Local event organizers have outdone themselves this Father’s Day weekend.
Divided into five fast-and-loose categories, here are 17 ways to celebrate.
Show-ing Up
Live music is enlivening. It’s as true during “a relaxing day” at the Owenego Inn listening to “beachside ballads” as it is during a relaxing day at Riva listening to beachside ballads. It’ll be true in a different way at College Street Music Hall, where The Beths, a wistfully upbeat ’90s-edged indie rock band/dopamine factory, open for the hit-making rock group Spoon.
Game On
At the Dave & Buster’s arcade at the Connecticut Post Mall, a Dad Games competition offers families the chance to “win free game play for a YEAR… plus endless bragging rights for Dad,” while Two Roads Brewing will have a free nine-hole mini golf course set up for lower-stakes play. Or your team can watch other people do the playing, as New Haven United FC battles it out for a National Premier Soccer League win at the University of New Haven’s Kathy Zolad Stadium.
Great Escapism
Father’s Day weekend is also the finale weekend of the 2026 Robin Hood’s Medieval Faire, a LARPers’ and cosplayers’ dream filled with “fun, feasting, and fantasy for all” (though 18-and-over “Nottingham After Dark” shenanigans on Saturday night aren’t quite for everyone). Meanwhile, an ’80s MTV-themed concert at the Shubert aims to remind Gen-X dads “of a time when they came home from school, put a record on, and listened with open ears and an open heart”—and of “first dates, first cars, prom nights, weekend movies, [and] meeting friends at the mall”—while a Father’s Day karaoke party at East Rock Brewing lets him take the stage himself, with a choice of costumes and props from Fashionista Vintage & Variety.
Keels and Wheels
An open house at New Haven Community Boating offers the chance to “come try rowing in the morning and sailing in the afternoon!” A talk at the Pardee-Morris House should light up dads who like lighthouses, with the talk covering three special beacons off the coast of New London. The Shore Line Trolley Museum offers “vintage trolley rides along the scenic Farm River and a relaxed afternoon exploring Connecticut’s electric railway heritage,” with Dad getting in for free. There are also at least three car shows happening, in North Haven, Branford and Milford.
The Way to a Man’s Heart
Anthony’s Ocean View has one of its big all-you-can-eat feasts teed up. New England Brewing has two parties, one in Woodbridge and one in Branford, each offering beer and food with different vibes. And Tribus is holding a Father Jamboree whose motto is “eat & drink & do f#$kin’ nothing,” though a mysterious “first annual dad circuit” with a “coveted tiny trophy” on the line suggests there may be something more to do.
Written and photographed by Dan Mims. Image features a crowd during a past Robin Hood’s Faire. Readers are encouraged to verify times, locations, prices and other details before attending events.
