Wisconsin's Mouth-Watering Festivals That Put The State's Cheese Devotion Front And Center With Tasty Fun

You could argue that no other state in the union is as proud of its industry as Wisconsinites are of their cheese. The state's license plates say America's Dairyland, folks flock to special events wearing foam cheeseheads, and some even forgo sugar for a cheese wedding cake. 

Wisconsin's food culture runs deep. Some people call Milwaukee the culinary capital of the Midwest thanks to its signature beer, sausage and cheese. These folks know as well as anyone that cheese always pairs well with a good time. People are coming over? Put some cheese out. Going to a football game? Wear a cheese wedge on your head. Looking for a reason to get up north? Go to a cheese festival, where cheesemakers and small-town councils are celebrating their industry with wide variety of fun, cheese-focused weekends. 

These events feature cheese-eating contests, cheese galas, cheese sculptures, chocolate cheesecakes on sticks, and much more. Some towns host fancy, modern festivals that feel like the Met with Muenster. Others have been putting a traditional weekend to celebrate cheese on their calendars for more than 100 years. In addition to head-spinning arrays of fine cheese, these festivals will take you through small town histories and show you how the area has turned into what it is today. They all have one thing in common: They love cheese –– and most of them have parades. From celebrations involving squeaky cheese curds to stinky limburger cheese varieties, these festivals will bring you deeper into the cheese-making universe than you've ever dared venture before.

We've got three words for you: glitz, glam, and gouda. Those three words describe the Art of Cheese Festival held yearly in September in Madison, Wisconsin. The festival is led by the Dairy Farmers of Wisconsin, who asked one simple question: What if we took cheese and made it into art? Their answer to that question is a variety of special events that orbit around the inner circle of Wisconsin cheese. 

You can join cheese crawls, and sample a scientific sensory excursion at the University of Wisconsin-Madison's Dairy Research division. You can even golf while eating cheese. Now we know what you might be thinking: There's no need for a special occasion to enjoy some cheese on the greens. But we're not talking about some golfing day with a cheese stick melting in your pocket. This is 18 cheese-themed holes and exclusive access to the Art of Cheese Clubhouse. 

Each event introduces you to the people behind the rind and goes all in on the inner game of cheese. A senior director with Dairy Farmers of Wisconsin announced in a press release that all activities are packed with "cheese-lebrity" appearances and the seminars are "led by the who's who of Wisconsin cheese." The weekend culminates with the Wisconsin Cheese Ball, a night under the bright lights surrounded by plates of cheese. You're invited to get your red-carpet looks ready and enjoy the company of over 70 different cheeses dressed in full regalia. Plan ahead: most events are ticketed, and some hot tickets sell out months in advance.

If you've never danced polka in the streets while marching with a parade of Brown Swiss cows, you probably haven't been to Monroe in the fall. Every two years (Septembers on even-numbered years), this small city turns into a raucous cheese-fueled fever dream for one glorious weekend known as the Green County Cheese Days. This festival has been taking place since 1914, making it one of the oldest food festivals in the Midwest, alongside being one of the most lactose-focused weekends on the planet.

The festival is a Swiss-inspired smorgasbord, and cheese is the star of the show. The streets fill with cheese served on toothpicks in tents, fried into 6,000 pounds worth of cheese curds,, and sliced straight from massive wheels by master cheesemakers. There are numerous different cheeses to try here, but be sure to save room in your stomach for one particular block of funk, known as Limburger cheese. There is only one place in the United States that makes this cheese, and that place is Monroe.  This cheese is a must-try at any Green County Cheese Day. 

Alongside cheese, festival-goers enjoyed loads of bratwurst, chocolate cheesecake-on-a-stick, and roasted nuts amidst the sounds of Alphorn blowers. Pack your finest dirndls and milking shirts for the festival's main event, the world's biggest polka dance. The next edition of the festival will take place from September 18 to 20, 2026, and you should start planning now. In 2014, over 100,000 people attended the festival's centennial, including folks flying in from as far away as Switzerland. 

