The festivities officially begin on Thursday, April 19 with the opening of the carnival area on the grounds of Camdenton Middle School at 5 p.m. The middle school serves as the backdrop to multiple activities throughout the festival.  On Friday, there will be  live musical entertainment from 6 p.m. until 9 p.m. and carnival rides from 5 p.m. until 10 p.m. On Saturday, the carnival rides run from 10 a.m. until 10 p.m. with dance performances and live music taking place from noon until 7 p.m. Locally made arts and crafts and a variety of food and refreshments will be sold on location at many v endor booths all weekend.

The Camden County Museum will be open all weekend for tours and will host displays of handmade creations by the Lake Area Woodworkers. The festival also marks the  first dinner theater production of the year at the museum, the comedic melodrama, "A Fate Worse Than Death; Or Adrift in Life's Sea." Doors open at 5 p.m. with a spaghetti dinner buffet being  served at 5:30 p.m. with the play   beginning at 7 p.m., on both Friday and Saturday evenings. Tickets for the dinner and play are $15 per person and reservations are suggested as seats are limited. For more details on the dinner theater or to reserve tickets, call  573-346-7191, extension 8, or visit www.CamdenCountyMuseum.org.

Also on Friday, there will be a fish fry at the Knights of Columbus hall from 4 p.m. until 7:30 p.m.

Other activities taking place on Saturday include the Dogwood Festival 5K Fun Run, scheduled for 7:30 a.m. beginning at at the Camdenton High School.  The United Methodist Church hosts a pancake breakfast from 6:30 a.m. until 10 a.m. There will be a garage sale at St. Anthony's Church from 7 a.m. until 2 p.m. and another garage sale at Our Savior's Lutheran Church from 8 a.m. until 12 p.m. The "Fairytales in Bloom" themed Dogwood Festival parade takes place at 10 a.m. in downtown Camdenton. The Camdenton Memorial Lake-Regional Airport hosts Young Eagles Flights from 12 p.m. until 3:30 p.m. where children from 8 to 17 years of age can learn about aviation and fly in a small airplane with the pilots of Air Lake Aviation.  And, Community Christian Church hosts the "Worship Under the Dogwoods" service at 2 p.m.

For more information on the Dogwood Festival, including a schedule of activities, locations of events and complete list of booths and vendors, visit the chamber's website at  www.camdentonchamber.com.

There are many lodging options available for those looking to plan a spring getaway to the Lake of the Ozarks. From full-service resorts to smaller, family-owned resorts, quaint bed and breakfasts to rustic cabins and comfortable campgrounds and more, visitors have no shortage of lodging choices. For a complete listing of lodging options available around the Lake area, visit the accommodations page at  www.FunLake.com .