Road Trip Guide
Statewide Quilt Shop Hops: How They Work and the 2026 List
A statewide shop hop is the quilting version of a road-trip passport: dozens of independent shops, one stamp book, a free block at every stop, and a grand-prize drawing at the end. They run for weeks or months instead of a weekend, which changes how you plan them. Here's how they work, how to do one without wrecking your budget, and every hop listed on QuiltMap for 2026.
The short answer:
A statewide hop covers 20 to 80+ shops over a month or a season (Wisconsin's is all of June; Wyoming's runs Memorial Day to Labor Day), costs $5–$15 for a passport or nothing at all, and gives you a free pattern or block at each shop you get stamped. You do not have to visit every shop to take part — most hops enter you in prize drawings at tiers. Plan 4–6 shops a day, set a per-shop spending cap, and do it over several weekends. As of September 2026 QuiltMap lists 43 shop hops across 32 states; the list is below, grouped by state.
1. Statewide hop vs. weekend hop
A local or regional shop hop is 5–12 shops in one metro or along one highway, over 2–10 days. You can do the whole thing in a day or a long weekend. The ABQ Shop Hop (six Albuquerque shops, three days in late August) and the Central Oregon Shop Hop (two days in April) are the classic shape. These are the hops most quilters have done.
A statewide hop is a different animal. It covers most of a state's independent shops — anywhere from 20 to 80 or more — and runs for a full month or an entire season so that people can do it in pieces. Nobody is expected to drive the whole state in a weekend. Quilt Dakota runs July 22 to August 28 across both Dakotas. The Wyoming State Shop Hop runs Memorial Day to Labor Day. Wisconsin's is the month of June.
The mechanics are shared across both kinds:
- Passport. A printed booklet (sometimes a magazine-style one for the big statewide hops) with a page per shop, a map, hours, and a place for the stamp.
- Stamps. Each shop stamps your passport when you visit. A full or tiered passport is your entry into the prize drawings.
- Free pattern or block. Most hops give you a free pattern, a printed block, or a kit piece at each shop. On themed hops the blocks assemble into one "hop quilt" if you collect them all — that is the hook that keeps people driving.
- Prizes. Per-shop door prizes, drawings for finishing a region, and a grand prize (a sewing machine, a fabric bundle from the sponsoring line, gift certificates to every shop) for completed passports.
- Long windows. Two weeks to three months for statewide hops. Weekend hops are 2–4 days.
- Virtual or mail-in options. Some hops let you buy the blocks or kits by mail, or run an online "virtual hop" with the same patterns, for quilters who can't make the drive. Not universal — check the hop's site.
2. How shop hops are organized (and what they cost)
Shop hops are run by coalitions of independent shops, not by any outside company in most cases. A volunteer committee of owners (or one coordinating shop) picks the dates, chooses a theme fabric line, designs the blocks, prints the passports, and pools money for prizes. Each shop pays a participation fee and orders the theme fabric so the kits match. Some hops have a fabric-company or magazine sponsor that covers the grand prize; many don't.
What it costs you:
- Passport: $0–$15. Weekend hops are usually free or $5. Statewide hops with a printed booklet typically charge $5–$15, and the passport itself is often the "entry fee" — buy it at any participating shop and you're registered.
- Blocks and kits: usually free with a stamp, $3–$12 if you want the fabric kit. The pattern is free; the pre-cut fabric to make it is a small paid kit at most hops.
- The finishing kit: $15–$40. Sashing, borders, and a setting pattern to turn the blocks into a quilt. Optional, sold at the end.
- Gas, food, lodging. The real cost on a statewide hop. Two people covering a mid-size state over three weekends can easily spend more on the road than in the shops.
No hop we know of requires a purchase to get a stamp. Most quilters buy something anyway; that is the point from the shops' side, and it's why the hop exists.
3. How to do a statewide hop well
Route it before you go. Pull the shop list from the passport, drop them into the QuiltMap trip planner, and let it order the stops. Four to six shops a day is a full day once you add 30–45 minutes per shop and the drive between them. The full routing method is in How to Plan a Quilt Shop Hop.
Pace it. Break the state into regions and give each region a day or a weekend. Do the shops nearest you on weekday evenings if they're open late. Save the far corner for one overnight trip. The hops that run a whole season (Wyoming, Quilt Dakota) are designed for this.
Budget with the "one bolt per shop" rule. Decide before you leave what one shop is allowed to cost you — one cut of fabric, or a dollar cap like $25 — and hold to it. On a 30-shop hop, "just a fat quarter bundle" at each stop is $600. The hop blocks alone will give you a finished quilt; you don't need to buy the theme line at every shop to get there.
Stamping etiquette:
- Get the stamp at the register, from staff. Don't stamp your own passport from the counter stamp.
- One passport per person present. Don't ask a shop to stamp passports for friends who stayed home.
- Check hours the day of. Small shops close early on Saturdays and are often closed Sunday and Monday, hop or not.
- If you've browsed for 30 minutes and used the restroom, buy something small. A spool of thread counts.
- Sign the guestbook and thank the volunteers. The people stamping are often the owners, working a 10-day hop on top of a normal week.
