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San Francisco’s Summer Festivals & Street Fairs (2024)

All the 2024 dates for 75+ of SF’s most fun festivals and street fairs including Fleet Week, Comedy Day, Hardly Strictly Bluegrass, and more
By - posted 8/1/2024 No Comment

Summer is the best time in San Francisco for fairs and festivals. Here’s a round-up of fun and fabulous summer festivals, street fairs, and the best events you can look forward to this summer 2024.

MAY 2024

SFMOMA Free Community Day

May 4, 2024 – SF (SoMa) – FREE – Free Community Days offer free museum-wide admission to all visitors, combined with a wide range of immersive activities and performances inspired by the latest SFMOMA exhibition.

25th Annual How Weird Street Faire

May 4, 2024 – SF (SoMa) – $25 – The longest-running dance festival/street parade on the West Coast returns with 9 stages of DJ music, art, and weirdness with this year’s theme: “Star Weird” May the 4th Be With You.

2024 de Youngsters Day Out

May 4, 2024 – SF (Golden Gate Park) – FREE – Bring the family to de Young Museum for their annual free all-day celebration of the arts with a museum takeover of art activities and hands-on activities.

2024 Yerba Buena Gardens Festival

May 4 – Nov. 2, 2024 – SF (SoMa) – FREE – Yerba Buena Gardens Festival hosts a full lineup of free outdoor music, theater, circus, dance, poetry, and children’s programs. The Festival kicks off on Saturday, May 4 at 1 pm with Cuban soul from Pedrito Martinez.

2024 Taiwanese American Cultural Festival

May 11, 2024 – SF (Union Square) – FREE – The West Coast’s largest celebration of Taiwanese American culture features tasty Taiwanese cuisine in the festival food court, show-stopping performances, fun, cultural activities and crowd-favorite vendors.

Hawaiian May Day Festival

May 11, 2024 – Hayward – FREE – Join the family-friendly festival dedicated to perpetuating Native Hawaiian and Polynesian culture through arts, language, music, and dancing.

The Exploratorium’s Free Admission Day

May 12, 2024 – SF (Embarcadero) – FREE* (Pay What You Wish) – The Exploratorium opens up its doors to everyone each year to celebrate Mother’s Day. It’s typically the only “pay what you wish” day all year.

The Bay’s Huge “626 Night Market”

May 17-19, 2024 – Pleasanton (Alameda County Fairgrounds) – $5 – Inspired by the famous open-air nighttime bazaars of Asia, come ready to feast and explore 200+ food, merchandise, crafts, arts, games, music, and entertainment attractions.

SF’s “Sundown Cinema” Film Night in the Park

May 17 – Oct. 18, 2024 – SF – FREE – This free outdoor movie series, the only one of its kind in the Bay Area, will feature seven films in seven parks across San Francisco, beginning on Friday, May 17, at Dolores Park with a Selena sing-along.

Bay to Breakers 2024

May 19, 2024 – SF (From Howard & Main to the Great Highway) – FREE to watch or ‘race’ unofficially – Welcome back to “Bay to Breakers,” the crown jewel of San Francisco events since 1912 with 20,000+ people racing (and 100,000+ watching) from the Bay to the Breakers at the western end of Golden Gate Park in a costumed mass of everything we love about San Francisco.

2024 San Francisco Carnaval Festival & Parade

May 25-26, 2024 – SF (Mission Dist.) – FREE – San Francisco’s Carnaval features a free, two–day festival covering 17 blocks in the Mission District, with five main stages, 50 local performing artists, and 400 vendors, plus its Grand Parade which boasts a 60-contingent lineup, with over 3,000 artists representing the cultural heritages of Brazil, Mexico, Panama, Bolivia, Cuba, Peru, Puerto Rico, Nicaragua, Colombia, Trinidad & Tobago, Guatemala, El Salvador, and more.

JUNE 2024

SF’s Grillin in the ‘Mo 2024

June 1, 2024 – SF (Fillmore) – FREE – San Francisco’s annual summer kickoff in the Fillmore brings a fun-filled day with a free R&B concert and family BBQ, plus kids activities like giant bubbles and bounce houses.

2024 Union Street Festival

June 1-2, 2024 – SF (Cow Hollow) – FREE – The historic 46th Annual Union Street Fair takes place in the Cow Hollow District on San Francisco’s fashionable Union Street, from Gough to Fillmore, with over 20 food trucks, live music & DJs, and the iconic Waiters Race.

