French Quarter Special Events
On the Horizon
Save the dates for the coming months
Eleventh Hour Spirited Salon: October 22, 26, 27
Halloween 2026: A Silent Film & Live Music Experience: Thursday, October 29
2026 Food Forum: Gumbo!: November 7
Food Fête: Taste Louisiana History: November 7
Bayou Bacchanal: November 7
Luna Fete: November 13 - 15
Jazz Museum’s Improv Gala: December 5
NOLA Holiday Parade: December 5
Swampus Parade by Melanie Cole for FQJ Don’t Miss List
FQJ faves in the weeks ahead
September 15 through October 15
National Hispanic Heritage Month
Update: The month winds up with NolaGaita on Tuesday, October 13, and Arco Latino on Friday, October 16
Image: Azuquita La Cubana, from NOLA Jazz Museum website-
Since 1988, the US celebrates National Hispanic Heritage Month on September 15 through October 15, recognizing the significant contributions Hispanic/Latino Americans have made in the United States. This timeframe encompasses two months in which several Central American countries celebrate independence days. See more at the National Museum of the American Latino!
Look for events celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month throughout New Orleans. Join FQJ sponsors the New Orleans Jazz Museum and the French Market District for special events marking the occasion!
New Orleans Jazz Museum, 400 Esplanade Ave:
October 9, 2pm: Alesia & Sasong, Performance Center
October 10, 6–9pm: Cumbiafest, free at the Jazz Museum!
October 13, 5pm: NolaGaita, Balcony show
October 16, 2pm: Arco Latino, Performance Center
Historic French Market, 1008 N. Peters Street:French Market District Hispanic Heritage Concert Series: Every Saturday (September 19, 26, October 3 & 10), 1pm
Sundays, October 11, 18 & 25
Doors open 2:30pm, concerts 3pm – 6pm
Nickel-a-Dance Free Concert Series
Snug Harbor, 626 Frenchmen Street
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Nickel-A-Dance is a free, family-friendly jazz concert series in New Orleans, celebrating the city’s rich musical heritage.
Founded in 1994, it features top local jazz musicians performing classic jazz, blues, and swing. Originally held at Café Brasil on Frenchmen Street, the series now takes place at Snug Harbor Jazz Bistro on Sundays from 3:00–6:00 PM.
The event is open to all ages and aims to make live jazz accessible to everyone.
Oct. 11: Don Vappie & The Creole Jazz Serenaders
Oct. 18: Jamil Sharif New Orleans Extravaganza
October 25: A Tribute to Jelly Roll Morton with Steve Pistorius and the Southern Syncopators
Friday, October 16, 5:30–7pm
VCPORA’s At Home: 921 Burgundy
Image: 921 Burgundy by VCPORA 921 Burgundy: An early (c. 1810), brick-between-posts Creole cottage, with the addition of late Victorian cornice lintels over the façade openings. (VCC Library)
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At Home 10.16.26
921 Burgundy St.
5:30-7:00PM
$10 for members & $15 for non-membersJoin VCPORA at 921 Burgundy, an early Creole Cottage with a gorgeous interior and courtyard. Enjoy wine or a specialty cocktail and learn all about the history of this home in the heart of the residential end of the French Quarter.
Wednesday, October 21 through Friday, October 30
Tours from 1850 Museum House & Gift Shop, 523 St. Ann St.
Friends of the Cabildo Ghostly Gallivant 2026
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Friends of the Cabildo presents its annual Ghostly Gallivant Programming, a month-long fundraising event to support education and exhibits in the Louisiana State Museums: Ghostly Tours in the 1850 House, Haunted Historical New Orleans tours of the French Quarter, and an online auction that ends October 30, 6pm.
This year, Ghostly Gallivant takes the 1850 House back to the summer of 1853, when the dreaded “Saffron Scourge”—yellow fever—killed around ten percent of New Orleans (8,000 people) in a few months. Gallivant tours are 45 minutes long and put you in the middle of this horrifying epidemic. Details and tickets at the ticket link below!
Check out items in the auction at the ticket link below!
FOC Haunted Historical New Orleans Tours: Discover New Orleans history with these two-hour walking tours. All details at the ticket link below.
Tickets must be purchased in advance.
Thursday, October 22: 7pm
French Quarter
Patio Planters Halloween Decorating Contest
Photo: Carolyn Guidry-
Each year, a panel of Patio Planters judges boards the official judging vehicle and makes the trip through the Quarter in search of the best Halloween decorations.
