Comfest

Years ago I would have given this event a 5 star, back when it was less crowded and more laid back and chill.
Early in the day and Sunday's are still a good day to attend, but as Friday and Saturday progresses the crowd changes.
Over the years it seems to bring in a different type of crowd. What once was a local community festival has turned into a State Fair minus the rides.
Crowds are coming in that have no idea how to just sit back, maybe put a little buzz on, and listen to some good music and feel the positive vibes.
I'm starting to see way too many that want to be noticed, cause a scene and unfortunately get into fights and/or help themselves to your property.

It's not too late for Comfest to get ahold of this and turn it back to where it once used to be. Maybe get back to the music that used to be played rather than that which brings in a bad element.

With the festival taking place at Goodale Park, it's pretty much in my backyard and impossible for me to avoid. Last year I was out of town but, this year I made sure to give it a visit. The weather was sunny and hot all weekend but the spirit of Comfest rang true.

Food, drink, music, art, local businesses, and good people having a damn good time. What's not to love? I spent most of my time lounging under a tree with friends on patched together sheets and blankets. That was definitely the best part, just passing time with good friends. Yes, we saw naked folks and the smell of weed was rather consistent, but this is the perfect atmosphere to just let go and not worry about everyone else. Just do you!

When it came to the food, I enjoyed pizza from Late Night Slice, fries from one of the fair food stands, and hummus and falalel from Lavash. There were so many choices it was hard to settle. I also saw ice cream, baked goods, funnel cakes, etc. A good mixture of local restaurants and fair food stands. There was a little something for everybody.

On top of all that, I also loved seeing how clean the park was kept and how much programming there was for the kiddos. Living in the neighborhood, it's nice to see that its taking care of and family friendly. Pro tip – make sure you find safe parking. I saw way too many cars getting towed in front of my house for silly things like parking in front of a fire hydrant or handicap ramps.

Another great year for Comfest! Lots of sun and no rain! Lots of bands and vendors to choose from! Loads of food to choose from from anyone's appetite. Parking could be a challenge so plan to walk a bit.

I found this festival to be overhyped.

It's something to say you've been to in Columbus. It's got art, music, and other orgs tabling.

For the most part, it's just about socializing. Grab some food and a drink to cool yourself down.

I also saw a lot of people smoking. I'm guessing it's allowed for Com Fest? Since the secondhand smoking ban passed in Ohio a few years ago, I didn't expect to see that. Maybe they go easy on rules for Com Fest.

I know people go topless or barefoot here but I definitely didn't see any of that, although a lady did tell us she saw one lady topless.

It seems like a hippie type of experience. I also saw lots of high schoolers, families, and young adults.

Goodale Park is pretty nice though. It's a nice space to hold a festival.

It just sucked to find parking. We drove around for more than 30 minutes and settled at a parking garage in Short North. It was only a five minute walk from the park though.

Went today and had a amazing time. The band's were really good and entertained the crowd amazingly. There was a good selection of food trucks and stands to chose from. I never get tired of the comfest and can't wait for the next one. I met some of the friendliest people today men and women. Check out the northmarket while your there also. Cudios to Cota bus, they were on time and the CBUS is just what downtown needs. Taking COTA was better than paying for parking and dealing with the traffic.

Started in 1972, Comfest (or more formally, Community Festival) is the longest running completely volunteer run festival in the United States. Lots of things going on during this weekend gathering. Music, arts and craft vendors, food, talks. The Fest also is more commonly known for women going topless, and letting all be free. Apparently, Ohio has some law that was passed a long time ago that says women are allowed to go shirtless in Columbus. I'm not sure about the specifics, but that's the gist. The Fest has always been in Goodale Park. Beautiful city park in the heart of the Short North neighborhood. Parking is an issue, as is to be expected with festivals that garners faithful followers that return every year. Personally, I think the best option is to park somewhere in German Village and hop on the FREE Cbus Circulator. Runs from GV to 3rd Ave. all day, every day.

What can you not like about a community event like this that brings everyone together to celebrate all that is community. Well okay the only reason it's four star is because they kept telling me that I had to get water at the front um really it was super hot and I have to go searching for THEE water tent ugh. However the eclectic mixture of artists and food vendors and community groups could not coexist anywhere else so um this is the place to be eclectic and be who you are. The mixture of music is superb as I love a mixture so I can indulge in variety. Not too many places that you get those options. There was a variety of food trucks and brick and mortar places along with some not so ordinary places that are more fair places to order from. The theme seemed to be let's welcome everybody and I totally welcome that idea. It was a perfect weather day to go to this and I'm glad I went.