10th Anniversary Bay Area Book Festival

June 1-2, 2024 – Berkeley – FREE – One of the country’s premier literary events, the two-day festival attracts over 10,000 attendees. The festival kicks off with a day-long series of workshops and sessions on Saturday, followed by an outdoor festival on Sunday with an Author Pavillion, Literary Marketplace, and more.

2024 Festa Italiana Street Fair

June 1-2, 2024 – SF (North Beach) – FREE – San Francisco’s under-the-radar Italian festival returns in the heart of North Beach with pizza toss demonstrations, Italian marionette shows, Tarantella dancing, live Italian music, a “Symphony” of accordions plus delectable Italian food and drink.

2024 San Francisco Juneteenth Parade & Festival

June 8, 2024 – SF (Embarcadero) – FREE – San Francisco hosts a big parade with vibrant floats and live music followed by a festival with incredible musical performances, food and drink, games, and so much more in celebration of Juneteenth.

“Be Free” Festival & Philippine Independence Crawl 2024

June 8, 2024 – SF (SoMa) – FREE – Bigger than ever, the Be Free Festival celebrates Filipino culture with five blocks and eight venues to eat, dance, and shop in SoMa Pilipinas in the areas near Mission and 5th.

OminoDay in the Park World Music Festival 2024

June 8, 2024 – SF (John McClaren Park) – FREE – One of the only home-grown, community-led music festivals in the area, OminoDay celebrates arts, culture and community of San Francisco with a fun day in the park featuring poets, dancers and DJs in loving memory of Andrew “DJ Domino” Ele.

2024 Golden Gate Park Band Festival

June 8-9, 2024 – SF (Golden Gate Park) – FREE – The annual two-day festival features bands from all around the state performing back-to-back concerts from 11am to 5pm in the Spreckels Temple of Music bandshell.

SFMOMA Free Family Day 2024

June 9, 2024 – SF (SoMa) – FREE* – SFMOMA opens up its doors to families for Free Family Day with art-making activities for the whole family and free admission for up to four adults accompanying each visitor 18 and younger.

2024 Juneteenth Freedom Celebration & Block Party

June 15, 2024 – SF (Fillmore) – FREE –  Eight blocks of the Fillmore get turned into a big community celebration with free unlimited carnival rides, six sprawling “districts” plus a classic car show, a block party, free wine tastings, live music and more.

70th Annual North Beach Festival

June 15-16, 2024 – SF (North Beach) – FREE – One of the country’s original outdoor festivals, North Beach Festival spans nine blocks around on Grant and near Washington Square Park with 150+ vendors and arts & craft booths, plus DJs, live music, beer gardens, Italian street art and the annual “Blessing of the Animals.”

26th Annual Native Contemporary Arts Festival

June 16, 2024 – SF (Yerba Buena Gardens) – FREE – A beloved Father’s Day tradition celebrating the creativity of North America’s Indigenous peoples featuring a diverse array of Native music, dance, spoken word, visual artists, vendors, and crafts.

Free National Parks Day 2024

June 19, 2024 – All Over the USA – FREE – In honor of Juneteenth, enjoy free entry to all national parks and monuments including Muir Woods and Yosemite National Park, and free admission aboard all of the historic vessels at the Hyde Street Pier of SF’s Maritime National Historical Park.

2024 Annual Soy & Tofu Festival

June 22, 2024 – SF (Western Addition) – FREE –  The annual festival celebrates all things soy with soy and tofu vendors, free samples, live performances, audience participation contests, cooking demonstrations, a raffle, and more.

“Sunday Streets” 2024

June 23 – October 20, 2024 – All Over SF – FREE –  Sunday Streets SF transforms San Francisco streets into car-free community spaces for all with free recreational activities, health resources, music, dance, and fun to neighborhoods across SF.

San Francisco’s Annual Trans March & Festival 2024

June 28, 2024 – SF (Dolores Park) – FREE – Hit the streets with pride to march through iconic neighborhoods, raising awareness and visibility for the transgender and gender non-conforming community. 2024 event details & times have not yet been announced.

2024 San Francisco Pride Parade & Festival

June 29-30, 2024 – SF (Civic Center) – FREE – The San Francisco LGBT Pride Celebration and Parade is one of the largest LGBT gatherings in the nation with a giant two-day festival and a massive parade with over 200 contingents.