4. The 2026 list, by state
Every shop hop listed on QuiltMap as of September 2026 — 43 event pages across 32 states. Dates are as listed on our event pages; where a hop hasn't posted 2026 dates, check the hop's site. Most hops recur every year in the same month, so a hop that ran in March 2025 is a good bet for March 2027 too. Click the state to see that state's shop directory.
A few of these cross state lines on purpose — Quilt Dakota covers both Dakotas, the Carolina Shop Hop pairs Upstate South Carolina with Western North Carolina, and the Treasure Shop Hop spans southwestern Idaho and eastern Oregon. Plan those from the state you're sleeping in.
5. The statewide hops, month by month
If you want the full-state experience — the long window, the big passport, the finishing-kit quilt — these are the ones to build a season around. Month is from the 2026 listing or the organizer's usual schedule; confirm before you book a hotel.
- March: Vermont Shop Hop (Mar 6–28), Bluebonnet Shop Hop in Texas (Mar 18–28), and Mississippi's Shop Hoppin' in the Sip (all month).
- April: Utah Shop Hop (Apr 24–May 2), Central Oregon (Apr 24–25), and the State of Maine Quilt Shop Hop, which the organizers describe as an April event with more than 20 years behind it.
- May: Wyoming State Shop Hop opens Memorial Day weekend and runs to Labor Day; NH Spring Fling (May 13–17).
- June: the big month. Wisconsin Quilt Shop Hop (all of June), Carolina Shop Hop (Jun 13–22), Western Washington (Jun 15–28).
- July: Louisiana Shop Hop (Jul 23–Aug 1) and Quilt Dakota across North and South Dakota (Jul 22–Aug 28).
- October: Eastern PA Shop Hop (Oct 23–Nov 7).
- Dates not yet posted for 2026: Mississippi Statewide Shop Hop, Quilt Minnesota Shop Hop, Indiana Quilters Trail, Alaska Quilter's Shop Hop, and Road to Oklahoma. Their event pages link to the organizer where we have one.
Browse every shop hop and quilt show
QuiltMap's events directory lists shop hops, guild shows, festivals, and retreats by state and month, with dates, the organizer's site, and the participating shops where we have them.
Browse events by state →6. How to find hops we don't list yet
Forty-three is not every hop in the country. Plenty of regional hops never make a website; they live on a flyer at the cutting counter and a Facebook post. Where to look:
- The events directory, filtered to your state and the months you can travel. New hops get added as organizers and readers submit them.
- Guild newsletters. Guilds announce every hop within a two-hour drive, usually with a carpool sign-up. Find yours with How to Find a Quilt Guild Near You.
- Shop Facebook pages. Participating shops post the passport cover and dates 4–8 weeks out. Follow three or four shops in the region you care about and you'll see every hop they join.
- The cutting counter. Ask "any hops coming up?" at your local shop. Staff know the whole regional calendar.
- Add it to QuiltMap. If you know a hop we're missing, submit it with the dates and the organizer's site and we'll build the event page.
Not sure a hop is the right kind of trip for you? Quilt Shop Hop vs. Quilt Retreat compares the two, and Finding Quilt Shops While Traveling covers the do-it-yourself version: no passport, just a route.
FAQ
Do I have to visit every shop?
No. You get the free block at every shop you do visit, and most hops run prize drawings at tiers — a region completed, ten shops, all shops. The grand prize usually needs a full passport, but a partial hop is still a good trip with free patterns.
Can I do it over several weekends?
That's how statewide hops are meant to be done. A month-long or season-long window exists precisely so you can cover one region per weekend. Weekend hops are the ones you have to do in one go.
What does a shop hop cost?
The passport is $0–$15. Fabric kits for the free blocks are typically $3–$12 each and optional. The real number is gas and lodging plus whatever you buy — which is why the one-bolt-per-shop rule exists.
Are there virtual shop hops?
Some. A few hops sell the block kits and passport by mail or run an online version with the same patterns for quilters who can't make the drive. Check the organizer's site for a "virtual" or "mail-in" option. QuiltMap is also building its own free way for shops to run a hop together, so expect more of these over time.
Do I need the passport to get the free pattern?
Usually yes. The passport is how the shop knows you're hopping, and the printed block is budgeted per passport. Buy it at the first shop you visit; every participating shop sells them.
Do the same hops run every year?
Mostly, and in the same month. The Central Kansas hop is in its 28th year; Maine's has run for more than 20. If a hop in our list has no 2026 dates yet, assume the same month as last year and watch the organizer's site or Facebook page.
Related guides
- How to Plan a Quilt Shop Hop — routing, pacing, and the trip planner walkthrough.
- Quilt Shop Hop vs. Quilt Retreat — which trip fits the weekend you have.
- Finding Quilt Shops While Traveling — the no-passport version: shops near your hotel, packing fabric, quilting abroad.
- How to Attend Your First Quilt Show — many hops line up with a guild show in the same month; here's how to do both.
Last updated 2026-09-17. Done a statewide hop this year? Tell the community which shops were worth the detour and how many weekends it took.