1PM – 3PM: Live Music by Juke Joint Devils. The Juke Joint Devils is an old school Jump and Swing combo whose musical style draws heavily from Chicago, Memphis and New Orleans blues music of the 1950s, as well as the modern West Coast style of today. FMI: follow them on Facebook. Free. L.L.Bean Discovery Park Stage
2PM–4PM: Seacoast Tours of Freeport, South Freeport. Oyster Farm Tours aboard the Pamela B! All trips include oysters and lobster rolls, and beer and wine is available for purchase. Reservations required, book online
3:30PM: Oyster of the Year awards ceremony. Emceed by sustainable seafood expert Barton Seaver. L.L.Bean Discovery Park stage.
4PM- 6PM: Live Music by Schooner Fare presented by Visit Freeport, Meetinghouse Arts, Balsam Realty & Cadenza. Schooner Fare has won unanimous critical praise for captivating harmonies and winning stage presence. In addition to their numerous original songs on both contemporary and traditional themes, the band also writes and performs topical songs, country ballads and maritime masterpieces that have made their name synonymous with the “Down East” style. Consummate entertainers, their energetic concerts are laced with a Maine brand of universal humor. Combining their talents on six-string guitars, twelve-string guitars and banjos, Schooner Fare’s distinctive vocal and instrumental arrangements have been hailed by such folk music icons as the Kingston Trio, the Limeliters, the Chad Mitchell Trio, the Clancy Brothers, Tommy Makem and Tom Paxton. FMI: http://outergreen.com/ Free. L.L.Bean Discovery Park Stage
4PM-6PM: Our Working Waterfront Opening Reception. Meetinghouse Arts, 40 Main St. Free.
5PM–7PM: Seacoast Tours of Freeport, South Freeport. Oyster Farm Tours aboard the Pamela B! All trips include oysters and lobster rolls, and beer and wine is available for purchase. Reservations required, book online
6PM-9PM: Maine Beer Company, 525 US Rt 1. Join us for The Maine Oyster Festival After-Party featuring our brand-new Love Point Oyster Stout. Live music (6:30-8:30) from Sugar Hill, an acoustic duo playing old-time, Celtic, bluegrass, & early country. Come enjoy fresh beer, oysters and local jams!
7PM: Freeport Oyster Bar. 43 Main St. Festival After Hours.
Sunday, June 25
10 am – 4 pm: Meet sea farmers & eat oysters, learn to shuck, shop with the vendors & food trucks, kids can make a craft or two to take home, and find out more about seaworthy organizations. L.L.Bean Moose Parking Lot, Nathan Nye, and the Parking Lot behind Freeport Oyster Bar
10 – 11 am: Live Music by Shank Painters. The Shank Painters are a pirate-themed folk music trio based in Portland, Maine. The band’s repertoire consists of Shanties – a variety of mostly nautical classic folk songs with catchy sing-along refrains, beloved by children and rowdy drunks alike. These works are treasures of history, preserving the travails and spirit from centuries of seafaring culture. Bringing together accordion, voices, banjo, and guitar, the Shank Painters bring the past alive with their mixture of playful, rollicking, heartbreaking, and hilarious songs. FMI: https://www.shankpainters.com/Free. L.L.Bean Discovery Park Stage
11 am: The Big Shuck. Professional Shucking Contest. L.L.Bean Discovery Park Stage
12:30 – 2:30 pm: Live Music by Eileen Rose. Fresh off a European tour, Eileen Rose’s music is an authentic, glorious hybrid of honky heroine, Dylan-esque songstress, and road warrior diva. After building a critically acclaimed career in Europe, being musically compared to Patti Smith, Lucinda Williams, Emmylou Harris, Joni Mitchell, and Neil Young, Eileen Rose has returned to her New England roots. She and her husband live right here in Freeport, Maine! FMI: eileenrose.com Free. L.L.Bean Discovery Park Stage
3 – 4 pm: Live Music by Shank Painters. See above.
