A 3 day celebration of the end of summer, held on the last weekend of
August or first weekend of
September in
Harrisburg, PA. The atmosphere is that of a carnival, with rides, games, food and craft vendors, and the barge concerts. It ends with a huge fireworks display.
It all begins on the Thursday. The city shuts down Front Street to allow everything to be set up. The street remains closed until the following Monday, since the city needs time to clean up all of the trash that will accumulate in the streets and grass.
Friday thru Sunday is the actual festival. You can experience fun, good food, crafts, bands, and hordes of people. People seem to come from miles around to experience Kipona. There are barge concerts throughout the weekend, and a fireworks display on Sunday evening.
Monday, things return to normal, except for the morning commute1. The road is reopened by noon, and all traces of the festival disappear.
I can say that I have been there, but not in recent years. The streets get really, really crowded, and finding a parking space is not an easy task. When I did go, it was fun, but the food was overpriced and it wasn't the best quality. If you are going just to see the fireworks, you don't have to brave the crowds. Just drive to neighboring Lemoyne or Wormleysburg and find a nice, high spot to sit and enjoy the show.
1 Front Street is a major artery in Harrisburg. When it closes,
traffic gets snarled.