Celebrating the history, culture, and people of Japan, the Japanese Festival at the Missouri Botanical Garden is one of the largest and oldest festivals of its kind in the United States. Your family can enjoy guided walking tours, bonsai, cooking, martial arts and origami demonstrations, sumo wrestling, and special activities for kids.
The festival will be held Saturday, August 31 and Sunday, Sept. 1 from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., and Monday, Sept. 2 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. (Last entry at 4:30 p.m.) Admission is $18 for adults and kids ages 13 and older; $9 for Garden members ages 3-adult, and free for children age 2 and under. Festival-level members and their children get in free.
For more than 40 years, the Missouri Botanical Garden has produced the annual Japanese Festival in conjunction with the Japanese Activities Committee, a coalition of several Japanese-American organizations that provide art, dance, food and entertainment for thousands of visitors each year.
For more information visit: missouribotanicalgarden.org
Experience the holiday lights at Winter Wonderland in Tilles Park, where you'll find two million beautiful holiday lights and animated displays. This year's Winter Wonderland is drive-through only.
More than a million lights will illuminate some of the Missouri Botanical Garden's most iconic locations, walkways will be transformed into sensory light tunnels providing an explosion of visual magic, and traditional candlelight village displays, festive drinks, s'mores and great photo opportunities will delight crowds of all ages.
The annual Celebration of Lights in Fort Zumwalt Park in O'Fallon, Mo., has been a holiday tradition since 1991.
Bring your babies and toddlers to this free story time at the Missouri History Museum.
Storytelling in the Museum is an in-person storytelling event happening at 10:30 a.m. at the Missouri History Museum. This event, perfect for the preschool set, features engaging stories with themes like Grandparents Day, Hispanic Heritage Month, and mealtime. Storytelling in the Museum is free.