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73 Best Annual Family Festivals in NYC for Kids—and Most are Free

The Atlantic Antic is Brooklyn's biggest annual street fair. Photo courtesy of the event.
The Atlantic Antic is Brooklyn's biggest annual street fair. Photo courtesy of the event.
2/8/24 - By Drew Kristofik

In NYC, there's always something to celebrate. These New York City festivals are so fun they're worth attending every year, so grab your calendar and start making plans. Our picks for the top family-friendly festivals in NYC include everything from the interactive, art-filled Figment to the adorable Sheep Shearing Festival at the Queens County Farm Museum, and Manhattan's Museum Mile Festival, City of Water Day, and The Big Umbrella Festival. And, what's more NYC than the annual Egg Rolls, Egg Creams, and Empanadas Fest?

Whether you're into math, sand castles, pride, or poetry, there's a New York City festival just right for your family, so read on for our massive list of the very best family-friendly festivals in NYC, organized by season, just for you.

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The NYC Winter Lantern Festival lights up the dark winter months. Photo courtesy the Winter Lantern Festival
The NYC Winter Lantern Festival lights up the dark winter months. Photo courtesy the Winter Lantern Festival

Family-Friendly Festivals in NYC in Winter: December, January, and February

Lunar New Year Firecracker Ceremony and Cultural Festival

Lower East Side – FREE
Saturday, February 10, 2024
The Better Chinatown Society's annual New Year's celebration is hosted in Sara D. Roosevelt Park with firecrackers, cultural performances, and much more. READ MORE

New York Sword Dance Festival

Manhattan and Brooklyn – FREE
Saturday & Sunday, February 17 & 18, 2024
Half Moon Sword presents this 38th annual festival with free, family-friendly performances of this traditional dance form with modern twists by nine performing groups from around the Northeast. READ MORE

26th Annual New York City Lunar New Year Parade & Festival in Chinatown

Chinatown – FREE
Sunday, February 25, 2024
In years past, a half-million spectators have lined the streets of Chinatown for this colorful pan-Asian procession, which includes Chinese, Korean, Japanese, Vietnamese, Taiwanese, Malaysian, and even Hispanic floats and cultural performances.  READ MORE

NYC Winter Lantern Festival

Glen Oaks, Queens
November-January
2024 dates TBD
The NYC Winter Lantern Festival transforms the Queens County Farm Museum's grounds into an immersive river of light. Holiday lights and homemade lanterns take the shape of flowers, tractors, farm animals, and more, forming a dazzling seasonal display. READ MORE

Winter Solstice Celebration

Governors Island – FREE
Mid-December
2024 date TBD
Governors Island hosts a day full of free cel­e­bra­tions, cul­mi­nat­ing in a par­tic­i­pa­to­ry lantern parade. Head over to Colonels Row for food, fire pits, and games, along with DJ sets from the Low­er East­side Girls Club. READ MORE

Make Music Winter

Citywide – FREE
Saturday, December 21, 2024
Make Music's Winter festivities range from a chorus of ukuleles to carol singing, bell ringing, and a harmonica holiday jam. READ MORE

Celebrate the Holidays at PaleyLand!

Midtown West
December-January
2024-2025 dates TBD
The Paley Center's must-see holiday extravaganza fills five floors of the Paley with holiday fun and winter wonderland magic. Enjoy free hot chocolate, watch past and present holiday family specials on the big screen, discover the magic of a classic model railroad display, and so much more. READ MORE

47th Annual Three Kings Parade

East Harlem–FREE
Monday, January 6, 2025
Line up with live camels, colorful puppets, parrandas, music, and dancing on this magical day. This time-honored annual parade begins at 106th Street and Park Avenue and ends at 115th Street and Park Avenue. Return to the museum to keep the party going following the parade. READ MORE

Animation First Film Festival 2024

Upper East Side
Late January
2025 date is TBD
The sixth edition of Animation First, celebrating the artistry of French animation, presents animated feature films and shorts, filmmaker conversations, work-in-progress presentations, video games, AR-VR experiences, a student shorts programs, and more. READ MORE

BAMkids Film Festival 2024

Downtown Brooklyn
Early February
2025 date TBD
Courage and creativity collide at this family-friendly event featuring some of this year’s best short films for kids from around the world! With work by more than 50 filmmakers, one of Brooklyn’s favorite BAMkids traditions returns for the 26th year with the latest and greatest animated, live-action, and documentary gems.  READ MORE
Lincoln Center's Big Umbrella Festival always includes whimsical art and live performances that are sensory-friendly. Photo courtesy Lincoln Center.
Lincoln Center's Big Umbrella Festival always includes whimsical art and live performances that are sensory-friendly. Photo courtesy Lincoln Center.

