Your Complete Guide to New Bedford’s 2019 Whaling City Festival

For a split second, it looked like Whaling City Festival was a thing of the past, but organizers brought the festival back to life and it's bigger and better than ever.

The New Bedford Whaling City Festival is a staple to the city and brings large crowds every time. It's more than just a traditional event; there's tons of history that even includes Fun 107 concerts. Remember those?

Carnival Rides: The carnival ride portion of this event is open Thursday at 4 p.m. and closes at 9 p.m. Friday through Sunday, the rides will open at 12 noon and close at 9 p.m. There is a mix of kiddie rides and big kid/adult rides.

Showcase Pro Wrestling: The Showcase Pro Wrestling ring will be set up Friday through Saturday. You'll have five chances to watch these wrestlers take the ring, starting with a Friday match at 7 p.m., Saturday matches at 3 p.m. and 7 p.m., and Sunday matches at 2 p.m. and 5 p.m.

Car Show:  The Whaling City Festival Car show is Sunday from noon to 4 p.m. Because the car show was a last minute addition, all cars will be judged the same. The fee to enter is $10 per car with registration from 9 a.m. until noon. There will be a trophy presentation from 2:30 p.m. to 3 p.m. For information about getting involved with the show, contact the Showoff Showboards Facebook page.

Food: The food truck row will be set up and ready to serve up your favorite Whaling City Festival favorites, including Big Kahuna's Smoothies; Best Damn Kettle Korn; D&J Concessions, featuring old school carnival favorites like blooming onions; J&J Seafood with their famous clam cakes, steak and cheese subs; Fried Sweets serving up fried Oreos, Reese's, funnel cake and more; and of course the classic carnival cotton candy stands throughout.

As always, vendor booths will be set up at this event as well. They'll include retail booths, arts and crafts, and direct sale booths.

Basically, there's a little bit of something for everyone. So bring the kids, tag along with your friends and family and take a stroll around the New Bedford Whaling City Festival.