This was my first Kite Festival experience and I would say, I'd do it again. I'd probably wait a few years though. The parking was a definite nightmare and I would say that its better to walk 1 mile instead of looking for parking nearby the park. By the time we finally arrived, we were excited to see the Octopus kites flying overhead. We enjoyed all the varieties of kites overhead. Its a great place to have a picnic and enjoy the events. Its a perfect place for kids and adults to enjoy. I enjoyed the team of kite fliers who reminded me of the Blue Angels. They controlled those kites with great choreography. Who knew kite flying could be so fun to watch? read more

Get there early!!! I brought the kids around 10:30am and the parking attendant was already re-directing cars (in front of me) to turn around because the parking lot was FULL. By pure luck, I hear on the parking attendant's walkie-talkie to let more cars in! The overall experience is wonderful. WEAR LAYERS - The winds are no joke, it got very chilly around 2pm. Awesome display of kites, delicious food stands, great photo opportunities. Highly recommend attending at least once. read more

The Kite Festival is terrific - great variety of kites and the "ballet" show was a lot of fun to watch. This event loses major points for two things: 1) the inadequate port-o-potties (too few, overflowing, disgusting, sinks ran out of water) 2) the terrible organization of the shuttle service. If you're going to try to get a large number of people to park elsewhere and shuttle in, then you'd darn well better plan on having a lot of buses AND a coordinator on site to make sure things are running smoothly. Lots of people were left waiting out in the cold for over an hour for a bus back to North Berkeley BART while plenty of empty shuttles came and went to less popular destinations. Sadly, unless things are better organized in future, this will be my last Kite Festival. read more

The kite festival itself was amazingly fun. I felt like a kid again as I viewed gigantic octopus kites (I was there for the record-setting 22nd octopus ascension) and other whimsical flying creatures. The kite ballet, choreographed kite dancing to music, was beautiful and truly a spectacle. The kite battles weren't nearly as entertaining as they sound, as it appeared unskilled attendees were the ones manipulating them, so the "fighting" dragged on longer than it seemed it should have without much real drama. This is a great place to take children--or to unleash your inner child. The reason for only a three-star review is that the shuttles weren't well planned. The organizers did a great job of warning us not to try to park at the Marina itself and of telling us where free parking and shuttles could be found (three locations in the area). However, the frequency and number of shuttles was awful. I went to the North Berkeley BART station and had to wait nearly an hour and a half for a shuttle! That's not reasonable, and I feel like the organizers should have known more frequent shuttle service would be necessary. I missed so much of the festival due to this snafu, which was a shame. There was no way I was going to stand in another massive line to ride the shuttle back, so I walked the approximately three miles instead. It was doable for me, but that's not an option for everyone. read more

The kites themselves were great... But the free shuttle buses from Golden Gate fields were a disaster. After paying $10 to park the car, we had to wait 55 minutes at the parking lot until we got on the bus...the wait on the way back to the lot was only marginally better (35 minutes). Add 10-15 minutes per trip for loading, unloading and the trip itself, and we ended up spending nearly 2 hr to get from the parking lot back and forth to the festival. We would have been willing to pay a small amount per person for a bus service that worked (e.g. wait times more on the order of 10 min per trip)....as it was, we are not planning on trying this again.. read more

This was the first time I went to the Kite Festival at Berkely. Unfortunately, I ended up arriving late and I missed most of the action (perhaps, I'd have given it a 4 star rating if I had reached the venue earlier). But otherwise, it was good fun. I got to see a lot of innovative kites in different shapes, colors and sizes, which was kinda cool to look at. The venue was extremely windy (that's why they have the kite festival there...duh!) and most of the time I had to hug myself and squint my eyes, grimacing under the biting chillness of the wind sweeping from the Bay. The place also had a bunch of food trucks, artsy stalls and other regular kiddy stuff. read more

All I've gotta say is, TEN BUCKS. TEN BUCKS just to get into the Berkeley Marina on the BKF weekend, whether you like kites or not. Nice, colorful view from the freeway, though. read more