Family-Friendly Festivals in NYC in Spring: March, April, and May

New York International Children's Film Festival

Multiple locations in Manhattan and Brooklyn
Saturday, March 2-Sunday, March 17, 2024
NYICFF celebrates the beauty and power of film, sparks the inherent capacity of children to connect with complex, nuanced art, and encourages the creation of intelligent films that represent and celebrate unique, diverse, and historically excluded voices. READ MORE

Annual St. Patrick’s Day Open House at the Irish Arts Center - SOLD OUT

Midtown West – FREE
Saturday, March 16, 2024
Irish Arts Center's 2023 open house features all-day traditional music and dance, live piano karaoke sing-alongs of Ireland and Irish-America’s greatest hits, a performance and group lesson by World Irish Dance Champion Tyler Shwartz, spring equinox-inspired arts and crafts, and a sampling of the venue's multidisciplinary educational offerings. READ MORE

Seaport Kids: Celebrate Holi at South Street Seaport

Seaport– FREE
Saturday, March 23, 2024
Shake off the winter blues and douse your family in the colors of spring! The Seaport celebrates Holi with colorful puppets, dances, drummers, delicious food, and powder play. READ MORE

Colorland: Holi on Governors Island - SOLD OUT

Governors Island
Saturday, April 6, 2024
Colorland Holi NYC celebrates colors, culture, spring, and unity. Attractions include vibrant colors, live bands, dance performances, food vendors, celebrities, kids' activities, vendors, and more.   READ MORE

Big Umbrella Festival at Lincoln Center

Upper West Side – FREE
Friday, April 12-Sunday, April 14, 2024
The popular Big Umbrella Festival blooms as a free campus takeover at Lincoln Center full of relaxed spaces with multi-sensory experiences, performances, installations, and workshops specifically welcoming neurodivergent audiences and their families. READ MORE

Water Lantern Festival

Flushing, Queens
Saturday, April 20, 2024
Design lanterns with messages of happiness, hope, love, and peace, then launch them into the water as the sun sets and watch them connect. READ MORE

Car-Free Earth Day

Citywide – FREE
Saturday, April 20, 2024
Open Streets: Car-Free Earth Day is an annual car-free event hosted by NYC DOT. Programming is presented at signature locations citywide to promote activism and education surrounding climate change, sustainability, and other relevant topics. READ MORE

Earthfest at the American Museum of Natural History

Upper West Side
April 27, 2024
The American Museum of Natural History hosts a full day of family-friendly activities, performances, and lectures showcasing local and international efforts devoted to preserving planet Earth. READ MORE

Children's Day Festival: Kodomo No Hi at Japan Society

Midtown East
Sunday, May 5, 2024
Hang the koinobori (carp streamers) and don your kabuto (samurai helmet): The Japan Society's Children's Day is back. Celebrate Japan’s national holiday with the captivating tale of Momotaro (Peach Boy) through a thrilling theatrical performance filled with storytelling, music, dance, and lots of audience participation. Continue the adventure with life-sized samurai armor displays, carp streamer making, samurai helmet origami, and more. READ MORE

Annual Irish Dance Festival at Riverside Park's Pier I

Upper West Side– FREE
Sunday, May 5, 2024
NYC's Irish Arts Center kicks off Riverside Park's 2024 Summer-on-the-Hudson series with an afternoon of traditional Irish dance and music performances and workshops curated by Niall O'Leary.   READ MORE

Japan Day Parade and Street Fair on Central Park West

Upper West Side – FREE
Saturday, May 11, 2024
Japan Day is celebrated with a parade and street fair. Watch the parade march down Central Park West before enjoying the festive street fair along 72nd Street.  READ MORE

