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Riverside Park is transforming for the Fourth of July holiday. From Wednesday through next Sunday, the park will be home to Riverfest, La Crosse’s annual celebration of music, children’s games and entertainment. Six stages will be dedicated to entertainment, and 16 area restaurants will prepare food at the festival.

To gain admission to Riverside Park during the festival, you’ll need a Riverfest button if you’re older than 12. In past years, much of the park was accessible without a button, but in recent years the festival has been losing money so they’ve opted to fence off much of north Riverside Park and require a button for admission.

Buttons are available in advance from many local businesses or at the Riverfest office and are $4 in advance and $5 at the gate. A button will not be required on the Fourth of July, except for access to the food, beverage and north stage areas. So if you want to grab a blanket and a piece of lawn for the fireworks at 10 p.m., you can.

Some of the highlights of this year’s festival are:

Wednesday: Opening ceremonies at 11 a.m. and the reunion of rock band Phoenix at 9 p.m.

Thursday: Battle of the bands from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., and country band Whiskey Falls at 10:30 p.m.

Friday: Fireworks at 10 p.m., with music supplied by The Great River Big Band

Saturday: Rock band Slaughter at 10:30 p.m.

Sunday: Extreme Canines, The Executives and Studebaker 7.

Family activities include Riverfest Family Parade, baby races, tiny tykes, Big Wheel races and the Chileda Classic. And so many bands will perform that you’ll be able to catch up on all the music you’ve missed throughout the year as your favorite local band is likely playing on one of the stages.

For a complete schedule, check out www.riverfestlacrosse.com. For daily schedules, check the live! page every day of the fest.

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