This is a great time. There are some things that they could do better, like not requiring patrons to wait in two separate long lines to get a beer, but it's still a blast.

A couple of notes. It's not a communist agenda. It's liberal/progressive with some socialist views. If you don't know the difference you should look it up.

Secondly, the toplessness isn't about nudity. It's about equality. Men can do it, so women can do it. Good-looking men with shirts off turn heads, so do women. It has nothing to do with anything below the waist.

The food and the merchandise are awesome. Most of the bands are decent.

And yes, people are "partaking" while there. Part of the agenda of legalization.

It might not be for everyone.That's ok. It's much more of a hippie vibe. But if you fit into this niche it's the best of times.

Greetings everyone. This will be short and sweet, here it goes. I'm an older guy and I can dig the free spirit of comfest and the craziness that goes with it. Is it a place to bring your little kids, ah, NO. Why expose them to over-loud bands, tits, weed, occasional fights and occasional arrests by CPD? Me, I like the young women walking around half naked, love the tits, love to smoke a tad of weed and drink a beer or two or three or four…. or more. Yeah, that's comfest, a place you go to look over band after band seeking glory and that's cool. I honestly find it a hip place for young and old hippies to go and meander around and the music is nice with variety! Again, keep the kids at home PLEASE, it's not a place to have your cake and eat it too, REALLY IT'S NOT.

Obviously you can expect to park a mile away, but that's Columbus — great with no close parking without paying through the roof for it. So go park, walk, have some libations and weed, gawk and do what lonely people do in Columbus — it beats the hell out of red white and boom.

Peace

this whole thing sounds kinda whack, like who'd pay too much to waddle around with strangers and if you happen to be w/ your mate have to come across some skanky attention seeking mentally disabled whores with their tops off, like EEEYEEEUW..NO WAY, I'll pass…i wouldn't mind seeing the bands but not for all this trouble and i got my ITUNES ANYWAYS plus a bomb stereo…I'd much rather pay to go to a concert w/ out sluts…that stuff should be banned, FOR REAL, WHAT SELF RESPECTING FEMALE WALKS AROUND TOPLESS NEWAYS, OMG, WTF?

By far one of the BEST festivals in Columbus! Great people! Great local causes! Great beer & wine & GREAT local free music! Yes, it's hot it's outside in the summertime. Yes parking sucks. Everyone loves to go for the free music & events! Get over it! If you don't like Comfest… you don't like having fun or people much!

Overpriced beer. Too crowded. Communist agenda. People let their dogs run around without leashes. Not fun at all. Boring hippie crap.

Really not a lot going on here. It's one of those events/festivals that you park three miles away and walk to, and once you get there, it's a bunch of drunk people on a lawn. Not at all good for families since there's open drug use and nudity, but fun for people who want to chill out and paint pottery with their toes.

Parking is always bad/crazy and always taken up so most likely you'll be walking a little from your car and even more when you get to the festival. Kids are allowed but I wouldn't bring them since they may get lost in the crowd plus some of the adults can get wild especially if they over drink. I always come on Saturday since more performances happen but I feel no matter what day you come it'll always be crowd and hot. I don't know much about the food since I eat before I go since most of it's looks kinda pricey and has long lines but I didn't look around much either. They have mostly food trucks and a few food stands. There are lots of bands, dancers, artists and cool hippy facts about Ohio. They also have booths where you can buy things or donate to amazing causes; most of the booths are from very crafty locals. Some booths can be pricey so make sure you look at other booths before deciding on what to get in case it's cheaper somewhere else. A henna tattoo or body art is also always a must.

Always bring a blanket or chairs so you can sit; I tried sitting on grass and ended up sitting in something wet o.O Bring lots of water/snacks if you don't wanna buy food like me but they do have free water stands.

I like festivals and Comfest is the best one in Columbus. It has often been said it's not as fun as it was. That is true because now everyone wants to be there and the assholes ruin it for the rest of us. It's free so you can't complain about it because you're not forced to buy anything. The music is not always good but it's nice background noise while passed out under a tree, and the vendors sell lots of cool local products.

