About 20,000 pounds of Maine lobsters will be steamed in the world's largest lobster cooker at the Maine Lobster Festival. Here, volunteers work on day one of the 2026 festival. Credit: Stephen Betts / Midcoast Villager

ROCKLAND, Maine — King Neptune and his court returned from the sea at noon Wednesday to officially open the 2026 Maine Lobster Festival.

No sooner had the festival characters arrived on shore, than a long line of patrons formed to enjoy the bounty from the Maine ocean.

About 20,000 pounds of Maine lobster are sold each year at the festival.

King Neptune and the other Maine Lobster Festival dignitaries pose after being escorted to the Rockland public landing by the U.S. Coast Guard. Credit: Stephen Betts / Midcoast Villager

The Maine Lobster Festival Delegate will be chosen along with a runner-up and Most Congenial at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday on the main stage. Winners receive cash prizes and represent the Maine Lobster Festival and Maine’s lobster industry at festivals and events throughout the year.

Highlights include the big parade that starts at 10 a.m. Saturday, Aug. 1, traveling down North Main Street and south on Main Street until it passes by Harbor Park.

A long line formed for the public to buy seafood dinners at the Maine Lobster Festival. Credit: Stephen Betts / Midcoast Villager

Road races begin at 8 a.m. Sunday, Aug. 2. The International Crate Race will be held beginning at 2 p.m. that day.

The festival viewed from the Rockland Harbor. Credit: Stephen Betts / Midcoast Villager

This story appears through a media partnership with Midcoast Villager.