Urban Wildlife Festival in St. Mary's Park

South Bronx – FREE
Saturday, May 11, 2004
Get up close and personal with NYC’s wild residents. Learn about squirrels, turtles, raccoons, opossums, and coyotes, and discover the best places in New York City and New York state to watch wildlife. READ MORE

Sheep Shearing Festival at the Queens County Farm Museum

Floral Park, Queens
Saturday, May 11, 2024
Visit the Queens County Farm Museum on the Nassau-Queens border to see the sheep get their annual haircuts. Move to the foot-stomping rhythms of live music, and enjoy farmer-led tours and a plant sale all day.  READ MORE

Submerge: NYC Marine Science Festival at Pier 84

Midtown West– FREE
Friday & Saturday, May 17 & 18, 2024
The Hudson River Park presents Submerge—a free, two-day science extravaganza devoted to raising awareness about our coastal waters.  READ MORE

Sound & Color! Spring Festival in Brooklyn Bridge Park

Dumbo, Brooklyn – FREE
Saturday, May 18, 2024
The Brooklyn Bridge Park Conservancy takes its beloved kite festival to the next level with live musical performances, food vendors, kids activities, and more. Watch your kite soar above the Manhattan skyline the one day of the year kite-flying is open to the public at Brooklyn Bridge Park. READ MORE

The Fabulous Fifth Avenue Street Fair

Park Slope, Brooklyn – FREE
Sunday, May 19, 2024
Head to Park Slope's Fifth Avenue to peruse this street fair, featuring food and sale items, rides, bouncy castles, music performances, and more.  READ MORE

Fleet Week NYC

Multiple Locations – FREE
Wednesday, May 22-Monday, May 27, 2024
The US Navy, US Marine Corps, and US Coast Guard's celebration of sea services invites families to tour ships, watch the Parade of Ships, and enjoy exhibits, military band concerts, and aviation events throughout the week.   READ MORE

Lower East Side Festival of the Arts Street Fair

Lower East Side – FREE
Friday-Sunday, May 24-26, 2024
NYC's Lower East Side Festival of the Arts is a cabaret-style festival featuring more than 100 performing groups from the Lower East Side. READ MORE

BAMKids SpringFest

Downtown Brooklyn – FREE
Early May
2024 date TBD
Families are invited to a joyous day of performances, interactive activities, and showcases of local talent! BAMkids SpringFest celebrates the spirit of the season with an eclectic program of music, dance, comedy, and circus arts, brought to you by artists from Japan, West Africa, the Philippines, and Hawaii. READ MORE
On three consecutive Saturdays in August, nearly seven miles of NYC’s streets are closed to cars and opened for people to play, run, walk and bike. Photo courtesy of the DOT
On three consecutive Saturdays in August, nearly seven miles of NYC’s streets are closed to cars and opened for people to play, run, walk and bike. Photo courtesy of the DOT

Family-Friendly Festivals in NYC in Summer: June, July, and August

Drums Along the Hudson: A Native American Festival in Inwood Hill Park

Inwood – FREE
Sunday, June 2, 2024
The annual Drums Along the Hudson: A Native American Festival and Multicultural Celebration marks its 21st anniversary as Manhattan’s only open-air pow wow. The all-day event features Native American crafts, storytelling, and traditional food and dance. READ MORE

Figment Festival at Snug Harbor

Snug Harbor, Staten Island – FREE
Saturday & Sunday, June 8 & 9, 2024
Attracting tens of thousands of visitors for the past 13 years, this family-friendly festival is an explosion of creative energy and imagination, perfect for adults and kids alike. READ MORE

BRIC Celebrate Brooklyn! Concert Series

Prospect Park, Brooklyn – FREE
Thursday-Sunday, June 8-August 17, 2024
BRIC's Celebrate Brooklyn! The Festival features a wide array of FREE, world-class performances at the Prospect Park Bandshell. READ MORE

Museum Mile Festival

Upper East Side – FREE
Tuesday, June 11, 2024
NYC's biggest block party returns, bringing art outside (and in) on Fifth Avenue between 82nd Street and 105th Street. A collection of New York City’s finest cultural institutions are open free to the public throughout the evening, with outdoor events along the way. READ MORE

