Open House New York Weekend Opens 300+ Sites Across the Five Boroughs

Open House New York Weekend, the annual festival run by Open House New York (OHNY), takes place October 16–18, 2026, across all five boroughs. It unlocks more than 300 destinations for behind-the-scenes tours and special activities, with organizers citing roughly 1,000 volunteers and 50,000 participants.

The range of sites is wide: new buildings reshaping the skyline, infrastructure facilities that keep the city running, parks, performance venues, manufacturing workshops and private collections. Photos from past editions show a rooftop lawn at Rockefeller Center, the Robert Rauschenberg Foundation in a former church with Gothic windows, a coffee roasting demonstration at Buunni, a visit to the New York Sign Museum, and rowing at Anable Basin in Long Island City. This year's festival identity was carved in stone by Chris Pellettieri, whose Pellettieri Stone Carvers' Academy is among the participating locations.

Getting in is straightforward. More than 150 destinations are Drop-In, so no tickets are needed. Some sites and tours do require tickets because of limited space or security, and those were released on October 2. The lineup shifts before and during the weekend through changes, additions and cancellations, which OHNY posts on its Updates page.

To narrow down the choices, the festival groups sites into themed collections, including Family Friendly, Sunset Park, South Bronx, WTC at 25, Innovation in Preservation and Getting to Work. It suits architecture fans, and anyone who wants to see a side of New York that standard sightseeing skips.