Things to do on a Sunday in New York

Memorial Day is about remembering service members who gave their lives in defense of our country, and there are several parades and special events to honor their lives.

The holiday weekend also serves as the unofficial kick-off to summer. Whether it’s heading to a massive barbecue, hanging out at the beach, or taking a brunch cruise around Manhattan, there are plenty of memorable ways to spend your three-day weekend. If you want even more ideas, check out our best things to do in NYC this weekend guide.

NYC gives a warm welcome during Fleet Week to nearly 2,300 service members of the U.S. Navy, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard as they dock in the city for the weeklong celebration that overlaps with Memorial Day weekend. The 36th annual Fleet Week in NYC runs from May 21 to May 27, 2025. 

From ship tours to parties to military band events, there's so much to check out this wekeend. 

The beloved Memorial Day Weekend tradition is back: the 38th Annual Loisaida Festival will again be parading along Avenue C (between East 5th and East 12th Streets) on Sunday, May 25, with an afternoon full of live music, dance, artisan crafts, food vendors and more.

Celebrating the vibrant spirit and diverse heritage of the Lower East Side, the festival is presented in by the  Loisaida Center, one of the last remaining Puerto Rican-led and founded community-based organizations of Lower Manhattan,in partership with the Acacia Network, the largest Hispanic-led nonprofit in NY State. The parade kicks off at 11am, with mainstage performances from the likes of Sonido Consteño, Joe Bataan, Anissa Gathers, Ana Macho, Alma Moyo and Legacy Women stretching until 5pm. 

A parkour park will pop up on a Manhattan rooftop this spring, and all are welcome to jump, dance and play. The festival called MOVE NYC includes workshops for kids and adults on parkour, acro-yoga, calisthenics, aerial silks and more hosted by renowned athletes from across the country.

The rooftop festival will be held atop New Design High School (28 Essex St) on May 23-25. It's designed to celebrate movement and raise money for the high school's physical education program.

No prior experience with parkour is necessary to participate in any of the sessions, and all ages are welcome. For those who prefer to sit back and watch, there's a relaxing chill zone with shade, delicious food and concessions available, and competitions and raffles throughout the day.

To continue its long and storied tradition of alliterative season opening events (who can forget "Burgers, Bourbon & Beethoven" or "Hot Dogs, Hooch & Handel"?), Death of Classical is kicking off its 2025 season with Cocktails, Comestibles & Callas, centered around one of opera's most legendary divas: Maria Callas.

On May 23, the large-scale outdoor event at the Green-Wood Cemetery will feature a Callas lookalike contest hosted by dazzling drag queen Creatine Price; performances by artists from The Metropolitan Opera's Lindemann Program and Laffont Competition; sunset swing jazz by the Grand Street Stompers; local food trucks; and tastings of cocktails by Via Carota. 

Looking for a lover in uniform? Well, thousands of them will descend upon New York City during Fleet Week. And the ones who are single and ready to mingle will be at this Fleet Week singles mixer on Saturday, May 24 hosted by Single and the City at The Dean in Midtown (214 W 39th Street Unit #5).   

Here's what to expect: A chance to meet servicemembers in uniform, music from a DJ, a professional photographer, music, and dancing.

Fleet Week has been a tradition in New York City for 36 years, but Sex and the City brought it into the zeitgeist in the episode titled "Anchors Away." As Carrie Bradshaw says, "Fleet Week is that one week a year when the U.S. Naval ships dock, and our fair city is made even fairer with cute, sweet American sailors looking for fun."

Carrie and her crew met some sailors at a party, and you can live out your own Sex and the City fantasy at this event. "Here is your opportunity to cross hooking up with a Fleet Week sailor off of your "to-do" list," event organizers say. "At the minimum at least come out and share a drink or two with one of our admirable servicemen and women."

More than 150 people usually attend the 21+ Fleet Week mixer. While the majority of attendees are women looking for men, even planners say the dating scene is becoming more diverse.

We'll leave you with the wise words of Samantha Jones: "We have to show them a good time. It’s our patriotic duty as women of New York."

Many free outdoor movie screenings are taking place all over town this summer, but none boast an ambiance quite like that of the Intrepid Museum's Summer Movie Series. After all, you get to watch some awesome movies while hanging out on the aircraft carrier's flight deck at sunset. How cool!

This year's films dive deep into the mysteries of the ocean, inspired by the museum's newest exhibition, Mysteries From the Deep: Underwater Archaeology. From high-seas adventures to underwater discoveries, each movie explores humanity's fascination with the deep.

Here is the upcoming schedule:

— May 23 – Top Gun
— June 27 – Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest
— July 25 – The Abyss
— August 22 – Atlantis: The Lost Empire

The movie will be played on a huge inflatable screen, so there's not a bad seat in the house. Doors open at 5pm and the movie starts at sunset. Fair warning: the spots fill up fast, so make sure to get there pretty early! 

Get a front-row seat to witness ships from the US Navy, Coast Guard, and more on Memorial Day weekend. As an expert guide narrates, the 2.5-hour tour will visit historic military sites, monuments, and fortification. Plus, you'll get to see historic and modern fighting Navy ships up close as part of Fleet Week.

On this tour from Classic Harbor Line and Turnstile Tours, you'll hear stories from the Revolutionary War to today, with special emphasis on the role of the port in World War II. 

The Classic Harbor Line Military History Tour of New York Harbor will be held on Friday, May 23 and Monday, May 26. Tickets cost $106/person.

Artists gather to celebrate the artistic heritage of the Lower East Side in this annual free-for-all, returning for its 30th anniversary with a lineup of more than 200 performing arts organizations, independent artists, poets, puppeteers and film. Find it from Friday, May 23 to Sunday, May 25 in and around Theater for the New City.

This year's edition will include such luminaries as David Amram, Austin Pendleton and Penny Arcade, as well as participating performing ensembles such as Bond Street Theater, Chinese Theatre Works, Cobu, The Drilling Company, Ego Actus, Folksbiene National Yiddish Theater, Kinding Sindaw and Le Squeezebox Cabaret, along with a host of other performers, poets, personalities and playwrights. See the full 2025 schedule of performances here.

Back for its tenth year, FUERZAfest by the Hispanic Federation, highlights queer Latine artists and talent for an entire week of panels, dancing, and networking. This year's events, which fall under the theme of “Force of Change," include a queer short-films screening featuring local and international Latinx LGBTQ-produced films on May 18; the world premiere of Rise of a King, a solo show featuring Puerto Rican nonbinary actor-advocate Vico Ortiz, on May 22; and a comedy night hosted by Gabe Ortiz featuring hilarious Latine comedians on May 30.