The 96th Annual ABC Kite Fest is coming up on April 14! It’s one of my favorite pastimes. I have been going to Kite Festivals since I lived in Houston, and by far Austin Kite Festival was way more than I imagined. It’s such a great way to be outdoors and spend quality time with family! When I first moved here in 2022, I was just learning my way around and found out about the event not knowing how bad the traffic was going to be, it was a big fail! We were stuck in traffic, couldn’t find parking and went home very disappointed. I’m here to make sure that doesn’t happy to you! Here’s everything you need to know to have a successful Kite Fest outing with the kids and family this year!
Kite Fest is FREE
April 14 | Zilker Metropolitan Park | 10-5
You can purchase Early Bird VIP passes which come with early access to the park, seating in an open air tent, refreshments, upgraded climate controlled restrooms, face painting and much more. The deadline for these tickets is April 12th and is a first come first serve system.
A few things to look out for:
- Barton Springs Road will be closed from 7am-7pm
- There will be street parking, metered parking, garage parking and parking in surrounding areas available for purchase.
I highly recommend reserving a spot in advance. I personally did this last year and we parked about less than a mile from Zilker Park. We brought our wagon, water, kites, snacks, floor blanket and walked there which was perfect. Not only did we not wait in line to get there, we didn’t get stuck in traffic when we left. Once available you can reserve a spot and you will get a pass and directions with instructions. Those will be coming soon.
Kids Activities at Kite Fest:
- There’s a kite contest available for kids and all kinds of kites are accepted, registration opens at 11am. The contest starts at 1pm.
- For kids there will be FREE bounce houses, last year my older son did rock climbing and there were personnel blowing bubbles in certain areas, the kids loved chasing those and there’s all-day long activities for all ages.
- There is a Waiver form you must sign but most of the activities are free of charge with the exception of things like face painting and balloon animals.
There are also places to take lots of pictures and it is beautiful to see all the kites in the sky. You can bring kites from home, or you can purchase them there. If you are a dog-mom there is also a cool off-leash pet playground for your furry baby.
There will be all kinds of vendors with games, concession stands and great food trucks. It will be busy all over the park. PRO TIP: The food lines can be long and slow, so fill your wagon with extra water and snacks! (No glass or Styrofoam containers, please).
Make sure to check out the Texas Children’s Hospital Kid’s Club while you are there – Austin Moms will be there!
Kids Club presented by Texas Children’s® Austin
Featuring free bounce houses and more, the Kids Club is a day-long activity center for children of all ages.
I am so excited to go this year and hope you get to enjoy the kite festival too!
