Compiled by staff
Still a work in progress… let us know if you have anything to add.
There is a lot to do in St. Louis with the local festivals and the tried and true standbys like Gateway Arch, downtown touring including The Old Courthouse and all the historic houses. The Cardinals Hall of Fame is open and of course watching or listening to the Cardinals games as the team is out of town. Scroll this entire article as there is a lot here.
There will be festivals and parades around town. Look for barbecue stands and families will gather in their own backyards for family barbecues.
You can take a ride on a riverboat (contact Arch Riverboats) and there are many local municipalities or nearby towns that are oozing with charm: think St. Charles or Kimmswick.
We have compiled a list of special events taking place in St. Louis. Most of these events are in June. If you know of any others we should add, please let us know. Scroll down to see all of them.
We encourage to check out the various local websites and especially https://explorestlouis.com/
Some of the events listed are courtesy of the site and you can get more info by clicking the links provided.
St. Louis Cardinals– Watch the game on TV
Cardinals fans will have to be content to watch or listen to the games in their air-conditioned homes because starting July 1 the team will be on a road trip to Pittsburgh and then Washington, D.C.
They will be in the Nation’s capital on the Fourth of July.
America’s 248th birthday party is just around the corner.
Downtown Fourth of July Parade- Thurs July 4. CLICK HERE
This year, Celebrate Saint Louis is reshaping the downtown Fourth of July holiday tradition that many St. Louisans have grown to love, Fair Saint Louis. The inaugural festival on Thursday, July 4 begins at 10 a.m. with a patriotic parade of floats, dancers, marching bands and a dazzling display from the Misty Blues All-Female Skydiving Team. Watch KSDK.com’s report: CLICK HERE.
Celebrate St. Louis website: CLICK HERE
This year, their theme this year is “Building Bridges”, as we celebrate service to community and country:
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“Building Bridges” to our history – Celebrating the 150th anniversary of the opening of the historic Eads Bridge, the oldest & strongest bridge spanning the mighty Mississippi River… and much more For more information on the parade and the map of where it goes, CLICK HERE.
Here are a few things to do around town…
Heritage & Freedom Fest
On July 3, a carnival will kick off the Heritage & Freedom Fest in O’Fallon, Missouri. Boasting rides, games and traditional foods…Read More
Celebrate Saint Louis
Concerts, parades and fireworks galore – Fair St. Louis has been reimagined as Celebrate St. Louis. Engaging, serving and celebrating the…Read More
Kirkwood Freedom Festival
The Freedom Festival in Kirkwood is a vibe. Food truck treats will satisfy your cravings, live music beats will get you on your feet and a…Read More
For a list of festival in and around STL check out Explore St. Louis: CLICK HERE
Rawlings Experience STL
Have you been to the Rawlings Experience yet?
It’s time you go. They have a special “hot dog” baseball glove to view.
You can make a day of it touring the Rawlings Experience, maybe watching part of the game on their giant outdoor screen and having a meal at the Train Wreck or other food options at Westport.
Kick off your “holiday weekend” — or weekends since the Fourth falls in the middle of the week.
Friday night, June 28, 2024 is MOVIE NIGHT at the Rawlings Experience. They posted:
Movie start at 8:20pmWestport Plaza has a July 6th party planned.
City Museum
City Museum has a 4th of July Party:
Join the fun on the 4th of July from 7pm-11pm for Electric Sky, an all-ages party on the Rooftop of City Museum with a 360° view of fireworks all across the St. Louis skyline! Ticket includes General Admission on the day of the event, plus games, face painting, balloon animals and more!
Thursday, July 4 from 7pm–11pm
- Bring the family for exclusive access to the Rooftop attractions including the Ferris wheel, slides, climbers and more
- Outdoor games and activities, plus face painting and balloon artists
- Summer dance vibes with music by 314DJ
- An exclusive performance by Ready Go Dog Show with a ‘meet and greet’
- BYOC (Bring Your Own Chair) — we have some areas with café-style seating on the Rooftop, but space and chairs are limited. We recommend bringing your own camping or folding chair and picking your favorite spot on the roof to set up for the show.
- Food, drinks, beer, and cocktails are available for purchase. No outside food/drink are allowed in.
- In the event of rain, activities are moved indoors on the 3rd floor.
The Eads Bridge is Celebrating a Birthday!
Eads Bridge Trolley Tour
St. Louis Aquarium at Union Station
Summer of the Shark opens in St. Louis: Aquarium at Union Station features shark exhibit from American Museum of Natural History
Shark exhibits highlight summer fun
– Sharks on the Mississippi River? Yes! The kings of the deep have arrived in St. Louis and are staying for the entire summer.
Get ready for an unforgettable aquatic adventure at the St. Louis Aquarium, celebrating the Summer Of The Shark with exciting hands-on activities, experiences and exhibits featuring these magnificent creatures.
Visitors are immersed in a world of shark-centered adventures designed to get them up-close and personal with the rulers of the ocean. Summer Of The Shark focuses the Aquarium’s attention on its resident sharks with special events every day, including:
Shark Feeding Spectacle — 10 a.m. daily
Shark Canyon Dive Shows — 1:15 p.m. daily
Shark Story Time — 10 a.m. daily and 2 p.m. Fri., Sat. & Sun.
