Fireworks. Funnel cake. Ferris wheel. Funk music.
Sioux City's biggest and best music festival, Saturday in the Park features all that and more, and you're going to want to be part of the tens of thousands of people who flock to Grandview Park on the first weekend of July to be a part of the fun! Here's your guide to attending Sioux City's Saturday in the Park Music Festival.
*Now updated with details for the 2025 Saturday in the Park festival!*
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| Crowd at a previous year of SITP, photo by R.W. |
Saturday in the Park Main Stage
The 2025 Saturday in the Park festival will bring us funk, blues, country, and rock! This year's concert on July 5th, 2025 is headlined by Teddy Swims, known for his vocal range, vocal control, and rasp on bluesy songs including his viral hit Lose Control and the Door. His new album I've Tried Everything But Therapy drops June 27th so we are going to be some of the very first people to hear him after its release and we get to do it for FREE, so that is pretty epic. Teddy Swims fans are going to NEED to be at Saturday in the Park!
After the concert on Saturday night, Saturday in the Park usually features Sioux City's best Fourth of July fireworks show, beginning sometime between 10:15pm and midnight. (The last performance is always scheduled to be over by about 10pm, but sometimes things run behind schedule by the end of the day due to weather, technical delays, performer health, and/or audience demand for encores. When Aretha Franklin was here it was like midnight before we got fireworks...and totally worth the wait to hear more of her spectacular vocals!) This year, fireworks are scheduled for Saturday, July 5th after the last song from Teddy Swims.
Oher acts planned for the main stage in 2025 include (links are to artist youtube channels if available):
- Mavis Staples, a musical icon with decades of hits to boast.
- Christone "Kingfish" Ingram, one of the brightest new stars in the world of blues, with a voice beyond his years.
- Kelley Hunt and the Five, singing roots R&B and Americana
- Josh Hoyer & Soul Colossal, a six-piece funk and blues band
The Abe Stage at Saturday in the Park
The Abe Stage is Saturday in the Park's alternative stage, offering a wider variety of musical genres and a chance to discover new favorite musical artists! The Abe Stage is normally located near the southeast corner of the park by its famous Abraham Lincoln statue.
Some of the acts performing on the Abe Stage for 2025 include:
- That Mexican OT known for his Texas fusion, drawing inspiration from hip-hop, tejano, and many other musical styles.
- Riff Raff, another Texas rapper, known for his sense of humor and party vibes
- From this Day Forward, metalcore from Omaha
- Midwest Dilemma
- Cri$is
Saturday in the Park Kids Zone
The SITP Kids Zone will be open from noon to 7pm and features inflatables, pony rides, a petting zoo, bungee jump, carnival rides, and a clown, plus crafts and activities from LaunchPad Children's Museum, the Norm Waitt Sr. YMCA, and more! Many of the activities in the SITP Kids Zone are free, but not all, so be sure to bring some cash if you want your kids to be able to play on the inflatables, interact with the animals in the petting zoo, or participate in other Kids Zone activities that do have a charge. There are usually several hands-on activities and projects that are totally free though!
Food and Drink at Saturday in the Park
Wondering what to eat at the Saturday in the Park music festival? Saturday in the Park is also known for its great food trucks and vendors. Some of the announced 2025 vendors include:
- Benny's Dogs
- Burrito Island
- Front Porch Concessions
- Fuzzy Pig BBQ
- Godfather's Pizza
- Greek 2 Me
- J&J Popcorn
- KLK Concessions
- Macs Tornados
- Made it Myself Shaved Ice
- Marco's Indian Tacos
- Mr. Corn
- Mugshot
- Papa John's
- The Parthenon
- Sazon Jalisco
- Shake Shake
- Smokin' R's BBQ
- Stapleton Tornado
- Taulelle Concessions
- Taqueria Fiesta Latina
- Tornado Funnel Cakes
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| All smiles with noise-cancelling headphones! |
Visitor Tips for Saturday in the Park
Have questions like where to park for Saturday in the Park, whether you can bring a bag, where to use the bathroom, and whether you can bring drinks and snacks for kids? I've got the answers for you, plus more tips based on my own experiences bringing my own kids to Saturday in the Park:
- Street parking is free in the neighborhoods around Grandview Park, but can fill up early, and all usual parking restrictions apply, like don't block fire hydrants, driveways, etc.
- There is also usually a shuttle bus running regularly throughout the festival from the Tyson Events Center to Grandview Park, and there is lots of free, well-lit parking at the Tyson.
- Admission to the festival itself is free, but food, drinks, rides, and anything you buy from vendors in Art Alley are not free, so I recommend bringing a small amount of cash.
- The festival can be very loud, so I recommend noise cancelling headphones for all babies and for any kids (and adults!) sensitive to loud noises.
- Generally, the only toilets at the park that are available to the public during the festival are porta-potties, but many businesses on Hamilton Boulevard may have restrooms open to customers. The HyVee on Pierce Street is closing and I'm not sure of the exact date, so don't count on it being available as an option this year.
- Only clear/translucent bags are allowed in the park during the festival. If you don't have one, expect that you may be subject to search or you may be turned away to find a new bag or leave your things in your car. I have brought non-clear diaper bags without issue, but they definitely did check them.
- No outside food or drink. I checked with the Saturday in the Park organizers however and they said things for babies or toddlers like sippy cups, bottles, and cheerios are fine!
For more information
To find out more about Saturday in the Park on their website, on Twitter, their Facebook page, on YouTube, and on the Abe Stage Facebook page.For more info on the park itself, check out my guide to Sioux City's Grandview Park!
And for more local fun in Sioux City and Siouxland this July, check out my post with a full list of local events in Siouxland happening in July.
See you at the park!
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