US Open Fan Week runs from Aug. 23 to 29, opening the grounds to the public for free before the Us Open draw. Visitors can spend the week at the USTA Billie Jean King Tennis Center in Queens watching practices, catching performances and moving through sponsor activations without paying admission.
That is the draw for readers searching now: the week is scheduled, free and packed with things to do before the main event begins. Fans can sample La Roche-Posay sunscreen, get first pick at the Polo Ralph Lauren stores and take an up-close look at the Tiffany & Co. trophies while they are on site.
The performances give Fan Week its own rhythm. The Chinatown Young Lions Dance Group is part of the lineup, along with a Lion Dance, a Japanese Folk Dance, a Filipino Kinding Sindaw Dance and a Thai dance. Bollywood Axion Dance, Calpulli Mexican Dance Company and NAITA Recognition + Redhawk Indian Arts Council are also scheduled, while Steppaz In Command is set to appear and visitors can learn salsa and bachata from Somos Latin Dance or try a crash course in line dancing with Scuff.
There is no shortage of free entertainment, but the week is not built only on what costs nothing. The same grounds also lean into premium branding and high-priced extras for anyone who wants to splurge, a contrast that sits at the center of the event’s appeal. The free access broadens the crowd, but the polished add-ons remind visitors that this is still the opening act for one of tennis’s biggest tournaments.
That also means the real tennis is happening in plain view. During Fan Week, visitors can watch main draw competitors practice on the courts inside Arthur Ashe Stadium and Louis Armstrong Stadium, with the schedule pointing to Serena Williams and Carlos Alcaraz, Aryna Sabalenka and Novak Djokovic, and Iga Swiatek and Casper Ruud among those fans may see. The exact practice times are still the unanswered detail, but the shape of the week is clear: three weeks before the main draw of the US Open Tennis Championships, the sport opens its doors, then asks the crowd to come back for the tournament itself.
