Family events on Long Island
21 hand-picked family-friendly events — museums, library programs, festivals, and the family weekends Long Island does best.
Editor's Pick Northport Fall Festival
Northport Village's signature street festival shuts Main Street down for a full Saturday of food trucks, live music on the harborfront stage, kids' rides, and 100+ local vendors. Park on Bay Avenue by 10:30 AM — the main lot fills by 11. The food vendor lineup at the village green is the highlight; line up by noon for the first wave before the lunch rush.
- When
- Where
- Northport Village, Northport
Patchogue Alive After Five — Opening Night
Downtown Patchogue's summer Friday-night street festival kicks off. Main Street shuts down 5-10 PM for live music on four stages, food from every restaurant on the strip, beer gardens at three corners, and family activities at Roe Park. The Patchogue Theatre stage is the main draw — get there by 7 PM for a good spot.
- When
- Where
- Downtown Patchogue (Main Street), Patchogue
Editor's Pick Oyster Bay Oyster Festival — 200K Visitors, One Weekend
The Oyster Festival is Long Island's largest annual event — 200,000+ visitors over a single October weekend in Oyster Bay's Theodore Roosevelt Memorial Park. Working oyster harbor showcase, food + craft + live music, tall ship in the harbor. Free admission. Pack patience for the traffic, but it's the LI event of the year.
- When
- Where
- Theodore Roosevelt Memorial Park, Oyster Bay
Editor's Pick Old Westbury Gardens — Summer Open Season
Old Westbury Gardens is one of Long Island's most underappreciated cultural treasures — a 200-acre English landscape estate with formal gardens, the Phipps mansion, and weekly summer concerts on the West Pond. Family-friendly, golden-hour-perfect, and the kind of LI experience that makes out-of-state visitors reconsider Long Island.
- When
- Where
- Old Westbury Gardens, Old Westbury
- Price
- TBD
Greenport Maritime Festival — North Fork Harbor Weekend
Greenport's annual Maritime Festival turns the working harbor village into a regional weekend destination — tall ships in the harbor, oyster shucking competitions, traditional whaleboat races, food + craft vendors along Front Street, live music throughout. Free admission. The locals' East End fall favorite.
- When
- Where
- Greenport Village Harbor, Greenport
Editor's Pick Islanders vs. Rangers — Battle of New York
The Islanders host the Rangers at UBS Arena in Belmont — the regular-season opener of the most-watched rivalry in NYC-area pro sports. UBS Arena is the modernized 17,000-seat home of the Islanders since 2021. Plan extra time for parking + the Belmont Park access road traffic on game nights.
- When
- Where
- UBS Arena, Belmont Park
- Price
- TBD
Long Island Aquarium — Behind the Scenes Tour
A 90-minute small-group tour with an aquarium biologist. Walk above the shark tank, see the food prep kitchen, meet the rescue sea turtles in rehab. Limited to 12 guests per tour. The 11 AM slot is the quietest; the 2 PM is for kids who just finished general admission. Plan for the tour to bookend a half-day visit, not stand alone.
- When
- Where
- Long Island Aquarium, Riverhead
- Price
- TBD
Cradle of Aviation Museum — Summer Camp Sessions
Garden City's Cradle of Aviation Museum runs aviation + STEM summer camps for kids 7-14. Hands-on aerospace history, planetarium shows, flight simulators. Half-day + full-day options, single-week + multi-week sessions. The museum itself is one of LI's strongest family destinations year-round.
- When
- Where
- Cradle of Aviation Museum, Garden City
- Price
- TBD
Long Beach Boardwalk Concert Series — Thursday Free Show
Free outdoor concert series on the Long Beach boardwalk, Thursdays in August. Bring a beach chair or blanket — the stage is mid-boardwalk near Riverside Blvd. LIRR direct from Penn, 50 min door to boardwalk.
- When
- Where
- Long Beach Boardwalk, Long Beach
Sands Point Preserve — Fall Mansion Tours + Trail Walks
Sands Point Preserve is the Port Washington-adjacent peninsula with three Gilded Age mansions, 5 miles of trails, and Long Island Sound shoreline. Fall mansion tours run Friday-Sunday September through November. The Hempstead House mansion is famously the supposed inspiration for Gatsby's mansion.
- When
- Where
- Sands Point Preserve, Sands Point
- Price
- TBD
Harbes Family Farm — Pumpkin Picking + Winery Weekend
Harbes Family Farm in Mattituck combines a working farm + pumpkin patch + corn maze + on-site winery — making it the locals' pick for an East End fall day-trip with both kid-friendly farm activities and adult winery tastings. Open daily mid-September through Halloween.
- When
- Where
- Harbes Family Farm, Mattituck
- Price
- TBD
Caumsett State Park — Fall Hike + Private Beach Day
Caumsett is the Lloyd Harbor peninsula state park reached by a 1.5-mile walk through mature forest to a private (no parking, no crowds) beach on Long Island Sound. Free, family-friendly, dog-leash-allowed. Fall foliage peak is mid-October. The 'private beach' aspect is real — most visitors don't make the walk.
- When
- Where
- Caumsett State Park, Lloyd Harbor