Tweetsie Railroad is the summer destination for fun when the HIT Entertainment Fun Festival comes to town from July 17-19.

This fun-filled family festival stars Barney, Bob the Builder and Angelina Ballerina, and takes place at Tweetsie Railroad in Blowing Rock. Families will enjoy spectacular stage performances. Barney performs with super-dee-duper singing and dancing, Bob the Builder gets kids up and interacting as he takes to the stage with a 20-minute performance, and Angelina Ballerina dances along to a storybook reading. Plus, children will have a chance to meet, shake hands and get photos taken with their favorite characters.

The HIT Favorites Fun Festival includes other activities for kids, as well as a variety of exciting attractions featured at Tweetsie Railroad.

North Carolina's first theme park offers these special meet-and-greets in addition to the daily offering of Wild West family fun, including meeting cowboys in an Old West town, exciting amusement rides, lively shows and of course, an exciting ride on a train pulled by the famed steam-powered Tweetsie locomotive. Families can also enjoy the Deer Park zoo, Miner's Mountain and live entertainment for all ages including Diamond Lil's Can-Can Revue in the Tweetsie Palace Saloon.

Tweetsie Railroad is located in North Carolina's Blue Ridge Mountains on U.S. 321 between Boone and Blowing Rock. The park is open daily from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. until Aug. 23, and from Aug. 28 through Nov. 1 Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays, including Labor Day Monday. The park will open at 8:30 a.m. for the Fun Festival with rotating shows on the hour from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Daily admission is $30 for adults and $22 for children ages 3 through 12. Print-at-home tickets are available at www.tweetsie. com.

For more information about Tweetsie Railroad and the park's 2009 season, visit www.tweetsie.com or call 1-877-TWEETSIE.