Strawberry Festival continues as Memorial Day weekend tradition

Vista’s annual Memorial Day weekend celebration of all things strawberry is expected to draw 100,000 people to the historic, downtown Vista Village on May 24, where there’ll be live music and entertainment on five stages, more than 500 vendor and community booths and tons of strawberries in various forms from pies to ice cream sundaes.

The Vista Strawberry Festival is hosted by the Vista Chamber of Commerce.

"Here’s the rundown on contests; most are free:

Strawberry Run 5K: The race takes off at 7:30 a.m. from the Vista Magnet Middle School track at 110 S. Citrus Ave. The quarter-mile Kids Run is at 8:50 a.m. and 1-mile Kids Run is at 9:05 a.m. The “Berry Best Dressed” Runners Costume Contest is at 9:30 a.m. at the North County Ford Contest Stage.

Little Miss Shortcake Contest: The contest is open to girls and includes three age groups: ages 2 and younger; ages 3-5 and 6-10. It starts at 10:30 a.m. at the North County Ford Contest Stage. The cost is $10; register on site. There are prizes for participants and prize baskets for top three winners.

Beer Stein-Holding Contest: Ten contestants compete to hold a 32-ounce mug with a straight arm as long as they can. Winners get souvenir pilsners. Free to enter. Contests are at 10:30 a.m. and 3 p.m. at the Beer Garden.

Frozen T-Shirt Contest: Contestants work on unraveling a wadded-up frozen T-shirt. The first person to put on the shirt wins. The winner gets an "I Strawberry Vista" T-shirt. The competition is open to adults only and starts at 11:30 a.m. at the Beer Garden Stage.

Strawberry Pie Eating Contests: The first competition is for all ages and starts at noon at the North County Ford Contest Stage. The contest is free to enter and is divided into age groups and the goal is to eat one slice as fast as possible. No pre-registration required, sign up on site. At 3:30 p.m., there will be an annual Whole Pie Eating Contest, which is also free for participants.

Strawberry Ice Cream Sundae Contest: This race to eat a sundae made with Handel's homemade ice cream is at 1:30 p.m. There are different rules for different age groups:

• Ages 1-10 will compete to eat a sundae and end with the most whipped cream on their face.
• Ages 10 -18 and ages 18-70 (two rounds) will race to eat a sundae in under a minute; no hands allowed.
• Ages 70 and above eat a sundae and show everyone their best dance moves.

Vista Strawberry Costume Contest: Participants show up at 3 p.m. at the North County Ford Contest Stage. Three age groups will compete: age 2 and under; 3-5 years old and over 6 years old. Winners get prize-filled baskets. Free entry.

The Vista Strawberry Festival is from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. May 24 in historic, downtown Vista Village. Admission is free and parking is free at the Vista Courthouse and Vista High School, where free shuttles will run every 15 minutes to the fest grounds from 6:15 a.m. to 7 p.m. at the courthouse and 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. at Vista High School.

For the event schedule, visit vistastrawberryfest.com.

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This story was originally published May 19, 2026 at 8:36 PM.