We had a good time, it was fun to see and we brought out own kite. Being charged $10 to park at the Shuttle lots still has me confused, I just figured that would be free... cheap move. The shuttle service needs a lot of work if I'm going to pay to use it, waiting in a unspecified area for over an hour each way was pretty crappy. The port-o-potty's could use some work too, you need WAY more and they need to be kept clean. I walked into one in the morning and it was overflowing already, meaning it wasn't cleaned from the day before. ick. The event organizers have some work to do for next year to make this one I'd want to return to. All in all the kites were still really cool to see. read more

Great review Arwen. This truly is an awesome sight. The stunt kites are a thrill to watch. Who knew kite flying could be so exhilirating?

If you live in the area and are looking for some good family fun, this festival is a great way to spend a few hours. I can't really find anything to complain about...this festival is free to attend, after all. Lot's of great kite competitions and pretty kites to gaze at. The venue for it is great...along the water with the right amount of wind. There are a bunch of little booths selling artwork, cothes and of course kites. And then there are also a series of food stands selling your typical carnival type food...funnel cakes, bbq on a stick, etc. There are also plenty for the kids to do...pony rides (although i'm sure the ponies don't think it's that fun) and jump houses, an animal petting area...you have to pay admission to visit those areas, i believe, but i don't think the cost was super terrible. We live close enough to the park to where we didn't really have to worry about parking, but I would imagine that if you are driving, you'd want to get there early to grab a spot ($15 fee) that's within reasonable walking distance, although I did see that they had free shuttles if you parked in some of the further lots provided. If you can ride your bike here, do so to avoid car parking...it's a fun area to ride around in anyway and they had free valet bike parking on-site. Make sure to dress in layers as it could go from being chilly early in the day to being pretty warm depending on the fog/cloud cover. We've lived in the area for a few years now and this year was the first time we've visited...after our experience here, we'll try to make this a yearly event. Great fun for everyone! read more

If your looking for a fun family outing this is the place to be. Kites and piñata kites

Thanks to a tip from a friend, we headed over to the kite festival on a gusty saturday. The giant octopi were the highlight as they could be seen from miles away. It was pretty surreal seeing their tentacles swaying in the wind - it was like attack of the giant alien octopi! It was also fun to see all the families enjoying themselves outdoors and to try to spot all the different kites. The view from the park was good too. We parked at Tom Bates Regional Sports Complex and walked from there as the queue for the free shuttle was too long. read more

We came on Saturday before noon & the parking lots were filled. Thank goodness they implemented the shuttles or we would have had one heck of a walk. The festival itself was in the perfect location: windy & beautiful for photo opps. The food vendors they chose for the festival were mediocre, bring your own food. The restrooms were portables but what can you expect for the use of the space. I discounted 2 stars because the website stated a bunch of activities like kite making for kids & I couldn't find any of the activities. I asked people & no one knew what I was talking about. If you go bring your own food, a blanket & an open tent (& good friends of course). All in all we had a good time. read more

Absolutely a must-do, no matter if you are alone, or with family. My kids loved to see all different varieties of kites. We too tried out our hands in flying a kite bought from Costco, but did not go well. I just burned my fingers trying to launch, and mostly the kite was not well made/or had a defect. Also, its a photographer's paradise. The entire place is awesome, well planned. We did not get a parking close-by, but the shuttle services were very friendly. Will try again this year. read more

A few things that help: If you're going, bring bottled water and wear a hoody. Also, don't set up lawn chairs anywhere remotely close to where tow string kites are being flown. At the rate of speed these kites are capable of flying ears can be sliced off. Also, pack it in and pack it out. That helps control litter. A tube of chapstick comes in handy as well as sunscreen. And as a last bit of information have an eye out for all different kite themes like the evolving underwater movement and "the demeanors from Hogwarts. read more

