Foster City Summer Days

Summer Days fills Leo J. Ryan Park and the closed lanes of Shell Boulevard for three days in August. The 2026 festival ran August 14 through 16. Admission was free and the carnival was not. Every rider wore a wristband. Single tickets sold at the event at $1 a credit, and each ride took between 4 and 7 of them. Children under the 36-inch minimum height rode designated rides with an adult or chaperone. The City of Foster City puts the weekend on with local businesses and organizations. The city calls it a chance for families, neighbors, and friends to connect and to celebrate the city’s birthday.

Friday evening on Shell Boulevard

The weekend opens on one evening. On Friday, August 14, 2026, classic cars lined Shell Boulevard from 4 to 7. The carnival opened at 5 and ran until 10:30. At 6 the headliner band, Mercy and the Heartbeats, took the amphitheater and played until 8. Friday food was limited service, 5 to 8. The vendors were Chick N Bros, Tacos El Cowboy, Street Bites Vietnamese, Mister Softee, and the Foster City Rotary Club, which set up near the amphitheater.

The Main Lot on Saturday and Sunday

The full festival opened Saturday. Its center is the Main Lot on Shell Boulevard, where the Community Stage carries local bands, musicians, and other performers from Foster City and the surrounding towns. BAYCO played from noon to 3 on Saturday, August 15, and Red Hot & The Saltines from 3:30 to 5. On Sunday, Cleaning Service played at noon and The Cassettes at 1:30. Pendleton was listed in the 3:30-to-5 slot.

All the weekend food vendors stood in the same lot. They were open 11 to 8 on Saturday and 11 to 5 on Sunday. The 2026 list ran from A&M Patisserie and Alex Tacos to Uncle Papa’s BBQ and Yakitori Yado. Between those came Bun Me Up, Daily Grind Burgers, Fire & Slice Pizza, Liang’s Village, Hot Boi Chili Oil, Jaden’s Kettle Corn, Kick Butt Kookies, Dare’s Lemonade, Teappo, Local Honey, and Nokki Farm.

Beer tents stood along Shell Boulevard between the carnival and the Community Booths, with more in the Main Lot. Five beers were on draft:

Firestone 805 Blonde Estrella Jalisco Mexican Lager Bear Republic Racer 7 Hazy IPA Golden Road Mango Cart Wheat * Elysian Space Dust IPA

The cans included Gordon Biersch, Hapas, and Henhouse, 21st Amendment’s Hell or High Watermelon Wheat, two hard ciders, and a Heineken 0.0. The Foster City Lions Club poured wine at a tent in the Main Lot.

San Jose Made, the city’s partner over the years, brought handmade work from more than 100 artists from around the San Francisco Bay Area. The Community Booths held the non-profits and businesses that serve the town. Mini Cat Town brought cats up for adoption. New in 2026 was a drop-in ceramic painting workshop run by SJMADE with the city. A $10 ticket bought one ceramic pot or vase of the painter’s choosing and all the supplies, and an artist stood by with step-by-step guidance. The listing from Itzy Bitzy Art asked that children 12 and under stay with a parent or guardian at all times.

Sports Basement ran a free bike valet in the Main Lot on both days from 11 to 5.

Ducks behind a construction fence

Summer Days made its debut in 2019, and the city counted the 2026 weekend as its fourth. The Rubber Ducky Races are one of its traditions. In 2026 the Foster City Community Center and the area around it stayed closed for ongoing construction, and the races gave way. The site map marked the closure with an asterisk. In place of the races, organizers hid ducks throughout the grounds for a weekend-long Rubber Ducky Scavenger Hunt. It ran from 10 to 5 on Saturday and from 10 to 11:30 on Sunday morning. Anyone who found a duck won a prize.