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Weekend Fun: Pride Celebrations, Bus Festival, Riverfest, Family Fairs

Celebrate the Hudson RIver and have a blast at the Riverdale RiverFest. Photo courtesy of the event
Celebrate the Hudson RIver and have a blast at the Riverdale RiverFest. Photo courtesy of the event
6/5/19 - By Drew Kristofik

Looking for a party? June's second weekend is packed with kid-friendly celebrations. The Riverdale RiverFest features boat rides, mini-golf, a bounce house, and more in the Bronx. The Children's Museum of Manhattan hosts a weekend-long celebration of Puerto Rican culture. Brooklyn toasts Coney Island's immigrant past with performances and music on the boardwalk for History Day. In Queens, the Green Day Festival salutes Mother Earth with kid-friendly activities and demos. On Sunday, the NY Transit Museum brings vintage buses to Dumbo.

June is Pride Month, and the second weekend in June kicks off Pride celebrations around town. On Saturday, Brooklyn's 23rd Annual Pride Celebration lights up Park Slope with a street fair and parade, and the Brooklyn Children's Museum gets in on the fun too. On Sunday, the Children's Museum of the Arts hosts its own Pride Cultural Festival, complete with a mini-Vogue Ball and a drag queen storytime. 

Randall's Island offers tours of FDNY's Training Academy on Saturday, where fire engine fans can learn all about how fire fighters train to keep the city safe. Stick around for a free outdoor screening of Mary Poppins Returns as the sun goes down. Other movies al fresco this weekend also include Avengers: Infinity War in Manhattan and Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse on Staten Island. Check out our growing lists of FREE concerts and outdoor movies around town.

For more ideas, see our Summer Fun Guide, and keep an eye on our endlessly expanding calendar! Plan ahead for Father's Day with our handy guide to the top things to do in the city with your favorite dad.

OUR LATEST VIDEOS

The Children's Museum of the Arts hosts a Free Art Island Outpost on Governors Island. Photo courtesy of the event
The Children's Museum of the Arts hosts a Free Art Island Outpost on Governors Island. Photo courtesy of the event

All Weekend

Puerto Rican Day Parade

Upper West Side
Celebrate un pueblo, muchas voces (one nation, many voices) at the Children’s Museum, recognizing the creativity and diversity of Puerto Rico and the National Puerto Rican Day Parade. READ MORE

Children's Museum of the Arts: Free Art Island Outpost

Governors Island — FREE
Young artists travel to the historic Governors Island for free hands-on art making workshops and art-viewing experiences.  READ MORE

Astoria Park Carnival

Astoria, Queens
Astoria Park comes alive with the sights, sounds, and aromas of a colorful midway. Enjoy rides and games for all ages, plus favorite fair food.  READ MORE

LC Kids: Pulsar

Upper West Side
Part modern dance, part performance art, this thoughtfully designed show from the Mexican-Argentinian theater company Teatro al Vacío invites infants and toddlers to explore their emergent creativity in a safe and friendly space. READ MORE

Our Most Wild Imaginings

Riverdale, The Bronx
Celebrate and learn from Wave Hill’s Art, Community and Environment Stewards (ACES) youth interns with artmaking inspired by their exhibition, on view in the Gund Theater. READ MORE
Take to the streets for the Positively 8th Street Festival. Photo courtesy of the festival
Take to the streets for the Positively 8th Street Festival. Photo courtesy of the festival

Saturday, June 8

8th Street Block Party

Greenwich Village
The Village Alliance hosts a free celebration of the people and places of the Village on 8th Street, featuring live music with the Village Trip, art classes with New York Studio School, big games for adults and children’s games from Streetlab, and more.   READ MORE

Queens Green Day: Soil Jam

Long Island City, Queens — FREE
Celebrate Earth Day at Socrates Sculpture Park with hands-on activities that sow the seeds for a season of growing. READ MORE

Brooklyn Pride’s 28th Annual Celebration in J.J. Byrne Park

Park Slope, Brooklyn — FREE
Brooklyn Pride hosts its annual multicultural festival featuring a​ cross-section of the borough’s business, community, and citywide organizations. Hit the family fun zone in J.J. Byrne Park for family-friendly activities, music, face painting, arts and crafts, story times, and more. READ MORE

Celebrate NY’s Annual PRIDE Festival at the Brooklyn Children's Museum

Crown Heights, Brooklyn
Join Brooklyn Children’s Museum to make pride flag-inspired instruments and reflect on the history of LGBTQ+ rights in New York and around the world. READ MORE

Tour FDNY’s Training Academy 'The Rock'

Randall's Island — FREE
Attention all fireman/engine/fighter fans: Randall's Island Park Alliance and NYC's Bravest are hostong a tour of this unique and active training academy. READ MORE

