When you’re planning your trip to Louisiana, check out the annual events in Baton Rouge for the opportunity to fully immerse yourself in the culture of the state. Favorites like Mardi Gras, the Baton Rouge Blues Festival, and the Soul Food Festival are great reasons for a trip to the Red Stick. Whether it’s music festivals, art events, or Mardi Gras parades you’re looking for, Baton Rouge has it all.
January
Louisiana Marathon and Finish Fest
Kick off your new year with a run—choose from a full, half, or quarter marathon, or a 5K—at the Louisiana Marathon. One of the most popular annual events in Baton Rouge, this is much more than just a marathon. Finish Fest celebrates the crossing of the finish line, and the start of a new year, with food, music, dancing with the tens of thousands of runners and spectators.
800 North Third Street
Baton Rouge, LA 70802
Baton Rouge Restaurant Week
Feast your way through Baton Rouge during this week-long culinary event, held twice a year! Enjoy a three-course meal of prix-fixe menu items at some of Baton Rouge’s best restaurants, consisting of an appetizer, entrée, and dessert.
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February / March
Baton Rouge Mardi Gras
Everyone knows Louisiana is the place to go to do Mardi Gras right. Multiple parades with over-the-top-floats are just part of the fun Mardi Gras in Louisiana’s capital city has to offer!
Baton Rouge, LA 70802
March
St. Patrick’s Day
Start your day early by running the Shamrock Run before donning your brightest green and celebrating St. Patrick’s Day in Baton Rouge. Marching bands and bagpipers will have you dancing in the streets at the annual Wearin’ of the Green St. Patrick’s Day Parade.
3129 Perkins Road
Baton Rouge, LA
Crawfete
Presented by the Baton Rouge Epicurean Society, Crawfete serves as the official kickoff the crawfish season in Baton Rouge and is filled with good eats! Enjoy live music, as well as tastings of boiled crawfish and gourmet crawfish dishes from restaurants throughout Baton Rouge.
April
Baton Rouge Blues Festival
Enjoy two full days of live blues by some of the biggest names in the business at the Baton Rouge Blues Festival. Take a break from all the music by browsing the art shops and getting something delicious to eat from the food vendors.
North Boulevard Town Square
Baton Rouge, LA 70801
The Flower Fest
Flower lovers and philanthropists, this festival is for you! This family-friendly festival has food trucks, beautiful backdrops, live music and of course, a flower market. Watch as floral installations by florists from throughout Louisiana come to life right before your eyes, with all proceeds benefitting St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital.
May
Hot Art Cool Nights
Hot Art Cool Nights is an event hosted by over 40 independent businesses each spring in Baton Rouge’s Mid City neighborhood. Local businesses lining Government Street open their doors and parking lots to musicians, performers, dancers and makers for a night of shopping, fun and community.
Baton Rouge Soul Food Festival
Bring your appetite to the Baton Rouge Soul Food Festival, held in downtown Baton Rouge. This family-friendly event is free to the public and features blues, soul, R&B and gospel music; a vendor’s village; and a judged soul food cooking competition. Bring your chairs for lawn seating and come ready for good food and incredible music!
June
Baton Rouge Pride Fest
Baton Rouge Pride Fest is the largest family-friendly indoor LGBTQ+ pride celebration in the South and with good reason! This festival draws a crowd of more than 10,000 and includes a resource fair, children’s play area, entertainment and blessings of relationships.
July
Fireworks on the Mississippi
Most patriotic of all is the annual fireworks show in Downtown Baton Rouge over the Mississippi River! Baton Rouge's Fourth of July Spectacular welcomes thousands of guests from around the country dressed in their best red, white and blue for an evening-long event of fun, ending with a breathtaking fireworks display overlooking the mighty Mississippi, as well as celebrations happening all across the city!
Baton Rouge Restaurant Week – Summer
Feast your way through Baton Rouge during this week-long culinary event, held twice a year! Enjoy a three-course meal of prix-fixe menu items at some of Baton Rouge’s best restaurants, consisting of an appetizer, entrée, and dessert.