If you haven't been there you should know a few things. It's in Goodale Park, a really nice park any time of the year. There's lots of space to stretch out and watch bands or people. It gets crowded around the stages and on the streets. People walk so fucking slow. Another problem is getting there. It's better to not drive if you can. Busses go past the park. There's parking along several streets if you can walk. On Sundays the city has free parking at meters. The people in charge say you shouldn't bring pets. Attendees are like fuck that, and bring their dogs, pigs, and whatever anyway. It's not a good place for them. There are loud noises and many people so they go crazy. The beer process is kind of weird. First you buy tokens then you use them when you buy the beer. This means you have to wait in line twice. It also can be a long wait. The beer is also expensive. A 20 oz. of something is about $7. It also has other alcohol options like wine. A review of Comfest is not complete without talking about the boobs. Yes, there's a few topless chicks there and many of them shouldn't be. Many like the attention but some get offended if stared at. There's some you should ask before taking pictures.

I think Comfest is good for the city of Columbus. It's a fun way to blow the weekend and to act like an idiot. There are lots of music and people to see and it's all free so get there.

Always a great festival to checkout in the summertime! Awesome music and people watching! Loved seeing Jeni's and Mikey's there too!

Short for Community Festival, Comfest has happened every summer since '72. Its purpose is to push ideas: for people over profit, the equality of all people, and that basic necessities of life are rights, not privileges. That's all well and good; but do we actually take those values from the fest and activate them in the rest of our lives?

From a cynical prospective Comfest can seem like nothing more than a hippie St Pats Day; on a day in March we are Irish, in May we are Hispanic, October Zombies, and the last week in June we are Dead Heads, Hare Krishna peaceniks, and Hot Topic layered flower children. Just a dress up playtime before we toss off the psychedelic threads and return to our hyper-consumerist, my-me-mine, dog-eat-dog, rat race world.

I hadn't been there since 2000, but circled it as a must do after I finally secured summer weekends off. I remembered my wild times in the '90s, when it still had an edge. I could employ the old canard "It's become popular, now it sucks," but I am not going to because I enjoyed my Sunday trip this year. Delightful art tents and venders, steaming food trucks, and a variety of music found in every corner energizes and gets you swaying.

The people that pack the old park are the main entertainment, though it really is just the same old crowd you'd find at the fair, they just act different. There's the business man in flea marked scruffy finds, the pharmaceutical rep in floral dresses and suede vests, the dude-bros in a Rastafarian hats, mothers in loose puffy blouses and beads, the frat girls with fury boots, the geography teacher in tie-dyed tees, teenybopper and a number of babe in strollers all letting loose in the smog of rag weed and the constant bubbling water of bong.

There is lots to do and see here. They close Park Street past Goodale and vendors and trucks run into the Arena District. The crowd can be huge, so it takes some skill to transverse it fluidly. Bring a blanket or chair to sit on–I forgot to do so and my friend and I had to sit on dirt (It's been awhile.) You can not bring your own beer anymore, so you have to buy it there; the choices sucked this year; Miller Light or Paps, or a $7 overpriced Columbus Brewery IPA where the choices. Bring cash. The ATM here do not value people over profit.

For all the peace and love theme of the event it does cast a dark Jungian shadow. I did feel the subtext of conflict and aggression. It seems a rift is brewing between the city, careful of a park in it gentrified Short North jewel, the promoters, the acts, and the attendees. They had to tape off the area in front of the main stage due to the rains and the damage thereof. With a strangely place sound box blocking most peoples view of the stage many jumped the tape. You could feel the tension about that. The feeling I get is that Comfest at Goodale is not long for the world. I can see it being moved to the Ohio State Fairgrounds, or another less urban and less cool place in the future. That would be a shame.

In a positive view maybe Comfest does influence people. My last stop was to view a poetry reading from a African inspired poetry troupe. With drums and swinging dancers the performance was divine and missed by almost everyone else, as only about 20 watched it. In front was a young girl who had more fun there than most of us do all year. Topless, and with out any self-consciousness she dove in the mud, hug, danced and took the free-spired nature of the event to its full level. It made me think, seeing her suck the marrow out of life in a manner I seldom had in the last few decades, how up-tight this society is. Too up-tight and anxious and bland beyond belief. I think I'll try to be more easy going and let loose a little more. Life is too short the to spend it as a square.

I've been going since 94 and I just love it!! The vendors, the food, the entertainment and the amazing people you get to meet along the way..

Great festival to go to if you're a hippie and you're into free love. You get to hear some good local music and have some good local eats.