Throughout the Weekend
Bow Street Market, 79 Bow St. Local oysters, shuckers and accouterments are available to purchase to enjoy at home! The wine, beer, and spirit department houses one of Maine’s most varied and expertly curated selections. FRI, SAT & SUN 6:30AM–8PM
Broad Arrow Tavern at the Harraseeket Inn, 162 Main St. Chef David Pendexter presents Maine Oysters on the half shell with rose petal mignonette and sweet chili cocktail. $4 each. FRI-SUN 11:30AM-9PM
Boothbay Sea & Science Center, L.L.Bean Discovery Park. The Boothbay Sea and Science Center Information Booth and Activity Station will be located at the edge of L.L.Bean’s Discovery Park. They are sponsoring two free crafts for kids during the festival – make an oyster shell necklace or ornament and make a kelp pressing wall hanging! While supplies last. SAT 10AM-6PM, SUN 10AM-4PM
Casco Bay Cutlery & Kitchenware, 5 Depot St. Seacuterie! Fresh, easy, decorative. Add ice and arrange your seafood. Buying oyster supplies during the 2023 Oyster Festival? Show us this notice for a free Victorinox 3.5″ straight edge parer. FRI, SAT 10-6, SUN 11-5
FIORE Artisan Olive Oils & Vinegars, 88 Main St. Pop in for free tastings of fresh EVOO & aged balsamics featuring Sicilian pestos & tapenades exclusively imported by FIORE Olive Oils & Vinegars. Once home, whip up a batch of the official The Maine Oyster Festival mignonette recipe featuring FIORE ingredients, or create your own! FRI & SAT 11-5, Closed SUN
Freeport Jewelers, RD Allen , 13 Middle St. Custom-made Oyster Pendants! This solid sterling silver pendant is reversible and features a hidden bail with choice of a white freshwater pearl or a black Akoya pearl. Chains sold separately. FRI & SAT 10AM–5:30PM, SUN closed
Kids Arcanum, Nathan Nye St. The Kids Arcanum Activity Station will be located on Nathan Nye. They are sponsoring a free craft for kids during the festival – make a pirate hat or mermaid crown! While supplies last. SAT 10AM-6PM, SUN 10AM-4PM
Linda Bean’s Maine Kitchen & Topside Tavern, 88 Main St. Pop across the street from The Maine Oyster Festival for discounted oysters on the half shell and special menu item Oysters Rockefeller! SAT & SUN 11AM-8PM
Lobster Cooker & Upper Deck Sports Pub, 39 Main St. We’ll be serving up special menu items including tasty fried oysters and pouring a wide selection of beers on our garden patio! Just steps away from Festival grounds! SAT 11AM-7PM, SUN 11AM-4PM
Lola Aesthetics, 42 Mallet Dr. Let’s celebrate Freeport’s The Maine Oyster Festival! Discounted themed treatments include the Holy Mother of Pearl, the Oh Shuck Yeah, & the My Skin is Dry, I Need M-oyster-izer! SAT 8AM–2PM, SUN 10:30AM-1:30PM
Maine Ocean Farms, South Freeport. Learn where and how these award-winning oysters are grown. Enjoy the freshest oysters you’ll ever have, right out of the water they were grown in, all while taking in the sights and sounds of the beautiful Casco Bay aboard the Cape Ann Diver. Tours daily at 9:30AM, 1PM, 4PM. maineoceanfarms.com for FMI or to book a tour.
Meetinghouse Arts, 40 Main St. Our Working Waterfront gallery show celebrating our long history with the waterfront industry. Free. FRI & SAT 10AM–5PM, SUN 12PM-4PM
The Tuscan Brick Oven Bistro, 140 Main St. Offering special menu items all weekend including Brick Oven Oysters Rockefeller and Oyster Risotto! SAT & SUN 11AM-9PM
Wilbur’s of Maine Chocolate Confections, 174 Lower Main St. or 13 Bow St. You’d better believe we are getting in on all the fun with a chocolate bivalve creation! Visit us in Freeport for oyster-shaped chocolates featuring candy pearls! FRI, SAT, SUN 10AM-5:30PM