The Right Whale Festival returns to Main Beach Park in Fernandina Beach this November with free admission. The two-day event features live music, a beach cleanup and educational exhibits about the endangered whales that calve in waters off Amelia Island each winter.

The festival runs Saturday, Nov. 7, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Sunday, Nov. 8, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at 32 N. Fletcher Ave., according to the festival's website.

Programming includes arts and crafts, children's activities, athletic events, food vendors and exhibits focused on North Atlantic right whale conservation. Organizers describe the festival as a chance for families to learn how they can help protect the species.

Why the whales matter to Amelia Island

Only about 380 North Atlantic right whales survive, including roughly 70 breeding females, according to NOAA Fisheries. Each winter, pregnant whales migrate from New England and Nova Scotia to waters off Georgia and northeast Florida to give birth. The calving season runs from mid-November through mid-April.

The 2026 season brought encouraging news. Researchers counted 23 calves, the highest total since 2009, NOAA reported. On Jan. 16, a Clearwater Marine Aquarium Research Institute aerial survey team spotted right whale No. 1243, a 44-year-old female known as "Magic," with her eighth known calf about 10 miles east of Amelia Island.

Melanie White, director of the institute's North Atlantic right whale conservation program, told The Current in April that the species needs sustained high calf counts to survive. "But we need these numbers to be in the 20s, to give this species a chance," White said.

Nassau County approved $10,000 in funding

Nassau County commissioners included a $10,000 sponsorship agreement with Clearwater Marine Aquarium Inc. to host the festival on their July 13 consent agenda, funded by Tourist Development Tax revenues. Official meeting minutes confirming the vote were not available at publication.

If you go

When: Saturday, Nov. 7, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.; Sunday, Nov. 8, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Where: Main Beach Park, 32 N. Fletcher Ave., Fernandina Beach
Cost: Free
Details: rightwhalefestival.com