{"id":22918,"date":"2011-07-26T15:34:22","date_gmt":"2011-07-26T19:34:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/offmetro.com\/ny\/?p=22918"},"modified":"2025-08-21T09:58:10","modified_gmt":"2025-08-21T13:58:10","slug":"summer-festivals-nyc","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/offmetro.com\/ny\/22918\/summer-festivals-nyc\/","title":{"rendered":"Nine Outdoor Summer Festivals Near NYC"},"content":{"rendered":"

Summertime, for some New Yorkers, can mean spending all weekend, every weekend at the beach, in the park, or sipping Coronas at the Frying Pan. If you’d like to enliven that nice but predictable calendar, consider attending one of these nine outdoor festivals near NYC<\/strong>, with themes ranging from Shakespeare to lobster to Lucille Ball and live jazz.<\/p>\n

What<\/strong>: Hudson Valley Shakespeare Festival<\/a>
\nWhere<\/strong>: Boscobel, NY
\nWhen<\/strong>: June 14 to August 31
\nWhy<\/strong>: Arrange a blanket on the green, dig into your pre-ordered picnic, and share a few laughs with the Hudson Valley Shakespeare Company. On the bill this season, \u201cThe Comedy of Errors,\u201d \u201cHamlet,\u201d and Mark Brown\u2019s hilarious adaptation of \u201cAround the World in 80 Days.\u201d
\nCost<\/strong>: Around $30; certain special performances with a wine tasting cost $54.
\nHow to get there:<\/strong> Metro-North railroad from Grand Central Terminal until Cold Spring. The festival is providing a Bard Bus which picks up patrons from Cold Spring and transports to the festival grounds for only $6.<\/em><\/p>\n

What<\/strong>: Atlantic City Food and Wine Festival<\/a>
\nWhere<\/strong>: Atlantic City, NJ
\nWhen<\/strong>: July 28 to 31
\nWhy:<\/strong> Travel to the East Coast\u2019s version of Vegas, and prepare to be wined, dined and educated at the hands of super star chefs. Imbibe via the wine tastings and educational sampling panels and indulge in the cooking demonstrations hosted by Food Network personalities. At the end of the day, hang out after hours with Food Network stars at the House of Blues.
\nCost<\/strong>: Prices vary per event: Wine 101 tasting event for $40. Guy Fieri\u2019s Cheese Steak Battle for $75. The Chef Party at the House of Blues is $99.
\nHow to get there<\/strong>: Consult oM’s public transit guide to AC<\/a>.
\n<\/em><\/p>\n

\"Hot

What<\/strong>: The 64th Annual Maine Lobster Fest<\/a>
\nWhere<\/strong>: Rockland, ME
\nWhen<\/strong>: August 3 to 7
\nWhy<\/strong>: If you’ve ever wondered how many vats of butter it would take to accompany 20,000 pounds of lobster, Penobscot Bay is the place to be. In addition to enjoying the festival\u2019s namesake seafood, watch lobster crate races, enjoy live music and celebrate the coronation of a new Maine Sea Goddess, along with her royal, seafaring court. Wednesday is \u201cHometown Day,\u201d and the grounds are free from noon until 10 pm.
\nCost<\/strong>: Four day passes are $25.
\nHow to get there<\/strong>: Amtrak Northeast Regional train to the Backbay of Boston, MA. From there, transfer to Boston, MA North Station. Ride the Downeaster train until Portland, ME. Catch a bus from Portland to Bath, Maine. Finally, ride the Maine Eastern Railroad from Bath to Rockland. Or <\/em>consult offManhattan’s guide to renting hybrids in NYC<\/a>. It’s worth the trip.
\n<\/em><\/p>\n

