Lavender Festival
The fifth annual Colorado Lavender Festival is in Palisade July 10-12. The festival will include bus tours to local farms, lavender seminars and cooking demonstrations, plus more than 40 lavender and food vendors, live music and local wine. The festival is free on Saturday but tickets are required for ancillary events. Prices vary.
Jazz in Winter Park
Live jazz returns to the Fraser Valley at the 33rd annual Winter Park Jazz Festival, July 18-19. World-class artists will perform at the outdoor amphitheater in Hideaway Park. General admission $45 in advance, $55 the day of the event. Children 12 and under are free with a ticketed adult. or 888-409-5974
Life at Chimney Rock
Explore Native American history and culture during the Life at Chimney Rock festival July 25-26. This free family-friendly event includes interactive demonstrations of crafts and skills of ancestral Puebloan and Native American cultures. Visit the Indian market, learn how to make pottery, carve your own petroglyph and watch experts create hand tools and flutes. Tours will be offered for a fee. 970-883-5359 or
Barbecue in Alamosa
Head to Alamosa for its 3rd annual Beat the Heat BBQ, Brews, & Chili Challenge, July 31-Aug. 1. This Kansas City-sanctioned barbecue contest will feature beer and wine sampling, vendors, children’s activities and live music. or 719-589-3681
Compiled by Alexandra Alonso