August
Ultimate Tailgate
Nothing kicks off football season quite like the Sweet Baton Rouge® Ultimate Tailgate! Featuring tailgate activities, music, shopping and food, you can get gameday ready by shopping local boutiques, sampling food and drinks from restaurants throughout Baton Rouge and entering in a cornhole championship!
September
Brew at the Zoo
Head to the Baton Rouge Zoo for an evening of beer, food and good music. Sample dozens of craft beers and indulge in pub favorites while listening to the sounds of local musicians and meeting some of the Zoo’s animal ambassadors.
October
Oktoberfest
Próst! This event, held every October, brings a little bit of Deutschland to Baton Rouge. Feast on German-inspired food and of course, beer, while listening to live music and participating in a costume contest.
Boo at the Zoo
Held at the Baton Rouge Zoo, Boo at the Zoo offers festive Halloween fun, complete with games, fall and Halloween-themed structures perfect for photo ops, costumes and themed enrichments.
Fifolet Festival
Halloween in Baton Rouge is a month-long celebration, and Fifolet Festival is at the center of it all! Featuring a Ghostly Gala, Zombie Pub Crawl, 5K, market and Halloween Parade, Fifolet has events for the whole family!
Boo with the Krewe Festival
Boo with the Krewe Festival is a free, family-friendly Halloween festival with carnival-themed activities and entertainment. Held at Scotlandville Plaza, this event also features trick-or-treating for kids and vendors for all to shop from and enjoy.
Spirits of Louisiana
Spirits of Louisiana is the Old State Capitol’s signature fundraising event, featuring craft spirits by Louisiana distilleries, food by local caterers, music and an art auction – all held beneath the “Castle on the River’s” stained-class dome.
Louisiana Book Festival
Louisiana Book Festival is a bookworm’s paradise! This festival, held in downtown Baton Rouge at the State Library and Capitol Park Museum, features authors and panelists for book discussions, activities for kids and teens, musical entertainment and food, of course!
A Taste of the Deep South
A Taste of the Deep South takes place at the Riverfront Plaza in downtown Baton Rouge and features various genres of music and international cultural dances, as well as a vendor’s village with arts and crafts, clothing and jewelry and an international food court with Southern and ethnic foods. This free event is family-friendly with a lineup filled with local and regional talent.
October/November
Greater Baton Rouge State Fair
Dig into cotton candy and fried Oreos, ride a neon-lit Ferris Wheel, and take in all the old-fashioned fair fun of the Greater Baton Rouge State Fair. Pig races, a petting zoo, Midway games, and youth livestock shows; this 11-day festival has it all.
16072 Airline Highway
Baton Rouge, LA 70809
November
Cap City Beer Fest
Taking place in the heart of downtown Baton Rouge, Cap City Beer Fest makes for a fun-filled afternoon that includes unlimited tastings of your local favorite and international beers. Take home a commemorative glass, enjoy cool tunes from local DJs and indulge in food from local food trucks, all while benefitting Companion Animal Alliance.
BRTistic
BRtistic, held in the eclectic music venue, Beavoir Park, gathers artists and musicians together each fall to showcase the essence of Baton Rouge. This two-day event opens with a yoga session each day and live painters and music acts follow. This event also features food vendors, tarot readings and face painting.
White Light Night
White Light Night is Baton Rouge’s Mid City neighborhood’s largest art festival, featuring Louisiana’s best artists, makers and more. Kick off your holiday shopping as you revel under the white lights adorning the streets, meet local artists, enjoy live music and eat at Mid City’s exceptional and unique dining options.
November / December
Baton Rouge General Holiday Lights
Each year, the Baton Rouge General Medical Center – Bluebonnet proudly presents its holiday display. Located in South Baton Rouge, the lawn is transformed into a twinkling, singing and synchronized light display the whole family can enjoy.
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