The Tico Time Bluegrass Festival is returning to the Animas River valley this month, bringing dozens of national and local string bands to a Costa Rican-themed resort between Aztec and Durango.
The sixth annual festival, which runs May 15-17, will blend an outdoor recreation experience with live music across four stages. Spanning 82 acres, the Tico Time River Resort will host performances by more than 25 artists, including Old Crow Medicine Show, Yonder Mountain String Band, Keller & The Keels, and Big Richard.
The three-day event expects a 4,000-person capacity and emphasizes a holistic, family-friendly experience. Attendees can enjoy daily yoga classes, fire spinning, live art and also a youth village with children’s workshops and activities. The resort also offers beach volleyball, hiking and biking trails, a water slide jump, and an inner tube slide.
“People travel from all over to come to Tico Time, and bluegrass is one of our biggest festivals every year.” said Christy Grace, co-producer and event manager for the Tico Time Bluegrass Festival.
To accommodate the crowds, the resort features a general store, a cafe, walk-in shaded riverside camping, premium car camping, glamping tents, cabins, and full hook-up RV sites.
The festival will feature more than 30 market vendors selling crafts and services, along with a variety of food trucks throughout the weekend. Attendees can also expect four different stages, workshops and activities for all ages.
Since its inaugural event six years ago, the festival has steadily worked to build its reputation and attract national talent. According to Grace, developing audience awareness and the financial support needed to book larger bands has taken several years, but the event continues to grow each year.
Organizers begin securing talent months before the spring festival season begins. Grace said the festival works with a talent buyer and co-producer who is a musician with strong connections in the bluegrass community. Artists who are popular and actively touring are selected and contracted six to nine months before the event.
The festival schedule begins Friday, May 15, with performances by Alex Graf Duo, All She Wrote, Keller & The Keels, Bear Hat, and Yonder Mountain String Band, followed by a late-night set from High Country Hustle.
Saturday, May 16, features performances from Bonfire Dub, Two Runner, Rebecca Frazier, Big Richard, Old Crow Medicine Show, and Pixie & The Partygrass Boys.
The festival concludes Sunday, May 17, with sets from People We Know, Foggy Memory Boys, Darrell Scott & Rob Ickes, Magoo, Pixie & The Partygrass Boys, and Poor Man’s Whisky: Dark Side of the Moonshine.
Attendees can choose between a three-day pass that includes on-site camping or single-day passes.
For the full festival schedule and ticket information, visit ticotimebluegrass.com.
“Come check out the music and fun activities and all that Tico Time has to offer,” Grace said.