JAMAICA BAY-ROCKAWAY PARKS CONSERVANCY HOSTS 8TH ANNUAL “JAMAICA BAY FESTIVAL” ON CITY OF WATER DAY
Festival Connects Thousands of New Yorkers with Waterfront Recreation and Educational Activities in NYC’s Largest Natural Area
Today, Jamaica Bay-Rockaway Parks Conservancy (JBRPC) announced the lineup for its 8th Annual Jamaica Bay Festival on City of Water Day, taking place on Saturday, July 12. This free, family-friendly festival spans the 10,000 acres of parklands surrounding Jamaica Bay in Brooklyn and Queens, highlighting the beauty, biodiversity, and community spirit of New York City’s largest tidal estuary.
This year, JBRPC is partnering with over 30 local community groups to host a full day of free public events from morning to evening. Participants can enjoy kayaking, birding, shoreline cleanups, yoga, guided nature walks, live music, and more. The festival aims to increase awareness of Jamaica Bay as a vital, ecological, recreational, and cultural resource - and connect New Yorkers of all ages with their local waterfront.
The full schedule of over 30 events is organized into four themes—Active Recreation, Nature & Wildlife, Stewardship, and Arts & Culture—and is available via an interactive map at JamaicaBayFestival.com
Active Recreation:
Enjoy water-based and land-based activities including kayaking, stand-up paddleboarding, biking, yoga, and guided fitness classes. These experiences encourage healthy, outdoor fun while deepening appreciation for our local parklands.
Nature & Wildlife:
Join expert-led walks, living shoreline tours, and even solar viewing with astronomers. These programs highlight Jamaica Bay’s remarkable habitats and native wildlife, from shorebirds to saltmarsh grasses.
Stewardship:
Get hands-on with volunteer cleanups and habitat restoration efforts—including a shoreline cleanup at the North Channel Bridge. Participants can help preserve and protect the very spaces we gather to celebrate.
Arts & Culture:
Enjoy live music performances, a local art exhibit, and see historic aircraft up-close—activities that celebrate the stories, people, and history that make Jamaica Bay so special.
“The Jamaica Bay Festival provides a powerful platform to celebrate our shoreline, highlight community partnerships, and engage New Yorkers in the care and stewardship of their local environment,” said Terri Carta, Executive Director of JBRPC. “Jamaica Bay is one of the most ecologically productive and culturally rich parts of New York City, and we’re thrilled to invite neighbors and visitors to experience all it has to offer.”
Returning partners shared their excitement about this year’s event:
“The Jamaica Bay Festival has become an integral part of the Rockaway community and the Garden by the Bay is honored to be a part of such an amazing partnership that brings community members from near and far together to enjoy and celebrate this beautiful estuary called Jamaica Bay. Whether it be birding, kayaking, rowing or simply picnicking along the Bay, the Jamaica Bay Festival has something for everyone,” Jackie Rogers, President of The Garden by the Bay and Edgemere Alliance.
“Marine Park Alliance is thrilled to partner with JBRPC, HEP, NYC Bird Alliance, and many other partners in celebrating Jamaica Bay Festival on City of Water Day 2025! We are keeping the “marine” in Marine Park by welcoming visitors to our fabulous shoreline with an Intro to Birding walk focused on the water birds of Marine Park. NYC is a city defined by its shorelines and City of Water Day is an important occasion to educate New Yorkers about the vitality of our coastlines and waterways,” Scott Middleton, Executive Director of the Marine Park Alliance.
The Jamaica Bay Festival is made possible through partnerships with community organizations, government agencies, and local businesses across Brooklyn and Queens. The Festival is generously supported, in part, by the Hudson River Foundation, New York-New Jersey Harbor Estuary Program, Waterfront Alliance, and ConEdison. NYC Ferry is the official transportation sponsor of the Jamaica Bay Festival. Use the NYC Ferry App for up-to-date routes and schedules.
The Festival is one of several JBRPC public engagement and stewardship initiatives that receive public funding through the offices of NYC Council Speaker Adrienne Adams, Majority Whip Selvena Brooks-Powers, Minority Leader Joann Ariola, and Council Member Mercedes Narcisse, NY Senator Roxanne Persaud, and NY Assembly Members Stacey Pheffer Amato and Jaime R. Williams.
Full Schedule of Events: