About The Festival
Cali Roots to the faithful — the California Roots Music & Arts Festival settles back onto the Monterey County Fairgrounds for three days across late May 2027, on the same grounds where Jimi Hendrix lit his guitar on fire in 1967. It's one of the biggest reggae festivals in the country, and for the cannabis community it's close to a home game.
Who Plays
Cali Roots built its reputation on good-vibes programming: reggae, roots, rock, hip-hop, and dub across multiple stages, with the West Coast reggae bench — the Slightly Stoopid, Rebelution, Stick Figure, Dirty Heads corner of the world — anchoring a lineup that always reaches wider than one genre. The festival pairs the music with a serious arts program, live painting, and a crowd that shows up for the culture as much as the headliners.
Why It Hits
This is peak cannabis-culture territory. The reggae-festival crowd and the cannabis community have overlapped for generations, and Cali Roots leans into that heritage — the vibe is family, peace, and community, and the Monterey setting on the coast gives it a laid-back, destination feel you don't get from an urban festival. People plan their whole Memorial Day weekend around it.
Passes & Lodging
Passes run through the official California Roots site, with single-day and three-day options plus VIP tiers; the three-day pass is the classic move since the festival is built around the full weekend. Monterey books up fast for that weekend, so lock lodging early — it's a coastal town, not a big city, and rooms are finite.
Before You Go
Cali Roots is a bucket-list weekend for anyone who lives in the reggae-and-roots world, and the 2027 edition keeps a decade-plus tradition rolling. Check the official site for the full lineup, daily schedules, and camping and lodging info as they drop.