Memorial Day yields the only official three-day weekend of spring, and it's prime time for major festivals in the Pacific Northwest. If you're sticking around Seattle, you'll find plenty of entertainment at the Northwest Folklife Festival and the Seattle International Film Festival. But if you're hankering for a road trip, the Juan de Fuca Festival in Port Angeles, the Artisan Food Festival in Port Townsend, the Rose Festival CityFair in Portland, and other great out-of-town options await. See them all below, and find even more events on our Memorial Day calendar.

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SEATTLE

Fourth Annual Couth Buzzard Jazz Festival
For the fourth year running, Couth Buzzard will throw a music festival to celebrate all that their community is thankful for: namely, jazz (and their neighborhood). Co-sponsored by Earshot Jazz, this fest offers performers like Birch Pereira, Kenny Mandell, and Mercedes Nicole in a varied sampling of jazz's history to enjoy.
(All weekend)

Northwest Folklife Festival
The goal of Folklife is noble as heck: “We envision strong communities, united by arts and culture… When people share aspects of their culture, opportunities are created to dissolve misunderstandings, break down stereotypes, and increase respect for one another.” What does this translate to? A gigantic Memorial Day weekend hippie fest full of lovely people dancing, performing world music from “yodeling to beatboxing” and everything in between, serving tasty street food, and leading workshops in arts and crafts. It’s a great, if potentially overwhelming, people-watching experience, plus a great way to see local music. The 2019 spotlight is "Youth Rising."
(All weekend)

PaizoCon
Paizo Publishing, a Redmond-based adventure gaming company that specializes in spin-offs of the classic role-playing games Pathfinder and Starfinder, hosts this annual convention filled with panels, workshops, special guests, and, of course, chances to try out games for yourself. This year's special guests are Liane Merciel (author of The River Kings' Road, Dragon Age: Last Flight, and Pathfinder Tales: Hellknight) and Wayne Reynolds (an illustrator whose work has appeared in the Pathfinder RPG Core Rulebook).
(All weekend)

Seattle International Film Festival 2019
The 45th annual Seattle International Film Festival is the largest film festival in the United States, with more than 400 films (spread over 25 days) watched by around 140,000 people at nine theaters across the city. It's impressively grand and one of the most exciting and widely attended arts events Seattle has to offer. There are some excellent films playing over Memorial Day weekend, including Trixie Mattel: Moving Parts, X - The eXploited, Crystal Swan, and a sneak peek of Thin Skin, a film by The Stranger's own Charles Mudede.
(All weekend)

TUKWILA

Vietnam Veterans Memorial Park Opening
The Museum of Flight will dedicate Memorial Day weekend to their new Vietnam Veterans Memorial Park, featuring their massive B-52G Stratofortress and a memorial statue and tribute wall. The opening ceremony will include aircraft fly-overs, a color guard presentation, and a special pinning ceremony for Vietnam veterans.
(Saturday only, approx. 11 miles south of Seattle)

RENTON

Renton City Retro Gaming Expo
Video games have evolved exponentially over the years, but that doesn't mean there isn't plenty of fun to be had in revisiting the gems that started it all. At this two-day convention, play indie games, sit in on panels, practice your joystick technique in a free arcade, compete in tournaments, and enter raffles.
(Saturday-Sunday, approx. 15 miles east of Seattle)

VASHON ISLAND

Fire Sale
From the people who bring you Punk Rock Flea Market, this two-day craft, vintage, and collectible "summer camp market" gives you a good reason to hop on the ferry to Vashon over Memorial Day weekend to buy cool art and sleep under the stars. There will also be live music and a beer garden.
(Saturday-Sunday, approx. 20 miles southwest of Seattle, includes ferry)

WOODINVILLE

Memorial Day Weekend at the Woodhouse Wine Estates
Enjoy live music from while you taste local wines.
(Saturday-Monday, approx. 20 miles northeast of Seattle)

EVERETT

Tankfest Northwest
Hear the clamor of vintage tanks and artillery, see military vehicle demonstrations, play with remote control tanks, send your kids on a scavenger hunt, listen to an educational talk, and more.
(Saturday-Sunday, approx. 29 miles north of Seattle)

PORT TOWNSEND

Port Townsend Artisan Food Festival
The Port Townsend Farmers Market will offer artisan food and drinks from the area (including Mt. Townsend Creamery and Finnriver Cidery), live music, and kids' food activities.
(Saturday only, approx. 56 miles north of Seattle, ferry optional) 

COUPEVILLE

Filson Memorial Day Party
Sail over to Whidbey Island for Filson's first annual Captain's "grazing style" BBQ prepared by Chef Eric Truglas, where you'll find lawn games, music, and dishes like curried potato salad and roasted suckling pig.
(Saturday only, approx. 57 miles north of Seattle, including ferry, or 103 miles without ferry)

