In fact, its even affecting the way folks are spending their vacations.. Instead of looking down the road for entertainment many are searching their backyards.  Attracting festival goers isn't a problem in Niles at the seventy-fifth anniversary of the Mount Carmel Festival.  In part it's tradition.

"Once a year I come here."

But the economy is also playing a role this year.  In these tough economic time, many folks are deciding not to leave the area to go on vacations, instead they're opting to enjoy some of these incredible summer festivals in their own backyard.

"Everything local we're going to. We have postponed any vacation any distance more than fifty miles."

"I just can't stay at home."  That's a sentiment echoed by festival organizers.

"We would make this the kind of vacation that people could come here if they're not going to spend a lot on gasoline and go far away we thought if we kept good prices here we'd draw people here.", explains Dennis Hayda, a festival organizer.

Thousands are expected to do just that this weekend at the festival.  So, it looks like high gas prices may actually turn out to be good in some way for some local venues.