HIAWASSEE – Fun at the fair is underway as the annual Georgia Mountain Fair returns to the Georgia Mountain Fairgrounds for a week of rides, live music, crafts, food and family entertainment.
Now celebrating 76 years at the fairgrounds, this year’s fair carries a patriotic theme of red, white and blue in honor of America’s 250th anniversary.
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The festivities began Thursday, Aug. 13, with a special opening-night concert featuring Hannah Harper, the latest winner of “American Idol,” who is preparing to tour with Brad Paisley.
Due to inclement weather, organizers had to make a change to the original opening-night plans. Rides were unable to operate the night before, so it was decided to delay the carnival opening to allow for additional safety inspections. The concert, however, went on as planned, providing an early start to the week’s entertainment.
The pre-opening concert is a relatively new addition to the fair, and it proved to be a popular one, with more than 1,600 tickets sold for Harper’s performance. Thomason said Harper is already preparing to return to Hiawassee for next year’s fair.
The fair’s growth reflects a larger transformation at the fairgrounds over the years. General Manager Hilda Thomason has worked at the fairgrounds since 1991 and has watched the number and variety of events expand well beyond the annual August fair.
“There’s been a lot of growth,” said Thomason. “When I started here, all we had was the 12-day fair in August, and then we had one weekend in May with the Spring Festival, and I had one weekend in October for the final festival, and no other events.”
Today, the fairgrounds host concerts, festivals and other events throughout the year, while the annual fair remains one of its largest attractions.
This 76th annual fair features 68 vendor booths, with only 18 returning vendors, providing returning fairgoers an opportunity to check out 50 new vendors in 2026. Visitors can browse a wide variety of crafts and goods while enjoying carnival rides, games and traditional fair food.
The week’s schedule includes the Miss Georgia Mountain Fair Pageant, which happened after press time Monday; carnival rides through Saturday; games; concerts; and plenty more until the fair ends Aug. 22.
Visitors can find the complete schedule at https://georgiamountainfairgrounds.com/.
The fair’s attractions extend beyond the midway. Over the weekend, the Hiawassee Garden Club hosted a three-day Flower Show where participants entered floral arrangements for judging.
And the Georgia Mountain Fair Parade proved as popular as ever with floats, classic cars and more making their way down Main Street Hiawassee, which was lined with spectators.
A juried Photography Exhibit and displays highlighting local history in Pioneer Village also allow visitors to experience the region beyond the fairgrounds.
For Thomason, however, the fair is about more than entertainment. The events are part of the fairgrounds’ larger mission to draw visitors to the mountains.
“Our whole purpose for being in business – we’re a nonprofit organization – is to promote tourism here in the mountains and bring people up here to stay in the hotels and eat in the restaurants, buy and spend money to help the economy and help the city,” Thomason said.
With its mix of mountain traditions, new entertainment and traditional carnival favorites, the Georgia Mountain Fair continues a 76-year tradition while looking toward the future of more family fun.