Juneteenth Celebration in Rockefeller Park

Battery Park City– FREE
Saturday, June 15, 2024
Battery Park City’s eighth annual Emancipation Day celebration offers fun, history, art, and a performance by Juneteenth LP, whose mission is to share the music of the African Diaspora through the lens of classically trained Black musicians. The Federation of Black Cowboys shares history and horseback rides for ages 3 and up, too. READ MORE

The 21st Annual Hunts Point Fish Parade and Summer Festival

Hunts Point, the Bronx – FREE
Saturday, June 15, 2024
The annual Hunt’s Point Fish Parade celebrates the neighborhood's heritage. Activities include a children’s art corner, boat rides, bird watching, a day-long basketball tournament, face painting, print-making, tons of great food and activities, live music, and performances. READ MORE

Schomburg Center Literary Festival in Harlem

Harlem – FREE
Saturday, June 15, 2024
The Schomburg Center Literary Festival: Reading the African Diaspora celebrates authors of African descent and champions literacy and books across genres to amplify Black history and culture. Readings, panel discussions, and workshops at Harlem's lit fest range from prose to poetry, comic books to young adult novels, fiction and nonfiction.   READ MORE

Egg Rolls, Egg Creams, and Empanadas Festival

Lower East Side – FREE
Sunday, June 16, 2024
The Museum at Eldridge Street presents the annual Egg Rolls, Egg Creams, and Empanadas Festival, a joyous celebration of the diverse ethnic communities of the museum's Lower East Side neighborhood. READ MORE

Swedish Midsummer Festival in Rockefeller Park

Tribeca – FREE
Friday, June 21, 2024
Rockefeller Park is the setting for a unique celebration of the summer solstice. Learn traditional Swedish folk dances and join in a lively dance around the midsummer pole. READ MORE

Make Music New York

Citywide – FREE
Friday, June 21, 2024
Make Music New York puts the beat under city feet as musicians of diverse backgrounds, ethnicities, ages, sexual orientations, physical capabilities, and skill levels represent New York City’s remarkable creativity and diversity. READ MORE

The Mermaid Parade on Coney Island

Coney Island, Brooklyn – FREE
Saturday, June 22, 2024
Welcome summer with the return of the Mermaid Parade, an eclectic (and historically jam-packed) celebration, featuring revelers decked out in their most outrageous sea-themed costumes.  READ MORE

PrideFest Festival

Noho – FREE
Sunday, June 30, 2024
The annual PrideFest street fair features live music, artists, craft vendors, food trucks, performers, and more. Family Fest activities take over the streets around Astor Place. READ MORE

NYC Math Festival in Fosun Plaza

Financial District – FREE
Saturday, July 13, 2024
MoMath presents the annual NYC Math Festival, providing a full day of math fun in the sun for all ages. Enjoy hands-on math exhibits, entertaining mathematical games, and intriguing puzzles and brainteasers.  READ MORE

New York City Poetry Festival on Governors Island

Governors Island – FREE
Saturday & Sunday, July 13 & 14, 2024
The New York City Poetry Festival unites the vast and diverse New York City poetry community on Governors Island. The festival invites poetry organizations and collectives of all shapes and sizes to bring their unique formats, aesthetics, and personalities to the festival grounds. READ MORE

City of Water Day at the Seaport

Multiple Locations – FREE
Saturday, July 13, 2024
City of Water Day celebrates NYC's long history as a port and water-bound metropolis. Festivities include boat tours on all kinds of vessels, from tall ships to tugboats, plus free rowing, kayaking, paddleboarding, and more. READ MORE

Harlem Meer Performance Festival

Central Park – FREE
Sundays, July 14-August 18, 2024
After three decades of bringing the best local music and dance talent to Central Park, the Harlem Meer Summer Festival offers a variety of multicultural musical performances, exercise classes, and more to get heart rates up with a lineup of movement classes for a summer of fun and well-being. READ MORE

Waterfront Festival on Randall's Island

Randall's Island– FREE
Saturday, July 20, 2024
Celebrate the vibrant waterfront on the shores of Randall’s Island with music, arts and crafts, a live performance by Arm of the Sea Theater, and interactive bubble play. READ MORE

One Crown Heights Neighborhood Festival

Crown Heights, Brooklyn– FREE
Sunday, July 21, 2024
Celebrate diversity and unity in the community through local eats, live music, dance, double dutch, and performances at the ninth annual One Crown Heights fest.   READ MORE