I don't know what other kite festivals are like...but I feel darn good saying that this kite festival is, as we say in East Oakland, THE BOMB! THE SHIZZ-NIT!!! I HELLA HEART BKF!!! My day at the festival was a perfect 10, no joke. Got there early, put my kite up on top of 500' of dacron, watched the octopi go up in stages, watched as dozens and scores and hundreds of kites lofted from many hands, filling the sky, mesmerizing. As I was bringing my kite down the line snapped, and my kite was lost... I was sad...so my friend went to get me something to eat, to cheer me up... And there was Ben & Jerry's stand. And my friend got me a scoop of - I'm not making this up - Chocolate Therapy ice cream. In a waffle cone. That cone might have been the best of my life, dripping, super-chocolatey, crispy cone nibbled until just the nub remained, filled with melted ice cream, to be popped into my mouth...YUMMY! I heaved a sigh of relief, and feeling a LOT better, I went to Highline Kites, the ONSITE FULL SERVICE KITE SHOP!!! Yeah baby!!! Replaced my kite with an 11' woven delta, 50' transition tails... If you can lose your kite at a kite fest, and still call that day a perfect 10...then that must be a perfect kite festival. My thanks to Tom and all of his staff for making this possible for us. Howzat?! John G., Oakland, CA read more

Had a lot of fun here and will defo come back next year. I loved the colorful octo kites! I wish I had brought a kite but my hands were full with my two pups in tow. I didn't want to fight for parking so I took the local bus. Beautiful day, perfect time of the year! Only bad things were that I got there about 3pm on Sunday and the giant octo kite wasn't up. I stayed til a lil past 5pm and never saw it up. So a lil sad there. Not to mention there were already taking down some of the smaller octo kites when I got there. Food was good though, lots of choice. I ate the macaroni grill pomodoro and salad combo with italian soda for a bargain and got extra for free since it was late. Lots of nice people and photo ops too! read more

Kites galore!!! Who says kites are just for kids?! Well, kiddo, if you're looking for a fun, relaxing time and to release that inner child, this is the place! It's definitely family friendly and the perfect weekend adventure with the kids. I suggest bringing a lawn chair, blankets, and your kites (of course!!). However, there are vendors on-site that sell various types of kites depending on your price range and personal preference. A must see at this place is the kite performances! Most folks have seen a kite fly, but not dance, which is A MUST SEE. Highly recommended!! Whether you're a novice or pro kite flyer, this is a highly recommended place for question and answer. The people who run the flying stations are helpful and really nice. read more

Five stars for the event. Such a great free festival for family. One star for the parking cost for convenient parking for out of towners like me. Make sure to bring a kite for your kids to fly!!! read more

Wonderful way to spend the day! Colorfull kites and happy people everywhere Get there early to avoid the traffic and the wait for the shuttles kite shows and demonstrations in the main arena going n al day. Lots of great festival foods Bring a blanket and stay all day! read more

After all these years, finally made it to the Berkeley kite festival! Before coming to the event, read a few of the Yelp reviews to be prepared. The event is FREE however parking was $15 in the marina area and golden gate fields. I said f^%^$& that. We parking behind the soccer field by I-80. With baby stroller, it was a good 1.3 ish mile walk, so 20 min give or take which is not bad if you don't mind walking. Also made sure we were dressed warm because Berkeley's weather is usually overcast and windy in the AM with the fog burning off later in the day. There were a lot of food vendors, bouncy play area for the kids and petting zoo. There was also an area where you can build your own kite. My lil munchkin was really fascinated with the kites and of course just being outside. Also brought with us some snacks, drinks and picnic blanket as well. I've also seen people bringing tents and chairs. Last tip, get there early to avoid traffic. We arrived around 9:30am and got to the kite festival before 10ish. read more

Festival great but petting zoo was a tragedy . No one was supervising the animals who were locked in a small fenced area. Anyone could go in or out an kids were dropping tiny bunnies and chickens on the ground, slapping the pony and tiny pig! The animals had no water. Parents were more interested in taking pics then teaching their children to be kind. The animals looked terrified. I found the owner and he told his teenage daughter to get back in the enclosure. She argued about it. He did not care about those animals and neither did she. I tried to find out what his name is or how to report this . Other people were concerned also but one dad did not stop his daughter from hurting a baby bunny. This owner should not have a petting zoo or any animals for that matter. read more

