Fork Fest is American Fork's music festival, and it has a simple idea at its center: put Utah's local music scene on a big stage for a whole day. Around 30 Utah bands play across three stages in Art Dye Park, from established acts that grew up in Provo's clubs to newer bands still building an audience, and the park around them fills with food trucks, hammocks, bounce houses, art installations and local vendors. It is a real festival, with a real headliner, at a scale a family can manage.
The name trips people up. Fork Fest is not in Spanish Fork. It belongs to American Fork, where the Harrington Center for the Arts presents it together with Velour Live Music Gallery, the Provo venue where many Utah County bands got their start. The two organizations have built the festival into an early-summer tradition in just a few years, and the crowds have grown with it.
This guide covers when Fork Fest happens and where, how the two days work, the three stages and the kind of music you will hear, what else there is to do in the park, what tickets cost, what you can and cannot bring, and how to plan the day. The details come from the festival's own website and listings, with local reporting where the festival itself is silent. Where a year is named, it shows how the festival has run, not how it will run next time.
A Short History
Fork Fest is a young festival that has grown quickly. The organizers billed the 2023 edition as year six, which dates the first festival to 2018, and the people who started it came out of the local music world: the festival credits Joshua James, an American Fork folk singer and producer who records at a studio on his own small farm, as one of its founders.
The format has grown in steps. The festival settled into a two-day shape with a Saturday of three stages, and in 2023 it added a Friday-evening kickoff on its acoustic stage. By 2025, local reporting described its biggest year yet, with around 4,000 people in the park, a dozen food vendors and more than 200 volunteers, and the festival has continued to book well-known headliners.
What has not changed is the premise. Every edition has been a showcase of Utah musicians, presented by a local arts nonprofit and a local music venue, in a city park, at a price a family can manage.
When Fork Fest Happens
Fork Fest takes a Friday and Saturday in June. The 2024 festival ran June 7 and 8, the 2025 festival June 6 and 7, and the 2026 festival June 12 and 13. That puts it early in the summer, before the heat of July and before the valley's big city celebrations start stacking up.
The festival is young. The organizers billed 2023 as year six, which dates the first Fork Fest to 2018, and local coverage called 2025 its eighth year. In that time it has grown from a local experiment into what the festival itself calls the premiere annual showcase of Utah bands.
The 2027 dates had not been announced as of September 2026. Expect another Friday and Saturday in June, and watch the festival's website and social media in the spring, when the headliner and lineup are usually revealed.
Where It Happens: Art Dye Park
The festival fills Art Dye Park, whose full name is Mary and Art Dye Park, on the north side of American Fork at 1200 North 550 East. It is a big city park with lawns and mature trees, and that setting is much of the appeal: there is room to spread out a blanket, shade under the trees, and space for three stages.
The park is familiar ground for American Fork families. It is also where the carnival sets up for the city's summer Steel Days celebration, and the festival borrows that sense of a hometown gathering place. For more on the city's other big outdoor venue, see our guide to the American Fork Amphitheater.
The festival directs parking with signs on arrival, with general, reserved and additional parking areas. Follow the signs rather than trying to find a spot on residential streets, and plan to walk a few minutes to the gate.
How the Two Days Work
Fork Fest is really two different events.
Friday is the kickoff. In recent years the festival has opened with an evening show on its acoustic Forest Stage. The first, in 2023, was billed as the Firelight Kickoff, an intimate evening with a handful of acts and a limited number of tickets, and the organizers encouraged people to bring blankets and lawn chairs. It is the quieter, more personal side of the festival, and the one to choose if you like singer-songwriters and small crowds.
Saturday is the festival. All three stages run from midday into the evening, with sets spread across them. In 2024 the Saturday gates opened around midday and the music ran until 10:30 p.m. This is the day with the headliner, the vendor village, the food trucks and the family attractions, and it is the day most people mean when they talk about Fork Fest.
The Three Stages
Fork Fest runs three stages: two large concert stages and a smaller acoustic stage. The large stages carry the bigger bands and the headliner, trading sets through the afternoon and evening. The acoustic stage, the Forest Stage, sits among the park's trees and suits quieter music. It is where the Friday kickoff happens, and on Saturday the festival saves one of its most anticipated sets to close it; in 2026 that slot went to Joshua James, the American Fork folk singer and producer the festival credits as one of Fork Fest's founders.
The practical point is that you can build your own day. Some families settle near one of the big stages with a blanket and let the music come to them, while dedicated fans walk between stages to catch particular bands. Check the festival's schedule for set times before you go.
Who Plays
The music comes from Utah. The lineup draws on bands with Utah roots across genres, from indie rock and pop to folk, alternative and singer-songwriter acts, and it mixes names that have played to national audiences with bands that are still local secrets.