Summer Streets

Citywide – FREE
Saturdays, July 27-August 24, 2024
New York's favorite car-free street festival returns this July and August, as Summer Streets opens miles of NYC streets for people to play, run, walk, and bike across multiple weeks and in all five boroughs. READ MORE

Hong Kong Dragon Boat Festival in Flushing Meadows Corona Park

Flushing, Queens – FREE
Saturday & Sunday, August 3 & 4, 2024
This annual sporting and multicultural event is held to celebrate the fifth moon (or the fifth month) of the lunar calendar. In addition to providing audiences with traditional Chinese foods and performances, the festival hosts dragon boat teams from across North America. READ MORE

Hudson River Park's Blues Barbecue

Midtown West
Saturday, August 10, 2024
The 24th annual Hudson River Park Blues Barbecue Festival returns to Pier 76 for a day filled with smoky goodness and great music. Pit powerhouses like Blue Smoke, Dinosaur Bar-B-Que, Jase’s BBQ, Kimchi Smoke, and Big Papa Smokem fire up their smokers while you take in live blues and roots performances. READ MORE

43rd Annual Battery Dance Festival in Battery Park

Battery Park – FREE
Sunday, August 11-Saturday, August 17, 2024
The Battery Dance Festival presents an entire week of free evening performances, featuring top-tier dancers from the US and around the globe, including debuts and premieres. READ MORE

House Fest on Governors Island

Governors Island – FREE
Friday, August 16 - Monday, August 19, 2024
Governors Island hosts a weekend-long creative celebration that features free dance and music performances, outdoor installations, interactive workshops, open studios, panel discussions, and more. READ MORE

32nd Annual Coney Island Sand Sculpting Contest

Coney Island, Brooklyn – FREE
Saturday, August 17, 2024
Hundreds of sand sculptors descend on Coney Island annually to create amazing works of art using all-natural elements at the beach.  READ MORE

FlyNYC 2024 in Riverside Park

Upper West Side– FREE
Saturday, August 17, 2024
Music and kites fill the air at this festival for all ages! Kite kits are provided free for children (while supplies last), or bring your own favorite kite from home. READ MORE

Arthur Ashe Kids' Day at the US Open

Flushing, Queens – FREE
Saturday, August 31, 2024
The 26th edition of this great day of family fun offers interactive games, face painting, balloon artists, prizes, music, special guests, and more. Kids can step onto the US Open courts, just like the pros, with tennis activities for all ages and abilities.  READ MORE

Richmond County Fair

Richmond, Staten Island
Saturday, August 31-Monday, September 2, 2024
An old-fashioned county fair in New York City, the 41-year-old Staten Island tradition features family fun and entertainment for all ages, including circus performers, crafts and rides for the kids, live music, plenty of eats, and contests. READ MORE

Beam Center’s Inventgenuity Festival

Governors Island – FREE
Mid-August
2024 dates TBD
Beam Center's Inventgenuity Festival is back on Governors Island with a wide array of creative activities and a celebration of its latest youth-built public artwork. READ MORE

International Puppet Fringe Festival NYC

Lower East Side
August
Postponed until 2025
The International Puppet Fringe Festival boasts more than 30 performances from acclaimed puppet troupes hailing from across the globe, artist symposiums, puppet cabaret, kids and family days, and much more. The 2023 Puppet Fringe Festival theme is “Halloween in August,” featuring spooky and silly puppets that celebrate this beloved holiday. READ MORE
You never know what you'll find at the Queens County Fair. Photo courtesy of the Queens County Farm Museum
You never know what you'll find at the Queens County Fair. Photo courtesy of the Queens County Farm Museum

Family-Friendly Festivals in NYC in Fall: September, October, and November

15th Annual NYC Unicycle Festival

Manhattan and Brooklyn – FREE
Thursday, August 29-Sunday, September 1, 2024
The Bindlestiff Family Cirkus rolls out its annual NYC Unicycle Festival across New York City, bringing together recreational riders, world-class performers, mountain and off-road unicycle enthusiasts, and mono-wheel vehicle inventors.  READ MORE

