From music to carnivals and beyond, Tommy McFly breaks down the best things to do on Labor Day weekend around the D.C. area.
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Whether your song of the summer was brought to you by Post Malone, Sabrina Carpenter, Shaboozey or Chappell Roan, it's time to crank up the volume one more time (or a hundred, we're here for it!). It's Labor Day weekend, summer's grand finale.
The hot weather isn't going anywhere for a while, though. So while your local pool may be having its last hurrah this weekend, you can squeeze in an encore with a beach trip and other water adventures.
Speaking of the forecast: Monday will have the best weather of the weekend, after rain chances on Saturday and Sunday.
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We’re still wagging and sniffing for your gold medal-worthy pet posts. Next Friday, we crown the Pat's Prized Pet for 2024. Honestly… stop everything and treat yourself to these talented pets:
Don’t forget to share your pictures and videos on social before Thursday, Sept. 5 at noon – here are the details!
The Scene
The most fun things to do and places to be in D.C., Maryland and Virginia
Weekend highlights
DC JazzFest
Through Sun., various venues and The Wharf, tickets start at $25
🔗 Details
DC JazzFest is coming back for its 20th year with music around the DMV, including some free shows. Think of it as a choose-your-own musical adventure.
The Wharf is going full festival mode this weekend, with two outdoor stages hosting shows from noon to 10 p.m. General admission standing tickets for those performances cost $25 per day. Kids and dogs are allowed!
By night, follow the music indoors to venues including The Anthem, Union Stage and Arena Stage. Seated or VIP tier tickets ($150-$500) grant you access to these shows. BUT, you can buy single tickets to some indoor shows, including most things at Union Stage.
Here’s the full schedule, including details on weeknight concerts.
Pro tip: Don’t miss the free performances!
- Free concerts will happen along The Wharf’s promenade
- Ebban & Ephraim Dorsey: Thu., 6 p.m., Kennedy Center’s Millennium Stage
- Shannon Gunn’s Saffron Ensemble: Fri., 6 p.m., Kennedy Center’s Millennium Stage
Free pick
Greenbelt Labor Day Festival
Fri. to Mon.
🔗 Details
Greenbelt is working overtime to bring you a four-day Labor Day Festival with great food, music, a carnival and rides.
It’s free to go, but ride wristbands cost extra. You can pick up a voucher for a $20 ride wristband at the Greenbelt Co-op Supermarket through Thursday. Otherwise, all-you-can-ride wristbands will cost $35.
The Historic Roosevelt Center is the place to be for a party that’s been happening for 70 years!
Check out the full schedule here.
Don't Tell Comedy
Fri., plus later dates, various venues
🔗 Details
Don't Tell Comedy, which specializes in pop-up shows, is coming to venues in D.C. this weekend and later in the fall.
Free pick
Patsy Cline Block Party
Sat., 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Patsy Cline Historic House in Winchester, Virginia
🔗 Details
If you’re feeling a little crazy, head to Winchester, Virginia for the Patsy Cline Block Party. Cline’s hometown festival features a lot of music.
To celebrate what would have been her 92nd birthday, there will also be food trucks, old-school soft drinks at Gaunt's Drugstore (where the singer spent her teenage years as a soda jerk!) and tours of the historic house for just $5.
Winchester is also hosting Hungry for History Week with food demos, tastings and more, so you won’t go hungry during a full day out.
Free ice cream at SMiZE & DREAM
Sun., noon, Woodley Park
Tyra Bank's Woodley Park ice cream shop SMiZE & DREAM is giving out 200 free scoops on Sunday to celebrate a good review from a popular TikTok food critic Keith Lee. The giveaway begins at noon.
Lee didn’t like everything he ate in D.C. but had good things to say about SMiZE & DREAM and their local flavor, That Woodley Park Thang.
Concerts this weekend
Roots/Digable Planets, 8 p.m. Saturday, Wolf Trap, $65+
Classic hip-hop lineups don’t get better than this. The Roots are the greatest live hip-hop band ever. Digable Planets delivers pure poetry and some of the smoothest, jazziest tracks of the genre. And starting it off is Grammy-winning Arrested Development. Details.
Ken Vandermark & Paal Nilsen-Love Duo, 7 p.m. Monday, Rhizome, $15-$25
Holiday weekend means a Monday concert pick. MacArthur Prize-winning reedist Vandermark pairs with drummer PNL for broad and challenging improvised jazz. Details.
