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Annual Events

From the Columbia Pike Blues Festival to the Armed Forces Cycling Classic to the Rosslyn Jazz Fest, visit during a world-class annual event.

Each year, Arlington’s calendar fills up with great recurring events from music and arts to sports and national holidays. Here’s how the yearly calendar of events unfolds.

March - April

  • National Cherry Blossom Festival: DC turns pretty in pink each year, as it offers visitors a four-week flower-themed extravaganza filled with food, fun and culture to mark the blooming of the famed cherry trees.
  • Arlington Festival of the Arts: Discover original handmade works in every medium including sculpture, pottery, jewelry, photography and painting at this topnotch visual showcase.

May

  • QuarterFest: Sip and savor the best of Arlington’s vibrant culinary scene at this Ballston neighborhood food, beer and wine festival.
  • Rolling to Remember: This high-profile motorcycle rally in the streets of DC spotlights U.S. POWs and MIAs, as well as veteran suicides, over Memorial Day Weekend.
  • Memorial Day: Spend the last Monday of May in Arlington and Washington, DC, where the area’s many military memorials form a dramatic and symbolic backdrop to honor our country's fallen heroes.
Group of motorcyclists riding down the streets of Washington D.C. at the Rolling to Remember event
Rolling to Remember

June

  • Armed Forces Cycling Classic: Professionals and amateurs alike face off for a spirited series of races at the capital region’s premier biking event.
  • Capital Pride Celebration: Honor DC’s vibrant LGBTQ+ community with concerts, parties, parades, food and dancing all month long.
  • Columbia Pike Blues Festival: Groove to the music of the largest blues festival in the DC metro area with national headliners, great food, unique vendors and family fun.

July

  • Independence Day: Celebrate America’s birthday with a range of patriotic festivities in the national capital area, an exciting place to be on July 4th.
Iwo Jima 4th of July Fireworks in Arlington VA near Washington DC
Fourth of July Fireworks Display

August 

  • Arlington County Fair: Food, fun and frivolity draw thousands to this annual weeklong fair, one of the largest free events on the East Coast.
Arlington County Fair
Arlington County Fair

September

  • Rosslyn Jazz Fest: Groove to the smooth sounds of jazz at this popular community event full of standout music and so much more.
Rosslyn Jazz Fest 2018 crowd shot
Rosslyn Jazz Fest

October 

  • Army Ten-Miler: This race attracts 35,000 runners and 900 teams from around the world to build Army morale and promote physical fitness.
  • Marine Corps Marathon: One of the world’s largest marathons and the only one without prize money, this legendary race draws runners and spectators alike.
Marine Corps Marathon Finish Line in Arlington VA
Marine Corps Marathon

November 

  • Veterans Day: No place is more meaningful to honor our nation’s vets on November 11th than at the many military memorials in Arlington and Washington, DC.