JULY 2024

San Francisco 4th of July Fireworks Show 2024

July 4, 2024 – SF (Pier 39 / Fisherman’s Wharf / Fort Mason) – FREE – San Francisco’s annual Independence Day fireworks show is set off from two barges on the city’s northern waterfront. Just pray for the fog to stay away, otherwise, you’ll just see puffy colorful clouds.

San Francisco Mime Troupe 2024

July 4 – September 8, 2024 – FREE – The Tony Award-winning San Francisco Mime Troupe performs its 2024 season with more free and lively political musical theater in park settings around the Bay Area.

People in Plazas

Typically July through September – 15 different venues in SF – FREE – This free annual outdoor music festival puts on over 130+ free lunchtime concerts featuring an array of different styles from July to September in over 15 different public plazas near Market Street. The 2024 dates and information are not yet available, but the event typically kicks off in early July and runs through September. 

Dolores Park Hillbomb?

July 13, 2024?* (*It’s hard to know the exact date but often it’s around the second Saturday in July) – SF (Dolores Park) -FREE – Skateboarders speed down Dolores Hill in San Francisco for the annual “hill bomb”. Typically on a random early evening in early July, skateboarders take to the Dolores hill next to Dolores Park and fly down at breakneck speed (almost literally). The 2024 date and information are not yet available, but the event is typically scheduled, under the radar, for early/mid-July (the event was held last year on Saturday, July 8, 2023).

48th Annual San Francisco Free Folk Festival

July 13, 2024 – SF (Golden Gate Park Bandshell) – FREE – Taking over the historic bandshell and gardens in between the de Young and the Cal Academy of Sciences, the annual free folk festival typically features 5 stages of music and performances including folk, Irish singing, old-time fiddle, old California dances, bagpipes and more.

“Fiestas Fridas” Frida Kahlo Festival

Typically the second week of July – Various locations in SF – Frida Kahlo loved San Francisco, and the Fiestas Fridas Festival shows how much we have come to love her in return, in our own unique style, of course. The festival celebrates the inimitable painter (1907-1954) typically with music, activities, and numerous opportunities to demonstrate devotion. The 2024 date and information are not yet available, but the event is typically scheduled for the second week in July (the festival was held last year from July 8-23, 2023). 

Festival of Chariots

July 14, 2024 – SF (Golden Gate Park) – FREE – An ancient spiritual festival of India made its way to the West; watch the parade, pull chariots, take part in a free feast, tour through exhibits, watch cultural performances, and more.

113th Annual Hayes Valley Carnival

July 20, 2024 – SF (Hayes Valley) – FREE – Open-air contemporary circus with carnival games and prizes and two performances by Circus Bella and Prescott Theater Circus at 1pm and 3pm.

2024 Urban Youth Arts Festival

July 20, 2024 – SF (Precita Park) – FREE – Precita Eyes celebrates its 28th year of providing a safe, fun, and free space for youth to express themselves through collaborative spray art through a day of fun with live music, dancers, plus kids’ and collaborative art activities.

SF’s Dirtybird Free Back to Baysics Rave

July 21, 2024 – SF (Embarcadero Plaza) – FREE – Dirtybird is hosting a free outdoor rave for all ages in San Francisco’s Embarcadero Plaza which will include lawn games, face painters, and even possibly free ice cream.

The Bay’s Huge “626 Night Market”

July 26 – 28, 2024 – Pleasanton – $5 – Inspired by the famous open-air nighttime bazaars of Asia, this iconic Californian festival named after the 626 area code region of San Gabriel Valley, northeast of Los Angeles, features 200+ food, merchandise, crafts, arts, games, music, and entertainment attractions in an epic event that appeals to all ages.

2024 San Francisco Marathon

July 28, 2024 – SF – FREE to Watch – Get up early to watch the fastest runners in the Bay. The race starts at 5:15am at Embarcadero at Mission and heads over and back the Golden Gate Bridge, through the Presdio, Golden Gate Past, down to Chase Center, by Oracle Park and back up past the Bay Bridge for the finish line.

Aloha by the Bay

Typically late July – SF (Japantown Peace Plaza) – FREE – A “pop-up” festival with Hawaiian music. The 2024 date and information are not yet available, but the festival is typically held in late July (last year’s festival was on Saturday, July 29, 2023). The 2024 info is coming in June.

