Crawfish boils are in full swing, Easter has passed, and Festival Season is upon us! Starting on Thursday, April 7th is the annual French Quarter Festival located…in the French Quarter! This is the largest FREE music festival in the country, and the crowds will definitely prove that to you. With 23 stages, every genre of musician all from the greater New Orleans area, every New Orleans-style food dish you can think of, and hundreds of thousands of visitors you are bound to have yourself a very good time in New Orleans.
French Quarter Festival Schedule
Kicking off the weekend, on Thursday, April 7th, will be the annual French Quarter Festival Kickoff Parade at 10:00 a.m. starting at 100 Bourbon Street featuring the New Wave Brass Band. They’ll second line through the Quarter and towards Jackson Square. The music on the stages will start roughly around 11:00 a.m. and include the Smokefree NOLA Stage at Jackson Square, the Abita Beer Stage at the Berger Great Lawn, the Tropical Isle Hand Grenade Stage at the Riverfront Pavilion and the GE Digital Big River Stage all right at Woldenberg Riverfront Park, and the Chevron Cajon/Zydeco Showcase stage located near the Bienveille Statue. Thursday is what we call the locals day and the music will go on all day long until approximately 7:00 p.m.
Friday morning, April 8th, kicks off the weekend with some more extraordinary stages scattered around the French Quarter. The music will go on from approximately 11:00 a.m. through 7:00 p.m. In addition to the aforementioned stages, the following stages will be active:
- The Outlet Collection at Riverwalk Stage with Harrah’s New Orleans
- WWL’s Esplanade in the Shade Stage on Esplanade Ave.
- Popeye’s Barracks St. Brass Band Jam with Offbeat Magazine located on Barracks Street
- House of Blues Stage in the Voodoo Garden at the HOB
- French Market International Stage
- French Market Traditional Jazz Stage
- Jazz Playhouse at the Royal Sonesta>
You can expect Saturday & Sunday, April 9th and 10th, to have the largest crowds and the most musical acts. There are even a few MORE stages added for these days due to demand:
- Crimestoppers Court House Stage
- New Orleans Jazz National Historic Park Centennial Stage for Kids (located at Woldenberg Park)
- Tequila Herradura Stage
- Classical Music Stage at St. Mary’s
- Jack Daniel’s Stage at Preservation Hall
- Zapp’s Stage
- New Orleans Magazine Cabaret Stage at Palm Court Jazz Café
- Omni Royal Orleans Hotel Stage
- Moxy Hotels Preservation Hall Stage
- BMI Songwriter Stage at the Historic New Orleans Collection
- Rouses Stage
Again, the music on Saturday and Sunday will be roughly from 11:00 a.m. through 7:00 p.m. but you’ll want to check the full schedule to ensure that the stage you are interested in will have music at the time you want to hear it.
Who are the French Quarter Festival Musicians in 2016?
The musical lineup for this year’s French Quarter Festival is astounding. New Orleans boasts some of the best musicians around the world and hosting such a large festival with just local musicians really does prove how talented this city and its surrounding area is. Here is just a taste of who you can expect to hear this year:
- Bag of Donuts
- Kermit Ruffin’s & the Barbeque Swingers
- Cowboy Mouth
- Preservation Hall Brass Band
- Ellis Marsalis
- Mia Borders
- Shamarr Allen and the Underdawgs
- Walter “Wolfman” Washington
- Robin Barnes
- Bill Summers
- James Andrews
- Lost Bayou Ramblers
- Big Chief Bo Dollis, Jr. & The Wild Magnolias …and many, many more!
You an expect to hear traditional jazz, brass music, Cajun and Zydeco, classical and even some international music. It’s going to be an endless weekend of eclectic tastes in music.
How to Get to French Quarter Festival
The best way to get to French Quarter Festival is to take public transportation or a taxicab within the city limits. The reason for this is that so many streets will be blocked off that traffic will be a nightmare, as well as parking confinements. The Canal Streetcar will take you all the way from Mid-City (either the end of Canal Street or the other side of City Park) right down to the edge of the French Quarter, while the St. Charles Streetcar will run right to Canal Street, which is still the edge of the French Quarter while the Riverfront Streetcar can take you from one end of the French Quarter Festival to the other. The Streetcar cost $1.25 per person each way and you should expect to have exact change. You can also take the RTA buses.
There is a new Festival “Easy Rider” Shuttle service provided in partnership with Gray Line and the Convention Center. Friday through Sunday, you can park by the Convention Center and shuttles will take you to Canal Street. It will cost $30 to park your car and the shuttle is included. This is an option for anyone who doesn’t plan to drink alcohol. You do not want to run the risk of a DWI.
Uber, and now Lyft, in addition to taxicabs are available throughout the city. Whether are you staying at a hotel, coming from your home or staying at an Airbnb, you can catch any of these by either bringing up the app or calling a taxicab phone number. You can try United Cabs.
Biking to French Quarter Festival is the most convenient for those with bikes because there will be no traffic, there are a plethora of bike lanes in New Orleans, and it’s free. You must be sure to bring a U-Lock and securely lock your bike to a bike rack. On Friday, Saturday and Sunday, Bike Easy will have Valet Bike Parking so you can assure that your bike will be safe! I believe there’s a small fee for this service.
What Should I Know About Going to French Quarter Festival?
Because French Quarter Festival is a free and public event, there are some guidelines and rules that you should probably adhere to in order to have a safe and enjoyable experience.
The French Quarter Festival will conduct bag checks at the riverfront access points and you should not bring firearms, drugs, pets or outside beverages with you. If you do bring these, you will be asked to leave it or surrender it. If you are caught with drugs and you are cited for possession, you should consider calling a drug crimes defense lawyer who can help defend you in a court of law.
Some helpful tips I’d like to add include drinking water to stay hydrated, wear a hat or visor to keep shade from the (most often) hot sun, bring an umbrella and wear rain boots if the weather has any chance of rain or storms, stay in well-lit areas with people you know and never follow a stranger anywhere. There will be a lot of people there so ensure that if you go with someone, you have a meetup spot in case you lose each other. Sometimes cell service doesn’t work at our festivals due to the enormous number of people and their cell phones! You can even download an app for French Quarter Fest: Android iPhone.
What to Do if You Find Yourself in Trouble at French Quarter Festival
If you are cited, arrested or charged with any criminal activity including lewd behavior, glass open containers, public intoxication or assault, then you should call Crescent City Law at (504) 264-9492 as soon as possible. As an experienced and local criminal defense attorney, we would like to represent you in your case. Our knowledge of the city, its courts, the types of crimes most often associated with festivals and our determination will ensure that your rights are not violated and your arrest does not interrupt your life. You can call us day, nights and weekends, or e-mail us here. We can meet off site as well. Have a great French Quarter Festival!
