It’s sad but it’s true, the end of summer is upon us. We have selected some of the best Labor Day weekend events to help you end the season on a high note. This year, Labor falls on Monday, September 2nd, making a three day. From unicycle festivals and tug boat races, to art fairs and historical show-and-tells, check out 10 alternative ways to send off the summer!
1. Portal: Governors Island
Previously known as the Governors Island Art Fair, Portal: Governors Island marks the 12th annual art fair organized by the Nonprofit 4heads, Inc. on the island. The fair features a diverse range of artists from across the United States and across the world. Eight historic homes along Colonel Row will be taken over by the fair. Each artist will have an individual room, connective space or exterior green space in which to display their work in the form of an exhibit or to create an immersive installation.
Since the first Governor’s Island Art Fair in 2008, up to 100 artists each year have been selected through an open call and jurying process. You can see all of the amazing artwork starting Saturday August 31st. Portal: GI will be open every Saturday and Sunday through September 29.
2. Go Behind-the-Scenes at Freshkills Park
Rendering of Freshkills Park. Photo via Freshkills Park and the City of New York
Go inside the construction of Freshkills Park, the largest landfill-to-park project in the world. This massive project currently underway in Staten Island will result in the largest New York City park to be built in over 100 years. Slated to open in phases starting in 2020, you can be among the first to see the park on a special behind-the-scenes tour.
As the 2,200 acre park is being built, NYC Parks has offered Untapped Cities early access to visit sections that are currently closed to the public. The tour will provide a chance to go behind-the-scenes and discuss the topics that the park project addresses, including waste management and urban ecology. If you are an Untapped Cities Insider, you can join this tour on August 31st for free! Not a member yet? Become an Insider today to gain free access to behind-the-scenes tours and special events all year long!
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Everyday this weekend you can join an All Access Tour of Madison Square Garden for a behind-the-scenes look at “The World’s Most Famous Arena.” Your all access pass provides access to a variety of areas usually closed to the public like the locker rooms of the New York Knicks and New York Rangers, spaces backstage, and different vantage points from around the arena including the exclusive Suite Sixteen Lounge.
The tour stops vary depending on what type of event is happening inside that day. You may find yourself sitting in the Rangers penalty box, or seeing what it’s like to be court side at a Knicks game. Every tour also includes a state-of-the-art virtual reality experience which gives you a first-hand glimpse into the different types of events Madison Square Garden hosts. The 75-minute tours are available everyday this Labor Day weekend and run every thirty minutes. You can purchase tickets in advance online or on-site at the MSG Store.
4. Join the NYC Unicycle Festival
Courtesy of Bindlestiff Family Cirkus
This Labor Day Weekend marks the 10th Annual NYC Unicycle Festival presented by the Brooklyn-based Bindlestiff Family Cirkus. Running from August 29th through September 1st, the four day festival will roll into a different neighborhood each day. There will be escorted rides through Central Park in Manhattan, over the Brooklyn Bridge, through Coney Island, and finally all over Governors Island for the main event on the last two days.
At Governors Island there will be activities including races, competitions, exhibitions, and a variety of traditional sports played on unicycles like basketball and sumo! Don’t worry if you don’t ride a unicycle yourself. All ages and abilities are welcome to take part in the festivities and watch world-class riders show off their skills. If you are feeling brave you can hop on a unicycle and give it a spin.
5. Uncover Secrets from Below on an Underground Subway Tour
Head underground for a tour experience unlike any other. Untapped Cities’ Secrets from Below: Underground Tour of the NYC Subway will take you through abandoned stations, the site where the subway was born, an art installation hidden in plain sight and other fascinating stops. Our expert guide will unravel more than 100 years of subway history, from its founding in the early 20th century to today.
Using the 6 train as a personal time machine, guests on this tour will get to ride through the decommissioned City Hall Station, the first station of the entire subway system. Opened in 1904, the New York City subway has evolved and expanded to be the largest rapid transit system (in area) in the world. Discover its secrets on this special tour!
On September 1st a unique spectator sport is coming to the Hudson River, the 27th Annual Great North River Tugboat Race & Competition. Those who wish to cheer on the racing vessels can board the Circle Line Sightseeing Spectator Boat leaving from Pier 83 in Hudson River Park at 10:30am to be in the middle of the action. Boarding begins at 10:15am and tickets can be purchased in advance online.
In addition to a heated race, there will be other competitions such as a line-toss contest and a spinach-eating contest. Trophies will be awarded for the best dressed tug crew, best female and male tattoo and best mascot.
The Museum of Interesting Things and the Greater Astoria Historical Society are teaming up for two special Labor Day Weekend events. First, the Museum and Historical Society are joining forces for a benefit that celebrates New York history and will help raise funds for the Historical Society to continue their work and find a new home. The early evening event will feature items from the Historical Society’s collection of 50,000 newspapers, maps, documents and artifacts, and 150,000 photographs, as well as items from the Museum of Interesting Things that you can interact with. There will be presentations from board members of the Historical Society and Forgotten New York author Kevin Walsh.
Tickets to the benefit also get you into the Secret Speakeasy that will follow at 6:00pm. The theme is “Summer of Love” and items on display will include artifacts from the 1960s and beyond that guests will actually get to handle. There will be vinyl records spinning and 16mm film screenings too. You can purchase tickets to both events in advance online.
8. Explore an Abandoned Hospital
Explore New York City’s history of immigration from a different perspective, the abandoned hospital complex on the south side of Ellis Island. On Untapped Cities’ Behind-the-Scenes Hard Hat tour, guests will gain entry into the 29-building hopsital compound that has been closed to the public for over sixty years.
Guests will get to go into areas such as the laundry facility, contagious disease wards, morgue and more. Spread throughout the complex you will see the art installation Unframed, a series of life-sized historical images pulled from the Ellis Island archives. In addition to learning about the immigrant experience at the hospital, you will also learn about the other ways in which the hospital facilities were used, such as for an FBI field office and as a U.S. Coast Guard training facility.
This weekend is the kickoff for the fall season of the Washington Square Park Outdoor Art Exhibit. Taking place just outside the park along University Place, the sidewalk show stretches from East 13th Street south along the east side of Washington Square Park to West 3rd Street.
The exhibit features fine art, photography, sculpture, crafts, mixed-media and more from artist who come from the New York area, across the United States and around the world. The exhibitors who get to take part in this more than 80 year old tradition are chosen by a jury of fellow artists. The exhibit is open to the public from noon until 6:00pm. You can see a full list of exhibitors here!
10. Watch the Caribbean Carnival Parade
Enjoy the vibrant sights and moving sounds of the Caribbean Carnival Parade on the last day of Caribbean Carnival Week. Presented by the West Indian American Day Carnival Association, the parade starts at in Crown Heights and ends with a grand finale at Grand Army Plaza. The streets will be filled with dancers in vibrantly colored attire and equally extravagant floats will make their way down the roads as revelers celebrate the history, culture, music, food, and people from the various Caribbean countries on September 3rd. The five days leading up to the parade will include even more festivities like a children’s parade on Saturday and steel band performances at the Brooklyn Museum.
Nicole Saraniero is the Insider-in-Chief at Untapped New York, leading our Untapped New York Insiders membership program. Nicole graduated from Hofstra University with a Bachelor of Science in Televis
Rendering of Freshkills Park. Photo via Freshkills Park and the City of New York