I have to agree with Judy Y. Waiting for the shuttle was just ridiculous, and they are school buses w/boarding only thru front door--took forever. Took so darned long we walked all the way to the festival..a real pain. Same kites they had last year, ponies & slide & jumpy houses all cost money...not much for kids to do after they flew their kites for 15 min. We won't be going again! read more

Fantastic festival! To avoid traffic we stayed overnight at the Marina Doubletree, which made things way more enjoyable (and we felt like spluring. And we hate traffic!) Its a fun, relaxing day. read more

I love the Kite Festival. Seemed to be much easier getting in and out of the marina then past years. My daughter loves the kids area. While there is a fee to park I was happy to see that a portion of the fee went to Mother's Against Drunk Driving. As always, the variety of kites is amazing. Can't wait for next year! read more

This year really disappointed me with the collection of kites they had. I remember when I first discovered the Berkeley Kite Festival, I was driving to visit my sister who was attending UCB and noticed the Berkeley Marina area littered with kites in the sky, I was left amazed! There were kites the size of small cars, homes even! Seeing all the beautiful and intriguing kites made me want to be apart of it somehow. And this is how my annual trip the city began. I remember Cesar Chavez Park being packed with families and couples enjoying the beautiful bay weather, it was a cool place to be. This year, I was looking forward to taking my girlfriend and introducing her to the festival, what a let down it was. There were only a handful of huge kites on the Saturday we went and they were nothing to gawk at. I had spent the whole month leading up to this weekend hyping it up for my girlfriend only to be let down. What a shame! Any who, even though I didn't have a good time my girlfriend did and I'm happy. Hopefully next year there will be a bigger turnout! read more

So awesome. Literally thousands of people attending this fest its quite a sight to see so many kites in the air.

went this year. awesome. never seen so many kites and the big kites... impressive.

This is our 2nd time here. Today we went to eat in Berkeley and decided to go over in the afternoon. We had lunch about a mile away and decided to just walk over to the venue as we saw many walkers and cyclists heading that way. The walk wasn't bad at all. If you dont' want to get free street parking on sundays you can park in the lot for $15.Fun for the family or kids. The weather today however was a bit foggy and cold for Berkeley. I enjoyed just snapping some pics (good photo opps). This yr they had ppl bouncing around inside a bubble in a pool. it was so fun to watch ppl have a blast there. I didn't bring a kite, and wanted to buy one, but the one i wanted was sold out. Next time I return, I'll be sure to bring my own kite..... read more

I have to agree with Karie L., The festival itself was fun but not that many big kites like I' saw on the spnsored website or youtube. The shuttle systems really bad. We parked at north Berkeley Bart station. It was OK to get to the festival, we waited for 20 mins since the line was pretty long. But the way back was worse. SInce there were so many parking locations. The shuttle buses will pick you up at the same location. No sign or anyone tried to help you. No one know where were the shuttle going (Bart station, seabreeze, marina, Spenger's restaurant). People tried to cut the line. One of the shuttle decided to open the door at the end of the line. People from the front line started getting confused and ran to the back of the line try to get the shuttle. It was totally a chaos. We had to wait for our shuttle for 70 MINS. We had a small child with us which made it harder to wait that long. Not to mentioned the toilets. I think there were total of 15 or less of portable when there were thousands of people. We also found out while we were waiting in a long line that 2-3 toilets were full and they were out of service. That was 2PM, I was afraid to think what would it be like at the end of the day . I did not expect much for event like this but this is the worse I have seen. It was such a bad experience for us. They spend a lot of time to promote the festival but nothing else. Very disappointing The traffic was horrible, not enough bathroom facilities, shuttle service was unorganized (even though they are free!) Please make sure you guys doing better that this next year. read more

i havent been there for so long!! but when i was little, my grandpa used to take me there and experienced those beautiful kites you could have imagine.. by the way, when is the nxt even again? read more

