Central Park Family Plans: Fri May 15 – Fri May 22

Hi families,

New Friday-evening edition. From now on, this email lands heading into your weekend so you can plan the whole stretch. Saturday has more family options than usual — here’s the rundown.

Sat May 16 — the big family day

Four standout family things, all in one Saturday:

• Model Yacht Racing at Kerbs Boathouse, 9 AM–3 PM. Remote-controlled sailboats on Conservatory Water. Free, drop-in, kids love it.
• Sacred Sites Open House Day 1 at Mineral Springs, 10 AM–3 PM. Tours of historic park structures. Better for older kids.
• That Guitar Man From Central Park at Hernshead, 1–5 PM. Beloved park busker — fun listening spot near the Lake.
• PS 77 PTA Spring Festival at Lawn Outside Levin Playground (Section A), 2–5 PM. Public school spring festival — typically open to the community with games, snacks, kid activities.

If you can only do one: Model Yachts in the morning. If you can do two: add the PS 77 festival in the afternoon and walk through together.

Sun May 17 — calm Folkdancers Sunday

• Sacred Sites Open House Day 2 at Mineral Springs, 10 AM–3 PM (second day of the same program)
• Central Park International Folkdancers at King Jagiallo Plaza (75th & CPE), 11 AM–7 PM. Costumes, live music, traditional dancing — kid-friendly all afternoon

This weekend’s playground status

• East 72nd Street Playground Lawns: open this week
• Levin Playground: open all week
• East Meadow Picnic Zone: closed Sat 5/16 and Sun 5/17 — don’t plan picnics there this weekend

Mon–Fri (May 18–22) — calm school-week stretch

No big family events scheduled. Good week for unstructured park time: playgrounds, the zoo, casual picnics. The Columbus Circle Food Market runs Fri/Sat/Sun, with a quick lunch option at the SW entrance — easy stop on the way in or out.

Theater note for older kids

Julius Caesar continues daily at The Pool (10 AM–9 PM). Outdoor Shakespeare, dramatic setting. Kids 10+ tend to engage with it well — check the company’s listing for actual showtimes.

Quick recap

Sat 5/16 — full family day Model Yachts (9–3), Sacred Sites (10–3), That Guitar Man (1–5), PS 77 festival (2–5).

Sun 5/17 — Folkdancers + Sacred Sites Day 2

Sat & Sun — East Meadow closed

Mon–Fri — open, school-week calm

Have a good week with the kids, The Central Park Guide