9 Fun Things Families Can Do For Free In Virginia This September

September in Virginia offers a window of perfect weather, and the best part is that many of the season’s best activities do not cost a thing. This list has nine fun things families can do for free in Virginia this September, a guide to making memories without spending a dime.

I have done most of these with my own family, and each time we have left with full hearts and empty wallets. Some are outdoor adventures, like hiking to a waterfall or exploring a state park.

Others are cultural experiences, like visiting a museum on a free admission day or attending a local festival. A few are simple pleasures, like a picnic by the river or a walk through a historic downtown.

Virginia has plenty of free activities, and September is the perfect month to enjoy them. Pack a lunch and bring your sense of adventure.

1. Art in the Park in Staunton

Gypsy Hill Park transforms into something genuinely magical every first Saturday of September, and Art in the Park in Staunton is the kind of event that makes you slow down and actually look at the world around you. Over ninety local and regional artists spread their work across the park’s sweeping green lawns, creating an open-air gallery that stretches as far as the eye can see.

Original paintings catch the morning light, intricate pottery sits alongside dazzling handcrafted jewelry, and delicate fiber arts share space with compelling photography. Many artists set up live demonstrations right at their booths, pulling back the curtain on their creative process in a way that feels incredibly generous and personal.

Young kids get their own corner of the action with dedicated youth activities designed to ignite a little artistic spark of their own. My favorite part is watching a child stop dead in their tracks in front of a painting, completely transfixed, in the way only kids can be.

The atmosphere buzzes with community warmth, live music drifting through the trees, and the kind of unhurried joy that feels increasingly rare. Staunton itself is a gorgeous backdrop, a city that wears its history and creativity with equal pride.

Free admission and free parking make this one of the most effortlessly accessible days out in all of Virginia this September. Head straight to Gypsy Hill Park, 600 Churchville Avenue, Staunton, VA 24401, on Saturday, September 5, 2026.

2. Arts Alive! Festival in Manassas

If you have ever wanted to hand your family an entire day of pure cultural electricity without paying a cent, the Arts Alive! Festival in Manassas is exactly that.

The Hylton Performing Arts Center becomes a full-blown celebration of everything creative, with multiple performance stages running simultaneously and the energy of a place that genuinely loves what it does.

Live musical acts, spoken word performances, and community showcases fill the air with sound and movement all day long. The Bubbles and Beach Balls Dance Party for kids is the kind of spontaneous, joyful chaos that parents secretly love just as much as their children do.

A local artist showcase and sale runs alongside the performances, giving regional makers a beautiful platform and giving my family plenty to admire and discover. Hands-on makerspace stations invite everyone to roll up their sleeves, get a little paint on their fingers, and create something entirely their own.

The Book Nook draws in young readers with guest storytellers, while food trucks add a festive, carnival-like dimension to the whole experience. Every corner of the venue offers something different, which means no two visits ever feel the same.

Best of all, this spectacular community celebration of the arts costs absolutely nothing to attend. Mark your calendar for Saturday, September 12, 2026, and point yourself toward the Hylton Performing Arts Center, 10960 George Mason Circle, Manassas, VA 20110, for a day that will genuinely surprise you.

3. Family Fun Day at the Torggler Fine Arts Center in Newport News

There is something wonderfully subversive about turning a fine arts center into a full-blown playground for a day, and the Mary M. Torggler Fine Arts Center in Newport News pulls it off beautifully every September.

Family Fun Day is built from the ground up for curious kids and the adults who love watching them discover things for the very first time.

A visual scavenger hunt through the galleries reframes art appreciation as an adventure, sending families on a mission through the exhibitions with wide eyes and quick feet. Kids who find every item on the list wear a particular look of triumphant satisfaction that is genuinely hard to beat.

Arts and crafts stations let little hands get busy creating their own masterpieces to carry home proudly, while face painting artists transform cheeks into miniature canvases of imagination. Custom balloon art appears throughout the day, with balloon sculptors twisting colorful creations into shapes that draw gasps and giggles in equal measure.

The center itself is a stunning architectural space, airy and welcoming, designed to make art feel accessible rather than intimidating. Newport News has a quietly impressive cultural scene, and the Torggler sits right at the heart of it.

