The best free events and festivals in NYC

To honor and remeber those who lost their lives in defense of the nation, Brookyn's annual Memorial Day Parade will be held on Monday, May 25. This year is the 159th parade, making it one of the oldest parades in Brooklyn. The patriotic festivities kick off at 11am from 78th Street and Third Avenue in Bay Ridge, then proceeds down to Marine Avenue, up to Fourth Avenue and over to John Paul Jones Park for a memorial service that includes bab pipes, flag raising, wreath laying by veteran service organizations and a 21-gun salute by the Veteran Corps of Artillery.

Fifth Avenue becomes a mile-long cultural block party when the Museum Mile Festival returns June 9 from 6pm–9pm, turning the Upper East Side into a car-free corridor of art, music and pure New York spectacle. From 82nd to 110th Streets, more than 20 museums—including the Met and Guggenheim—open their doors for free, while the street itself fills with live performances, pop-ups and roaming crowds. Turn your evening into equal parts gallery crawl and summer street fair for an unforgettable night out.

Grand Bazaar is one of NYC's oldest and largest marketplaces where you can buy vintage treasures, antiques, clothing and more goodies from more than 150 local merchants. Photographers, jewelers and furniture designers sell their best on Sundays between 10am and 5pm on the Upper West Side (77th Street at Columbus Avenue), rain or shine. Each week offers a different theme, from featuring women-owned businesses to focusing on handmade items to spotlighting international wares. The market runs both indoors and outdoors each week all year long. As a testament to the beloved Grand Bazaar's staying power, the market is celebrating 40 years in 2025. Grand Bazaar also has a mission to give back with 100% of its profits from booth rentals supporting four local public schools, helping with everything from school supplies through teaching assistants.

Grab your outsized fans and pull up your jockstraps: The NYC Pride March returns on Sunday, June 28, bringing thousands of participants, performers, activists and spectators into the streets of Manhattan for one of the world’s largest LGBTQIA+ demonstrations. The march begins at noon at 26th Street and Fifth Avenue before traveling south through Midtown and continuing into Greenwich Village, ultimately ending near the Stonewall National Monument. This year’s march once again serves as both a celebration and a (somehow still needed) call for LGBTQ+ visibility, rights and unity, featuring community organizations, advocacy groups, artists and allies. Beyond the march, Pride weekend includes related programming across the city, turning the last weekend in June into a citywide celebration of queer culture, activism and joy.

Honor fallen members of the United States Armed Forces at the largest of the city’s Memorial Day parades. Bring your handheld Old Glory and cheer on local members of the military, veterans, marching bands, Brownie troops and Boy Scouts as they march westward along Northern Boulevard in Queens from Great Neck to Douglaston. Go to lndmemorialday.com for more information.

Now in its 44th year, Coney Island’s epic procession of wild floats and barely clad revelers is as kitschy, campy and fabulous as ever. Those who are serious about their scales can register to win coveted titles like Best Sea Creature, Best Motorized Float, Neptune Costume and Mermaid Costume, while the rest of us bask in the glow of a blinding array of sequins and engage in some much-needed beachside celebrating.

PrideFest is a typical NYC block party—but one with way more sequins and exposed flesh. The annual event returns on Sunday, June 28, as one of the signature events of NYC Pride Week. Stretching along 4th Avenue between 14th Street and Astor Place, the all-day celebration of LGBTQIA+ culture and visibility transforms the neighborhood into a bustling open-air fair filled with live performances, DJs, community booths, food vendors and (of course) Pride merch. There will also be resources and information available for those looking for something more than an afternoon of community, making it both a party and a civic gathering.

Immerse yourself in the cultural delights of the Jewish, Chinese and Puerto Rican communities of Chinatown and the Lower East Side at the 25th annual block party on June 21. While performers and klezmer bands take the outdoor stage, you can catch free language lessons, master your mah-jongg game, and, best of all, learn how to prepare empanadas, Chinese dumplings and kreplach and challah bread. Endless grub will be available for sale, and since this is the first time in 15 years the fest won't receive funding from the National Endowment for the Arts, your support means more than ever.