Keep summer fun going at suburban fests

Enjoy carnival rides, concerts and plenty of food at Labor Day weekend festivals across the suburbs. Check out our list.

This weekend

15th Annual Lake in the Hills Summer Sunset Festival: 3 to 10:30 p.m. Friday, Sept. 4; 9:30 a.m. to 10:30 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 5; and 11 a.m. to 10:30 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 6, at Sunset Park, 5200 Miller Park, Lake in the Hills. Music, entertainment, food, carnival rides, car show, parade at 10 a.m. Saturday on Miller Road, wine tasting, bags tournament, fireworks at 9:30 p.m. Sunday and more. Free. summersunsetfest.com.

Lake Zurich Farmers Market: 3 to 7 p.m. Friday, Sept. 4, at Henry J. Paulus Park, 200 S. Rand Road, Lake Zurich. Produce vendors, musical acts, kids' activities and more. lakezurich.org.

Buffalo Grove Days: 5 p.m. to midnight Friday, Sept. 4; 8 a.m. to midnight Saturday, Sept. 5; 7:30 a.m. to midnight Sunday, Sept. 6; and 10:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday, Sept. 7, at Lake-Cook Road and Raupp Boulevard, Buffalo Grove. Live music, food, carnival, craft fair, business fair, bingo and more. Parade at 1 p.m. Sunday starts at Bernard Drive and Indian Hill, proceeding east on Bernard Drive to Raupp Boulevard, turning north to St. Mary's Parkway. Fireworks at dusk Sunday will be visible from Rotary Village Green, Buffalo Grove Golf Course and Willow Stream Park. Special carnival for residents with disabilities from 10:30 a.m. to noon Monday. Free. bgdays.com.

Downtown Elgin First Fridays: 5 p.m. Friday, Sept. 4, in downtown Elgin. Shopping, live entertainment and more. Free. downtownelgin.com.

Lebanese Food Festival: 5 to 11 p.m. Friday, Sept. 4; 2 to 11 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 5; and noon to 9 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 6, at Our Lady of Lebanon Maronite Catholic Church, 950 N. Grace St., Lombard. Authentic Lebanese fare, entertainment, dancing, live bands, children's and family activities, raffles and more. Free. (630) 932-9640 or ollchicago.org.

Meadows Cruise Night: 5 to 8 p.m. Friday, Sept. 4, at Meadows Christian Fellowship, 2401 Kirchoff Road, Rolling Meadows. Classic car show, kids' activities, food and more. Free. (847) 255-8764 or meadowsfamily.org.

Naperville Jaycees' Last Fling: 5 to 11 p.m. Friday, Sept. 4; 10 a.m. to 11 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, Sept. 5-6; and 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday, Sept. 7, in downtown Naperville. Carnival, entertainment, Family Fun Land and numerous special events including bed races, contests, Skaters Picnic, rib cook-off and Ashley Whippet World Championship. Fling Mile at 8:45 a.m. Monday, followed by Rooster 5K at 9 a.m. Labor Day parade at 10 a.m. starting at Naperville North High School, 899 N. Mill St., and proceeding south on Main Street, west on Porter and ending near Naperville Central High School. Free. lastfling.org.

Taste of Melrose Park: 5 to 11 p.m. Friday, Sept. 4; noon to 11 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 5; and noon to 10 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 6, at the Melrose Park Village Complex, at the northwest corner of 25th Avenue and Lake Street, Melrose Park. Entertainment on four stages, carnival, arts and crafts booths, food and more. Fireworks at 10 p.m. Sunday. Free. melrosepark.org.

Taste of Polonia Festival: 5 to 10:30 p.m. Friday, Sept. 4; noon to 10:30 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 5; noon to 10:30 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 6; and noon to 10 p.m. Monday, Sept. 7, at the Copernicus Center, 5216 W. Lawrence Ave., Chicago. Four stages with more than 35 live bands, Polish fare, kids' bounce zone and climbing wall, casino, film festival, vendors, exhibits and more. $7; free for kids 12 and younger. copernicuscenter.org.

Concerts & Friday Night Fests: 6:30 to 8 p.m. Friday, Sept. 4, at Hawthorn Woods Community Park, 5 Park View Lane, Hawthorn Woods. Free concert. Food vendors on-site. vhw.org.

Maple Park Fun Fest: 7 a.m. to 11 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, Sept. 5-6, and 7 a.m. to noon Monday, Sept. 7, at Route 38 and County Line Road, Maple Park. 5K fun run at 8 a.m. Saturday, arts and crafts show, car show, parade at 6 p.m. Saturday, men's softball tournament, live music, food and beer garden, bags tournament and fireworks at 8:30 p.m. Sunday. Kids' activities include a bike parade at noon Saturday, balloon twisting, face painting and Battle of the Fire Departments. Free. mapleparkfunfest.com.

Depot Market: 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 5, at The Depot, 319 N. River St., East Dundee. Shopping, historical speaker series and monthly antique appraisal fairs. Free. dundeedepot.com.