<\/strong> <\/em>\"Lucy

What<\/strong>: The 57th Annual Newport Jazz Festival
\nWhere<\/strong>: Newport, RI
\nWhen<\/strong>: August 5 to August 7
\nWhy: <\/strong>George Wein has delivered fresh musical talent to the crowds since creating the first jazz festival in America, pulling big name artists including Louis Armstrong and John Coltrane. Gracing the Festival\u2019s stage this year will be Grammy-winning best new artist Esparanza Spalding, as well as renowned trumpeter Wynton Marsalis and Coltrane\u2019s son, Ravi Coltrane. Participate in a musical experience with future legendary performers.
\nCost<\/strong>: Tickets are $69 in advance or $75 the festival weekend. Children 3-15 are $15 per day, while children under 3 are free
\nHow to get there<\/strong>: Amtrak Northeast Regional train to the Providence station. The Peter Pan Bus terminal in Providence provides service to Newport. Consult oM’s public transit guide to Providence<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n

What<\/strong>: NY Green Fest 2011<\/a>
\nWhere<\/strong>: Alfred, NY
\nWhen: <\/strong>August 5 to 7
\nWhy:<\/strong> Feel good about your participation in forums, exhibitions, and a fair that make it easy to learn how to help keep the planet feeling good too. The festival is thoroughly eco-friendly, with musical acts performing on a solar stage, amplification provided by a portable, solar sound system. Learn about living a green life during the day, and enjoy dance fundraisers by night. All proceeds from the festival will support the Green Party.
\nCost<\/strong>: $45, $20 for teens\/youth
\nHow to get there<\/strong>: Ride Amtrak\u2019s Empire Service line to Buffalo or Rochester. The Green Fest has set up a ride share program to pick up attendees from the train stations and airports in Buffalo and Rochester. Email register@nygreenfest.org<\/a> to sign up.<\/em><\/p>\n

\"NH

What<\/strong>: The Great New York State Fair<\/a>
\nWhere<\/strong>: Syracuse, NY
\nWhen<\/strong>:\u00a0 August 25 to Sept 5
\nWhy: <\/strong> Head to greener pastures and meet some barnyard friends up close at the NY State Fair. New York City children will jump at the opportunity to attend a livestock show and be within feet of a cow or pig. Other events include Dairy Day and Beef Day, plus performances from legendary rock band Journey and modern day favorite Maroon 5.
\nCost<\/strong>: Tickets to enter the fairgrounds are $10, with discounts daily for children or seniors, however attending Grandstand events will require a separate ticket.
\nHow to get there<\/strong>: Ride Amtrak\u2019s Empire Service from Penn Station to Syracuse. From there, catch a 15 minute taxi<\/a> to the State Fairgrounds.<\/em><\/p>\n

Top Photo: Doug Mason<\/em><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Summertime, for some New Yorkers, can mean spending all weekend, every weekend at the beach, in the park, or sipping Coronas at the Frying Pan. If you’d like to enliven that nice but predictable calendar, consider attending one of these nine outdoor festivals near NYC, with themes ranging from Shakespeare to lobster to Lucille Ball […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":74,"featured_media":22930,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[4,325],"tags":[293,120,642,125,130,24,586,133,236,473,58],"class_list":{"0":"post-22918","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-events","8":"category-new-york","9":"tag-budget-friendly","10":"tag-family-fun","11":"tag-festivals","12":"tag-food","13":"tag-green","14":"tag-jazz","15":"tag-live-music","16":"tag-outdoors","17":"tag-theater","18":"tag-views","19":"tag-wine"},"acf":[],"mv":{"thumbnail_id":22930,"thumbnail_uri":"https:\/\/offmetro.com\/ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/07\/5977889643_9f875b737f-300x199.jpg"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/offmetro.com\/ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22918","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/offmetro.com\/ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/offmetro.com\/ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/offmetro.com\/ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/74"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/offmetro.com\/ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=22918"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/offmetro.com\/ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22918\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/offmetro.com\/ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/22930"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/offmetro.com\/ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=22918"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/offmetro.com\/ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=22918"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/offmetro.com\/ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=22918"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}