With the long awaited arrival of warm weather, we can finally enjoy all the great things that come with the unofficial start of summer. This week, participate in a variety of outdoor activities taking place across New York City ranging from walking tours to festivals.

Friday, May 11th

Bronx Week starts today! The annual event celebrates the citizens of The Bronx through a week-long lineup of activities, such as parades, festivals, and concerts, designed to honor institutions that contribute to the rich culture and diversity that defines the borough.

Visit the 9th annual Indie Film Fest before it ends on the 13th! Shining a spotlight on low-budget and emerging filmmakers from around the world, the weeklong event includes screenings, educational panels, and presentations. View the different sessions and get your tickets here.

Saturday, May 12th

Missed the debut of The Queens International Night MarketPay a visit to Flushing Meadows-Corona Park and nosh on eats from around the world.

Our photographer friend Nathan Kensinger will be participating in a presentation of Chance Ecologies at the Queens Museum for Open Engagement, an annual conference focused on socially engaged art. You are invited to the museum for “Chance Ecologies: Wild Panorama Walk,” which will take place on Saturday at 12:30pm. Take a tour focused on creative research into wild post-industrial sites in all five boroughs, using the Panorama of the City of New York as a backdrop.

Continue the fun with an indoor and outdoor subterranean party at 313 art gallery! Doors open at 10pm for the Drum & Bass DJ Party, featuring a pop-up wine and beer bar, custom lighting and projections, and a line up of can’t miss DJs, including Project Azúcar, KIMOTION and Shomaker. Grab your tickets via Eventbrite here (Untapped readers get $10 off of $20 tix).

Sunday, May 13th

Happy Mother’s Day! Treat your mom to a garden party at New York Botanical Garden. The garden will be offering live music, games, picnicking, and more. Make a reservation for a delicious meal with mom at the Hudson Garden Grill and enjoy walks, garden collection tours, floral demonstrations, and more!

The abandoned Ellis Island Hospital complex — once the standard for United States medical care (and later transformed to the FBI headquarters when the island served as a detention center) — has been left to decay for nearly 60 years. Now, Untapped Cities is bringing you behind-the-scenes for a unique exploration of the abandoned facility; on this experience, you’ll visit its contagious disease wards, the autopsy rooms and have exclusive access to places usually closed to the public.

We also have a few tickets left for our Underground Tour of the NYC Subway. Take a ride through the living history of the world’s largest rapid transit system (in area) by weaving in and out of the past and present transit hubs of lower Manhattan. This unique tour is designed to give a comprehensive history of the New York City Subway system, from its groundbreaking in 1901 up through the creation of the three different proprietary lines which were unified into the system we know today. See the architectural ghosts of the now nearly forgotten Chambers Street station and use the 6 train as your own time machine to ride through abandoned subway stations.

Monday, May 14th

To celebrate the upcoming 8th annual NYC Vegetarian Food Festival, VSPOT Organic on Saint Marks Place is hosting a fierce plant-based burger competition. The showdown, titled the Burger Supremacy, includes 8+ plant-based burgers, in styles both gourmet and everyday.

Tuesday, May 15th

Join The New York Landmarks Conservancy for its Landmark Lecture: Reflections on 35 years of Façade Inspections, which sheds light the “Façade Inspection Safety Program” (FISP) and how it affects New York’s historic buildings.

Wednesday, May 16th

Get your green thumb on! Join the horticulture staff at the Queens Botanical Garden, and help keep the green space healthy and growing!

Thursday, May 17th

Attend the 3rd annual Edgar Allan Poe festival at Radiotheatre! Enter the 190-year-old St. John’s Sanctuary in historic Greenwich Village to listen to the presentation of fourteen classic tales of terror and suspense amidst candlelight and fog. The writings of Edgar Allan Poe will be accompanied by great storytellers, award-winning original orchestral music and a plethora of sound effects!

See all upcoming Untapped Cities Behind the Scenes Tours.