Due South Music Festival

Typically End of July – SF Jerry Garcia Amphitheatre (McLaren Park) – FREE – Typically, from July through October, a lineup of contemporary talent as diverse as the Bay Area itself takes the stage each month at Jerry Garcia Amphitheater. The entire concert series is free and open to the public. The 2024 dates and information are not yet available, but the festival typically kicks off in late July with one concert a month through October. Last year, the first concert was held on Saturday, July 29, 2023.

Up Your Alley 2024

July 28, 2024 – SF (SoMa) – FREE (donations appreciated) – If rubber, sportswear, biker gear, punks, or any variety of built, hairy men turns you on, then they’ve got it. You probably won’t find a filthier event in the states. This fetish festival makes Folsom Street Fair look tame.

AUGUST 2024

50th Annual Nihonmachi Street Fair

August 3-4, 2024 – SF (Japantown Peace Plaza and Post Street) – FREE – Japantown’s 50th annual festival and street fair with a car show, “doggie world”, food fest, plus live music and cultural performance stages.

Free National Parks Day

August 4, 2024 – All Over the USA – FREE – Enjoy free entry to all national parks and monuments including Muir Woods and Yosemite National Park, and free admission aboard all of the historic vessels at the Hyde Street Pier of SF’s Maritime National Historical Park.

2024 Pistahan Filipino Festival & Parade

August 10-11, 2024 – SF (Yerba Buena Gardens) – FREE – Two-day event kicks off Saturday with the annual Pistahan Parade, the largest Filipino parade on the West Coast along with tons of live music, dance performances, and hands-on and authentic cultural experiences in 8 pavilions: Art, Culinary, Dance, Health, Heritage, Innovation, Sports and Tavern.

2024 Perseids

August 11-13, 2024 – All Over – FREE – Get out in the open, away from city lights to see the annual Perseids Meteor Shower, the most beloved meteor shower of the year for the Northern Hemisphere.

San Jose’s 2024 FoodieLand Night Market

August 16-18, 2024 – San Jose – FREE – Inspired by Asia’s open-air night markets, FoodieLand is a family-friendly outdoor food festival featuring a carefully curated multicultural marketplace featuring 175 vendors representing foods and flavors from across the globe. Plus there are carnival games and live musical performances.

“King of the Streets” Lowrider Show & Car Hopping Contest 2024

August 17, 2024 – SF (Palace of Fine Arts) – $10 – Check out an epic lowrider car show at a new location for 2024 at the Palace of Fine Arts with up to 500 classic cars from the 1930s to 1980s, then watch in awe at the car hopping competition where cars compete for how high they can go, followed by a lowrider cruise through the Mission. 

2024 Annual Dahlia Competition in Golden Gate Park

August 17-18, 2024 – SF (Golden Gate Park) – FREE – The Dahlia Society of California draws thousands of visitors to its annual show in the enormous Hall of Flowers. Growers from all over the state bring their best blooms. Blooms in all categories are judged and awarded ribbons, including the elusive “Best in Show.”

Hungry Ghost Festival

August 17, 2024 – SF (Chinatown) – FREE –  The Hungry Ghost Festival, akin to the Day of the Dead, celebrates Chinese traditions and cultural heritage. This free family-friendly event features interactive art, performances, Chinatown businesses, and a one-of-a-kind “Ghost King Parade” that’s not to be missed.

 

SEPTEMBER 2024

Opera in the Park 2024

September 8, 2024 – SF (Robin Williams Meadow, Golden Gate Park) – FREE – Upwards of 15,000 bring their picnic blankets and wine to the park for this annual free outdoor concert by the San Francisco Opera for a delightful afternoon of arias, duets and more performed by the stars of the fall season.

2024 Flower Piano: 12 Hidden Pianos in GG Park

September 13-22, 2024 – SF (Golden Gate Park) – FREE for SF residents – For 10 days, Flower Piano will once again transform San Francisco Botanical Garden into the city’s own alfresco concert hall where everyone is invited to play and listen.

“Corgi Con” Bay Area 2024

September 14, 2024 – Pleasanton – (Alameda County Fairgrounds) – $11 – Celebrate all things Corgi at the largest Corgi event in Northern Corgifornia.

