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Best June Festivals and Street Fairs in NYC for Families

The Mermaid Parade on Coney Island is a joyful summer rite of passage. Photo by Raven Snook
The Mermaid Parade on Coney Island is a joyful summer rite of passage. Photo by Raven Snook
5/26/23 - By Drew Kristofik

Summer festival season kicks into high gear in June when the debut of warmer weather prompts a head-spinning number of fantastic fairs, parades, carnivals, and other fetes.

Annual over-the-top celebrations include Museum Mile, Egg Rolls, Egg Creams & Empanadas, Make Music NYC, the Figment Festival, and Coney Island's iconic Mermaid Parade.

Most of June's fairs and festivals are FREE, so get your calendar; you're going to want to write these dates down. Be sure to bookmark our Family Activity Calendar and Guide to Summer Fun in NYC for more great things to do all season long.

Subscribe to our newsletters to get stories like this delivered directly to your inbox.

As always, if an event piques your interest, click through to our listing for all the details, including addresses, times, and recommended ages. And keep in mind: Really cool things to do with kids often book up quickly, so register or buy your tickets ASAP.

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The Figment Festival returns to Snug Harbor for another day of interactive, art-inspired fun. Photo courtesy of the festival
The Figment Festival returns to Snug Harbor for another day of interactive, art-inspired fun. Photo courtesy of the festival

Festivals and Street Fairs in NYC From Thursday, June 1-Sunday, June 4, 2023

Queens Rising: A Celebration of Arts & Culture

Multiple Queens Locations–FREE
Opens Thursday, June 1
Queens Rising NYC is an independent, month-long initiative celebrating the borough’s diverse arts, culinary, and creative communities, bringing together more than 100 programming partners to host, promote, and highlight a diverse roster of events and activities. READ MORE

Dumbo Drop Block Party

Dumbo, Brooklyn–FREE
Friday, June 2
The Great Dumbo Drop is back! The annual block party tradition returns with its signature wow factor—thousands of elephants dropping onto Washington Street, Brooklyn's most photographed block. READ MORE

Literature Festival

Flushing, Queens–FREE
Friday, June 2
Explore the wonderful world of children’s literature with readings of timeless children’s classics as well as contemporary selections. Book giveaways, word games, face painting, and refreshments are all included in the festivities. READ MORE

Red Hook Fest 2023

Red Hook, Brooklyn–FREE
Friday, June 2-Saturday, June 3
Red Hook Fest 2023 kicks off with a dance party and community barbecue at PS 15. With activities, free food, and great music, the opening night event is a fun neighborhood gathering for the whole family. The festivities continue on Saturday, June 4, with main stage events at Coffey Park and Pier.  READ MORE

PS 125 Ralph Bunche School Spring Fair

Harlem
Saturday, June 3
Celebrate all things spring at the PS 125 annual Spring Fair!  Activities include a bouncy house, touch-a-truck, BioBus, Harlem Grown's mobile kitchen, face painting, henna and nail art, slime making, tie dye, food, snacks, and more! READ MORE

TILT Kids Day

Upper East Side
Saturday, June 3
FIAF hosts a day filled with fun activities focusing on "la fete" (celebration). Stop by for a giant family party and enjoy the most wonderful aspects of celebrations: dancing, music, and time spent together. READ MORE

Figment Festival

Snug Harbor, Staten Island–FREE
Saturday, June 3-Sunday, June 4
Attracting tens of thousands of visitors for the past 12 years, this family-friendly festival is an explosion of creative energy and imagination, perfect for adults and kids alike. READ MORE

City Island Spring Arts & Crafts Fair

City Island, the Bronx–FREE
Saturday, June 3-Sunday, June 4
Head over to City Island in the Bronx for its annual spring arts and crafts fair, featuring 50+ artists and craftspeople displaying and selling their works along the sidewalks of City Island Avenue. READ MORE

Drums Along the Hudson: A Native American Festival

Inwood–FREE
Sunday, June 4
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

The Happening

Tribeca–FREE
Sunday, June 4
Church Street School for Music and Art hosts its annual community block party with live music, interactive art projects, games, and more. READ MORE

Classical Kids Fair

Crown Heights, Brooklyn
Sunday, June 4
The Classical Kids Fair invites families to enjoy live performances, an instrument petting zoo, arts and crafts, radio broadcasting workshops, and more. Listen and play music along with WQXR, the Brooklyn Conservatory of Music, dancers from the Met Opera ballet, and The Little Orchestra Society. READ MORE
Artists bring live music to the Prospect Park Bandshell during the BRIC Celebrate Brooklyn Festival. Photo courtesy of the festival
Artists bring live music to the Prospect Park Bandshell during the BRIC Celebrate Brooklyn Festival. Photo courtesy of the festival

Festivals and Street Fairs in NYC From Monday, June 5-Sunday, June 11, 2023

Astoria Park Carnival

Astoria, Queens
Wednesday, June 7-Sunday, June 11
Dreamland Amusements packs Astoria Park with a Ferris wheel, roller coasters, Himalaya gravity defiers, swings, bumper cars, carnival games, and more kid-friendly amusements. READ MORE

BRIC: Celebrate Brooklyn

Prospect Park, Brooklyn–FREE
Opens Wednesday, June 7
BRIC: Celebrate Brooklyn is a free summer-long outdoor concert and performance series that has been presenting talent from around the world and around the block for more than 40 years. Bring a blanket and a picnic and enjoy! READ MORE

