We don't really go. Or we go very occasionally, do the things we want, and then leave.

Most of these places would be WAY more fun with about 1/3 of the people there. Like Cox Farms. It could be so fun! But waiting 45 minutes to go down a slide? PASS. That sucks.

As someone who went to the RennFest this weekend, I relate so much to this post.

It was really crowded. Long lines for abysmal food. Overpriced everything. Too hot.

Kids complained.

Never doing it again.

The kite festival and the national book festival on the other hand are yearly events I look forward to.

We've been taking our kids (ages 6 and 4) to all sorts of festivals since they were very young. Look for ones that have live music or a parade route. Most in the suburbs will have free crafts for kids to do too.

Ones we particularly like:
Fairfax City Rock the Block
When: Friday, September 27 and October 25 at 6:30 PM (every year May-October)
Where: Fairfax City Old Town Square
What: Live music, food trucks
What my kids love: They love dancing and getting ice cream. We pack a picnic dinner, bring a blanket, and enjoy the music for a couple hours, and then head home for a bit of a late bedtime. The music is pretty loud close to the stage where the kids like to dance, so you might want to invest in noise-cancelling headphones.

Fairfax Fall Festival
When: Saturday, October 12 (every year the second Saturday of October)
Where: Downtown Fairfax City
What: Food trucks, live music and entertainment (there was logging one year, which was interesting)
What my kids love: Walking around to see the different live entertainment. There are usually also some carnival rides.

Fairfax Asian Festival
When: In the spring
Where: Downtown Fairfax City
What: Food trucks, live music and entertainment, lots of free craft booths.
What my kids love: Walking around to the different music stages (some have seating, so you're not standing the whole time). The craft booths were also very fun. This year they had an origami booth, a beading booth (bracelets or necklaces), and coloring pages of famous Asians. I will say that until we found the craft area, this festival felt heavily food-based (which I think is the point) and we went at a weird time for food, so it felt like we were just saying "no" to our kids about eating a lot. But you could very easily make this a lunch or dinnertime outing and take full advantage of the food trucks, in addition to the other booths.

Rockville Hometown Holidays Music Fest
When: End of May
Where: Rockville Redgate Park
What: Live music, food trucks, carnival games
What my kids love: The carnival, but, yes, there were long lines for the moon bounce. In addition to the moon bounce, though, they had a giant slide and some of those carousel-style rides, which had shorter lines. We spent the entire day there. Bring some toys and a picnic blanket/chairs and go early to get a spot in the shade. There are multiple music stages so you can pick the style of music you're interested in. Plenty of port-a-potties with those port-a-sinks too. And a sand pit that kept my kids busy for quite a while.

Smithsonian Folklife Festival
When: Summer
Where: The National Mall
What: Crafts, live music and entertainment.
What my kids love: They love the craft booths and just being on the mall. The nice part about this festival is that if the kids get bored with it, you can just go to a monument or museum.

Fairfax Fourth of July Parade
When: July 4
Where: Downtown Fairfax City
What: Parade!
What my kids love: Candy, floats, the librarians pushing their library carts, the Shriners in their little cars.

St. Patrick's Day Parade
When: The Saturday of St. Patrick's Day
Where: Downtown DC
What: Parade!
What my kids love: The marching bands, the Shriners in their little cars, the Irish dancers

Anonymous wrote:I only go to the ones that I have a particular affinity for: the Renaissance Fair and the Sheep and Wool Festival. I don't go to fairs just to get out of the house, OP. If I want to do that, I bring the kids to Great Falls or Brookside Gardens, or some place we can be close to nature.

+1 we don't go just to "go."

They also vary a lot. Sometimes there's rides or food with short lines, sometimes not. I have really learned my kids don't do well in heat. So unless there is a cool summer day we don't go to Ag Fair for example. Fall festivals are easier and often you pay for everything up front so lines inside are faster.

We’ve had the best time at the AG fair in Tisbury. It’s no all scrunched together and there are all different things to do. There are carnival rides too.

We also go to a carnival when they come around in some parking lot. Grossly overpriced but the little kids love the rides. We go for the kids. It’s not fun for the adults.

They're not fun for the parents. The kids might enjoy enjoy them - and so, as parents, we put up with them so that the kids can have fun.

It helps to have two parents present, so one can wait in line while the other is running around seeing things with the kids. And pack plenty of snacks so nobody gets hangry. Then just try to relax, wander, and not stress over any of it. That's about as fun as it gets.

We don't enjoy these at all and avoid them at all costs.

Anonymous wrote:I only go to the ones that I have a particular affinity for: the Renaissance Fair and the Sheep and Wool Festival. I don't go to fairs just to get out of the house, OP. If I want to do that, I bring the kids to Great Falls or Brookside Gardens, or some place we can be close to nature.

+1

Honestly - find a great farmers market and just go to that every weekend. We have a wonderful one in Brentwood, MD, coffee, a play area, crafting activity for the kids, we go every weekend. It's walkable from our house, our kids has tons of friends there and we can spend 1.5 - 2 hours there easily.

Anonymous wrote:We are in DC. Lots of neighborhood festivals all over the city and they are fun and not that crowded. We used to go all the time when DS was young from 3-7/8.

For the big festivals that draw all of DMV,then yes get there early or go during off day with lower crowds.

Yes, the neighborhood festivals are where it's at.

This is a known problem. I can even think of two viral tweets about adult festivals, not just the kid stuff:

[twitter] https://x.com/drakegatsby/status/1813696613073973315?s=46&t=HYhwsSAkLAj2-_j7_Rr0Rw[/twitter]

And the original

[twitter] https://x.com/drewfrogger/status/1536741449408167939?s=46&t=HYhwsSAkLAj2-_j7_Rr0Rw[/twitter]

So I guess I would have to say the equivalent for family fall events is:

Bro come down to the fall fest. It’s 90 minutes out of town at a “farm” that stays in business purely on this festival two months out of the year. It’ll be 82 today so make sure to wear your flannels and boots. Admission is only $20 per person and everyone gets a free Dixie cup of apple cider and 1/4 of a donut if you can stand in the 30 minute long line in the blazing sun. It’s $40 to pick your own apples and each ride down the big inflatable slide is only $1.

We are in DC. Lots of neighborhood festivals all over the city and they are fun and not that crowded. We used to go all the time when DS was young from 3-7/8.

For the big festivals that draw all of DMV,then yes get there early or go during off day with lower crowds.

I don't think you're missing much if you don't go. We really just take our kids to Cox Farms once a year because they love it and we usually go to Great Country Farms but avoid most other festivals or big events.
For cox farms we get there about 30 minutes before they open so we get a close parking spot, are near the front of the line when it opens, and then we can be one of the first on the hayride and move onto other rides before it gets too crowded. We pack water and lots of snacks to limit what food we buy there, and instead may grab some fast food on the way home.

How old are your kids? Something like a RennFest isn't really for little kids. It's crowded and overstimulating and usually hot.

A fall fest at Cox Farms or Butler's Orchard can be way better if you go at an off time and keep expectations low. I feel like these sorts of things are when we really feel the pain of how populated this area is. Fighting for a parking spot at 9:30 am to go on a (sweaty) hayride and pick a pumpkin is kind of miserable.

I agree with you, I don’t enjoy festivals with my kids. But that’s ok, some people enjoy the vibes, some don’t. It’s ok to learn what’s fun for you and your kids, and what isn’t. We just skip the festivals now.