Admission to this playful, creative day out is completely free, making it one of the smartest family moves in all of Virginia this fall. Join the fun on Saturday, September 19, 2026, at 1 Avenue of the Arts, Newport News, VA 23606.

4. Marine Life Day in Wachapreague

Wachapreague is one of those tiny coastal towns that punches way above its weight, and Marine Life Day at the Virginia Institute of Marine Science’s Eastern Shore Laboratory is living proof. This free open house turns a working research facility into a wonderland of ocean discovery, and the enthusiasm of the scientists who run it is genuinely contagious.

Interactive touch tanks are the undisputed star attraction, giving kids the chance to gently handle a variety of marine organisms that most people only ever see in photographs. Watching a child carefully pick up a horseshoe crab for the first time, equal parts terrified and thrilled, is one of those small moments that sticks around in a family’s memory for years.

Live displays showcase the remarkable biodiversity found right off Virginia’s coastline, and microscope stations reveal a hidden world of tiny creatures that make the ocean seem even more vast and astonishing than before. Marine scientists circulate through the event, fielding questions with genuine enthusiasm and sharing details about their ongoing research projects.

Crafts and hands-on science activities run throughout the day, ensuring that even the youngest attendees stay engaged and leave with something tangible from the experience. The Eastern Shore setting adds its own quiet magic, with salt air and marshland views framing the whole adventure.

Mark the date as Saturday, September 19, 2026, and head to the Virginia Institute of Marine Science’s Eastern Shore Laboratory, 39 Atlantic Avenue, Wachapreague, VA 23480, for a completely free day of coastal discovery.

5. Fall Festival at Leopold’s Preserve in Broad Run

Leopold’s Preserve in Broad Run is the kind of place that makes you wonder why you ever sat indoors on a Saturday, and the Fall Festival held there each September is the perfect excuse to finally fix that. Sprawling trails wind through meadows, woodland edges, and quiet observation areas, offering a genuinely beautiful slice of Northern Virginia’s natural landscape.

Guided nature hikes lead families through the preserve’s most scenic routes, with knowledgeable guides pointing out seasonal changes and local wildlife along the way. The crisp September air carries just a hint of coming autumn, giving the whole outing that particular freshness that makes you feel alive in a way summer heat rarely allows.

Festival grounds buzz with activity beyond the trails, featuring tables from local nonprofit organizations and vendors offering unique, nature-inspired goods. Children gravitate toward the free face painting station and the carnival-style games, while adults tend to linger at the live rescue animal demonstrations that are frankly just as captivating for grown-ups.

Raffles for nature-related products add a little competitive excitement to the day, and the overall atmosphere feels genuinely community-rooted rather than commercially polished. This is a celebration that clearly comes from a place of real love for the land and the people who steward it.

Both parking and entry are completely free. Gather your crew and head to Leopold’s Preserve, 16290 Thoroughfare Road, Broad Run, VA 20137, on Saturday, September 19, 2026, for an afternoon that feels as good as it looks.

6. 4-H County Fair in King George

County fairs have a way of bottling up everything good about small-town community life, and the 4-H County Fair in King George does exactly that with tremendous enthusiasm. This is not a scaled-down version of something bigger somewhere else.

It is its own complete, joyful event, built by and for the people of King George County.

Youth entrepreneurship displays showcase projects that genuinely impress, with young people presenting their work with a pride and confidence that is wonderful to witness up close. The range of skills on display, from agriculture to technology to creative arts, reflects just how broad and ambitious the 4-H program really is.

A live magic show sends waves of laughter and astonishment through the crowd, and the opportunity to climb up and explore a real fire truck is the kind of hands-on thrill that no theme park ride can replicate for a six-year-old. A Caspian horse and an interactive black bear display bring a compelling wildlife dimension to the day.

Demonstrations covering soap making and carnivorous plant feedings keep curious minds occupied between the bigger attractions, ensuring there is always something fresh to discover around the next corner. The fair grounds hum with the particular energy of a community genuinely proud of its young people.

Admission is free for everyone. Head to the King George Citizens Center, 8076 Kings Highway, King George, VA 22485, on Saturday, September 12, 2026, for a day packed with learning, laughter, and local pride.

