What's on in Sacramento, United States through the year

Peak crowds — Christmas and New Year, Winter / Christmas break in United States

Nothing new starts in January.

Still on: Tule fog season (1 Dec – 20 Feb (usually)), Christmas and New Year (24 Dec – 1 Jan)

Shoulder season — an ordinary month

• Nature

  Almond blossom

  10 Feb – 10 Mar · usuallyWildflowers & blooms

  The orchards north and south of the city go white for about three weeks in late February, which is the one time of year the valley's farmland is worth a drive for its own sake.

Still on: Tule fog season (1 Dec – 20 Feb (usually))

Peak crowds — Sacramento Camellia Show, Spring break in United States

• Festival

  Sacramento Camellia Show

  1–15 Mar · usuallyMajor festivalCrowded

  The Camellia Society of Sacramento's flower show at the Scottish Rite Center dates to 1924 and gave the city its old nickname, the Camellia Capital of the World; camellia bushes still line downtown streets. Source ↗

Still on: Almond blossom (10 Feb – 10 Mar (usually))

Busy — one of its best months for weather

Nothing new starts in April.

Busy — one of its best months for weather

Nothing new starts in May.

Busy — Summer break in United States, school holidays in 2 of the markets that fill it

• Season

  Delta breeze

  1 Jun – 15 SepWind season

  Cool marine air pulled up from the bay through the delta most summer evenings, which is why a 38-degree afternoon here becomes a pleasant night. The weeks it fails are the ones people complain about.

• Hazard

  Valley heat

  20 Jun – 10 Sep · usuallyExtreme heat

  Runs of triple-digit afternoons come through the valley several times a summer and the city moves indoors and underground until evening. Everything outdoors here is scheduled before ten or after eight. Source ↗

Peak crowds — Independence Day, California State Fair

• Holiday

  Independence Day

  3–5 JulNational holidayCrowdedClosures

  The Fourth of July is a federal holiday: banks and government offices close, fireworks draw large crowds to parks and waterfronts after dark, and roads and flights are busy over the long weekend. Claim a viewing spot early. Source ↗

• Festival

  California State Fair

  10–27 Jul · usuallyMajor festivalCrowded

  Seventeen days at Cal Expo in July: livestock barns, a monorail, horse racing and a hall of counties competing over agriculture. It is the state's own fair, not the city's. Source ↗

• Hazard

  Wildfire smoke season

  15 Jul – 15 Oct · usually

  Smoke from fires in the Sierra and the coast range settles into the valley and stays, because the same still air that traps winter fog traps this. Some Septembers the air here is the worst in the country. Source ↗

Still on: Delta breeze (1 Jun – 15 Sep), Valley heat (20 Jun – 10 Sep (usually))

Busy — Summer break in United States, school holidays in 2 of the markets that fill it

Nothing new starts in August.

Still on: Delta breeze (1 Jun – 15 Sep), Valley heat (20 Jun – 10 Sep (usually)), Wildfire smoke season (15 Jul – 15 Oct (usually))

Peak crowds — Farm-to-Fork Festival, Summer break in United States

• Festival

  Farm-to-Fork Festival

  15–30 Sep · usuallyHarvestCrowded

  A month of harvest dinners in late September ending in a free two-day street festival on Capitol Mall. The claim being made is that this valley grows the food the rest of the state cooks. Source ↗

Still on: Delta breeze (1 Jun – 15 Sep), Valley heat (20 Jun – 10 Sep (usually)), Wildfire smoke season (15 Jul – 15 Oct (usually))

Busy — one of its best months for weather

Nothing new starts in October.

Still on: Wildfire smoke season (15 Jul – 15 Oct (usually))

Peak crowds — Thanksgiving, Hmong New Year Festival

• Holiday

  Thanksgiving

  25–29 NovNational holidayCrowdedClosures

  Thanksgiving, the fourth Thursday of November, is the country's biggest travel holiday: airports and highways are at their busiest on the Wednesday before and the Sunday after, and on the day itself offices, banks and many shops close. Source ↗

• Festival

  Hmong New Year Festival

  25–30 Nov · usuallyMajor festivalCrowded

  The largest Hmong New Year celebration in the country fills Cal Expo for three days over Thanksgiving weekend with pageants, dance competitions and food stalls, a fixture of the region's large Hmong community since the 1970s. Source ↗

Peak crowds — California International Marathon, Christmas and New Year

• Hazard

  Tule fog season

  1 Dec – 20 Feb · usually

  Ground fog forms in the valley after the first rains and can sit for days without lifting, closing visibility on the causeway and delaying flights. It has thinned over the decades but still owns some Januaries. Source ↗

• Festival

  California International Marathon

  5–8 Dec · usuallySporting eventCrowdedClosures

  The first Sunday in December, downhill from Folsom to the Capitol steps, which is why it is the qualifying race half the field came for. The last miles close the grid downtown. Source ↗

• Holiday

  Christmas and New Year

  24 Dec – 1 JanChristmas & New YearClosuresCrowded

  Christmas Day and New Year's Day are federal holidays: on 25 December most shops, museums and many restaurants close, and airports stay busy through the week between as families travel. New Year's Eve fills bars and restaurants, many at set-menu prices. Source ↗

Still on: Thanksgiving (25–29 Nov)