Shark Rope Bridge Adventure — 2-4 p.m. Mon.-Thurs. & 2-5pm Fri., Sat & Sun.
Shark Mascot Meet & Greet — 11 a.m. daily and 3 p.m. on Fri., Sat. and Sun.
Shark Scavenger Hunt — all hours
Shark Nursery — all hours
Shark and Ray Touch Pool — all hours
Shark Artifacts Display — all hours
Sharks Exhibition — all hours
A variety of shark species live at the St. Louis Aquarium, including:
White Tip Reef Sharks
Bonnethead Sharks
Brownbanded Bamboo Sharks
Tasselled Wobbegongs
Australian Marbled Catsharks
Blacktip Reef Sharks
Nurse Sharks
Zebra Sharks
Sandbar Sharks
Blacknose Sharks
Whitespotted Bamboo Sharks
Sharks from the American Museum of Natural History
Summer Of The Shark includes a deep dive with Sharks, an exhibition from the American Museum of Natural History. The St. Louis Aquarium is the first to host this amazing touring exhibition.
Visitors will learn about ancient sharks and explore new discoveries about today’s sharks. Learn about their sixth sense and much more in this special exhibit. Sharks is organized by the American Museum of Natural History, New York (amnh.org) with support from Fundación Coppel A.C. The Museum gratefully acknowledges Warner Bros Discovery for its generous support of Sharks. A selection of footage in Sharks has been provided by Discovery’s Shark Week.
If you go…
Learn more about Summer Of The Shark at the St. Louis Aquarium at Union Station here: https://www.stlouisaquarium.
Museum of Transportation
Missouri History Museum in Forest Park
Worlds Fair Exhibit at Missouri History Museum
From Forest Park Forever:
Even though it’s been 120 years since the temporary city full of innovation and cultural marvels was erected in Forest Park, St. Louis still loves to talk about its World Fair. Its legacy is ever present—see: The Saint Louis Art Museum, World’s Fair Pavilion, World’s Fair Donuts—but complicated.
Beyond the elementary-education version of events, with its ingenious ice cream cone and ridiculous marathon, there were complex dynamics at work. While the fair was beautiful and impressive, it also brought pain and human exploitation. The Missouri History Museum’s 1904 World’s Fair exhibit, opening April 27, will be a comprehensive look at the event through new and different perspectives.
Public historian Adam Kloppe has been working on 1904 World’s Fair for about five years, gathering stories and artifacts, crafting the exhibition gallery, and developing new media for the space. The exhibit’s previous iteration was on display for 20 years, and the plan is for the reimagined space—featuring a rotating themed gallery, an enormous scale model of the fair, informative overhead projections, and other new elements—to last at least until 2030.
“Once we knew the old exhibit was coming down, we knew we wanted to update the content, but we didn’t want to throw the baby out with the bathwater,” says Kloppe. “We wanted to take that experience of what worked and what didn’t work about the old gallery and let it inform this space.”
For more information CLICK HERE.
Special Fourth of July 2024 events\ at The Magic House
Sandcastle Beach
With the help of 10 truckloads of sand, The Magic House’s backyard will be transformed once again into a beachfront park. Visitors can…Read More
OTHER MAGIC HOUSE EVENTS:
Namaste India- Magic House
Open June 8 – Sept. 15, 2024
From Bollywood to the Taj Mahal, and from riding a tuk tuk to enjoying the unique scents of popular Indian spices, visitors at The Magic House have the opportunity to experience the wonders of India, a country rich in colorful traditions with a focus on the future.
The Magic House’s exhibit features the vibrant art, food and traditions of the timeless Indian culture. With the goal to inspire visitors to compare the similarities and differences between their lives and those of children in the country of India, Namaste India features a variety of immersive environments including a dhaba (restaurant), marketplace, tuk tuk (or motorized rickshaw), home and school as well as iconic spaces like the Taj Mahal and Bollywood.
Alma’s Way: Welcome to My Neighborhood!- Magic House
Open June 22, 2024 – Jan. 20, 2025
The Magic House is excited to debut Alma’s Way: Welcome to My Neighborhood!, an immersive nationally traveling exhibit developed and fabricated by The Magic House in collaboration with PBS KIDS® and Fred Rogers Productions. The exhibit is based on the new animated series, Alma’s Way, created by actor and writer, Sonia Manzano, who positively impacted the lives of generations as “Maria” on Sesame Street.
Visitors to the exhibit will be transported to Alma’s colorful Bronx neighborhood to explore a bustling, multi-cultural bodega, a local community center with Bomba instruments and dance, Alma’s father’s Pet Clinic, a Subway and Park as well as Alma’s family duplex where her extended Puerto Rican family lives and plays. Alma loves solving problems and finding solutions, and young visitors will too!
This exhibit was made possible by a generous donation from the Kent Family Foundation.
Paddle Freely– Paddleboarding
The weather is perfect for paddleboarding. Check out Paddle Freely events at Simpson Lake in Valley Park.
1234 Marshall Rd, Valley Park, MO 63088
Simpson Lake is the perfect choice! Sign your kids up to learn how to Stand Up Paddle Board with Kristen Terrill in her Paddle Freely classes Saturdays at 2:30. Not only will they enjoy 90 minutes of fun being outside and moving their bodies, but they will also learn some life hacks on how to live a better life! Check out the sign up at Big Muddy Adventures! Www.paddlesimpsonlake.com