Bristol Renaissance Faire: 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, Sept. 5-6, and Monday, Sept. 7, at 12550 120th Ave., just off I-94 at the Illinois/Wisconsin border, Kenosha, Wisconsin. Jousting, parades, food, music, rides, crafts and more. $11.50-$23.95; free for kids 4 and younger. renfair.com.

Septemberfest: 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 5; 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 6; and 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday, Sept. 7, at the Robert O. Atcher Municipal Center grounds, 101 Schaumburg Court, Schaumburg. Arts and crafts show, carnival, entertainment on three stages, Taste of Schaumburg, Not-for-Profit Day, Miss Septemberfest competition, bingo and fireworks at 10 p.m. Sunday (rain date is 9 p.m. Monday). Labor Day parade starts at 10 a.m. Monday at Summit Drive and Wise Road. Parade moves north on Summit Drive to Stock Port Lane. South Summit Drive closes at 8 a.m. Monday; Wise Road closes between Roselle and Plum Grove roads at 9 a.m. Free. septemberfest.org.

Civil War Encampment: 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, Sept. 5-6, at Graue Mill and Museum, 3800 S. York Road, Oak Brook. Members of the 10th Illinois Regiment and their families spend the weekend on the mill grounds, depicting what life was like in a Union military camp. See authentic clothing, weapons and tools. Experience black powder firing demonstrations and drills, cooking, toys and crafts. Free. grauemill.org.

Kite Festival: 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 5, at Peck Farm Park, 4038 Kaneville Road, Geneva. View kite demonstrations (wind permitting) from Chicago Kite and visit sponsor and food booths. The first 500 kids will receive a free paper kite to color, assemble and fly. Free. (630) 232-4542 or genevaparks.org.

Taste of Serbia: Noon to 11 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, Sept. 5-6, at St. Basil of Ostrog Serbian Orthodox Church, 27450 N. Bradley Road, Lake Forest. Traditional cuisine, music, dancing, kids' activities and more. Free. (847) 247-0077 or tasteofserbia.org.

Long Grove's Oktoberfest: 1 to 8 p.m. Saturday through Monday, Sept. 5-7, at Robert Parker Coffin and Old McHenry roads, downtown Long Grove. German fare, music, hayrides, antique tractor show and more. Free. (847) 634-0888 or visitlonggrove.com.

Fox Valley Irish Fest: 3 to 10:30 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 5, at RiverEdge Park, 360 N. Broadway, Aurora. Concerts, Irish food, beer, games, gifts, crafts, giant kids' play area and more. $5-$10; free for kids 2 and younger. (630) 896-6666 or riveredgeaurora.com.

Sri Krishna Janmashtami: Begins at 4 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 5, at ISKCON Temple of Greater Chicago - Naperville, 1505 McDowell Road, Naperville. Event celebrates Sri Krishna Janmashtami, one of the temple's biggest festivals of the year. Free. iskconnaperville.org.

Wauconda's 16th Annual Street Dance: 4 to 11 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 5, on Main Street in downtown Wauconda. Features 10 bands on four stages, dancing, food and more. Free. Guests are asked to bring a donation of food or school supplies. waucondachamber.org.

BluesMobile Cruise Nights: 6 to 9 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 5, in the Metra commuter parking lot, along Northwest Highway, one block west of Route 83, Mount Prospect. Classic cars, music, entertainment and on-site giveaways. Free. facebook.com/bmbcruisenights.

Fox Valley Folk Music & Storytelling Festival: 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday and Monday, Sept. 6-7, in Island Park, 2 E. State St., Geneva. Folk festival presents more than 100 hours of folk music, dance and storytelling on eight stages with more than 30 acts. Also, kids' activities and workshops. Old-Time Community Barn Dance from 6 to 7:30 p.m. Sunday. Ghost Stories in the big tent from 7:30 to 10 p.m. $20 a day; $15 for seniors and teens; free for kids 12 and younger. foxvalleyfolk.com.

Block Party - Taste of Batavia: 4 to 9 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 6, at the Batavia Riverwalk, 100 N. Island Ave., Batavia. Live music, car show, dancing and more. Drink specials and tastings available for purchase. Free. downtownbatavia.com.

Next week

Motor Mondays: 5 p.m. until dusk Monday, Sept. 7, at The Depot, 319 N. River St., East Dundee. Classic cars, music, raffles, food specials and more. Free. eastdundee.net.

128th Annual Sandwich Fair: Grounds open at 8 a.m. (buildings open from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.) Wednesday through Sunday, Sept. 9-13, at Sandwich Fairgrounds, 1401 Suydam Road, Sandwich. Livestock exhibits, concerts, demolition derby, tractor pulls, food and more. $5-$9; free for kids younger than 5. Free for kids 12 and younger on Kids' Day on Wednesday, Sept. 9. (815) 786-2159 or sandwichfair.com.