Annual National Shrimp Festival

Home
United States
Gulf Shores, AL
Annual National Shrimp Festival

🍤 October 8th - 11th, 2026 in Gulf Shores, Alabama 🍤

One of the nation's premier festivals! The festival is held annually in the heart of Gulf Shores, Alabama.
(1595)

The festival is one of the nation's premier outdoor festivals featuring over 300 vendors that offer fine art, arts and crafts, retail marketplace, outdoor village, children's activity village, food, and of course, shrimp! We offer live entertainment all four days as well. Admission to our festival is FREE! The Festival is produced by the Coastal Alabama Business Chamber and a dedicated group of co

mmittee members, who work tirelessly all year long to produce such an enjoyable festival. The Annual National Shrimp Festival™ is held every year during the second full weekend of October. The mission of the Annual National Shrimp Festival™ is to promote tourism in Gulf Shores and the surrounding area through a festival that includes Fine Art, Arts & Crafts, music and food with an emphasis on seafood, during the month of October.

09/05/2026

🏆 ENTER HERE: https://tinyurl.com/sfcontest26

We all know that fans of Jimmy Buffett are called “Parrotheads”, just like fans of Taylor Swift are called “Swifties”, and fans of Justin Bieber are “Beliebers”. Now is your chance to coin a name for fans of the Annual National Shrimp Festival!

“I’ve written press releases for the Shrimp Festival for more than 20 years, and I have always cringed when the people that come down for the festival are referred to as attendees in my releases,” Festival Media Chairman Clayton Wallace said. “At a recent staff meeting we batted around the idea of coming up with a name other than attendees.”

During that meeting, according to Wallace, staff members decided to open up the naming process to the people who are soon to be formerly called attendees. “We’ve created an online entry form. We want Festival fans to go and submit their ideas for naming themselves,” Festival Co-Chairman Rob Barnas said. “We’re looking forward to receiving some creative names, but we also want to make sure the submissions are family-friendly since we’re a family-friendly event.”

The winner will be announced the week of the Festival and be awarded with a swag bag of goodies from the official Annual National Shrimp Festival merchandise tent.

In the event the winning selection is submitted by multiple people, a random draw will occur to determine the winner. DEADLINE: Wednesday, September 30, 2026, 10:00 PM CDT

08/14/2026

Showcase your business to more than 300,000 attendees during the 53rd Annual National Shrimp Festival, happening this October 8th through 11th, with our Local Flavor sponsorship!

This $1,000 sponsorship will have your logo featured on a banner displayed along bike racks around the festival grounds.

Your sponsorship also includes:

• Your logo featured on the Coastal Alabama Business Chamber digital sign along Highway 59

• Your logo and link to your website on the MyShrimpFest.com sponsor page (Shrimp Fest website had 92,000+ unique visitors in 2025)

It's a simple, affordable way to put your business in front of one of the largest annual crowds on the Gulf Coast.

To reserve your Local Flavor sponsorship, contact Sharon Wiese at 251.968.4237 or [email protected]

07/17/2026

🎶 YOU'VE BEEN ASKING AND NOW... THE FULL MUSIC LINEUP IS HERE! Check out all of this year's performers at: https://www.myshrimpfest.com/entertainment

All are invited to join us for 'Alabama's Original Beach Party', the 53rd Annual National Shrimp Festival. For four days, two stages will come alive with performances from 35+ local and national acts, alongside nearly 300 vendors offering seafood, fine arts, crafts, retail goods, and more!

Best of all? Admission is FREE!

This year's evening headliners: Funky Lampshades, The Troy Laz Band, Bag Of Donuts, The Molly Ringwalds, Doctor Zarr's Amazing Funk Monster, The Velcro Pygmies, Veronica Jean Trio, and The Groovinators...
..along with dozens of new and returning faces performing throughout the weekend, the annual Singing for Scholarships competition, and live broadcasts from SUNNY 105.7-FM on the Pepsi East Stage.

Start making your plans today, because October will be here before you know it!
_______

📍 Address: 101 Gulf Shores Pkwy, Gulf Shores, AL, 36542
🗓️ Thursday, October 8th through Sunday, October 11th
🎟️ Free to attend, no ticket required
🔗 https://www.myshrimpfest.com/

07/09/2026

🍤 We're now 91 days away from the 53rd Annual National Shrimp Festival!

Folks are anxiously waiting for the entertainment lineup, and we're excited to say it will be published next week.

Until then, let's take a look back at a few memories from 2025 and 2024 for .
_______

📍 Address: 101 Gulf Shores Pkwy, Gulf Shores, AL, 36542
🗓️ Thursday, October 8th through Sunday, October 11th
🎟️ Free to attend, no ticket required
🔗 https://www.myshrimpfest.com/

The Annual National Shrimp Festival is Alabama's original beach party, taking place in Gulf Shores and organized by the Coastal Alabama Business Chamber.

Attendees can expect four days filled with food, art, live music, and more! At the heart of this festival is a hard-working group of volunteers that have kept this tradition kicking since 1971.