7. Storytime at the Memorial: Patriot Day in Richmond

Some experiences are designed to do more than entertain. Storytime at the Memorial: Patriot Day at the Virginia War Memorial in Richmond is one of those rare programs that manages to be genuinely moving and completely accessible to young children at the same time.

The setting alone, a solemn and beautifully maintained memorial in the heart of Richmond, gives the whole morning a quiet weight that feels appropriate and meaningful.

An educator leads children through a reading of “Unfurling the Freedom Flag,” a children’s history book that opens up conversations about service, sacrifice, and national identity in language that young minds can actually grasp and hold onto. The discussion that follows the reading tends to be the most surprising and touching part of the morning.

Craft activities extend the experience beyond the story, with children coloring their own Freedom Flags and assembling other patriotic keepsakes to bring home. These are not throwaway crafts.

They are the kind of things that end up on refrigerators for months and spark follow-up questions at the dinner table.

A special opportunity to meet members of the Freedom Flag Foundation adds a layer of real-world connection that makes the whole program feel grounded rather than abstract. The program is designed for children aged four to ten, which covers a wonderfully wide range of family configurations.

Admission, parking, and the program itself are all completely free. Find your way to the Virginia War Memorial, 621 S.

Belvidere St., Richmond, VA 23220, on Saturday, September 12, 2026.

8. Ashburn at PRCS Kids Fest in Leesburg

Monday, September 7, 2026, might technically be a holiday. The Ashburn at PRCS Kids Fest in Leesburg takes Labor Day and turns it into something far more memorable than a backyard barbecue.

Loudoun County Parks, Recreation and Community Services hosts this free community celebration at the Segra Field Parking Lots, and the scale of it is genuinely impressive.

Massive bounce houses and thrilling inflatables dominate the landscape, drawing children in from the moment they spot them across the parking lot. The sheer variety of inflatables means that kids cycle through them repeatedly without ever getting bored, which is a genuine logistical achievement for any event planner.

A petting zoo brings friendly animals into the mix, giving younger children a soft, tactile counterpoint to all the high-energy bouncing. Face painting artists work steadily through long lines of eager kids, while balloon sculptors produce increasingly elaborate creations that children carry around like trophies for the rest of the afternoon.

A dedicated toddler zone ensures that even the smallest family members have a safe, stimulating space calibrated to their size and pace. The Touch-A-Truck area, featuring real Loudoun County safety vehicles, delivers that particular awe that children feel when they realize just how enormous a fire engine actually is up close.

Then comes the Foam Zone, a sudsy, shrieking, absolutely glorious finale to an already exceptional day. Everything is free, so bring the whole crew to Segra Field Parking Lots, 42095 Loudoun United Drive, Leesburg, VA 20175.

9. 55th Annual Labor Day Celebration in Saltville

Saltville knows how to throw a party, and the 55th Annual Labor Day Celebration is the kind of multi-day community event that reminds you exactly why small towns in Virginia are so special. Running from Friday, September 4 through Monday, September 7, 2026, this long weekend bash fills the Saltville Town Commons with music, movement, and a palpable sense of belonging.

Free live music sets the tone from the very first evening, with performers bringing a range of styles that keep crowds of all ages on their feet and in good spirits. Arts and crafts vendors line the festival grounds, showcasing handmade goods that reflect the region’s Appalachian heritage and creative spirit with real authenticity.

The Labor Day parade is the weekend’s crown jewel, a colorful procession of floats, community groups, and spirited participants that winds through town to the delight of onlookers lining every inch of the route. Children scramble for prime sidewalk positions well in advance, which tells you everything you need to know about how beloved this tradition really is.

As darkness settles over the mountains on the final night, a fireworks display lights up the sky in brilliant, cascading color, providing a breathtaking send-off to summer that feels both celebratory and a little bittersweet in the best possible way. Saltville’s mountain backdrop makes the whole spectacle even more dramatic.

Every bit of it is free. Pack your lawn chairs and your best Labor Day spirit, and head to the Saltville Town Commons, Saltville, VA, for an unforgettable long weekend to close out summer in style.