Patio Planters encourages everyone to decorate and contribute to the festive atmosphere of the French Quarter. Each year, blue-ribbon and honorable mention winners are announced on the Patio Planters Facebook page.
To enter or nominate one of your neighbors send name, address, and picture (if possible) to admin@patioplanters.net.
Saturday, October 24: 11am – 4pm
French Market District
Boo Carré Halloween Haunt
Photo: French Market Halloween 2024 by Ellis Anderson-
Come for a full day of live music, kids’ activities, a spooky second line, and trick-or-treating!
Children in costume are eligible for a free Boo Carre tote bag for trick-or-treating in the French Market.
FREE!
Dutch Alley Performance Pavilion Stage 2026
11am–12pm: National Park Service Arrowhead Jazz Band
12-12:15pm: Pie Eating Contest / Adults
12:15pm-1:15pm: Strange Roux
1:15pm–1:30pm: Pie Eating Contest / Kids
1:30pm–2:30pm: Captain Squeeze & The Zydeco Moshers
2:30pm–2:45pm: Costume Contest
2:45pm–3:45pm: 3rd Degree
3:45pm–4pm: Spooktacular Second Line & Costume Parade
New Orleans Jazz National Historical Park Stage 2026
11:30am–12:30pm: Krewe of Dolly Book Reading
12:30pm–1:30pm: Johnette Downing
1:30pm–2:30pm: Krewe of Dolly Book Reading
Activities 2026
Trick or Treating at the French Market
Pixie Dust Biodegradable Glitter
Adorn Me Antoinette
The Baby Dolls
Petting Zoo
Market Music
Saturday, October 24: 6:30pm
Elysian Fields to Andrew Higgins Drive
Krewe of Boo! Halloween Parade
Photo: Krewe of Boo 2025 by Cheryl Gerber-
Featuring floats by the world famous Kern Studios, Krewe of Boo has been the official New Orleans Halloween parade since 2007.
Get your costumes ready for a wild night! More info here.
PARADE ROUTE
• Assemble at Elysian Fields Avenue
• Parade Down Elysian Fields Avenue to North Peters Street
• North Peters Street to Decatur Street
• Decatur Street past Jackson Square to North Peters Street
• North Peters Street to Canal Street
• Up Canal to Burgundy then U-turn
• Down Canal Street to Tchoupitoulas Street
• Tchoupitoulas Street to Andrew Higgins Drive
In person: October 22 – 27
Virtually: until November 1
New Orleans Film Festival
Presented by the New Orleans Film Society
Photo: Markus Winkler for Pexels-
From the New Orleans Film Society:
The 37th annual, Oscar-qualifying New Orleans Film Festival returns October 22-27, 2026 in venues across the city with in-person events, parties, panels, filmmaker pitches, and much more!
The majority of the lineup will also be accessible via NOFF Virtual Cinema globally between October 22-November 1, 2026. Geo-restrictions may apply to some screenings.
NOFF annually brings together 150+ films and hosts 200+ filmmakers and film professionals in New Orleans to celebrate works of emerging and established filmmakers from New Orleans, Louisiana, the South, and beyond. Audiences get a chance to meet filmmakers in person at talkback sessions after screenings while filmmakers get to network with each other and industry professionals flying in from Los Angeles and New York to discover emerging talent. It’s the best time of the year for film lovers who like to discover the works of storytellers first hand, meet fellow film buffs mingling at festival venues and parties to talk film all festival long.
Saturday, October 31: 1 – 7pm
Voodoo Authentica of New Orleans, 612 rue Dumaine
28th Annual Voodoofest
Photo: Voodoofest 2025 by Ellis Anderson-
It’s the yearly festival celebrating the Voodoo religion’s contributions to New Orleans traditions, hosted by Voodoo Authentica of New Orleans Cultural Center and Collection.
Featuring a host of practitioners, artists, dancers, and musicians, with activities all day and free admission!
1 PM: Opening Ceremony with legendary Nola Artist & Musician, Amzie Adams, led by Mambo Maggie & our family of initiated Priests.
1:30 PM: New Orleans Voodoo Practitioner, Licensed Tour Guide & Intuitive Reader, Mam'zelle Kamille, takes us on a storyteller's journey through the historic Vieux Carre, sharing tales of local Spirits and French Quarter lore.
2 PM: Ghanaian Priest & Master Drummer, Osofo Andrew, speaks about how music connects us with Spirit while sharing songs from his native country.
