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Schellville, the popular Christmastime attraction at Delaware's beaches, has morphed into a year-round attraction, with the addition of the Lookout Summer Festival in June. | PHOTO COURTESY OF SCHELL BROTHERS[/caption]
REHOBOTH BEACH – The southern Delaware real estate company behind the popular wintertime Schellville celebration in Sussex County is now planning a summertime companion coming this June.
The Lookout Summer Festival at Schellville will debut on Friday, June 23, at the same location as Schellville, behind Tanger Outlets’ Seaside location near Rehoboth Beach. The festival sponsored by the Schell Brothers will run through Sunday, June 25.
"This event is a great opportunity for our community to come together and enjoy everything that makes summer so special here at the beach — great music, delicious food, and local artisans,” Schell Brothers Director of Marketing Alyssa Titus said in a statement. “It is events like these that enable us to keep Schellville free to the public for the holiday season."
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The current version of Schellville began in 2021, and has grown larger quickly to a major attraction. | PHOTO COURTESY OF SCHELL BROTHERS[/caption]
The Lookout Summer Festival will feature live music, food and beverages from local restaurants and breweries, wares from local artisans ranging from candy to clothing to homemade candles as well as a variety of food trucks. Family-friendly activities will include train rides, corn hole games, ping pong and more, Titus said.
Musical performances include Wavvy Gravvy and Kleptoradio on Friday, Lost In Paris, Go Go Retro, Hot Sauce Band and Go Go Gadjet on Saturday, and Smells Like Nirvana and Nick's in Time on Sunday.
Titus said the summer event is just a fun way to welcome a warmer season, and also a way to raise funds for the Schell Brother’s winter festival, which is free to the public but costs upward of $12,000 to $16,000 to run each night.
The Schellville Enchanted Winter Celebration at the same location during the winter holiday season has been popping up at the outlets since 2021, also offering live music, local vendors and a slew of family-friendly activities including a roller-skating rink, train rides and a “snow zone.” That event, which started as a much smaller production in 2017 when Winter Wonderfest was at the Cape May-Lewes Ferry terminal, will return Nov. 18 and run through New Year’s Eve.
This year also marked Schellville’s second Easter Eggstravaganza in the spring and the first Fall Harvest Festival slated for October, an expansion of last year’s Halloween festivities.
“Our goal is to really keep Schellville free, but hopefully we want to supplement with revenue in the offseason,” Titus said, adding that any excess would ultimately go back to the community in the form of grants.
Tickets for the Lookout Summer Festival, which are available online at https://rb.gy/xxjze, are $15 for a single-day general pass or $45 for a three-day pass. For more information, go to Schellville.com or find Schellville on Facebook at Facebook.com/Schellville.
