The 42nd Annual Bluebonnet Festival 2025

By Texas Hill Country | May 13, 2025

 

By JR Shabram
In the Texas Hill Country’s beautiful Highland Lakes in Burnet Texas.

Forty-two years ago, Burnet’s community leaders saw the wisdom in celebrating one of Texas’s most beautiful wildflowers, the bluebonnet. Taking advantage of the state designation of Burnet as the “Bluebonnet Capital of Texas,” they created the annual Bluebonnet Festival. Since 1983, it has grown into one of the most exciting festivals in Texas, drawing record crowds each year.

The much-anticipated Bluebonnet Festival never disappoints, and 2025 was no exception. The most exciting small-town festival in Texas always takes place on the second weekend in April, with the return of old favorites like the 42 Domino Tournament, the children’s bicycle decorating contest, and the much-beloved Pet Parade.

The Cocktail Garden, manned by bartenders from Sips on Second, a local speakeasy in Marble Falls, provided refreshing drinks, and the Bluebonnet Biergarten poured cold beer from a convenient to-go beer station. This year, the food court welcomed twenty-five vendors featuring a melting pot of cuisine, from kettle corn and funnel cakes to BBQ and Cajun.

The Bluebonnet Festival attracts exciting new vendors yearly and has a stellar lineup of local artists and performers. The live music began on Friday evening, with jams continuing through Sunday afternoon. Headliner Lonestar, a multi-award-winning band, took the stage on Saturday, performing hits like “Amazed,” “Mr. Mom,” and “I’m Already There. In addition, the praise and worship music was performed by local contemporary Christian musicians.

There was so much this year to delight entire families, like the Mighty Thomas Carnival, children’s races, and a Wiener Dog Race sponsored by Gary Wideman, State Farm Insurance. Each year brings new food and arts and crafts vendors, as well as the Burnet Kiwanis All You Can Eat Pancakes. If you missed the festival in 2025, mark your calendars for 2026 for the second weekend in April. Check out The bluebonnetfestival.org.