Essex Fun Fest

07/28/2026

Friday Night Concert Ticket Update

We wanted to provide a general update regarding the cancelled James Barker Band concert from Friday, July 3, 2026.

An email has now been sent directly to all ticket purchasers with the next steps regarding their tickets.

We know this process has taken longer than many people expected, and we sincerely apologize for the delay. After the concert was cancelled due to severe weather, the Essex Fun Fest Committee worked hard behind the scenes to explore whether a rescheduled concert could be arranged later this year.

Our hope was to provide ticket holders with a strong make-up option and an even better experience for those who supported the Friday night concert. Unfortunately, we were not able to confirm all of those details in a timely enough manner, and we also understand that many ticket holders were looking for a clear resolution.

Because of that, we have now moved forward with the next steps for ticket purchasers. Ticket holders have been contacted directly and are being given the option to request a full refund or donate their ticket value back to Essex Fun Fest. Any donated funds will help offset the unexpected expenses and financial losses from the cancelled concert and storm-impacted weekend.

We want to thank everyone who purchased tickets, supported the concert, and gave us time to work through the options available. Essex Fun Fest is organized by a volunteer committee, and we truly appreciate the patience, understanding, and support shown throughout this process.

07/17/2026

How did you like the Essex Fun Fest Food Court this year?

We are always looking at ways to improve and bring new ideas to the festival.

Was there a type of food you would like to see added next year?
Tag a food vendor you would love to see at The Fest in 2027!

Comment below with your suggestions.

We are always open to looking at new and different ideas to make the Food Court even better for everyone.

07/15/2026

07/09/2026

Did you know...

One of the most viewed, shared, and discussed Essex Fun Fest posts this year — outside of the storm-related updates — was our announcement about the new 2026 gate admission model.

This year, Essex Fun Fest tried something new by removing the mandatory gate fee and moving to a donation-based entry model. The goal was simple: make the festival more accessible for families and allow people to contribute what they could.

A very special thank you goes to Ken Knapp Ford, Jeff Smith's County Chevrolet Essex, and Countryside Chrysler Dodge Limited for stepping up and helping make this initiative possible. Their support helped “pay it forward” for those who may not have been able to donate at the gate.

This was our first year trying this model, and the Essex Fun Fest Committee will be reviewing how it worked overall. With the unexpected challenges, storm damage, and loss of revenue from this year’s severe weather, the committee will also be carefully reviewing how we financially prepare for the 2027 festival.

Further updates and announcements will be shared next year as planning continues.

Thank you to our community for the support, feedback, donations, and encouragement throughout the weekend. 💜🧡

07/07/2026

💜🧡 We Want Your Feedback 🧡💜

If you attended Essex Fun Fest 2026, we would love to hear from you.

Our committee will be reviewing the entire weekend, including the new layout, carnival, food court, vendors, entertainment areas, activities, and overall festival experience.

Your feedback helps us understand what worked well and what we can improve as we begin planning for the future of Essex Fun Fest.

The survey is short and only takes a couple of minutes to complete.

👉 Visit www.essexfunfest.com to share your feedback.

Thank you for attending Essex Fun Fest and for helping us continue to grow and improve this community tradition.

07/06/2026

More news coverage of our weekend...

Storm damage seen around Windsor-Essex.Subscribe to CTV News to w...

07/05/2026

Weekend storm 'heartbreaking' for Essex Fun Fest vendors, organizer says...

The community remains optimistic despite the estimated hundreds of thousands in damages

Winds travelling more than 110 kilometres per hour ravaged through the Essex Fun Fest on Friday, with the extreme weather shift triggering the evacuation of 1,600 visitors into the nearby Essex Arena.

07/05/2026

Essex Fun Fest made it to The Weather Network after Friday night’s storm.

It was a tough moment for the festival, but the community response was incredible. Thank you to everyone who helped us recover, rebuild, and reopen.

https://www.theweathernetwork.com/en/video/lMLk6oms?playlist=oLRZ3mum&fbclid=IwY2xjawS3wHdleHRuA2FlbQIxMABicmlkETF3U21OcXVjMjdlRmw1Qzgwc3J0YwZhcHBfaWQPNTE0NzcxNTY5MjI4MDYxAAEeobmXfv_NLCxBiGkJvjV9gCasoU9YXI9JCsIkfH-GvL2jPZCNODy4T2-mZqk_aem_FWbPoOJcj5LpI5_Rrjs5Jw

The Essex Fun Fest was hit hard by a shockingly fierce storm on July 3. The Weather Network spoke with event staff about the epic storm, which they said was one of the scariest they'd ever experienced.

07/05/2026

💜🧡 Thank You from Essex Fun Fest 🧡💜

What a weekend.

From the events, entertainment, activities, vendors, food, rides, power challenges, extreme heat, and a storm we will not soon forget, Essex Fun Fest 2026 gave us a little bit of everything.

Through it all, one thing became very clear: this community shows up.

To our sponsors, volunteers, committee members, vendors, small businesses, local organizations, not-for-profits, charities, service groups, residents, visitors, town staff, first responders, entertainers, production teams, World’s Finest Shows, Beer Tent Staff and everyone who played a role in making this weekend happen, thank you. A special thank you as well to Cate, our previous Volunteer Coordinator, for helping organize volunteers leading up to and during the event. Her time, effort, and support were greatly appreciated.

To everyone who came through the gates, donated, paid it forward, supported our vendors, bought tickets, shared our posts, offered help, checked in on us, or simply showed up with patience and encouragement, thank you.

This year was not without challenges. The weather was far from perfect, and at times it tested us in ways we never expected. But thanks to the incredible support of our community, we were able to overcome, rebuild, reopen, and keep the weekend moving forward.

A special thank you goes to our Committee Chair, Joe Garon, for taking the lead on such a large event. The amount of work, pressure, planning, and problem-solving that goes into running a festival of this size is hard to fully explain. Joe’s experience, connections, leadership, layout planning, entertainment knowledge, negotiations, and steady guidance play a major role in why Essex Fun Fest continues to be such a success.

In the coming weeks, our committee will be meeting to review the entire weekend. We will be looking at the new layout, entertainment, activities, traffic flow, vendors, operations, and overall experience to see what worked well and what needs improvement as we begin looking ahead to 2027.

We also want to thank everyone who travelled from across Windsor-Essex, Chatham-Kent, Southwestern Ontario, and even from the United States to visit Essex Fun Fest. We are grateful you chose to spend part of your weekend with us.

As we’ve joked before, the forecast for Fun Fest is always: sunny with a chance of tornado. This year came a little too close to proving that true but Essex showed exactly what it is made of.

Please continue to follow our social media pages and website. Every follow, share, comment, and interaction helps us tremendously and allows us to keep you updated as we begin planning for the future.

There will also be opportunities in the months ahead for new people to get involved. The current committee term comes to an end this year, and we look forward to welcoming new talent, fresh ideas, and community-minded people who want to help continue building Essex Fun Fest.

From all of us at Essex Fun Fest thank you for your support, your patience, your generosity, and your Fun Fest spirit.

Have an amazing summer, stay safe, and we’ll see you again soon. 💜🧡