07/02/2026

🍤 Only 98 days until the 53rd Annual National Shrimp Festival!

Every Thursday we'll be looking back at some of our favorite festival memories as we count down to October. Here's a few moments from last year's festival to get you excited for what's to come!
_______

📍 Address: 101 Gulf Shores Pkwy, Gulf Shores, AL, 36542
🗓️ Thursday, October 8th through Sunday, October 11th
🎟️ Free to attend, no ticket required
🔗 https://www.myshrimpfest.com/

The Annual National Shrimp Festival is Alabama's original beach party, taking place in Gulf Shores and organized by the Coastal Alabama Business Chamber.

Attendees can expect four days filled with food, art, live music, and more! At the heart of this festival is a hard-working group of volunteers that have kept this tradition kicking since 1971.

06/30/2026

🚨 Be wary of scammers impersonating our event!

We've been made aware that scammers are continuing to send emails claiming to offer vendor opportunities for the 53rd Annual National Shrimp Festival.

The application deadline for the 53rd National Shrimp Festival was April 24th, 2026, and applications are now closed. The next application period will open on February 1st, 2027.

The Annual National Shrimp Festival website, social media channels, and Eventeny page are the only sources for applications and official communications.

06/22/2026

🍤 VOLUNTEER SIGN-UPS NOW OPEN: https://www.myshrimpfest.com/volunteer

Without volunteers, there is no Shrimp Fest. The festival holds a special place in the hearts of locals & visitors alike and your involvement is greatly appreciated. We welcome you to get involved in one of the Gulf Coast's best traditions.

All volunteers will receive a Shrimp Festival poster t-shirt & two drinks tickets to be redeemed post-shift as a thank you.

Shift sign-ups for concessions, merchandise, and bike valet are now open at the link above!

05/14/2026

🎉 Congratulations Junior Leadership Coastal Alabama graduates!

Along with building leadership skills and touring local industries/organizations, these 30 students are part of the hundreds of volunteers who dedicate their time to help our festival run smoothly. The Junior Leadership students help run our bike valet station and collect tips to go towards their program.

We thank you all for your hard work and wish you a great future!

05/11/2026

🍤 News Release: Tara McMeans Wins Shrimp Festival Poster Contest for Second Time

Gulf Shores, Ala. - Gulf Shores-based artist Tara McMeans has been named the winner of the 53rd Annual National Shrimp Festival poster contest, organizers announced today.

The win marks the second time McMeans has won the contest, having entered for more than a decade. A graphic designer since 2000, McMeans holds a degree in commercial art from Faulkner State, now Coastal Alabama Community College, and is the owner of Design, Print, Promote.

This year’s contest received a record 44 entries, with artists representing Alabama, California, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Italy, Louisiana and Mississippi. A group of 40 committee members and judges met to conduct the evaluation process on April 21, and in the end McMeans’ design was victorious.

“The variety and creativity of this year’s entries were incredible,” festival Chairman Rob Barnas said. “We’re especially proud to see a talented local artist like Tara win and represent the festival with her work.”

The poster is a mixed media collage layering old sheet music with newspaper clippings referencing the Shrimp Festival over the past decade. Torn paper and magazine cutouts form the lettering, while a shrimp serves as the focal point, which McMeans created with a palette knife using layered watercolor and acrylic paints.

“This year I wanted to create something unlike anything that has been done before,” McMeans said. “I still can’t quite believe it. I’m beyond honored to have my artwork once again featured in my community. It makes me feel so good to see it around town on t-shirts and in local establishments.”

In addition to having her artwork serve as the face of the festival’s marketing and merchandise, McMeans will receive a $1,000 cash prize and will appear at the event for a poster signing (location and time to be announced).

Posters will be available for purchase beginning at 10 a.m. Oct. 8, the festival’s opening day. Pre-signed copies will be particularly sought after by collectors, as they will be individually numbered to 100 and bear McMeans’ signature. The artwork will also be featured on the official festival T-shirt and other merchandise.

Additional details on festival activities, vendors and the music lineup will be announced at myshrimpfest.com as the summer progresses.

04/14/2026

Vendor applications for the 53rd Annual National Shrimp Festival are due by the end of the day on Friday, April 24th.

Vendor categories include fine arts, arts and crafts, retail merchandise, food, and the children’s activity village. All entries are subject to a juried selection process conducted by a volunteer committee with selections expected to be finalized by early June. Submission does not guarantee acceptance.

“Shrimp Fest wouldn’t be what it is without the vendors who travel from across the country to be part of it,” said Ginny Barnas, co-chairman of the Annual National Shrimp Festival. “We look forward to welcoming another outstanding group to Gulf Shores this October.”

Vendors interested in submitting an application can learn more at myshrimpfest.com/apply

Address

101 Gulf Shores Pkwy
Gulf Shores, AL
36542

Website

http://www.myshrimpfest.com/

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Annual National Shrimp Festival posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Want your establishment to be the top-listed Arts & Entertainment in Gulf Shores?