This Weekend
in SF
Hardly Strictly Bluegrass fills Golden Gate Park for three free days, the Castro Street Fair closes Castro and Market on Sunday, RM x SFMOMA opens Saturday, and Yerba Buena Gardens has the African Arts Festival on Saturday and the Litquake book fair on Sunday.
Friday, October 2 to Sunday, October 4, 2026. Updated during the week with late confirmations and closures. For Monday through Thursday, see Things to Do in San Francisco This Week. For the rest of the month, see our October 2026 guide.
Friday, October 2
Hardly Strictly Bluegrass in Golden Gate Park, Friday to Sunday
The free Hardly Strictly Bluegrass festival runs all weekend across Hellman Hollow, Lindley Meadow, and Marx Meadow on six stages: Banjo, Swan, Towers of Gold, Rooster, Arrow, and Horseshoe Hill. No ticket is needed. Music runs 1pm to 7pm on Friday, with entrances open from 11am, and 11am to 7pm on Saturday and Sunday, with entrances open from 9am. Friday has My Morning Jacket on Towers of Gold at 4:55pm, Molly Tuttle closing the Banjo Stage at 5:50pm, and Lukas Nelson closing the Swan Stage at 6pm, with Los Lobos, Marty Stuart and His Fabulous Superlatives, and Sierra Hull earlier. Saturday has Mavis Staples on the Banjo Stage at 2:15pm, Gillian Welch and David Rawlings there at 3:50pm, Rilo Kiley on Towers of Gold at 4:50pm, Steve Earle and the Hardly Strictly Dukes closing the Banjo Stage at 5:45pm, and Old Crow Medicine Show closing the Swan Stage at 5:55pm. Sunday has Punch Brothers on the Rooster Stage at 3:50pm, the Joe Ely tribute with the Flatlanders at 3:45pm and Emmylou Harris at 5:45pm, both on the Banjo Stage, and Robert Plant with Saving Grace and Suzi Dian on Towers of Gold at 4:40pm. The four entrances are JFK and Transverse, Fulton and 30th Avenue, JFK and 36th Avenue, and the South Polo Field at Middle Drive and Metson Road, all with body scanners. Each person may bring one bag and one personal item, with clear bags up to 22 by 15 by 10 inches; glass, hard liquor, tents, umbrellas, and high-back chairs are not allowed. The festival is cashless and has no ATMs. There is no festival bike valet, only self parking, but Lyft runs a bike valet at JFK and Transverse. The full schedule is at hardlystrictlybluegrass.com, and our report on the Plant booking covers the lineup.
R-Evolution Farewell at Embarcadero Plaza
Marco Cochrane’s 45-foot sculpture R-Evolution starts coming down on Monday, October 12 and will be off Embarcadero Plaza by Thursday, October 15. Big Art Loop, Building 180, Opulent Temple, and San Francisco Recreation and Parks hold a free farewell at the plaza from 2pm to 8pm on Friday: conversations on how the sculpture was made and on public art, then live music, performances, a global meditation, and a closing DJ set from Opulent Temple. RSVPs are encouraged; the listing is on the Downtown SF Partnership site, and our report on the removal has the background. Embarcadero station is directly underneath, and the F Market streetcar stops alongside.
Mary, Queen of Scots: Final Two Performances at the War Memorial Opera House
San Francisco Opera closes its run of Thea Musgrave’s Mary, Queen of Scots with performances on Friday at 7:30pm and Sunday at 2pm. Heidi Stober sings the title role and Clelia Cafiero conducts in her company debut, in a co-production with English National Opera directed and designed by Stewart Laing. It is sung in English with English supertitles and runs about 2 hours 51 minutes with two intermissions; the company advises that it depicts sexual violence. After Sunday’s matinee, Music Director Eun Sun Kim and Cafiero hold a post-performance talkback. Tickets start at $30 on sfopera.com. Performances resumed after the orchestra strike ended with a tentative agreement on September 17; our report on the settlement has the background. Civic Center station is two blocks east, and the Symphony plays next door at Davies Hall on Saturday and Sunday.
Clancy’s Pumpkin Patch Opens in the Inner Sunset
Clancy’s Pumpkin Patch opens on Friday at 1620 7th Avenue, at the corner of Lawton Street, its only location this season, and stays open daily from 9am to 9pm through October 31. The lot has free parking with more than 50 spaces, and well-behaved dogs on leash are welcome. The N Judah runs two blocks north on Judah Street; expect heavier N Judah crowds than usual this weekend with Hardly Strictly on the same line.
