Skip to content
πŸ“ Santa Cruz County, CA

From the waves to the redwoods, it's all happening here.

Live music, festivals, art walks, surf contests, trail days and everything in between.

In-person only, on purpose. Everything here is something you can actually show up to. No screens, no streams.

β˜… Featured this season

Promotional image for Phamily Time! β˜… Featured Event
Sat, Aug 8, 2026 Β· 4:00 PM

Phamily Time!

πŸ“ Woodhouse Blending & Brewing Β· Downtown Santa Cruz Β· See listing

Phamily Time, presented by Phreeborn is back with a summer edition you won’t want to miss. There will be something for everyone, so bring the whole phamily! Get tickets for the whole day celebration here: TICKETS

Music Festivals πŸ“ Downtown Santa Cruz Details β†’
Promotional image for Free First Friday Coming up
Fri, Aug 7, 2026 Β· Santa Cruz Museum of Art & History

Free First Friday

Make the MAH your first stop this weekend with FREE First Friday. Explore all three floors of the museum and see our latest exhibitions, check out our giftshop, and hangout among art and history! Then stay into the night dancing to live music out in Abbott Square. First Friday hours are 12-8pm. See you then!

Music πŸ“ Downtown Santa Cruz
Community
Coming up
Fri, Aug 7, 2026 Β· Santa Cruz Public Libraries

Jazz at the Library

Friday, August 07 2026 12:00pm - 1:00pm Join us at the Downtown Library and enjoy free jazz music by local musicians.

Community
Promotional image for Creative Kontrol: AI and the Future of Music Coming up
Fri, Aug 7, 2026 Β· Civic Auditorium

Creative Kontrol: AI and the Future of Music

On August 8th, composer Clarice Assad’s new commissioned work, Kontrol, will premiere at the Cabrillo Festival of Contemporary Music. The afternoon before, Assad will join D. Riley Nicholson, Executive Director of the Cabrillo Festival, and Pranav Anand, Faculty Director of The Humanities Institute, for a pre-rehearsal discussion about the inspirations for the piece, which explores impacts of AI on musical creation and performance, both now and in the near future. Stay afterward for the final rehearsal of Kontrol before the premiere on the 8th. Free and open to the public.

Music πŸ“ Downtown Santa Cruz
Promotional image for Community Bridges WIC 19th Annual Breastfeeding Walk and Health Fair Coming up
Fri, Aug 7, 2026 Β· Community Bridges Plaza

Community Bridges WIC 19th Annual Breastfeeding Walk and Health Fair

We invite you to join us for our 19th Annual WIC Breastfeeding Walk and Health Fair, on Friday, August 7, 2026 at 3pm. We will be celebrating World Breastfeeding Week and sharing information about our services and those of our community partners. There will be fun activities for the whole family, music, healthy snacks, raffle prizes, and more. World Breastfeeding Week is celebrated around the world to highlight the importance of human milk and it's impact on health.

Festivals πŸ“ Watsonville

β˜€οΈ Happening today

Friday, August 7

106 events on today. No plans required, just go.

9:00 AM
$59
Dynomite Farm: Private Dahlia U-Cut Experience
πŸ“ Dynomite Farm
Community
9:00 AM
$10
First Friday $10 Coworking
πŸ“ NextSpace Santa Cruz
Community
9:00 AM
$10
Mindful Movement with Horses
πŸ“ BEYOND liberty
Sports
9:30 AM
See listing
Evergreen Volunteer Days
πŸ“ Santa Cruz Museum of Art & History
Community
10:00 AM
See listing
CLAY INDEPENDENT LAB TIME
πŸ“ Santa Cruz Mountains Art Center
Art & Culture
10:00 AM
FREE
Resource Recovery Public Summer Tours
πŸ“ City of Santa Cruz Resource Recovery Facility
Community
10:00 AM
$32
Santa Cruz Beach Train
πŸ“ Roaring Camp Railroads
Family
10:30 AM
See listing
Mothersong
πŸ“ Watsonville
Art & Culture
11:00 AM
See listing
Bridge Club @ La Selva Beach
πŸ“ Santa Cruz Public Libraries
Community

What's happening

Filter by category, date, or area. Everything listed is in person, county-wide.

