Burke Centre Festival: Everything You Need to Know

The annual Burke Centre Festival is only days away. Here's the low down on everything you want to know.

Burke Centre Festival - Sept. 11-12, Saturday and Sunday

Located by the Burke Centre Conservancy Offices at 6060 Burke Centre Parkway. 

What's the cost? Visitors enjoy free admission to the event.

How long is it open?: Gates open at 10 a.m. on Saturday and 11 a.m. on Sunday. The festival closes at 5 p.m. both nights, with the exception of the wine garden area, which will remain open until 10 p.m. on Saturday. 

What's this festival all about?: More than 8,000 people are expected to attend. Among the major attractions are amusement park rides, children's activities, a variety of food vendors, live entertainment, and a wine garden with live music. A commemorative wreath laying ceremony will take place Saturday morning to mark the ninth anniversary of 9-11.

Most amusement park rides will be oriented towards small children, including pony rides and moon bounces. Each ride costs no more than three tickets, and each ticket costs $1. There will also be free face painting, balloon animals, and emergency transport and police displays.

Don't hesitate to bring pets as well. Pet care stations with water and animal treats will be available throughout the grounds.  Just remember to keep all pets on a leash and bring bags to pick up after them.

A wide range of adult activities will be available as well.  Live entertainment will include music groups like La Unica, a local Irish-Latin band, as well as dance groups, karate demonstrations, and more.  Additionally, approximately 75 vendors will provide an excellent shopping experience at the arts and crafts show. 

After a long day of shopping, hungry guests can enjoy the wide array of food venders who will be selling crab cakes, Chinese food, and sweet potato fries, in addition to more traditional fare like kettle corn, gyros, and funnel cake.  Festival-goers can even bring their own food and enjoy a picnic in the wine garden.

No tickets are necessary to visit the wine garden, where Three Fox Vineyards will be selling their wines by the glass and by the bottle.  Shirley's Catering will be also be selling fruit and cheese "cleansing palates for two."  All visitors to the wine garden will be serenaded by a variety of live musicians throughout the day and into the night.

Where do I park?: Parking will be available along Burke Centre Parkway all weekend, and at Knollwood Community Church and Burke United Methodist on Saturday only. To avoid competing for parking spaces, visitors can take free shuttle buses from various stops along Burke Centre Parkway. The complete list of stops is available at burkecentreweb.com under the "Festival" tab.

For more information about the Burke Centre Festival, visit burkecentreweb.com under the "Festival" tab, or check out the festival on Facebook.