Make sure you come early so you can find some parking because there is no parking available you have to park on the street or pay to park somewhere so be prepared to spend about an hour to find parking.

Make sure to bring some extra money with you to explore the local crafts that are on display and available for purchase.

You can bring a blanket so you can sit down for a while and enjoy as many bands as you want in a row or bring your stroller if you have children it's all allowed.

First time, I came on a Friday night.

Pretty much, weed is the norm, drunk bros are everywhere, lots of guys on guitars trying to play next to all main traffic areas.

Yes, women get their boobs painted, and that's a "thing" that evidently is reserved for Comfest as an "empowerment" thing, despite it being legal year round. I guess Comfest makes it "extra special" since it was once a hippie festival – kind of like how Woodstock was once a hippie festival.

Also, a few fights break out, randomly, and you'll see parents getting hammered while their baby in a stroller is screaming bloody murder at 10pm. So, you know, yay! Community!

Also, "Legalize weed, love, labor" and they charged $5-6 for beer. It may not be "concert prices" considering the free music (with well-placed stages – the bands played concurrently, and you could get a good listen without the bands being on top of each other, aside from the bros playing next to the food lines).

The vendors were…聽okay? It's not much different than the vendors that usually show up at "whatever"-fests that happen throughout the year.

Basically, it used to mean something, I hear. Nowadays? It's "dude, look at that chick, she's topless!" followed by "you got any weed? I smoked my last jay…" and wondering if the little girl doing cartwheels in front of you was dropped off, lives nearby, or is secretly hoping someone adopts her for being so damn adorable at 10:30pm.

So… yeah. Woo, Comfest.

I attended this past weekend and wasn't a huge fan. It's not horrible but it's not my fave either. It's a bit like a street festival and a music festival combined, except the bands are all pretty obscure since they're all regional bands. People watching is interesting — you'll see a lot of boobage (I think we counted 15+ pairs…not all of which you'd actually wanna see) and there's open smoking of weed if you're into that kind of thing. I don't quite understand the point is all.

I came to Comfest not knowing what the hell it is, and I left even more confused!

But damn it was fun!

Okay, so we had a pretty rainy day on Saturday of this year's Comfest. Right as my friends and I entered Goodale Park, we were greeted with topless ladies with drawn in flowers and some not-so-flattering imagery (except for Super Women, that was bomb!). Going further inside, you can see all the fun groups of people, half naked and dancing in the overcast sunlight.

Bands playing ,cheap beer a flowing, and so many random vendors… Comfest was an overload of senses. After a good twenty minutes though, the real downpour came and everyone got soaked beyond belief.

But the party lived on and the people danced on.

Perhaps if it was sunnier, more human bits would have been popping out. Sad to say I didn't see anything hangin' from nobody, but there's always next time.

I would go to Comfest just to satisfy your curiosity. It's not for everyone, but if you're in, you are in it for the long term.

This was my first Comfest, an event I have been hearing about since I moved to Columbus. I went on Friday night. The layout was great, the booths fun, the food and music ranging from great to meh. Observations: I was surprised that the crowd was so young. A majority of the attendees seemed to be high school and college students. A few of my friends felt it had a Spring Break kind of vibe. I had a few moments of feeling out of place, as I am over the age of 25. Would have loved to see more adults there. I was glad to leave at 9:00, before the kids got drunker and started acting like eejuts.

Despite every piece of literature, media outlet etc begging people not to bring their dogs because it's fricken cruel to the dog, people brought their dogs. En force. Cuz what dog doesn't enjoy a very loud, very hot, super crowded, chaotic event?

The boob thing: I'm not sure what statement is supposedly being made by the topless females. It's certainly not a feminist one. Let's face it, this country is not mature when it comes to female nudity. The females I saw walking around topless seemed to be in it for attention, plain and simple. Posing for pics, etc. I'm as progressive as they come, but I actually found attention seeking topless women being ogled (and enjoying it), quite offensive. And where were the pant less men? Why is the tradition at Comfest only boobs, and not peni? Right there, it's sexist.

All in all, a fun event. A trying to be Woodstock sort of affair, that works if you don't question it too much…

This was my first time. To see so many people together getting along, is a sight. The vendors are cool, and as usual LOCAL.
Craft beer & food trucks, festival food. Sounds like a great time to me.
Hope to be at next years, happy comfest

Community Fest. What a joke. Thanks to all the suburban folks and west side teenagers that invade it totally sucks now. I pretty much avoid the Short North area at this time.