Corn Fest at the Queens County Farm Museum

Floral Park, Queens
Saturday & Sunday, September 7 & 8, 2024
The Queens County Farm Museum hosts an all-new Corn Fest to celebrate the grand opening of the 2024 Amazing Maize Maze. The event is jam-packed with a-maize-ing activities, games, and food.  READ MORE

West Side County Fair

Upper West Side
Sunday, September 8, 2024
Summer on the Hudson's biggest event of the season—the West Side County Fair—returns, bringing with it a full afternoon of county fair magic in Manhattan. READ MORE

Ferragosto 2024

Belmont, Bronx
Sunday, September 8, 2024
The Belmont section of the Bronx hosts the annual Ferragosto festival in the original Little Italy: Arthur Avenue and East 187th Street. READ MORE

Annual Bus Festival in Brooklyn Bridge Park

Brooklyn Heights – FREE
Sunday, September 8, 2024
The New York Transit Museum invites visitors aboard some of its beloved vintage vehicles at this annual fest. Explore buses from the vintage fleet representing more than 80 years of New York City surface transit history.  READ MORE

98th Annual Feast of San Gennaro in Little Italy

Little Italy
Thursday, September 12 - Sunday, September 22, 2024
The Feast of San Gennaro honors Italian Americans in professional baseball this year with its blocks-long street festival dubbed the "Feast of all Feasts!" Enjoy food, entertainment, and vendors along Mulberry Street from Houston to Canal. Food Network star Anne Burrell serves as grand marshal. READ MORE

China Institute Mid-Autumn Family Festival

Financial District
Saturday, September 21, 2024
Celebrate the fall harvest by participating in unique mid-autumn festivities, flavors, and activities for the entire family. Discover shadow puppetry, mooncakes, traditional Han garments, sugar paintings, and much more. READ MORE

Morningside Lights: In Retrospect at Columbia University

Morningside Heights
Saturday, September 21 and Saturday, September 28, 2024
Morningside Lights returns for its 13th year, illuminating the night in a procession of awe-inspiring handmade lanterns floating through Morningside Park to Columbia's campus. This year's theme, In Retrospect, celebrates how a century of New York art has shaped our image of where and how we live. READ MORE

Little Red Lighthouse Festival

Washington Heights – FREE
Saturday, September 28, 2024
Celebrate Manhattan’s only remaining lighthouse with Urban Park Ranger presentations, readings of The Little Red Lighthouse and The Great Gray Bridge children’s book, live music, and activities for all ages. READ MORE

Downtown Brooklyn Arts Festival

Downtown Brooklyn – FREE
Friday, September 27-Saturday, September 28, 2024
The Downtown Brooklyn Arts Festival is an annual celebration of the neighborhood's cultural community and the artists, writers, and performers who inspire the borough’s creative spirit. READ MORE

Brooklyn Book Festival

Downtown Brooklyn – FREE
Saturday & Sunday, September 28 & 29, 2024
Dive into some great books at the 2024 Brooklyn Book Festival. Kid-friendly programming abounds during Children's Day on Saturday, September 28. READ MORE

49th Annual Atlantic Antic: Playtopia, Powered by Prospect Schools

Downtown Brooklyn – FREE
Sunday, September 29, 2024
The largest street fest in New York City, the Atlantic Antic spans 10 blocks of Brooklyn’s Atlantic Avenue with food and craft vendors, family fun, and amazing performances. This year, Playtopia with Mommy Poppins and Brooklyn Bridge Parents, sponsored by Prospect Schools, is located between Hicks and Henry Streets in Cobble Hill near Brooklyn Bridge Park.  READ MORE

Curtain Up Broadway Festival Celebration

Midtown West – FREE
September
2024 dates TBD
Curtain Up Broadway Festival brings Broadway to the streets in the heart of New York City: Times Square. Stretching between 45th and 47th Streets, the festival includes interactive events and performances that are all live, free, and open to the public. READ MORE

Sugar Hill's Storytelling Festival

Harlem
Mid-September
2024 dates TBD
The Sugar Hill Children's Museum of Art and Storytelling hosts its fourth storytelling fest, inviting the city's best storytellers to explore the myths, folktales, tall tales, traditional and bilingual stories, and personal narratives that bind us. READ MORE

