Greenport Cherry Blossom Festival
Greenport
Wednesday, May 1-Wednesday, May 15
For the third straight spring, the North Fork destination, known as “Tree City USA” treats visitors (and locals) to two weeks of blooming cherry blossoms. Pick up a map at village hall and take a self-guided tour.
Mother’s Day Across Long Island
Islandwide
Saturday, May 11-Sunday, May 12
Show mom how much you love her on Mother’s Day weekend. Saturday events include craft making at Garvies Point Museum in Glen Cove; garden tours at Crossroads Farm in Malverne, and more. On Sunday, enjoy a Mothers Day Tea at Sands Point Preserve; pottery painting in Long Beach; and plenty more. Harbes Family Farm in Mattituck celebrates mom all weekend long.
Long Island Fleece and Fiber Fair
Riverhead
Saturday, May 18-Sunday, May 19
At Hallockville Museum Farm, kids can meet the llamas, alpacas, and angora rabbits that provide the fleece needed to make yarn and other fiber goods. Kids can watch knitters up close as they work on wearable pieces. The Hallockville fair is the largest fiber gathering on Long Island.
Thomas School of Horsemanship Spring Festival
Melville
Sunday, May 19
The spring carnival features pony rides, a petting zoo, face painting, field games, STEM projects, and more. Kids can explore first-responder vehicles from the Melville Fire Department, and a family playground and picnic tables are available for use.
Jones Beach State Park
Saturday, May 25-Sunday, May 26
The Air Force Thunderbirds, the Army Golden Knight Parachute Team and civilian pilot Sean D. Tucker headline this start-of-summer tradition at New York’s most-visited state park. FREE with park admission. If you can’t visit on Saturday or Sunday, come by on Friday from 10am to 3pm to watch the aerial teams practice.
Decoration Day at Old Bethpage Village
Old Bethpage
Saturday, May 25-Sunday, May 26
Take part in a special ceremony for those who died in defense of our nation. Enjoy vintage craft demonstrations, brass band concerts, a parade, and old-time "base ball" as the game was played in 1864.
Walt Whitman Bicentennial Birthday Weekend
Huntington Station
Friday, May 31-Sunday, June 2
Long Island celebrates its beloved poet with a three-day festival at the Walt Whitman Birthplace State Historic Site. Enjoy scholarly lectures, birthday parties for kids and adults, a “Poet’s Picnic,” and readings of Whitman’s most celebrated works, including Leaves of Grass and Multitudes. High school and college students deliver presentations of their poetry, and docents in mid-19th century dress circulate with visitors, providing insight into the life and thinking of America’s “national poet.”