Saturday, October 3
African Arts Festival on the Great Lawn at Yerba Buena Gardens
The sixth African Arts Festival runs 11am to 4pm on the Great Lawn, co-presented by Duniya Dance and Drum Company and the Yerba Buena Gardens Festival. The lineup includes Emmanuel Nado, Diamano Coura West African Dance Company, Unique Derique, Fua dia Congo, Mulu Senshaw, Duniya Dance and Drum Company, Arenas Dance Company, the Chinyakare Ensemble, Hana Baba and Ahmed Elejail, and Bongo and the TonTons. Between sets there are dance and drum lessons and face painting for children, and vendors sell traditional African food, clothing, jewelry, and hair and skin care products. It is free, with an optional RSVP on the festival site. Powell and Montgomery stations are each a short walk, and Yerba Buena/Moscone station on the Central Subway is at Fourth and Folsom. Our festival preview has more.
RM x SFMOMA: Between You and Me Opens on Floor 7
SFMOMA opens RM x SFMOMA: Between You and Me to the public on Saturday. RM of BTS curated it under his given name, Kim Namjoon, with SFMOMA co-curators América Castillo and Hyoeun Kim, and nearly 150 works from his personal collection hang with works from SFMOMA’s collection. The focus is modern and contemporary Korean art, including Yun Hyong-keun, Park Rehyun, and Chang Ucchin, with ceramics, calligraphy, painting, and sculpture reaching back to the fifth century. Wall texts are handwritten by RM, and he narrates the audio guide. Every visitor needs a timed “RM x SFMOMA + General Admission” ticket booked online; a regular general admission ticket does not get you in. The surcharge is $12 on weekends and $10 on weekdays, and members and visitors 18 and under pay no surcharge. SFMOMA says weekend tickets are available except for the first few Saturdays, so opening day is tight; a limited number of same-day tickets may be available at the Floor 2 ticketing desk. A $75 Encore Pass covers repeat visits, and the show runs to February 7, 2027. The museum is open 10am to 5pm Friday to Sunday. Montgomery and Powell stations are each about 10 minutes on foot, and the African Arts Festival is a block away the same afternoon.
Renée Fleming Sings Strauss with the San Francisco Symphony
Soprano Renée Fleming sings Richard Strauss’s Four Last Songs with the San Francisco Symphony, and the orchestra pairs it with Strauss’s Ein Heldenleben. Santtu-Matias Rouvali makes his Orchestral Series debut on the podium. The weekend performances are Saturday at 7:30pm and Sunday at 2pm, after a Thursday matinee. Tickets are through the Symphony. Civic Center station is two blocks east, and Sunday’s matinee starts at the same time as the Opera’s next door.
Ferry Plaza Farmers Market
Foodwise runs the Saturday Ferry Plaza Farmers Market around the Ferry Building from 8am to 2pm year round, with more than 100 vendors selling produce, food products, and brunch and lunch. Foodwise posts which sellers are in each week. Embarcadero station and the F Market streetcar both reach it, and R-Evolution stands across the Embarcadero in the plaza until October 12.
Sunday, October 4
52nd Castro Street Fair
The Castro Street Fair, founded by Harvey Milk in 1974, runs 11am to 6pm around Castro and Market Streets under the 2026 theme “Where We Belong.” Exhibitors line Market, Castro, and 18th Streets, with three main stages and smaller entertainment along the way. Admission is a suggested donation of $10 to $20, shared with the fair’s beneficiary nonprofits. The fair is smoke free. Castro station, on the K, L, M, and S, sits inside the fairgrounds, which makes Muni Metro the simplest approach. Our Castro Street Fair guide has the background.
Litquake Out Loud and Book Fair at Yerba Buena Gardens
Litquake brings a small press book fair and a day of poetry readings to the Great Lawn from 11am to 4pm, presented with the Yerba Buena Gardens Festival and centered on the Bay Area’s BIPOC and LGBTQ+ writers. Vendors include City Lights, Heyday Books, Last Gasp, North Atlantic Books, PM Press, ZYZZYVA, Foglifter Journal and Press, Locus Magazine, and about 20 more presses and magazines. Admission is free. The full reading schedule is on litquake.org, and our Litquake 2026 guide covers the main festival, October 8 to 24. Powell and Montgomery stations are each a short walk.
Free First Sunday at the Asian Art Museum
General admission to the Asian Art Museum is free on the first Sunday of the month, and special exhibition tickets drop to $15. The museum is open 10am to 5pm. Same-day walk-up tickets are limited on free days, so the museum recommends reserving in advance. The special exhibition is Ha Chong-Hyun: Retrospective, the Korean painter’s first museum exhibition in North America, on view through January 25, 2027. The museum calendar also lists Sunday programs, including an art workshop with Jun Yang. The museum faces Civic Center Plaza at 200 Larkin Street, a block from Civic Center station. Our October free museum days guide lists the rest of the month.
