National Harbor's social media highlights events connected to Fort Washington and Oxon Hill, including the coming steakhouse, the next concert, and the countdown to Labor Day.
Local routines add their own details: the cannons go off on the first Sunday of the month, Proud Mary's gets loud on a Friday night, and the farm smells like a farm.
National Harbor and the National Park Service publish separate calendars, and their schedules rarely reference each other. The two locations are less than three miles apart, and each calendar can help you find free activities in the area this month.
The Resort Calendar
National Harbor's calendar currently features its America 250 celebration, a summer-long program marking the nation's 250th anniversary that started around Memorial Day and wraps as fall begins. The program has consistent branding and a defined end date, with content suited to sharing.
The free Saturday night concert series, Salute the Sunset, is another item on National Harbor's calendar. U.S. military bands perform at the Waterfront District's plaza stage at 150 National Plaza, and the series has historically run from May into September. Because National Harbor updates the official concert schedule as dates get added or shifted, that page is the one to bookmark rather than any date I could hand you today.
Two other items on the resort calendar are worth tracking. On October 7, National Harbor hosts its third annual CocktailPRO Competition, a bartending event that has become a small annual tradition rather than a one-off promotion. And the property's restaurant lineup is about to get a serious addition: According to WhatNow, Atlas Restaurant Group, the company behind a well-regarded Baltimore steakhouse called The Ruxton, is bringing the concept to Oxon Hill. Atlas told the Washington Business Journal that construction would begin in February 2026, putting the restaurant on track for a late-2026 opening. Atlas founder Alex Smith said the location was "a perfect setting for this concept," pointing to the mix of tourism, entertainment, and a growing residential population nearby.
That last phrase matters: the nearby residential population was part of the mix cited for the location.
The Federal Calendar
Three miles down Indian Head Highway, the National Park Service has its own calendar.
Fort Washington Park, operated by the National Park Service, has hosted a black powder demonstration crew that fires the fort's historic cannons on the first Sunday of every month, April through October. The next one falls on September 6. There is no ticket, no sign-up, and no push notification. You just show up, and if you like, stop at the visitor center afterward to get a passport stamp.
A few minutes away, Oxon Cove Park and Oxon Hill Farm operate under the same federal umbrella and the same quiet publishing style. It is a working farm in the literal sense: cows, a pig, a goat, a horse, a donkey, and chickens, cared for on land that includes Mount Welby, a structure built around 1811 that predates the fort itself. The park runs its own Junior Ranger program here, and each fall it hosts an Oxon Hill Farm Fall Festival, timed to the change in the leaves. The park lists the festival on its own calendar.
The two calendars reflect the different organizations that publish them.
| National Harbor calendar | NPS calendar (Fort Washington Park & Oxon Hill Farm) | |
|---|---|---|
| Run by | A private resort and entertainment district | The National Park Service |
| Cost | Mostly free, some ticketed extras | Free |
| How you find out | Newsletter, Instagram, press releases | The park's own website, word of mouth |
| Next dated event | CocktailPRO Competition, Oct 7 | Cannon demonstration, Sept 6 |
Local Events Beyond the Two Calendars
Another local option is Proud Mary's, the restaurant and bar at Fort Washington Marina. A Military Budget write-up describes it as a waterfront restaurant featuring live jazz, R&B, and reggae on weekends, with DJ sets that can turn a quiet dinner spot into a packed deck by 9 p.m. The write-up also calls it a place with "a sense of place," pointing to Prince George's County character and Potomac River views as the draw.
The Fort Washington Forward Farmers Market is another local event, alongside the first-Sunday gatherings at the fort.
Checking both calendars can help you keep track of events at National Harbor and nearby parks.
Before the Leaves Turn
Between now and the end of the year, both calendars have something worth putting on the actual calendar you check, not just the one an algorithm feeds you.
- Mark September 6 for the next cannon demonstration at Fort Washington Park, and September 7 for the close of America 250's summer programming at National Harbor. They land on consecutive days, which makes for an easy weekend if you want both.
- Check the Salute the Sunset schedule directly on National Harbor's site before you plan around a specific Saturday, since dates shift as the season winds down.
- Watch for the Oxon Hill Farm Fall Festival announcement on the park's own calendar rather than waiting for it to surface anywhere else.
- Put October 7 on the calendar for CocktailPRO if you want a preview of what National Harbor's bar scene looks like once the summer crowds thin out.
- Keep an eye on The Ruxton's opening date as the year closes out. Its arrival will add another restaurant option to the area's dining scene.
These calendars come from two different operations, and together they list a range of free activities in the area.
That is also, in a smaller way, how this neighborhood tends to work. Fort Washington and Oxon Hill get lumped together on maps and in listings, but they run at different speeds, with different institutions setting the pace. Knowing both calendars can help you explore Fort Washington and Oxon Hill beyond National Harbor.
If a friend, a colleague, or a family member is weighing a move to this stretch of the Potomac and wants someone who already knows which calendar to check for which event, Giovanna Piskulich works this market every day. Start your move, or just start the conversation, with a free consultation with Giovanna.