Labor Day brunch
It's not a long weekend in D.C. without brunch! Plenty of restaurants will extend their brunch offerings to Labor Day. Here are a few we've heard about:
- The District: All-Purpose Riverfront, Boundary Stone, dLeña, Founding Farmers, El Presidente, Hen Quarter Prime, Le Diplomat, Maker's Union (The Wharf only), Matchbox, Palette 22, Pastis, Pisco y Nazca, The Saga, Seven Reasons, St. Anselm, Throw Social
- Maryland: ala, Founding Farmers, Matchbox, Pinstripes (Brunch & Grill Feast)
- Virginia: Founding Farmers, Hen Quarter Alexandria, The Majestic, Maker's Union (Arlington and Reston), Matchbox, The Ridley, Royal Restaurant, Surreal
Things to do in D.C.
Last chance – Pixar Putt: Through Mon., The Wharf, $30 for adult tickets
DC JazzFest: Through Sun., various venues and The Wharf, tickets start at $25
Stand-up comedy at Room 808: Weds. to Sun., Petworth, prices vary but several shows are free
Underground Comedy at Hotbed: Weds. to Sun., Adams Morgan, prices vary but several shows are free
Childish Gambino: Thurs., Capital One Arena, $125+
Sunset Cinema: "Soul": Thurs., The Wharf, free
Nationals vs. Cubs: Fri., Sat., Sun., Nationals Park, $18+
- Two Friends performs for the Nationals Summer Concert Series on Friday after the game beginning at 6:45 p.m.
Extraordinary Cinema: “Chocolat”: Fri., movie set to begin at dusk (about 8:15 p.m.), The Kennedy Center REACH Lawn, free
DC Festival of Magic: Fri. to Sun., Capital Hilton (Northwest D.C.), $99 for a weekend pass, individual shows start at $15
Joy of African Movement: Sat., 9-10 a.m., Smithsonian National Museum of African Art, free
DC Afro Latino Fest: Sat., 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., Franklin Park, free
Washington Mystics vs. Connecticut Sun: Sat., 3 p.m., Entertainment and Sports Arena, $31+
Late Skate: Sat., until 10 p.m., Anacostia Park Skating Pavilion, free
NSO Labor Day Concert: Sun., 8 p.m., West Lawn of the U.S. Capitol, free
Labor Day: Yoga + Sound Experience: Mon., 9-10 a.m., National Building Museum, $30
SPILL FEST: Afro-Caribbean Music and Food Festival: Mon., The Bullpen in Southeast, $15+
Things to do in Maryland
Greenbelt Labor Day Festival: Fri. to Mon., free entry, ride wristbands $20
A Night With The Legendary Comedian Earthquake: Fri. and Sat., MGM National Harbor, $98+
Capital House Music Festival: Sat., 11 a.m. to 9 a.m., Marian Fryer Town Plaza in Silver Spring, free
Paint the Town Labor Day Show: Sat. to Mon., Kensington, free
Maryland State Fair: Aug. 29-Sept. 2 and Sept. 5-8, Lutherville-Timonium, $11-$16
Maryland Renaissance Festival: Saturdays and Sundays through Oct. 20, plus Labor Day, Annapolis, Maryland, $26+ for adult tickets through Sept. 8
- Seniors age 62 and up can go for free on Monday, Sept. 2
Labor Day Art Show: Sat. to Mon., Glen Echo Park, free entry
Frederick Arts & Crafts End of Summer Celebration: Sat., 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., downtown Frederick, free
Summers Farm Sunflower Festival: Sat. to Mon., plus Sept. 7-8, Middletown, $16.50 online, $20.50 at the gate
Kensington Labor Day Parade and Festival: Mon., 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., free
Things to do in Virginia
Fairfax County Animal Shelter's “Clear the Shelters”: Adoption fees waived Fri. to Sun.
Jason Aldean: Highway Desperado Tour: Fri., 7:30 p.m., Jiffy Lube Live in Bristow, $68+
Comedy: Guy Branum: Fri., Sat. and Sun., Arlington Cinema Drafthouse, $20-$25
Patsy Cline Block Party: Sat., 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Patsy Cline Historic House in Winchester, free
Yoga in the Galleries at Museum of Contemporary Art Arlington: Sat., 11 a.m., 3550 Wilson Boulevard Arlington, $10-$20 suggested donation
Avril Lavigne: The Greatest Hits: Sat., 7 p.m., Jiffy Lube Live in Bristow, $118+
Virginia Scottish Games: Sat. and Sun., The Plains, $20 (one-day pass)
Dog-friendly tour of Mount Vernon: Sat. and Sun., Mount Vernon, $10 in addition to general admission
LoCo Kid's Fest: Mon., 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., Segra Field Parking Lots in Leesburg, free
Fairfax City Restaurant Week: Sept. 2-8
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