2:30 PM: New Orleans Voodoo Priest and Published Author, Papa Zaar, explains how to set up a personal Ancestral Altar and why it's important to "start at home" by honoring your own Ancestral lines first.
3 PM: Priestess Ava Kay Jones, the Gris Gris Queen of New Orleans, shows us how she creates & blesses Gris Gris Bags - powerful tools for Spiritual growth and change.
3:30 PM: Cajun Voodoo Priest, Houngan Jesse, a true Louisiana original, speaks about the history of the Cajun people and the contributions they've made to our local history & culture.
4 PM: Queen Reesie, Spy Boy K-9 & Spy Boy Ace give us an insider's view into the history and culture of the New Orleans Mardi Gras Indian Tradition through their dynamic interactive presentation.
4:30 PM: Published Author, Scholar, Archivist & Initiated Mambo, Dr. Ina Fandrich, speaks about the life & times of our Great Ancestor, Voodoo Queen Mam'zelle Marie Laveaux.
5 PM: Queen Mother Sula, author of Spirit of the Orisha, takes us on a soul-filled musical journey into the world of the African Spirit Forces, sharing the meaning and beauty of Orisha songs.
5:30 PM: Bruce Sunpie Barnes, internationally renowned Local Musician, Historian, and Big Chief of the Northside Skull & Bone Gang, shares Louisiana stories while performing some of his most popular songs.
6 PM: New Orleans Professor of Dance & Choreography, Mama Kai, showcases local and international dance movements from the African Diaspora, and shares the cultural significance behind them.
6:30 PM: Bring your drums (and your clapping hands) for African Drumming 101 with Award-Winning Percussionist, Luther Gray, of Bamboula 2000!
7 PM: CLOSING ANCESTRAL HEALING RITUAL with Mambo Maggie, our extended family of initiated Priests, the Voodoo Authentica Ritual Troupe and YOU!
Friday, October 30, 7pm – midnight
Secret mansion in the French Quarter
Les Belles et les Bêtes
Presented by Nous, The New Orleans Foundation for Francophone Cultures: A Cocteau-themed Halloween party presented with Chloë Cassens, granddaughter of Cocteau
Photo: public domain from Wikimedia, Jean Marais as the Beast-
From Nous:
This Halloween, step through the looking glass and into the enchanted world of Jean Cocteau.
Poet, filmmaker, painter, playwright, and designer, Cocteau was one of France's most imaginative and influential artists of the 20th century. His 1946 masterpiece La Belle et la Bête (Beauty and the Beast) remains a landmark of French cinema, celebrated for its theatrical beauty, living candelabras, and haunting sense of enchantment.
For one night only, Nous brings that dreamlike vision to a hidden mansion in the heart of the French Quarter. Guests will be immersed in a cinematic experience that pairs Cocteau's footage with contemporary music from a live DJ, blurring the line between film and fantasy.
Come in costume. Surreal attire is strongly encouraged. Arrive as a Belle, a Bête, or something wonderfully in between. Prizes will be awarded for the most spellbinding looks.
Raise a glass. Enjoy an open bar featuring champagne, wine, and cocktails throughout the evening.
This event is strictly 21+. Valid ID required at the door.
Sunday, November 1: 12–6pm
Lafayette Square, 602 Camp Street
Día de los Muertos Festival 2026
Photo: Nick Fewings for Unsplash-
Dia de los Muertos originated in central and southern Mexico, with traditions going back thousands of years. Join in this free festival hosted by the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce of Louisiana celebrating a day to honor friends and family who have passed with altars, food, photos, stories, and more.
The festival invites all to come dressed to celebrate and participate in the Catrina & Catrín Showcase Contest celebrating traditional attire, creativity and cultural expression!
Monday, November 2: 3pm, procession 7pm
Start at Markey Park, 3301 Royal Street; ends St. Roch Cemetery #1, 1725 St. Roch Avenue
Krewe de Mayahuel Día de los Muertos Procession and Fiesta
Photo: 2025 Procession by Shawn Fink. See the album here!-
Get to Markey Park early for music, food and drinks, face painting, dance shows and more, and stay for the procession to St. Roch Cemerery #1, where the march ends with the building of a monumental altar (ofrenda), accompanied by classic mariachi tunes!
The Long List
Dozens of curated happenings in the Quarter and beyond
Below are 50 upcoming events happening in the FQ and surrounding neighborhoods. Want even more? Click the button at the bottom.For a complete list of live music happenings in the city, check out WWOZ’s Livewire Music Calendar!
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