The Festival is held outdoors on the National Mall of the United States in Washington, D.C., between 7th and 14th Streets, near the Smithsonian museums. There is no admission charge for Festival events. Visitors should dress for very hot and humid weather. Parking around the Mall is extremely limited, and visitors are advised to use Metrorail. The Smithsonian Station (Mall exit) is at the Festival site. Federal Triangle and National Archives stations are close by. During the Festival, call (202) 633-9884 to hear a recorded description of daily events. For general Smithsonian visitor information, call (202) 633-1000 (voice) or (202) 357-1729 (TTY).
Crafts, Recordings & Food Sales
Festival program books, which include daily schedules, will be sold at the site. Visitors may purchase Middle Eastern and other program-related lunches, snacks, and dinners from Festival food concessions. A variety of objects produced by Festival artisans and a selection of related books and recordings will be available at the Festival Marketplace on the Mall-side lawn of the Freer Gallery of Art. Smithsonian Folkways recordings will also be available there and through www.folkways.si.edu.
Especially for Children and Families
Younger visitors to Forest Service, Culture, and Community program will have numerous opportunities to learn through a series of hands-on activities about forestry, forest culture, and forest communities. The centerpiece will be the Family Activities Area, where visitors can pick up a copy of the Family Activities Adventure Guide. This Adventure Guide will take visitors around the program area, with stops at designated points where different Learning Activities will take place, such as: how to observe wildlife, how not to pollute, how to prevent forest fires, how to identify trees and plants, and more.
In the Food Culture USA program, the Edible Schoolyard will showcase Alice Waters' renowned food-education project in Berkeley, California. Children and families will learn about plant varieties, sustainable gardening, and fresh produce in a giant garden in the middle of the National Mall. The program also will feature chefs preparing meals that they like to make for their own families. Daily children's activities in the Oman: Desert, Oasis, and Sea program will features games, drumming workshops, henna decorating, and much more in the Sabla Narrative Area and Adornment Pavilion. A family guide will feature program highlights.
Services for Visitors with Disabilities
Large-print and audio-cassette versions of the daily schedule and an audio-cassette version of the program book will be available at the Festival Information kiosks and the Volunteer tent. Program signs in other formats will be available upon request. Volunteers will be on call to assist wheelchair users; a limited number of wheelchairs will be available on loan at the Volunteer tent. Audio loops are installed at the music stages. Service animals are welcome. American Sign Language interpreters will be available on site; the Festival schedule will indicate which performances and presentations are interpreted. Other modes of interpretation may be provided if a request is made a week in advance by calling (202) 786-2414 (TTY) or (202) 275-1905 (voice), or by contacting franklinj@si.edu.
To access an Accessibility Fact Sheet, Read here.