This is for 2011 Event....................I was very disappointed with the kite fair this year. Seem to be a rehash of the same ol' kites. The organization was minimal and seemed to be disorganized. People force directed into small paths that were overcrowded with lines to the vendors emptying into the people traffic causing too much congestion. And the shuttle service? Absolutly horrid! The busses to BART and Spengers didn't stop at the same places at the event causing long lines of people trying to use them running (literally) to reline up at another spot. And every half hour? Not really. There was no communication at all. people were left stranded with little to no help from the event staff. Event staff? No staff seen, no security, nothing. Ther were a few guys trying desperately trying to keep the traffic under control. What it seemed like was. hey, let's have an event where all our members and clubs can gat together and have fun. Oh yes, the public let's invite them and thay can watch BUT, they are on thier own. But what the hell we're having fun. This was my last time at this event until I get some assurance of changes read more

I am a show kite flyer and I was there! The 31st BKF was a visual feast and a workout for the handlers of the larger kites. It was great to see the public turn out for the event. By all means, park and take the shuttles to and from the event. It was fun to watch family team building via kites. If you plan to attend, have water and good shoes. buy extra kiteline and get some hardware store flagging tape for long tails. Make sure your phone is charged. Ladies needing to freshen up may have a bit of a wait. Food and kites galore. read more

I have been attending the Berkeley Kite Festival since 2000. It is a family friendly fun event as well as the west coast sport kite championship. It is also the birth place of the octopile. The flying of several of the giant 89 foot octopus kites made by Peter Lynn Kites in New Zeeland. It is fun to watch the kids at the free kite making workshop and to watch them flying the kites that they just made. The competition features some of the country's best flyers. The food is good. Yes, the parking is atrocious but personally I blame the city for that. Best of all this event is still free. read more

This festival lets everyone reveal their inner child. I enjoy seeing the cultural diversity of kites, food and atmosphere all being shared and enjoyed by people young and old. It is one of the most colorful outdoor experiences I have ever attended. read more

''My family and I go every yr. if possible, WE LOVE IT!!!!!!!!!, get there early, find parking, take chairs and some snack for the kids,ice chests are ok, because the bottled water is very expensive, sooo,no alcohol and just enjoy such a beautiful and fun day at this great event with such nice people!!...def. a great place to take the kids.... read more

I attended the 2011 Berkeley Kite Festival yesterday. I attended the kite festival in 2009 and found that getting there and parking were difficult so this year I decided to take BART and the free shuttle was that was advertised. WOW, what a disaster!! I can understand being overwhelmed with people and the busses running behind schedule (I had at least a 30 minute wait at BART before a bus came); however, their lack of planning for the return trip was ridiculous. There were busses designated for several return locations; however, they never stopped in the same place. That meant that people who just stood in line for 3o-45 minutes and didn't fit onto the bus were forced to run to try to get on the bus down the street. This happened to us and we didn't fit on that bus either. Waited for another bus and of course didn't know where it would stop so we didn't make that bus again. This was a very dangerous situation with people running after busses with small children and elderly people as well. There was no security at the entrance to the park where the busses stopped. There was no on at the entrance to the park that could communicate with security or bus drivers to alert them to the situation in order to ask for assistance. I will not attend another festival again and I urge others to think twice about how they want to spend their day. read more

After cancelling the free shuttles from N. Berkeley Bart, and seeing the promise of "Free Shuttles" at Golden Gate Fields we figured we'd go that route. It was incredibly disappointing to drive quite a distance and not till the very end, on a small orange piece of paper did "Kite Festival Parking $10.00" appear. Um, that's not a free shuttle. It's a $10.00 shuttle which wouldn't have been a problem had they not advertised it as a "Free Shuttle." There was no where else to pick up the "free shuttle" along its route, and with little kids, we couldn't walk two miles just to pick one up. The lines were ridiculously long and for $10, I expect something to come every few minutes, not one that holds 15-20 people every 20 minutes. In additiona, the festival itself this year was lacking - as others have said, we will not be going back. I'd rather go to Cesar Chavez any other day to fly a kite. read more