The unofficial end of summer is upon us – sheesh that went by quick, didn’t it? But don’t worry, there’s plenty of fun to be had this Labor Day weekend, including several carnivals and festivals around the Garden State! Here’s some of the biggest ones happening this weekend.
🎡 Boonton Fire Department Carnival
- August 28th – August 31st
- Boonton, NJ
One of the largest fire department fundraising fairs in the state, held annually by the Boonton Volunteer Fire Dept, and located at Boonton High School. The carnival features a sizable midway with around 20 rides for all ages, plenty of great food options, a large beer garden with live music Friday through Sunday, carnival games, and more!
Special events at the carnival include the annual Fireman’s Parade on Saturday at 1:30pm (now in its 134th year!), and a fireworks display on Sunday night at approximately 10pm followed by the Super 50/50 drawing at 10:30pm.
Admission is free. Parking is available at the high school, but it seems to fill up quickly (especially on fireworks night!) There’s plenty of street parking adjacent to the fair however.
Hours are 6pm-midnight Thursday & Friday, and 3pm-midnight on Saturday & Sunday. PoP ride wristbands are $40 per wristband/per day. Individual ride credits are also available.
🎡 St. Bartholomew/UNICO Italian Festival
- August 29th – September 1st
- Scotch Plains, NJ
St. Bart’s in Scotch Plains will host their 51st Annual Italian Festival on Labor Day weekend, located at the church grounds near downtown Scotch Plains. Their website touts it as the “best kept secret in New Jersey,” however I’d hardly call it a secret with how big and highly attended it’s gotten in recent years. Plenty of great food including Italian fare, live entertainment every night, massive 50/50 raffle on the final night, and a decent sized carnival midway with rides and games for all.
Admission to the festival is free. There’s limited parking at the fair itself, but plenty of curbside parking on the side streets around the festival.
Hours are 4:30pm – 10:30pm Friday through Sunday, and 3pm – 8pm on Sunday.
🎡 Mendham Labor Day Carnival
- August 29th – September 1st
- Mendham Borough, NJ
This is a long running annual carnival sponsored by the Mendham Pastime Club, held at Borough Park in the middle of Mendham Borough (not Mendham Township, I always get them confused!) The carnival features a handful of rides for kids and thrillseekers alike, carnival games, and festival type food like burgers, sausage sandwiches, funnel cake, cotton candy, etc.
On Labor Day, the borough of Mendham will hold their annual parade starting at 10am. Following the parade will be live music by BreakTime at the Borough Park gazebo.
The carnival is typically capped off with a fireworks display, but I haven’t heard anything about it this year. I’ll update when I get an official word.
Admission is free. Hours are 6-10pm Friday through Sunday, and 11am – 10pm on Labor Day. Parking is street only as far as I can tell!
🎡 St. Joseph’s Feast
- August 29th – September 1st
- Lodi, NJ
A longstanding annual tradition, Lodi’s St. Joseph Feast is celebrating its 110th year in 2025! The festival is held at the St. Joseph church grounds near downtown Lodi, with Spring Street and East Pl closed to traffic to hold more festival fun! Plenty of food, lots of games, daily entertainment, and a small carnival setup with rides for kids.
Labor Day will have a Mass at 4pm followed by a procession through the streets of Lodi with the statue of St. Joseph.
Admission is free. Hours are 6-10pm on Friday, and 4-10pm Saturday through Labor Day. Parking is off-site only.
🎡 Great Falls Festival
- August 30th – September 1st
- Paterson, NJ
Festival and carnival held at beautiful Great Falls National Historic Park in Paterson. The festival is slated to have food, games, rides, and live music. The final night, Labor Day, will have a fireworks display at 8:30pm.
Hours are posted as 2pm – 10pm every day.
🎡 Riverdale Street Fair
- September 1st
- Riverdale, NJ
Annual Labor Day street fair hosted by the Borough of Riverdale, held along Newark Pompton Turnpike – between Newbury Place and Cotluss Rd. Over 100 vendors & exhibitors, food trucks, live music and demonstrations, kids zone with bouncy rides and face painting, and more!
Admission is free. Hours are 10am to 5pm.
Be sure to check out our list of carnivals, festivals, and street fairs happening during the rest of 2025. The summer might be over (unofficially) but the carnival season doesn’t end for another couple months!