PORT ORCHARD

Seagull Calling Festival
In this unique Memorial Day festival that combines bird calling with chicken wing tasting, try to lure seagulls by imitating their cries (and bribing them with treats). After that, taste a variety of chicken wings made by amateur chefs for $1 a piece.
(Saturday only, approx. 23 miles west of Seattle, including ferry, or 60 miles without ferry)

BREMERTON

Kitsap Harbor Festival
Bremerton will open its boardwalk to vendors, friendly pirates, and live music for a weekend of family-focused fun at this 11th annual event. 
(Saturday-Sunday, approx. 23 miles west of Seattle, including ferry, or 65 miles without ferry)

BRINNON

Hood Canal Shrimpfest
Venture out to the rich waters of the Hood Canal for this shrimp- and seafood-centric weekend festival featuring craft and food booths, local music, belt sander races, exhibits, activities for kids, and more.
(Saturday-Sunday, approx. 63 miles northwest of Seattle, ferry optional)

PORT ANGELES

26th Annual Juan de Fuca Festival
Fans of music, comedy, and dance will fill the lovely waterfront town of Port Angeles with melodies and festivities for a whole weekend this spring.
(All weekend, approx. 82 miles northwest of Seattle, includes ferry)

BELLINGHAM

Historic Fairhaven Festival
Bellingham's annual street fair will feature live music from Gin Gypsy, SpaceBand, and Death By Radio, a "historic beer garden," BBQ fare, craft vendors, and live performances from acts like the Bellingham Firefighters Pipes & Drums.
(Sunday only, approx. 89 miles north of Seattle)

LILLIWAUP

Memorial Weekend at Hama Hama
Spend the long weekend shucking your own oysters and feasting on bratwurst while blues-rock group Bread & Gravy, OOUJH, and guitarist Vince Brown play live music. 
(Saturday-Monday, approx. 82 miles southeast of Seattle, including ferry, or 82 miles without ferry)

VICTORIA, B.C.

The Village Block Party
Over 150 makers, artisans, and musicians will gather for an all-ages day of shopping and fun in charming, ghostly Victoria. 
(Sunday only, approx. 107 miles northwest of Seattle, includes ferry)

LANGLEY, B.C.

Root Beer Festival
Root beer fanatics can feast on unlimited samplings of flavored fudge, candy, ice cream, floats, and plain old soda pop.
(Saturday only, approx. 122 miles north of Seattle) 

VANCOUVER, B.C.

Modified Ghost Festival IV
Think you can handle four whole days of thrashing to metal, rock, punk, and hardcore bands? Pay a visit up north to see headliners like Virginia's Municipal Waste, Salem's Convergence, Oakland Grammy winners High on Fire, and Canada's own Voivod.
(Friday-Sunday, approx. 142 miles north of Seattle)

Vancouver International Children's Festival
Canadians don't celebrate Memorial Day, but Vancouver's 42st annual International Children's Festival is still a good excuse to take your kids up north for eclectic live performances (including drag queen dress-up with Peach Cobblah and Isolde N. Barro, a funny version of Shakespeare's Macbeth, live music from Élage Diouf, circus stuff from Cirque du Soleil veteran Jamie Adkins, and more). 
(Monday only, approx. 142 miles north of Seattle)

PORTLAND, OR

Rose Festival CityFair
Following its annual schedule, Portland's quintessential summer festival will kick off over Memorial Day weekend and last through early June. For its first stretch, head to the waterfront for fireworks and live music from Hit Machine and the Andre Marc (Fri May 24), a concert with Sir Mix-a-Lot (Sat May 25), a ukulele jam (Sun May 26), and all-day carnival entertainment (Mon May 27). If you love it, return for a "Sci-fi and Video Games"-themed weekend, dragon boat races, a starlight parade, a grand floral parade, and Fleet Week.
(All weekend, approx. 174 miles south of Seattle)

MOSES LAKE

Moses Lake Spring Festival
From arts and crafts vendors and live music, to a three-on-three basketball tournament and a classic car show, to a farmers market and a grand moonlight parade, there are plenty of reasons to venture east for this annual festival.
(Friday–Sunday, approx. 177 miles east of Seattle)

WILLAMETTE VALLEY, OR

Memorial Day Weekend in the Wine Country
Partake in Oregon Wine Month by tasting newly released white wines, rosés, and Pinot noir (plus classic selections) from over 150 regional wineries. The weekend will also feature a vineyard picnic, live music, food pairings, and Willamette Valley art.
(Saturday-Monday, approx. 222 miles south of Seattle)