Lilac Festival


Lilac Festival

Ten days in MayThe annual Lilac Festival in Rochester, New York, celebrates the abundance of lilacs in the city's Highland Park. Horticulturalist John Dunbar began the garden with 20 varieties of the flowering shrub in 1892. The festival began six years later as a one-day event for people to enjoy the recently adorned park. Frederick Law Olmstead, who also designed Central Park in New York City, finished the development of Highland Park.
Today this is a ten-day festival during which visitors admire more than 1,200 lilac bushes of more than 500 varieties. In addition to viewing the flowers, visitors to the Lilac Festival can also sample a wide array of international foods and enjoy concerts, art shows, and other free festival events.
CONTACTS:
Greater Rochester Visitors Association Inc.
45 E. Ave., Ste. 400
Rochester, NY 14604
800-677-7282 or 585-546-8484; fax: 585-232-4822
www.lilacfestival.com