Movies Under the Stars: Avengers: Infinity War (PG-13)

East Harlem — FREE
On a mission to collect all six Infinity Stones, Thanos plans to use the artifacts to inflict his twisted will on reality. READ MORE

Movies Under the Stars: Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (PG)

Staten Island — FREE
This Oscar-winning animated feature is based on the Marvel Comics character, Miles Morales / Spider-Man and follows Miles as he becomes one of the many Spider-Men that team up to save New York City from Kingpin. READ MORE

Children's Potions and Plantings Tea Party

Chelsea
The Children’s Potions & Planting Tea Party invites boys and girls to a monthly tea in the gorgeous city rooftop garden, Gallow Green, accompanied by their parents and a favorite stuffed animal or teddy bear. READ MORE

Family Day in John Jay Park

Upper East Side — FREE
NYC Parks and Council Member Julie Menin host a fun afternoon of crafts, inflatables, music, jumbo games, an obstacle course, and more READ MORE

Living History: Meet Abraham Lincoln

Upper West Side
Meet the 16th President of the United States as portrayed by Living Historian Howard Wright. READ MORE

Scandia Symphony Children's Concert: Fit as a Troll

Inwood - FREE
As Fit as a Troll was designed to teach children about healthy eating habits and exercise. The humorous script, by Scandia Symphony’s Frank Foerster, was inspired by Michele Obama’s “Let's Move” program. READ MORE

Outdoor Movie Night on Randall's Island

Randall's Island — FREE
Randall's Island screens family-friendly films on select weekends over the summer on fields 81 and 42. Free popcorn is included (while supplies last). READ MORE

Laurel & Hardy Comedy Films with live music

Midtown West — FREE
The Silent Clowns Film Series presents four hilarious comedy shorts starring Laurel & Hardy, all presented with live piano accompaniment by Ben Model. READ MORE
Pitch in and help clean up harmful plastic from the beach in the Rockaways. Photo courtesy of 4oceans
Pitch in and help clean up harmful plastic from the beach in the Rockaways. Photo courtesy of 4oceans

Sunday, June 9

Annual Bus Festival in Brooklyn Bridge Park

Dumbo, Brooklyn — FREE
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

History Day at Deno's Wonder Wheel Park

Coney Island, Brooklyn — FREE
Celebrate Coney Island's Immigrant Heritage at the 8th annual History Day featuring performances by musicians and dancers representing the traditional culture of countries from which people have emigrated to Coney Island.  READ MORE

Pride Cultural Festival

Hudson Square
The museum runs special workshops and performances celebrating the LGBTQ+ community in recognition of Pride month. READ MORE

Ramadan Eid Festival at the Brooklyn Children's Museum

Crown Heights, Brooklyn
Brooklyn Children’s Museum invites families to learn the story of Eid al-Fitr, enjoy hands-on activities, and celebrate cultural traditions from across the Muslim world with Council Member Shahana Hanif and various cultural partners, artists, and performers. READ MORE

La MaMa Kids: Family Play Date

Lower East Side
Hosts Richard Ebihara & Perry Yung, of Slant Performance Group, weave magical humor through their 7th Annual La MaMa’s Family Play Date – a fun-filled cabaret performance embracing dance, music, and theatre. READ MORE

Frog and Toad Day

The Bronx
Frogs and toads are ancient amphibians that once shared the earth with dinosaurs. Like most amphibians, they are important indicators of environmental health and have adapted to survive in water, the desert and even arctic habitats. READ MORE

4ocean World Oceans Day Celebration

Rockaway, Queens — FREE
Do your part to help clean up the ocean at this volunteer event. The 4ocean Village will on hand offering environmental education presentations and demonstrations perfect for students who want to know more about marine debris, plastic pollution, and how they can be a part of the solution to cleaner oceans. READ MORE

Scandinavian Music Festival in Fort Tryon Park

Inwood — FREE
Now in its 20th year, NY Scandia Symphony treats Washington Heights and Inwood to outdoor music programs in Fort Tryon Park. Bring a blanket and enjoy these free performances with views of the Hudson River as the backdrop. READ MORE

Sunday Story Time with Stephen Savage

Park Slope, Brooklyn — FREE
From author-illustrator Stephen Savage comes a playful wordless picture book about what the figures on road signs do when no one is around. What do the figures on signs do when no one is watching? Under cover of night, they leave their signs to play and collaborate in this imaginative story. READ MORE

Places featured in this article:

Governors Island’s Nolan Park
New York Historical Society DiMenna Children's History Museum
Randall's Island
Bruno Walter Auditorium / Library for the Performing Arts
Emily Warren Roebling Plaza
Deno's Wonder Wheel Amusement Park