A Local’s Guide to the National Cherry Festival

Our agency hails from Traverse City, a small town in northern Michigan that’s known for being gorgeous and full of cherries. Every year we host the National Cherry Festival, and it attracts tourists of all ages and driving capabilities. If you’re one of said tourists (in the Traverse City parlance, we use the term “fudgies”), you get to enjoy all the local eateries, cherry-flavored free samples, and beach-going lazy days that our bayside town has to offer. If you’re a local, now’s the time to bow your head, grit your teeth, and accept the fact that the downtown area is going to become a bulwark of unmoving traffic and general chaos as people confusedly barrel straight through the left-turn lanes on Union. It’s okay. We’ve all been there.

We don’t hate fudgies. Really, we don’t. We feed off of tourism. We need you, and you’re probably a nice person. But if you’re a fudgie and you want to enjoy the festival like a non-fudgie, there are a couple of things you’re going to need to know. We’ve been around the block a few times, so we’ve compiled these gems of knowledge—these nuggets of wisdom—for your benefit. Take them to heart. And walk a tiny bit faster, maybe. Just a little. See? You’re already blending in.