Quick: Today This weekend Next 7 days Area Clear all

7 upcoming events Β· Outdoors Β· from 2026-08-07 Β· to 2026-08-07

Aug
7

Dynomite Farm: Private Dahlia U-Cut Experience

πŸ“ Dynomite Farm
πŸ•’ 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM Β· $59

Enjoy Dynomite Farm’s show-quality dahlia beds for intimate, unhurried cutting experiences where you and your friends have the field to yourselves. No crowds. No rushing. Just you, your people, and a thousand flowers. Companion passes are available for guests who want to join the fun, explore the farm, and take in the beauty without cutting flowers. Friendly chickens roam the property, there are swings for little ones.

Community Outdoors Details β†’
Aug
7

Santa Cruz Beach Train

πŸ“ Roaring Camp Railroads
πŸ•’ 10:00 AM – 4:00 PM Β· $32

From Trees to Shining Seas – Felton to Santa Cruz. Departing from the Santa Cruz Mountains, travel through Henry Cowell Redwoods State Park, down the scenic San Lorenzo River Gorge, across a 1909 steel truss bridge, and through an 1875 tunnel before arriving at the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk. Reverse roundtrips departing from the beach in Santa Cruz to Roaring Camp and back may be purchased from the conductor on the train departing from Santa Cruz. The Santa Cruz Big Trees & Pacific Railway operates passenger and freight services on one of the oldest and most historic lines in California. When the route opened in 1875 it carried lumber as well as picnickers and tourists to the Big Trees and Santa Cruz. Today’s Beach Train passengers can start their roundtrip journeys from either Roaring Camp in Felton or from the beach in Santa Cruz. Departs from both the beach in Santa Cruz and Roaring Camp. See departure times for more information. The Beach Train will run weekends and holidays through May, and then daily June through the first week of August, then back to weekends and holidays to the end of September. Please note that the 4 p.m. train leaving Santa Cruz is one-way only. There is no return train to the beach.

Aug
7

Audrey Stanley Grove: Live Drama in the Redwoods

πŸ“ Audrey Stanley Grove in DeLaveaga Park
πŸ•’ 8:00 PM – 11:00 PM Β· $25

Santa Cruz Shakespeare invites you to experience August Wilson’s Fences, under the trees and stars of the Audrey Stanley Grove in Santa Cruz’s DeLaveaga Park this summer. Fences By August Wilson Directed by Susan Dalian August Wilson joins the Santa Cruz Shakespeare stage for the first time in 45 years. Fences is the perfect offering, wonderfully in line with the Santa Cruz Shakespeare season’s theme: Till Death Do Us Part. Troy Maxson is one of Wilson’s great creations; Shakespearean in scope; a wordsmith and brilliant storyteller. He has survived the terrible trauma of his past and built himself a good life. But the backbone of that life, the spine that keeps it standing strong, is his wife Rose. Like all of Wilson’s best work, Fences is both mythic and intimate; the questions it asks both human and eternal. Fences runs July 28 – August 28. Tickets available for purchase starting May 1. More information through the link in the orange button above. Seasonal box office hours beginning May 1 are Tuesday through Friday from 12p.m. to 4p.m. Call the number above.

Outdoors Art & Culture πŸ“ Midtown Details β†’
Aug
7

Sequoias At Night

πŸ“ Roaring Camp Railroads
πŸ•’ 8:00 PM – 10:30 PM Β· See listing

Fridays & Saturdays 8pm-10pm through October. Opening weekend July 10-11! Experience the magic once again as this beloved art and light installation returns to the Santa Cruz Mountains for its second year. Lighted lanterns hang high overhead surrounded by thousand year old redwoods that are uplit to create a unique and awe-inspiring retreat back to nature.

