Festal is a year-long series of FREE cultural festivals that honor the richness and diversity of the Pacific Northwest.
Seattle Center Festál presents these free world festivals on weekends throughout the year. Each event highlights the distinct cultures and common threads of ethnic communities in the Puget Sound region through traditional and contemporary art, music, foods, youth activities, workshops and more.
Festal was founded in 1997, though the origins of the program date back to the 1962 World’s Fair exhibits that showcased international cultures. In 1988, then Seattle Mayor Charles Royer and Seattle Center Director Virginia Anderson encouraged development of a series of cultural festivals, with 11 festivals presented in the inaugural year.
These free cultural festivals are presented by Seattle Center and the generous support by the City of Seattle, Seattle Center Foundation, and many other businesses sponsors.
Love our cheap ideas? Get our FREE email newsletters. Choose from daily, weekly, and monthly lists. Click here to subscribe.
2020 Seattle Center Festal events
- January 18 – 19, 2020: Têt in Seattle – Vietnamese Lunar New Year
- March 14 – 15, 2020: CANCELLED: Irish Festival
- March 22, 2020: CANCELLED: Seattle’s French Fest: A Celebration of French-Speaking Cultures
- April 24 – 26, 2020: VIRTUAL: Seattle Cherry Blossom & Japanese Cultural Festival.
- May 3, 2020: CANCELLED: Asian Pacific Islander Heritage Month Celebration
- May 16, 2020: VIRTUAL: Chinese Culture & Arts Festival
- May 30, 2020 VIRTUAL: Spirit of Africa
- Memorial Day Weekend: VIRTUAL: Northwest Folklife Festival
- June 6-7, 2020:VIRTUAL: Pagdiriwang Philippine Festival
- June 13, 2020: VIRTUAL: Indigenous People Festival
- June 20-21, 2020: VIRTUAL: Festival Sundiata presents Black Arts Fest
- June 27, 2020: VIRTUAL: Iranian Festival
- July 11, 2020: CANCELLED: Polish Festival Seattle
- August 8-9, 2020: CANCELLED: Seattle Arab Festival
- August 16, 2020: Virtual: BrasilFest
- August 22 – 23, 2020: VIRTUAL: Tibet Fest
- September 11-13, 2020: VIRTUAL: Live Aloha Hawaiian Cultural Festival
- September 12-13, 2020: VIRTUAL: Sea Mar Fiestas Patrias
- September 26, 2020: Virtual: Italian Festival
- October 2-4, 2020: Virtual: CroatiaFest
- October 11, 2020: Virtual: Turkfest
- October 17, 2020: Virtual: Diwali: Lights of India
- November 1, 2020: Virtual: Día de Muertos Mexican Celebration to Remember Our Departed
- November 7, 2020: Hmong New Year Celebration
Upcoming festivals, fairs, & parades
Upcoming fairs and festivals on our calendar in the next 90 days.
Tuesday, October 20, 2020
Wednesday, October 21, 2020
Thursday, October 22, 2020
Friday, October 23, 2020
Saturday, October 24, 2020
Sunday, October 25, 2020
Monday, October 26, 2020
Tuesday, October 27, 2020
Wednesday, October 28, 2020
Thursday, October 29, 2020
Friday, October 30, 2020
Saturday, October 31, 2020
Sunday, November 1, 2020
Monday, November 2, 2020
Saturday, November 7, 2020
Tuesday, November 10, 2020
Wednesday, November 11, 2020
Friday, November 27, 2020
Saturday, December 5, 2020
But wait, there’s more!
- Find more Cultural heritage festivals in the Puget Sound region.
- More festivals of all kinds on our big list of annual festivals, fairs, and parades.
- And here’s a list of 101+ always free things to do for fun.
- More free and cheap things to do every day: Greater Seattle on the Cheap event calendar.
- Still more ideas for frugal fun: Greater Seattle on the Cheap home page.
Love our cheap ideas? Get our FREE email newsletters. Choose from daily, weekly, and monthly lists. Click here to subscribe.
Seattle Lunar New Year (photo supplied by Tet in Seattle)
