Shelby Park, Louisville Maker Faire, Halloween in Brown Park, Aflora, and Speed Together at the Speed Art Museum are five free family plans for Friday, October 16, through Sunday, October 18, 2026.

JCPS Insider rechecked the organizer pages on October 9, 2026, and the Brown Park page on October 12. Times are Eastern.

What is free Friday night?

The Olmsted Parks beer garden at Shelby Park is free to enter.

Louisville Metro's event page lists Friday, October 16, 2026, from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m., at 600 E Oak St., Louisville, KY 40203. Admission is free. The page calls it family friendly, with lawn games, beer from West Sixth Brewing, and food from local trucks. The beer and the food cost money. The contact on the page is Jesse Hendrix at 502 456 3244.

This is a park night, not a ticketed concert. If you need a short outing after school pickup, the posted window is three hours.

Where is the free Saturday fair?

Louisville Maker Faire is Saturday, October 17, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and the organizer says it costs nothing.

The attend page puts it at the University of Louisville Engineering Student Success and Research Building, 201 Engineering Dr, Louisville, KY 40208. Some event listing sites give the same building as 216 Eastern Parkway; both point to the UofL Engineering Student Success and Research Building, but the organizer uses 201 Engineering Dr, so put that in your map app. The same page says it is free to attend, with no ticket and no RSVP. In its question and answer section, the attend page says exhibits are inside and outside the building, parking is free in lots near the venue, and food vendors are around campus, so lunch is separate from the free door. That section also says the fair goes on rain or shine, with most exhibits indoors or tented, and that it is meant for all ages. The organizer's event map page repeats the free nearby parking. That is a full Saturday, not a one hour storytime.

Where is free trick or treating Saturday?

Halloween in Brown Park in St. Matthews is Saturday, October 17, 2026, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., and the Chamber St. Matthews says it is free.

The chamber's Halloween in Brown Park page puts it in Brown Park, at the corner of Kresge Way and Browns Lane, next to Baptist Health Louisville. The chamber and the City of St. Matthews have run it since 1997, and the page says it now draws more than 5,000 people.

Trick or treating starts at 11:30 a.m. The page says families start at the duck bridge and follow the walking path past 50 to 75 businesses and organizations handing out treats. It also lists music, games, inflatables, and hayrides, and says the event is open to all ages.

Food and drinks cost money. The page says they are optional and that proceeds go to a local nonprofit.

Go early. The page says the trick or treat line may be closed at the discretion of chamber staff so vendors can leave by 3 p.m., and that the event "will promptly end at 3 p.m." It runs rain or shine. Phone 502 899 2523.

Brown Park and Maker Faire are both Saturday. Brown Park ends at 3 p.m., and Maker Faire runs until 5 p.m.

What is free Sunday in Paristown?

Aflora is free, and it does not need a ticket.

Kentucky Performing Arts lists the event with La Casita Center on its Aflora page. The date is Sunday, October 18, 2026, from 12 p.m. to 8 p.m., at Old Forester's Paristown Hall, 724 Brent Street, Louisville, KY 40204. The page says the celebration is also outside in Christy's Garden. Ticket price is free. Age line is all ages. The posted schedule puts the marketplace and community activities at 12 p.m. to 6 p.m., a welcome and art program at 1 p.m. to 2 p.m., live music and dance at 2 p.m. to 6 p.m., a salsa class at 6 p.m. to 6:30 p.m., and a salsa finale at 7 p.m. to 8 p.m. The page says that schedule can change. Phone 502 562 0100. The Kentucky Performing Arts security note on that same Aflora page lists outside food or beverages among prohibited items, along with coolers and backpacks, so plan on eating before you go or buying what the festival sells.

What is free Sunday at the Speed?

Speed Together is a free program from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m., and Sunday gallery admission is pay what you can, including free.

The Speed Together page lists Sunday, October 18, from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m., at 2035 South Third St., Louisville, KY 40208. The page calls it a free Sunday program for families and first time visitors, with art making in the atrium from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. and an open studio from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. in Art Sparks. All ages are welcome in that studio. This date is a special program with the Center for Women and Families for Domestic Violence Awareness Month, and muralist Jaylin Stewart leads a hands on art session in Gheens Court. Docent storytime runs from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. in Art Sparks. The page has a register link. On October 9 it did not say the afternoon was sold out. Phone 502 634 2700.

The visit page is the price check. Sunday hours are noon to 5 p.m. Sunday general admission is pay what you can, and the page says no one is turned away for lack of money. Members are free. Wednesday through Saturday cost real money: adults 18 to 59 are $25, children 4 to 17 are $21, and seniors 60 and older are $23. Children under 12 must be with an adult in the museum. Cinema and some programs need their own tickets. The Elizabeth P. and Frederick K. Cressman Art Park is a separate free lawn, open dawn until dusk, if you only want to be outside.

What should you lock in before Friday?

Pick Shelby Park if Friday needs to be short and outdoors, and Maker Faire if Saturday is the long free day. Those addresses are not close. If Sunday is the plan, Aflora runs later than the Speed. The Speed door that day can be zero dollars. For a backup that does not depend on a festival, start with Free Outings.