The headliners show how far the festival reaches. In 2026 it was Neon Trees, a band the festival describes as born in Utah County and raised on the Velour stage before its pop hits took it around the world. In 2025 the headliner was The Aquabats, a band long popular with families. The rest of the bill in recent years has included long-running Provo bands such as Fictionist and Parlor Hawk, alongside a deep bench of newer acts.
That connection to Velour is the heart of it. The Provo venue has been the proving ground for a generation of Utah County musicians, and Fork Fest is where that scene steps out of a small club and onto a park stage in front of thousands of people.
The Harrington Center and Velour
Two organizations put Fork Fest on. The Harrington Center for the Arts is an American Fork arts nonprofit, and the festival is one of several things it runs; in the summer of 2025, for example, local reporting described a series of free concerts it hosted in the park and at the American Fork Amphitheater. Because the Harrington Center is an arts group rather than a concert promoter, the festival carries more art than most music events, from installations to hands-on projects.
Velour Live Music Gallery is the other half. The Provo venue is a small room that has been the starting point for a long list of Utah County bands, and several Fork Fest acts, including the 2026 headliner, came up through it. Its role shows in the lineup, which leans on bands with deep roots in the local scene.
Together they give Fork Fest a feel that is hard to find elsewhere. It is organized by people from the community it celebrates, and it shows.
Beyond the Music
Fork Fest is designed for people who do not want to stand in front of a stage all day. The festival lists food trucks, art installations, a hammock hangout, bounce houses and a vendor village with booths for local artisans and craftspeople. For 2026 the festival described the vendor village as around 50 local artists selling one-of-a-kind pieces, treats, clothing, accessories and crafts, with festival merchandise tents near the entrance and the Forest Stage.
The art side has grown. Local reporting on the 2025 festival described an art tent where visitors could make things, a foam pit and a wall of CDs that festivalgoers painted with a song or lyric that had changed their lives. The Harrington Center is an arts organization first, and the festival reflects that.
Getting the Most From a Local Lineup
A festival of local bands rewards a little homework. Most of the acts will be new to most of the crowd, and the best moments often come from a band you had never heard of an hour earlier. Spend some time with the lineup before the day: the festival's lineup page introduces the acts, and nearly every band has music you can stream. Make a short list, but leave room to wander.
Arrive for the early sets. The smaller and newer acts tend to play before the evening crowd arrives, and catching them while the lawn is still open is one of the pleasures of the day. The acoustic stage is the place to hear songwriters up close, and it is often where people discover a favorite.
If a band wins you over, the best thing you can do is buy something from its merchandise table and follow it afterward. Local bands depend on that kind of support, and many of them play small venues around the valley, Velour among them, through the rest of the year. Fork Fest works best as an introduction to a music scene you can keep enjoying long after the festival ends.
Tickets and What It Costs
Fork Fest is ticketed. For 2026 the festival advertised tickets at $35, with children 11 and under admitted free, an affordable price for a full day of live music. Tickets are sold through the official festival website. The Friday kickoff has had a limited number of tickets in the past, so check what the current year's ticket covers.
Budget for food and drink as well: outside food and beverages are not allowed, so meals come from the food trucks. The vendor village and merchandise tents are optional extras.
What to Bring, and What to Leave Home
The festival publishes clear rules, and they are worth reading before you pack.
Allowed: blankets, festival-approved chairs, empty refillable water bottles and hydration packs, non-aerosol sunscreen, personal umbrellas no bigger than a two-person size, small action cameras, and bags and strollers, which are searched thoroughly at the gate.
Not allowed: outside food or drink, alcohol, coolers, glass containers, aerosol sunscreen, tents and canopies, pets other than qualified service animals, drones, professional cameras and recording equipment, laser pointers, weapons of any kind, and unauthorized vending or soliciting.
The practical upshot is to pack light. Bring a blanket or approved chairs, a refillable bottle and sunscreen, and plan to eat at the park.
On the Grounds
The festival lists a medical tent near the main entrance, on-site security from private staff and the police department, restrooms and hand-washing stations on the north side of the festival area, and a selection of local food trucks and vendors. If anything goes wrong, look for a staff member, security guard or police officer. The festival has also named a local hotel host for out-of-town visitors.
Planning It by Age
Families with small children get good value from Fork Fest, because children 11 and under are free. Come in the early afternoon, set up near a big stage or in the shade, and let the children use the bounce houses and hammocks between sets. Strollers are allowed, but they are searched, so allow time at the gate.
Teenagers often find the lineup closer to their taste than most summer concerts, and the festival grounds are contained enough to give them some freedom. Pick a meeting place in advance.
Adults who care about music should come for the full day, walk the stages, and stay for the headliner. The Forest Stage is the place for the quieter, more intimate sets, and the Friday kickoff is worth considering if you prefer small crowds.
