Sea Music Festival (June 10-13): Hear the songs and sounds of maritime cultures from around the world! The Mystic Seaport’s Chantey Staff, The Johnson Girls, Barrouallie Whalers and many more will perform during this three-day festival.There will also be several workshops throughout the day. Mystic Seaport, CT, mysticseaport.org.
New Jersey Seafood Festival (June 11-13): Conch fritters, paella, alligator sausage, oh my! Don’t worry, a bounty of traditional favorites, like shrimp and calamari, will also be offered at this culinary event, which features chefs, crafts, musicians and a tremendous amount of seafood. Tote fresh sushi along when you board the festival trolley. Arts and crafts, storytellers and musicians will entertain young attendees in the kid-friendly fun tent. Belmar, NJ, belmar.com/seafoodfestival.
Hong Kong Dragon Boat Festival of Boston (June 12-13) Don’t miss the chance to watch Boston’s famed Charles River transform into a racetrack for dragon boats.The surrounding area will overflow with fun challenges for kids and adults. Think you can pick up marbles with chopsticks? Test your skills with help from the experts! Get your face painted as you explore the ancient art of macrame, and head home with the origami you’ll learn to craft. Boston, MA, bostondragonboat.org.
Fairfield County Irish Festival (June 18-20): There’s much to explore during this three-day celebration of all things Irish, featuring non-stop music, pipe bands, dance, cultural exhibits and more. A tent with rides will delight children of all ages, while dads can spend Father’s Day enjoying an outdoor Irish sporting event. Activities tailored specifically to kids are abundant. Fairfield County, CT, irishfestival.org.
Rose Weekend (June 19-20): Take the families on walking tours of flower gardens in full bloom throughout Connecticut’s River Valley, including the Elizabeth Park Rose Garden, which has more than 15,000 rose bushes in bloom. Children’s activities such as crafts, music, and live animals add to the amusement. Hartford, CT, elizabethpark.org.
Clearwater Festival (June 19-20): Spend Father’s Day weekend on the shores of the Hudson River at this annual festival, inspired by musician Pete Seeger’s desire to clean up the river. Along with live music by Seeger and other musicians, the event features storytellers and kid-friendly entertainers, a working riverfront, and environmental education sites. Croton Park Point, NY, clearwater.org.
Blueberry Festival (June 26): Did you know that the official state fruit of New Jersey is the blueberry? Explore the place where this tasty fruit was born. This old-fashioned festival includes a pie-eating contest, blueberry picking, historical presentations and tours, arts and country crafts, music, food and more. Brown Mills, NJ, whitesbog.org.
Strawberry
Festival (June
26): Fresh, homemade strawberry shortcake will be served up all day at
this festival. Visitors will also enjoy chocolate-dipped strawberries,
strawberry jam, strawberry milkshakes, strawberry fudge and other
Vermont specialties. Besides the food, there will be kid’s games, a
petting zoo, pony rides and face painting! Sam Mazza’s, Colchester,
VT, sammazzafarms.com.
Sunflower Farm Festival (July 3-4): A fifteen-acre field of
sunflowers in full bloom makes the perfect setting for this down-home
festival. Browse a craft market under a canopy of oak trees, listen to
live bluegrass, enjoy a BBQ sandwich and a tall lemonade, take part in
kids’ activities like face painting and pony rides, go on a hayride
through the field and cut your own bunch of sunflowers to take home! Rutledge,
GA, sunflowerfarmfestival.com.
Michigan Cherry Festival (July 3-10): Everything’s
better with a cherry on top, and Michigan is no exception. There’s no
shortage of opportunities for your kids to shine, whether they take part
in the cherry pie-eating contest, teen golf tournament or sandsculpture
competition. Spit a cherry pit the farthest and you may just win a
prize to commemorate the fun. Traverse City, MI, cherryfestival.org.
Whaling City
Festival (July
9-11): Kids will love Mark Fanelli’s Traveling Amusement Park and food
enthusiasts will be in heaven with dozens of international food vendors.
Check out the custom car and truck show or scour the craft and flea
market with over two hundred vendors. Make sure you don’t miss out on
the entertainment, there will be six stages set up for performances! New
Bedford, MA, whalingcityfestival.com.
Egg Festival (July 20-24): Get eggy with it
at Maine’s 38th annual festival honoring everyone’s favorite breakfast
ingredient. An egg breakfast will be cooked in a 300pound frying pan so
families can build up their strength before participating in the
Egg-lympics. There’s also a pageant, street dance, craft fair and
fireworks. Pittsfield, ME, eggfest. craftah.com.
NJ Peach
Festival (July
22-25): Be careful the
juice doesn’t drip down your chin as you eat fresh juicy peaches! See
the crowning of the New Jersey Peach Queen, find out who wins the
Governors Cup for the best box of peaches and take the kids to see the
educational displays. Stick around for the barbeque dinner and enjoy all
the tasty peach desserts. Mullica Hill, NJ, gc4hfair.com.
Maine Lobster
Festival (August
4-8): More than 1,000
volunteers work year-round to exceed the previous festival’s success,
and 2010 is no exception. Don’t fill up on the all-you-caneat pancakes,
because you’ll want to save some room for the 20,000 pounds of lobster
available for sampling. A parade, arts and crafts, cooking contests, and
kids’ events ensure that the five-day event is chock-full of variety. Rockland,
Atlantic City
Air Show (August
25): See the
heart-stopping feats of military and civilian pilots perform solo
routines, formation flying, and many aerobatic maneuvers over the
Atlantic City Boardwalk. This year’s show will be headlined by the U.S.
Air Force Thunderbirds and the U.S. Army Golden Knights Parachute team. Atlantic
City, NJ, atlanticcitynj.com.
Happy Campers
Whether it’s your
final destination or a fun-filled stop on the way to your vacation spot,
camping is a great way to spend uninterrupted time with your family and
explore the outdoors. Here are a few of our favorite campgrounds, all
just a few hours from New York City.
The Delaware Water
Gap: The Delaware Water Gap,
located just an hour and a half from the city, offers campers
spectacular views of the Appalachian Mountains, as well as a wide
variety of family-friendly activities like boating, fishing and hiking.
Editor’s
Pick: The Dingmans Campground, located in Dingmans Ferry,
Pennsylvania, offers 133 sites in a variety of settings and with
amenities like clean water and electricity. The site has plenty of
family packages, and hosts fairs and festivals throughout the summer. (dingmanscampground.com)
Bear Mountain State
Park: Located
near the Hudson River on the Appalachian Trail, this park features
large fields, picnic areas, biking trails and swimming pools.
Editor’s
Pick: Black Bear Campground in Orange County, New York, is a
pet-friendly family oasis, complete with basketball courts, hayrides and
much more. (blackbearcampground.com)
The Catskills: The Catskill Mountains
offer a diverse range of adventures like hiking, horseback riding, rock
climbing and more. For families that crave even more excitement, some
areas even include safaris, water parks and scenic train rides!
Editor’s
Pick: Mongaup Pond, located in Livingston Manor, New York, is a
serene campground situated on a 120-acre lake. The remote location,
dense forest and lake (perfect for swimming and boating!) are only a few
of the area’s attractions. (dec.ny.gov)
KOA : Kampgrounds of America
(KOA) operates campgrounds all over the country (there are 15 sites in
New York alone!), and also offers campers a wide variety of housing
options, including tent and RV sites, cabins, lodges and luxury
condominiums. The site to visit first? Koa.com, which can not only help
you pick a destination for your family, but also provides cookout
recipes, craft projects, games for the road, safety suggestions and much
more.
