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Philippine independence is celebrated in mid-June with colorful costumes, dance, film, drama, and culinary arts.

A parade along 4th Avenue in early July kicks off Seafair, a celebration of maritime and aviation history highlighted by the aerodynamic “derring-do” of the Navy’s Blue Angels F/A-18 fighter pilots, an All Nations Pow Wow at Daybreak Cultural Center, hydroplane races on Lake Washington, and battleships open to the public on the waterfront.

Dance, music, martial arts, and tea ceremonies are the highlights of this mid-April fair.

The largest and longest running music festival of its kind anywhere, SIMF is dedicated to the esoteric art of spontaneous composition. Local performers join eclectic international musicians to improvise sets that defy category, but always impress. After 19 thrilling annual productions, the ever-popular February festival draws larger audiences each year.

One of the most respected and comprehensive film festivals in the US, the SIFF screens more than 300 new works from at least 50 countries during May and June. Even midnight showings of cult films sell out, and notable directors attend many premier screenings.

Aficionados of tugboats and ships flock to this May festival. It makes for a free, fun, and family-friendly way to learn how the working waterfront has become a major factor in Seattle’s economy and culture. The fair centers around the Bell Street Pier, which is adjacent to the Odyssey Maritime Discovery Center (see Odyssey Maritime Discovery Center & Odyssey Maritime Discovery Center). An exciting and humorous highlight is the tugboat race on Elliott Bay.

Seattle Pride March on Broadway (see Capitol Hill) and Rally in Volunteer Park is all about diversity. Sponsored by the gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender community, it attracts huge crowds from every orientation. Expect outrageous floats, dancing, and the popular “Dykes on Bikes”, a motorcycle outfit whose members freely show what they have beneath the leather.

A colorful beginning in late January marks the Vietnamese Lunar New Year.

This late-August festival preserves Tibet’s rituals and traditions while incorporating cultural elements of its neighboring countries.

Dating from 1970, Seattle’s first street fair stretches over ten blocks of “The Ave” and its side-streets in May. Innumerable crafts booths, food vendors, and local rock music performances attract families from all over town.