Planning the Saturday
The Saturday is long, and it goes better with a loose plan. Look at the lineup the week before and mark the two or three bands you most want to see, then note which stage each one plays. Arrive in the early afternoon, when the lawns are open and the lines are short, and set up a base with a blanket or approved chairs where your group can regroup.
Spend the afternoon moving. Walk the vendor village before it gets crowded, let children use the bounce houses and hammocks while the sun is high, and find the Forest Stage for at least one quieter set under the trees. Eat from the food trucks before the dinner rush, since the lines grow as the evening crowd arrives.
As the light goes, head back toward the main stages. Claim a spot before the headliner if you want to be close, or hang back on the lawn if you have young children and want an easy exit. Keep a layer handy, because the park cools off after dark, and agree on a meeting point in case anyone gets separated. When the last set ends, follow the staff and signs to the parking areas rather than trying to cut through neighboring streets.
Getting There
American Fork sits in the north of Utah County, roughly a 20- to 30-minute drive from Provo by I-15. Art Dye Park is on the north side of the city. Follow the festival's parking signs when you arrive, and give yourself extra time on the Saturday, when the park draws its biggest crowds of the weekend. Rideshare is a good option for anyone who wants to stay late for the headliner without worrying about the drive home. For the rest of this corner of the valley, see our guide to things to do on the north bench, and for a meal before or after, the best restaurants on the north bench.
Volunteering and Taking Part
Fork Fest runs on volunteers. Local reporting counted more than 200 at the 2025 festival and described board members putting in hundreds of hours each, with planning starting about 10 months ahead. The festival website has a volunteer sign-up, and volunteering is a good way to see the festival from the inside. Local artists and craftspeople can apply for the vendor village, and bands with Utah ties follow the festival for lineup announcements and opportunities to play.
How It Compares
Many of the valley's celebrations, from Provo's summer events to the city days in American Fork and elsewhere, include concerts. Fork Fest is different in that it is built entirely around Utah bands.
For more live music, the American Fork Amphitheater hosts summer concerts on the other side of town, and the county's festival calendar lives on our festivals hub. The festival and celebration finder filters the calendar by month and city.
Who It Suits
Fork Fest is a very good day out for families, for anyone curious about Utah's music scene, and for fans of indie, folk and alternative music who would rather sit on a lawn than stand in an arena. The price is low, children under 12 get in free, you cannot bring alcohol in, and the grounds have plenty to do between sets.
It suits some people less. If you want a lineup of national touring acts from start to finish, this is not that kind of festival; one or two headliners anchor a bill made up mostly of local bands. The area near the main stages gets crowded for the headliner, and the food lines get long at dinnertime. None of that is unusual for a festival, but it helps to arrive with the right expectations.
Weather and Comfort
June weather in Utah County is usually kind to an outdoor festival, but it is not guaranteed. Afternoons can be hot in full sun, and the trees in Art Dye Park provide welcome shade, so a spot near the edge of the lawn can be worth more than a spot near the stage. Afternoon storms occasionally roll off the mountains, which is one reason personal umbrellas are allowed. Wind can pick up in the evening, and the temperature drops quickly after sunset.
Dress in layers, wear shoes you can stand in for hours, and plan to refill your water bottle more often than you think you need to. If you bring small children, a hat and a change of clothes cover most of what can go wrong.
A Few Practical Tips
June in Utah County can swing from hot afternoons to cool evenings, especially after dark in a park full of trees, so bring a layer for the headliner. Use non-aerosol sunscreen, since aerosol cans are banned, and bring a refillable bottle. If you want a particular spot near a stage, arrive before the band you most want to see; the lawns fill toward the evening. And check the festival's website and social media on the day for the final schedule.
The Short Version
Fork Fest is American Fork's festival of Utah bands, held on a Friday and Saturday in June at Art Dye Park and presented by the Harrington Center for the Arts and Velour. Friday brings an acoustic kickoff on the Forest Stage; Saturday runs around 30 acts across three stages, with a headliner, food trucks, a vendor village, hammocks and bounce houses. Tickets were $35 in 2026, and children 11 and under get in free. And it is in American Fork, not Spanish Fork.
Related Guides
- Festivals and Celebrations in Utah County
- Festival and Celebration Finder
- The American Fork Amphitheater
- Things to Do in American Fork
- Things to Do on the North Bench
- Steel Days in American Fork
Frequently Asked Questions
When is Fork Fest?
Is Fork Fest in Spanish Fork?
How much are Fork Fest tickets?
Who plays at Fork Fest?
Is Fork Fest good for kids?
What can I bring to Fork Fest?
What is the Forest Stage at Fork Fest?
Who runs Fork Fest?
