Tico Time Bluegrass Festival – May 12-15, 2022

You may already be familiar with bluegrass festivals and the “vibe” that comes with them. They are usually associated with a smaller-knit community of festivarians, partying hard, and staying up all night – but they are also known to be family-friendly as well with more of a “spread the love” feel.

There are already many well-known bluegrass festivals in Colorado and the Southwest including the popular Telluride Bluegrass Festival that is hosted every June and WinterWonderGrass which comes around in February in Steamboat Springs.

It is no secret that Colorado folk love their bluegrass – which is why Tico Time Bluegrass Festival was such a big hit as it debuted for its first year in Aztec, New Mexico back in the summer of 2021.

At first thought, Aztec does not seem like a hot spot for a bluegrass festival. But, thanks to owner Robert Holmes and his trusty crew, the festival is held in one of the most beautiful and playful areas in the Southwest.

 

Why Tico Time River Resort is the Perfect Location for a Southwest Festival

Tico Time is an RV resort that is spread out over 94 acres and sits right on the Animas River. Festival or not, this place holds so many different activities – including a water slide (that is incredibly daunting), floating down the river, wading around the lake on a SUP paddleboard, beach volleyball, a zipline, and a catapult sort of device that launches kids and adults around the concert area while strapped to a harness.

The point is that Tic Time River Resort is more than a flat parcel of land to hold a festival. It is an incredibly fun experience that includes many different activities. In fact, the activities are truly a spectacle. You may have seen water slides and swings before at an RV resort but what they have at their piece of paradise is enough to scare the pants off any competent adult (which is perfect for all ye adventurers out there).

For festivarians, this makes for a unique location to enjoy live music. This is not the sort of place you are going to be roasting in the hot sun while your $12 warm beer is going to waste. This is a location that half of the people listening to music are floating around on the lake, running down slides, or playing a relaxed game of volleyball with friends. The other half of the people are dancing with their shoes off in the sand – getting their boogey on with friends and family.

This brings us to one of the finest points of the Tico Time Bluegrass Festival. The community of friends and family that gather all around the Southwest are some of the most welcoming and friendly people I have ever come to known and even if you arrived not knowing a single person, you would soon get scooped up by the wide range of beautiful people that attend.

 

 

2nd Annual Tico Time Bluegrass Lineup

The 2022 Tico Time Bluegrass Lineup includes some fine names in the bluegrass community and is an eclectic mix of local and regional bands. The Lil’ Smokies and Sierra Ferrell headline the festival with Tim O’ Brien – followed by 2014 Telluride Bluegrass winner Trout Steak Revival. Other regional acts include the quintessential Jon Stickley Trio and the iconic Southwest band Grant Farm.

These regional acts are followed by some local favorites including Liver Down the River based out of Durango, Buffalo Commons from Steamboat Springs (who is currently on tour with Yonder Mountain String Band), and High Country Hustle from Denver, Colorado.

Other notable mentions include the Jack Cloonan Band from the front range, Tara Rose & the Real Deal, Chain Station, Foggy Memory Boys, People We Know, and Chris Thompson.

 

Tico Time Bluegrass Festival is Here to Stay

While the festival is still in the early years, it is important to catch it while it still feels like such an intimate experience. There is no doubt that with the lineup that is coming around this year, this festival will start getting larger and larger each year.

Ready to attend? You can pick up tickets from the Tico Time Bluegrass Website.