2024 Chinatown Autumn Moon Festival

September 14-15, 2024 – SF (Chinatown) – FREE –  The bustling streets of San Francisco’s Chinatown are transformed into a vibrant public celebration for the 34th Annual Autumn Moon Festival filled with arts and crafts vendors, food vendors, live music, local contemporary entertainment, mooncakes, lion dancing, and more family-friendly fun.

45th Annual Haight Ashbury Street Fair

September 15, 2024 – SF (Haight) – FREE – The annual Haight Ashbury Street Fair brings thousands of people to Haight Street between Stanyan and Masonic to shop over 200 outdoor vendors including food, green businesses, local artists, clothing, crafts, non-profits and more plus two stages of live music.

SF’s Annual Comedy Day 2024

September 15, 2024 – SF (Golden Gate Park) – FREE – San Francisco’s original, longest-running, free, outdoor comedy concert in the world, Comedy Day in the Park is back to celebrate its 43rd anniversary with a five-hour free comedy show in the park with over 50 comedians.

45th Annual Haight Ashbury Street Fair

September 15, 2024 – SF (Haight) – FREE – The annual Haight Ashbury Street Fair brings thousands of people to Haight Street for a six-block-long street fair with 200+ vendors and live music on two stages.

2024 San Francisco Greek Festival

September 20-22, 2024 – SF (Mission Dist) – FREE – “A Taste of Greece” returns for its 73rd year with aromas of freshly made Spanakopita, Moussaka, Gyros, plus live Greek music and dancing.

3rd Annual Chinatown Lion Dance Festival

September 21-22, 2024 – SF (Chinatown) – FREE – Experience the excitement of the traditional lion dance, performed by skilled dancers to the beat of the drums.

Yerba Buena Gardens Dance Day 2024

September 28, 2024 – SF (Yerba Buena Gardens) – FREE –  Yerba Buena Gardens transforms into an outdoor dance center where participants can sample dance in a variety of forms and flavors with some of the Bay Area’s most talented teachers.

OCTOBER 2024

Hardly Strictly Bluegrass 2024

October 4-6, 2024 – SF (Golden Gate Park – FREE – One of the largest, free-est, and beloved music festivals in the country. Be one of over 750,000 attendees over the three-day musical extravaganza in beautiful Golden Gate Park.

50th Annual Castro Street Fair

October 6, 2024 – SF (Castro) – FREE – Community street celebration that was founded by Harvey Milk in 1974 features hundreds of local artists, vendors, craftspeople, and multiple stages with live entertainment and dancing throughout the neighborhood.

2024 San Francisco Fleet Week

October 7-14, 2024 – SF (Northern Waterfront) – FREE – The annual Fleet Week airshow and festival is back with nearly a full week of events including ship tours, K9 showcases, ship tours and the three-day airshow running October 11-13, 2024 highlighted by the Blue Angels buzzing the city.

2024 Italian Heritage Festival & Parade

October 13, 2024 – SF (North Beach) – FREE – The San Francisco Italian Heritage Parade launched in 1868, and is now the longest continuously running Italian Heritage Parade in the United States. 

2024 Bearrison Street Fair

October 13, 2024 – SF (SoMa) – FREE – Enjoy burly entertainment, including attendee competitions building off the fan-favorite wrestling stage and the buns-out deadlift competition.

2024 Indigenous Peoples Day

October 14, 2024 – SF (Yerba Buena) – FREE – Join the celebration of San Francisco’s Indigenous Peoples Day at Yerba Buena Gardens with Native American art, music and vendors. The program highlights the vastly diverse and talented community of Indigenous artists in the Bay Area, California and beyond.

Potrero Hill R&B Festival 2024

October 19, 2024 – SF (Potrero Hill) – FREE – Jam out to R&B music while we celebrate the Potrero community outdoors on 20th Street as we stretch out over 4 blocks with live music, food, family, and fun.

Sunday Streets “Phoenix Day” Block Party Day 2024

October 20, 2024 – SF – FREE – SF’s biggest block party with over a dozen community-led block parties and activities happening across the city, there’s something for every San Franciscan and visitor to enjoy.

SF’s Annual Sandcastle Classic 2024

October 26, 2024 – SF (Ocean Beach) – FREE – For one day, Ocean Beach is home to the largest sandcastle contest in Northern California; featuring dozens of jaw-dropping, supersized sand sculptures; plus there are food trucks and live music all day.