Each September after Labor Day, the fresh air in Blair, Wisconsin, is filled with music and revelry that invites you to fill your belly up with cheese curds at the Blair Cheese Festival. While this festival's name tells you where it is and what's on the menu, there's a whole lot more to discover at this event than fresh cheeses. 

The event started back in 1938 as an egg festival and has morphed into a celebration of all things Blair, inspired by the area's Norwegian roots and love for good cheese. The whole event is a melting pot, where Scandinavian charm, Midwestern hospitality, and fresh cheeses blend to create something for which there are no words. 

The Blair Cheese Fest is chock full of amazing events, including a parade where attendees can see various floats from community groups in the city as well as local marching bands and more. There are also the classic American festival touches, including a school variety show, beauty pageant, and several different fun runs such as a 5K called the Cheese Chase and a poker run for bikers. The opening ceremony features the tapping of a golden keg and bottomless pints on Thursday, and things keep rolling all the way through Sunday. Through it all, the cheese flows through Trempealeau County in abundance.

Plymouth, Wisconsin, once earned the nickname "Cheese Capital of the World" or "Cheeseville" through hard work. Despite there being only 8,854 full-time residents in the area (via U.S. Census Bureau 2024), this town provides 14% of all cheese consumed in the United States, according to the Cheese Counter and Dairy Heritage Center. Considering that the average person in the U.S. eats about 42 lbs. of cheese per year (via Bloomberg), that's a whole lot of mozzarella, gouda, and more. See how it all came together at the Cheese Capital Festival, typically held in June each Summer. =

The festival is free to attend and easy to enjoy, especially if you enjoy butterfat, bands, and sharp cheddar. However, keep in mind there may be some events that require a small fee to participate in, such as the Cheese Wedge Race. It's a two-day splurge that goes full-throttle on several occasions: Dozens of elite race cars stroll down Main Street during the Cheese Capital Cup Parade and contestants race down the Mullet River in foam cheese floats competing for $1,000 cash prize. 

In between the high-octane fun, you can try homestyle mac, see how cheese is made, and enjoy live tunes. Most of the action centers around Stayer Park, steps away from the Cheese Capital of the world arch that marks downtown Plymouth. This is festival is a great one to target with small kids, as it includes a bouncy house, petting zoo, and free milk samples for all up-and-coming cheeseheads. It's all only an hour away from an underrated Wisconsin city with scenic lakefront quirks, so you can easily go from cheese carnage to lakefront relaxing in the span of one wonderful weekend.

The best weekend of the year in Little Chute, Wisconsin, is the Great Wisconsin Cheese Festival, a three-day event typically held in the beginning of June whose responsibility is letting the world know that the country's best cheese is made in Wisconsin. During the very first Great Wisconsin Cheese Festival, they settled that fact once and for all in 1988, according to the festival website. Apparently, leading up to that first festival, a local Little Chute newspaper column took umbrage with the National Cheese Museum being placed in New York instead of Wisconsin. The drama snowballed until Carl Eilenberg, the Mayor of Rome, New York at the time, came to Little Chute for a winner-take-all cheese judging event during the festival. 

A blindfolded reporter tasted cheese from both towns and declared Wisconsin cheese the best in the U.S. You shouldn't just take their words for it, though. Head into town to sample yourself while getting down with the live music, carnival rides, cheddar chase race, and cheese eating contests that take over Little Chute. A $5 admission ticket grants you access to hours of free cheese samples and all-day entertainment. Though attendees should be aware that certain activities like amusement park rides cost extra. Plus, Little Chute is one of the many charming small towns with outdoor recreation and exciting events within the Fox Valley. Taking a trip to this festival means that after filling up on some of the country's best cheeses, you can enjoy beautiful hikes, boating, and quaint main streets across the area.