Hudson River Dance Festival

Chelsea–FREE
Thursday, June 8-Friday, June 9
NOTE: The Thursday evening performance is canceled due to air quality concerns. The ninth annual Hudson River Dance Festival showcases four talented companies, performing a variety of pieces from modern dance to classical ballet, giving New Yorkers a unique opportunity to see incredible talent perform against the stunning backdrop of the Hudson River. READ MORE

2023 Annual Bus Festival

Dumbo, Brooklyn–FREE
Saturday, June 10
The New York Transit Museum invites visitors aboard some of its beloved vintage vehicles at this annual fest, which returns for the first time since 2019. Explore buses from the vintage fleet representing more than 80 years of New York City surface transit history.  READ MORE

Family Fun Day at Carl Schurz Park

Upper East Side–FREE
Saturday, June 10
NYC Parks and Council Member Julie Menin host a fun afternoon of crafts, inflatables, music, jumbo games, an obstacle course, and more. READ MORE

Brooklyn Pride’s 23rd Annual Pride Celebration

Park Slope, Brooklyn–FREE
Saturday, June 10
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

Lavender Festival

Governors Island
Saturday, June 10
The NYC Lavender Festival invites families to participate in maker workshops, harvesting opportunities, demonstrations, and fun family activities, all connected with Earth Matter’s Lavender Field. READ MORE

Roosevelt Island Day

Roosevelt Island
Saturday, June 10
Roosevelt Island celebrates itself with island beautification projects, carnival games and rides, food, live entertainment, information booths, giveaways, and more. READ MORE

Brooklyn International Music Fest

Carroll Gardens, Brooklyn
Friday, June 9-Sunday, June 11
The Brooklyn International Music Festival is a celebration of the music and culture from the diverse ethnic communities of New York City, offering dance, music, workshops, and lectures to explore an array of international and diasporic musical traditions. READ MORE

Jazz Age Lawn Party

Governors Island
Saturday, June 10-Sunday, June 11
Don your best period garb and hop the ferry to Governors Island for its annual Jazz Age Lawn Party. The festival is the world’s original and largest prohibition-era-inspired gathering. READ MORE
Try paddleboarding and more sports in Central Park at Adventures NYC. Photo by Daniel Avila for NYC Parks
Try paddleboarding and more sports in Central Park at Adventures NYC. Photo by Daniel Avila for NYC Parks

Festivals and Street Fairs in NYC From Monday, June 12-Sunday, June 18, 2023

Museum Mile Festival

Upper East Side–FREE
Tuesday, June 13
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

Adventures NYC

Central Park–FREE
Saturday, June 17
Get ready to bike, climb, race, and "surf" at Adventures NYC! Join the NYC Parks Department in Central Park to celebrate the great outdoors and enjoy a day of adventure—for free. READ MORE

The Mermaid Parade

Coney Island, Brooklyn–FREE
Saturday, June 17
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

Family Fun Day at Thomas Jefferson Park

Harlem–FREE
Saturday, June 17
NYC Parks and Council Member Diana Ayala host a fun afternoon of crafts, inflatables, music, jumbo games, an obstacle course, and more. READ MORE

The 20th Annual Hunts Point Fish Parade and Summer Festival

Hunts Point, the Bronx–FREE
Saturday, June 17
The annual Hunt’s Point Fish Parade is back, with a Rooted Visions theme. 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

Juneteenth Celebration

Richmond Town, Staten Island
Sunday, June 18
Visit Historic Richmond Town to honor Juneteenth with demonstrations of hearth cooking, discussions of social history, and historical reenactment. Learn about the history and origins of this holiday celebrating the end of American chattel slavery. READ MORE

Egg Rolls, Egg Creams, and Empanadas Festival

Lower East Side–FREE
Sunday, June 18
The Museum at Eldridge Street presents its 22nd 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
Celebrate Pridefest with the whole family in Brooklyn. Photo courtesy of the Pridefest
Celebrate Pridefest with the whole family in Brooklyn. Photo courtesy of the Pridefest

Festivals and Street Fairs in NYC From Monday, June 19-Thursday, June 30, 2023

Make Music New York

Citywide–FREE
Tuesday, June 21
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

Brooklyn Americana Music Festival

Brooklyn Heights
Saturday, June 24-Sunday, June 25
Americana musicians perform original and traditional songs on fiddle, banjo, mandolin, upright bass, ukulele, and more, spanning a range of genres including country, folk, blues, old-time, bluegrass, and jazz. READ MORE

Queens International Children's Festival

Jamaica, Queens–FREE
Saturday, June 24-Sunday, June 25
The two-day fun-filled family event brings high-quality arts performances and craft activities to inspire young people and families to enjoy the arts. Activities include live music, dance performances, games, arts and crafts, and more. READ MORE

PrideFest Festival

Greenwich Village–FREE
Sunday, June 25
The annual PrideFest street fair features live music, artists, craft vendors, food trucks, performers, and more. FamilyFest activities take over the streets around Astor Place. READ MORE

Places featured in this article:

Various locations in Queens
Washington Street between York and Plymouth Streets
FIAF - French Institute Alliance Française
Church Street School for Music and Art
Emily Warren Roebling Plaza
Multiple locations in Brooklyn
Jamaica Performing Art Center (JPAC)