15 of the Best Outdoor Festivals in the Bay Area This Fall

Be sure to check out our full 2025 Fall Arts Guide to live music, movies, art, theater, festivals and more in the Bay Area.

Mother Nature clearly overheard us discussing this year’s frigid start to summer in the Bay Area. Now, as temperatures around the region rise and we transition into “real summer” (also known as autumn), here’s some highlights of the season’s festivals and street fairs.

Yerba Buena Gardens Festival

Through Nov. 1
Yerba Buena Gardens, San Francisco

This series of free shows has a little bit of something for everyone, including poetry with Nia Pearl, a performance by the Parangal Dance Company, puppet shows by Joe Leon and music from the likes of Samora Pinderhughes and the Marcus Shelby Orchestra. Held in the open grounds between the Metreon and SFMOMA, the series concludes with a “Halloween Hoopla” event.

Cultura Fest

Aug. 23
Grand Avenue, South San Francisco

South San Francisco comes alive for this free street party, held along the city’s main thoroughfare. Stand-up comedian Jose ‘Hoozay’ Velasquez and onetime The Voice finalist Cáthia are among the performers at Cultura Fest, which also includes a community parade, a visual art exhibition, Lucha Libre wrestling, Latin American cuisine, a craft fair and more.

Bizerkeley Food Fest Week

Sept. 1–7
Various venues, Berkeley and North Oakland

Erika Hazel, also known as the Bizerkeley Vegan, founded this annual festival to celebrate meat- and dairy-free lifestyles. The week’s events include a screening of the food-systems documentary They’re Trying to Kill Us, a pickleball tournament, a vegan mac & cheese contest and more.

Chicano Soul Fest

Sept. 8
History Park, San Jose

Onstage at last year’s Chicano Soul Fest, Sarah La Morena explained how she, an African American woman, was raised by a Mexican family — and then delivered a Banda performance that quickly went viral. This year’s festival features Latin soul legend Joe Bataan, Aztec dancers, hip-hop group Lighter Shade of Brown, Chicano resistance art, lowrider bikes and cars, and a tribute to the late soul singer Brenton Wood.

Annual Contemporary Art Festival

Sept. 13
Chinatown, San Francisco

This year’s event, titled Super Flex: Powered by Alter Egos and Shadow Selves, features modern artworks like Sholeh Asgary’s sound performance “41 Alleys” — a “site-specific radio project” inspired by Golden Star Radio,” the first Chinese-language station on the continent formerly located at 850 Grant Avenue. A sensory tank and archival government documents make up other projects at this dynamic art festival.

Mill Valley Fall Arts Festival

Sept. 20 and 21
Old Mill Park, Mill Valley

Mill Valley has changed drastically in the 55 years since a third-grade children’s chorus had a minor hit paying tribute to the small Marin County town. Along with live performances, the festival also hosts fine crafts from over 100 different makers and a children’s grove with magic tricks and storytelling — for the third graders of today.

Daly City Public Library’s Art & Lit Fest

Sept. 27
Serramonte Center, Daly City

At this day-long celebration of reading, art, poetry and music, 96.5 KOIT radio show host Freska, DJ Ajax and world-renowned DJ QBert are scheduled attractions. The free, all-ages event doubles as a fundraiser for the Daly City Public Library.

Folsom Street Fair

Sept. 28
Folsom Street, San Francisco

For some, art is a matter of what you’re wearing (or not wearing). The Folsom Street Fair (pro tip: don’t try to bring children) celebrates leather, bondage and the liberating act of letting the sun shine where the sun doesn’t shine.

Oktoberfest

Throughout October
Various locations

Lederhosen! Tubas! And most importantly: beer! Oakland’s “Oaktoberfest” takes place on Oct. 4 and Sunday Oct. 5 East Oakland’s Dimond District. On the peninsula, Mountain View’s Oktoberfest is the following weekend, Oct. 11 and 12. And if you’re in the South Bay, Campbell’s Oktoberfest is Oct. 18 and 19.

Oakland’s Black Cowboy Parade / Life Is Living Festival

Oct. 4 and Oct. 11
Little Bobby Hutton Park, Oakland

After celebrating its 50 anniversary last year, the Oakland Black Cowboy Association returns for its annual parade, with food vendors, dancers, tales of Black history and pony rides. The following Saturday sees the return of the long-running Life Is Living Festival, which starts with a Black Panthers free breakfast and includes live music, poetry, DJs and a historic Black Panther Party exhibition.

The Castro Street Fair

Oct. 5
Castro Street, San Francisco

Now in its 51st year, this celebration of community and resilience takes over the Castro for an event with all proceeds going to charitable causes. Live music, DJs, food, activities and more are heralded by Harvey Milk Plaza’s giant rainbow flag.

Autumn Lights Festival

Oct. 16–18
Lake Merritt, Oakland

An event tailor-made for those who think art is best served in the form of colorfully illuminated lights decoratively placed in a garden — preferably in Oakland.

Half Moon Bay Art & Pumpkin Festival

Oct. 18–19
Half Moon Bay

The winner of last year’s world championship pumpkin weigh-off at this festival drove 32 hours from Minnesota with a pumpkin that measured over 7 feet tall and 20 feet around, and weighed 2,471 pounds. Who will win this year? Find out at this year’s weekend event – and maybe even get a photo with the winner.

Oakland’s Dia De Los Muertos Festival

Nov. 2
Fruitvale Village, Oakland

Sugar skulls and marigolds are in great supply at this vibrant outdoor fair — and especially this year, as the event celebrates its 30th anniversary.

Briefly Noted

SF Cheese Fest (Sept. 13; San Francisco)

Filipino Island Fest (Oct. 4; Alameda)

Fleet Week (Oct. 5–13; San Francisco)

Litquake (Oct. 9–25; San Francisco)

Fall Holiday Chocolate Salon and Festival (Nov. 23; San Francisco)