Aug
7

Roaring Camp: Sequoia Lights

πŸ“ Roaring Camp Railroads
πŸ•’ 8:30 PM – 10:00 PM Β· $15.9

This nighttime experience will bring you a magical and immersive perspective on the ancient forest at Roaring Camp. During the 0.8-mile loop walk, you will view 26 unique, lighted lanterns, hung approximately 50 feet above the ground. The lanterns were crafted by local artists including Anna Bobisuthi, Roaring Camp’s resident blacksmith, and Chris Butler, who also created the lighting design for Sequoias at Night. Tickets are available at the link in the orange button above. Kids under two enter for free. Roaring Camp’s food services and gift shop will be open.

Aug
7

SC Beach Boardwalk: Evenings on the Colonnade

πŸ“ Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk
πŸ•’ 8:30 PM – 9:30 PM Β· FREE

Stay for the entertainment from 8:30pm to 9:30pm on the Colonnade Deck! Where you can listen to live music with delicious food & drink in your hand, be amazed by Magicians & acrobats, and show off your best dance moves with a DJ dance party at the Plaza stage. Admission is free! Monday, June 15, 2026 8:30pm Circus Comedy with Coventry & Kaluza 9:00pm Magic with Kris Bentz Tuesday, June 16, 2026 8:30pm Magic with Kris Bentz 9:00pm Acrobatics with Molly Keczan Wednesday, June 17, 2026 8:30pm Circus Comedy with Coventry & Kaluza 9:00pm Magic with Kris Bentz Thursday, June 18, 2026 from 8:30-9:30pm – Live Music with Fire Peach Friday, June 19, 2026 – Free showing of Ferris Bueller’s Day Off movie on the beach at 9pm Saturday, June 20, 2026 from 8:30-9:30pm – DJ Dance Party with Santa Cruz DJ Company Sunday, June 21, 2026 from 8:30-9:30pm – DJ Dance Party with Santa Cruz DJ Company Monday, June 22, 2026 8:30pm Circus Comedy with Coventry & Kaluza 9:00pm Circus Acrobatics with MeeZee! Tuesday, June 23, 2026 8:30pm Circus Acrobatics with MeeZee! 9:00pm Circus Comedy with Coventry & Kaluza Wednesday, June 24, 2026: World Cup Watch Party for Mexico Game Thursday, June 25, 2026: World Cup Watch Party for USA Game Friday, June 26, 2026 – Free showing of the movie Kicking and Screaming on the beach at 9pm Saturday, June 27, 2026 from 8:30-9:30pm – DJ Dance Party with Santa Cruz DJ Company Sunday, June 28, 2026 from 8:30-9:30pm – DJ Dance Party with Santa Cruz DJ Company Monday, June 29, 2026 8:30pm Magic with Patrick Livingstone 9:00pm Surfing Magic with Doug Hofkins Tuesday, June 30, 2026 8:30pm Magic with Patrick Livingstone 9:00pm Surfing Magic with Doug Hofkins Wednesday, July 1, 2026 8:30pm Circus Comedy with Coventry & Kaluza 9:00pm Circus Acrobatics with MeeZee! Thursday, July 2, 2026 from 8:30-9:30pm – Live Music with El Brick Friday, July 3, 2026 – Independence Day Celebrations Saturday, July 4, 2026 from 8:30-9:30pm – DJ Dance Party with Santa Cruz DJ Company Sunday,

Never miss a beach day, show, or street fair.

Join the Santa Cruz Scene newsletter for local discounts, community highlights, and the best curated events delivered to your inbox each month.

We use your email only to send the newsletter. How we handle your info

No spam, just the Scene. Curious who we are? Read our story.

Hosting something rad?

If it's happening in person anywhere in Santa Cruz County, whether it's a show, a market, a paddle-out, or a gallery night, we want it on the calendar. Submissions are free and reviewed by our editors.

Submit your event β†’