Craft Fairs & Farmers Markets in New Orleans, Louisiana

Arts Council juried arts & crafts market; artist and food-vendor applications.

Bayou Boogaloo is a music and arts festival celebrating its 20th anniversary held in New Orleans over three days each May. Boating and rafting on Bayou St. John during the neighborhood festival makes Bayou Boogaloo unique. A free, family-friendly outdoor market runs Saturday and Sunday featuring local artists and food vendors. Food vendors offer Creole, Cajun, and Southern dishes including crawfish po'boys, gumbo, jambalaya, and alligator sausage. Art market vendors span handmade crafts—soaps, ceramics, jewelry, apparel, and art goods. The festival draws over 35,000 attendees annually.

Held in November at New Orleans City Park Festival Grounds, Beignet Fest is a one-day food festival celebrating New Orleans' signature pastry in creative forms—traditional powdered sugar, sweet variations (Bananas Foster, Praline), and savory takes (Crabmeat, Fried Chicken, Cheese & Seafood-Stuffed). Food vendors compete for Best Beignet awards across categories. The Artist Market features local artisans and handcrafted goods. Live music lineup includes brass bands, funk, jazz, and rock. Proceeds benefit local autism programs.

Congo Square Rhythms Festival takes place each March at Armstrong Park in New Orleans and welcomes all arts and crafts mediums — unique, original handmade work plus imports. The event draws on the cultural heritage of Congo Square and pairs a juried craft marketplace with live music programming. Strong foot traffic from a heritage-conscious New Orleans audience.

Crescent City Farmers Market operates three weekly neighborhood markets in New Orleans — Sunday mornings in City Park, Tuesday mornings Uptown, and Thursday afternoons in Mid-City. Expect local produce, prepared food, and live music. Market Umbrella, the operator, runs programs like Market Match (incentive dollars for SNAP shoppers) and Market Mommas Club alongside the markets themselves.

Crescent City Farmers Market operates three year-round locations in New Orleans; the Mid-City Thursday market sits on the Lafitte Greenway near Bayou St. John. Expect 70+ local farmers, fishers, and food producers selling produce, prepared foods, and craft goods — the market draws 150,000+ shoppers annually. Market Match doubles SNAP dollars on fresh produce; FMNP vouchers accepted seasonally. Year-round operation, established crowd, strong foot traffic from the neighborhood.

Crescent City Farmers Market's Uptown location runs year-round on Tuesdays and draws 70+ local farmers, fishers, and food producers selling produce, prepared foods, seafood, dairy, baked goods, and crafts. Market Umbrella, which has operated the market since 1995, implements fresh food incentive programs including Market Match (SNAP dollar matching) and accepts FMNP vouchers for seniors and WIC participants. Strong foot traffic from 150,000+ annual shoppers across the system.

In its 8th annual year, Deutsches Haus ChristKindlmarkt is a German-style outdoor Christmas market in New Orleans featuring over 60 vendors selling locally made and imported goods — jewelry, pottery, soaps, handmade foods, and seasonal gifts. Expect traditional Christmas music, evening shopping under lights, visits from St. Nicholas and the Christkind, and food including sausages, pretzels, and glühwein. Kurrende Brass returns — an open invitation for brass musicians to join the Haus Band playing holiday carols.

Located in the heart of the New Orleans French Quarter, French Market is a historic open-air marketplace hosting a mix of permanent and rotating vendors selling ceramics, fiber art, jewelry, glass and metal sculpture, leather goods, woodcrafts, natural body products, vintage linens, African art, Latin American crafts, plants, home accessories, apparel, and toys. Open daily year-round.

Held each April in New Orleans, French Quarter Festival is a free riverfront festival with a curated local food-vendor marketplace. Preference goes to established restaurants located in the French Quarter or Greater New Orleans area—Louisiana vendors only. The Food and Beverage Committee selects vendors based on cuisine quality, menu execution, past compliance with FQFI events, and adherence to state health, insurance, and fire-safety requirements. New applicants must present current occupational and health permits and cannot vend alcohol. Returning vendors apply in early December for renewal consideration.

Frenchmen Art Market is New Orleans' original weekly night-time art market on Frenchmen Street, operating year-round Thursday through Saturday evenings and Sunday nights. Expect authentic art, jewelry, and creative crafts from local and regional artisans — lively music, outdoor seating, and a family-friendly cultural vibe layered into the nightlife atmosphere. Vendors chat directly with shoppers browsing for gifts and one-of-a-kind pieces.

Held on the first Saturday of the month from October through February in New Orleans' Uptown neighborhood, Freret Market brings together 70 vendors across three categories: food, art, and flea. The market anchors Freret Street's ongoing renaissance with local restaurants, live music, a kids area, and pet adoptions. A seasonal celebration closes out the market year in late March.

Held in New Orleans' Uptown neighborhood, Freret Street Festival takes over six blocks with 200+ local artists and chefs, 46 brick-and-mortar businesses, three stages, and 20 bands. A single-day fall festival built around the artists — straightforward vending, strong foot traffic, and established community support.

New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival features three distinct juried crafts marketplaces — Congo Square African Marketplace, Contemporary Crafts, and Louisiana Marketplace — alongside world-class music programming. Congo Square showcases local, national, and international artisans working across jewelry, clothing, and fine art, with live demonstrations of traditional and contemporary crafting techniques. Contemporary Crafts draws acclaimed artists from across the globe, with different vendor lineups each weekend. Louisiana Marketplace highlights handmade work rooted in New Orleans and Louisiana culture — furniture, photography, jewelry, and more — by the state's finest traditional and contemporary makers. The festival has roots reaching back to the early '70s, when it began with a handful of artisans including self-taught painter Sister Gertrude Morgan and jewelry designer Mignon Faget.

Held in New Orleans's Carrollton neighborhood each November, Oak Street Po-Boy Festival combines food vendors with an art-vendor marketplace. The festival draws shoppers specifically interested in both local food and crafts in a single event.

Hosted at the New Orleans Jazz Museum in early August, Satchmo SummerFest is a free two-day celebration dedicated to Louis Armstrong—one of the few festivals in the world honoring the jazz icon and New Orleans native. The lineup includes live music, Louisiana restaurant vendors, and a lecture series featuring renowned experts on Armstrong's history and cultural legacy. Running since 2001, the festival coincides with Armstrong's birthday.