Sunnyside Gardens Park Annual Oktoberfest

Sunnyside, Queens
Saturday, October 5, 2024
Sunnyside Gardens Park transforms its picnic grove into an authentic biergarten with German-style beer, traditional German food, and live music and entertainment for the whole family. READ MORE

Blessing of the Animals at St. John the Divine

Morningside Heights – FREE
Sunday, October 6, 2024
The Cathedral of St. John the Divine welcomes families for a day of music, prayer, joy, blessings, and fun in honor of Saint Francis, the patron saint of animals and the environment. READ MORE

Open House New York

Citywide – FREE
Friday, October 18-Sunday, October 20, 2024
This year's Open House NYC once again offers a hybrid of virtual experiences, self-guided explorations, and in-person tours. Enjoy food trucks, pop-up eateries, outdoor activations, and more. READ MORE

Sound & Color! Autumn Festival in Brooklyn Bridge Park

Dumbo – FREE
Saturday, October 19, 2024
Celebrate the changing of the seasons at the Brooklyn Bridge Park Conservancy’s Sound & Color! Autumn in New York fall festival, an afternoon packed with music, arts and crafts, storytelling, lawn games, and more.    READ MORE

Diwali at Times Square

Midtown West – FREE
Saturday, October 19, 2024r
Billed as "the largest Indian Festival outside India," Diwali at Times Square features cultural performances, folk dances, concerts, Indian food, Indian clothing and jewels, Henna/Mehandi artists, balloon figures, and face painting plus free gifts and raffle drawings.   READ MORE

Red Hook Harvest Festival

Red Hook, Brooklyn – FREE
Saturday, October 19, 2024
Join the Red Hook Community Farm for the annual Red Hook Harvest Festival, a celebration of urban farming, youth empowerment, community connections, and a bountiful fall harvest. READ MORE

The Met Fall Festival 2024

Upper East Side
October
2024 date TBD
The Metropolitan Museum of Art's people-powered block party includes live music, energizing performances, and artist-led experiences for all ages. Enjoy a fun-filled afternoon of cultural adventures all celebrating the creative spirit of New York City. READ MORE

Big Halloween Get Down in Brooklyn Bridge Park

Brooklyn Heights, Brooklyn – FREE
Thursday, October 31, 2024
The Brooklyn Bridge Park Conservancy hosts an all-ages spooky dance party on the Pier 3 Plaza, with sounds by Herbert Holler. Doors open at 6pm and the dance party starts at 7pm. Advance online registration is encouraged. READ MORE

Brooklyn Folk Festival 2024

Gowanus, Brooklyn
Friday, November 8 - Sunday, November 10, 2024
2024 dates TBD
The Fabulous Jalopy Theatre and School of Music present the 15th annual Brooklyn Folk Festival. The festival features great events for the whole family, including a banjo throwing contest at the Gowanus Dredgers Boathouse, a concert by Hopalong Andrew (Sunday at 2pm), jam sessions, and workshops. READ MORE

Hearth & Harvest Festival

Historic Richmond Town, Staten Island
Saturday, November 23, 2024
2024 date TBD
Celebrate Native American culture and traditional 19th-century harvest activities through food, dance, storytelling, and crafts during this special program at Historic Richmond Town. READ MORE

18th Annual Brooklyn Children’s Book Fair at the Brooklyn Museum

Prospect Heights, Brooklyn – FREE
November
2024 dates TBD
The annual Brooklyn Children's Book Fair brings together 40 Brooklyn authors and illustrators to share their latest books. Throughout the day, children and their companions can attend readings and presentations, learn about the creative process, get books signed, and have fun drawing and coloring. READ MORE

Places featured in this article:

Various locations in Manhattan and Brooklyn
Governors Island
Various Locations
Museo del Barrio, 1230 5th Ave. @104th
Multiple locations around NYC
Various locations
Schomburg Center For Research In Black Culture
Pier 17, South Street Seaport
Flushing Meadows Corona Park
Hudson River Park - Pier 76
Multiple locations around NYC
Riverside Park South - Pier I
Emily Warren Roebling Plaza
Miller Theater at Columbia University
Little Red Lighthouse (in Fort Washington Park)
Sugar Hill Children's Museum of Art & Storytelling
Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine
Citywide and online
Brooklyn Bridge Park