HEAD WEST Marketplace at the Ferry Building
HEAD WEST sets up at the Ferry Building on the first Sunday of each month, 11am to 5pm, with local makers and small businesses selling ceramics, jewelry, vintage, art, and other goods, plus a music booth. It is kid and pet friendly and runs in light rain. The Ferry Building’s own shops and food counters are open behind it. Embarcadero station and the F Market streetcar both stop at the foot of Market Street.
Getting Around
The largest disruption this weekend is on the west side of Golden Gate Park. For Hardly Strictly Bluegrass, Rec and Park closes JFK Drive between Stow Lake Circle and 36th Avenue and 30th Avenue between Fulton and JFK from 8pm Thursday until 6pm Monday, and from 6am Friday to 11:55pm Sunday closes Transverse Drive between Crossover Drive and MLK, JFK Drive from 36th Avenue to Chain of Lakes, 36th Avenue from Fulton into the park, Middle Drive West, Overlook Drive, and Metson Drive. The Polo Fields parking areas close from 6am Friday to 1pm Monday. SFMTA runs extra N Judah trains over the whole route from 11am to 8pm all three days, extra 5 Fulton buses from 11am to 8:30pm Saturday and Sunday, extra outbound 5R Fulton Rapid trips from Market and Sansome to Fulton and 30th Avenue from 11am to 8:30pm all three days, and extra 28 19th Avenue buses from noon to 9pm Saturday and Sunday. Each evening from 6pm to 8:30pm, 5R buses run from Fulton and 30th Avenue back to UN Plaza/Civic Center station. The N Judah, 5, 5R, 7, 18, 28, 29, and 44 all carry festival crowds, so allow extra time. Taxi stands are on Fulton between 22nd and 24th Avenues. Ride-hail pick-up and drop-off is around Washington High School on 30th Avenue between Anza and Balboa and on Balboa between 30th and 31st, with extra pick-ups on Irving between 25th and 27th; the apps only accept pins in those zones, so walk there before you request. Lyft runs a bike valet at JFK and Transverse and a temporary e-bike station on Middle Drive by the south entrance. Details are on SFMTA’s Hardly Strictly page and Rec and Park’s road closure page.
On Sunday, SFMTA closes Castro between 16th and 19th, Market between Noe and Diamond, 17th between Hartford and Castro, 18th between Noe and Eureka, Hartford between 17th and 19th, Collingwood between 19th and Market, and Diamond between Market and 18th from 2am to 11pm for the Castro Street Fair. The 24 Divisadero, 33 Ashbury/18th, 35 Eureka, and 37 Corbett reroute around the fair from 6am to 11pm, and the K Ingleside bus reroutes from 6am to 8am. The F Market runs a switchback at Noe all day Saturday and Sunday, so Market and Noe is the last F stop toward the Castro. Muni Metro through Castro station is the direct route in. Details are on SFMTA’s Castro Street Fair page.
Two smaller closures: on Saturday from noon to 6pm, Noriega Street closes between 24th and 25th Avenues for the Sunset Neighborhood Oktoberfest block party and the 7 Haight/Noriega reroutes, and Hayes Street closes on Fridays and Saturdays this month for the Hayes Valley Farmers Market and Shared Spaces, with the 6 Hayes/Parnassus rerouted. SFMTA lists all of it on its weekend events page.
On the freeways, Caltrans closes the southbound Central Freeway connector to southbound US-101 and the 10th Street on-ramp from 11pm Friday to 6am Monday for joint work on the viaduct; the 7th Street on-ramp is the recommended alternate. Northbound I-280 drops to one lane between 16th Street and the US-101 interchange near Mariposa from 10pm Friday to 5am Monday. Details are on the Caltrans project page. The full southbound Hospital Curve closure first set for this weekend moved to November 6 to 9; the next one is October 16 to 19.
Also on the calendar: the Golden State Valkyries host the Dallas Wings in a deciding Game 3 of their first-round playoff series at Chase Center on Friday night, after Dallas forced it with an overtime win in Game 2. Tip-off time and tickets are on the Chase Center event page, and the game adds Mission Bay traffic on the T Third. Fleet Week officially begins Sunday, but no events were posted for opening day when we checked, and the air show at Marina Green is the following weekend, October 9 to 11, from 10am to 4pm. On BART, the elevator at 24th Street Mission station is out of service through October 23, and trains single track near Pleasant Hill on Sunday for vegetation work. For live Muni reroutes, check SFMTA. For Monday through Thursday, see Things to Do in San Francisco This Week, and for the rest of the month, our October 2026 guide.
Get the SFGuide app
Save your weekend, get directions, and explore offline.
