Jimmy Buffet Band, Changes In Latitude, is a fan favorite during Newport Winter Festival.

For the second year in a row, the Newport Winter Festival has been canceled due to concerns surrounding COVID-19.

The annual event, which would have been celebrating its 33rd Anniversary in 2022, was scheduled to take place in February.

Newport Winter Festival made the announcement on Facebook on Monday, December 6;

“Due to concerns over the coronavirus (COVID-19) and with careful consideration of the health and safety of participants and the community, we have decided to cancel the upcoming Newport Winter Festival 2022.

With the majority of the highlighted Festival events taking place indoors and centered around children and families, we felt it would be too great a risk at this time for the well-being of all that attend.We are truly disappointed and sincerely apologize for any inconvenience this may cause and kindly ask for your understanding.

The City of Newport is certainly alive and vibrant this winter, so please still plan a visit and enjoy the beautiful city by the sea! We look forward to having an awesome Winter Festival in 2023! Stay well!”

Ryan Belmore is the owner and publisher of What's Up Newp. He took over the publication in 2012 and has grown it into a three-time Rhode Island Monthly Best Local News Blog (2018, 2019, 2020). He was named LION Publishers Member of the Year in 2020 and received the Dominique Award from the Arts & Cultural Society of Newport County the same year. He has been awarded grants for investigative and community journalism, and continues to coach and mentor new local news publications nationwide. Ryan...