This local Halloween festival rolls on despite last year’s fears
After years of working around LSU’s football schedule and increasing security costs, 10/31 Consortium’s Fifolet Halloween Festival will return for its 16th year with some big changes.
The annual Halloween celebration is set for Oct. 29-31 with three signature events. The main difference from years past has to do with the parade, which will move from Saturday to Friday night for the first time in the festival’s history.
The decision comes after years of scheduling difficulties surrounding LSU football and the security and police resources needed to manage both events at the same time. In past years, Fifolet couldn’t decide its parade date until the LSU football schedule was released, which required it to be placed during a bye week.
By moving the parade to a Friday night, those scheduling problems disappear. Kelley Stein, co-founder of 10/31 Consortium, says the organization plans to permanently hold the parade on the Friday before Halloween, giving organizers and participants a date to plan around.
The fest’s “Unsweet 16” theme this year will bring an ’80s and ’90s slasher-film aesthetic to all three events. Organizers are encouraging costumes inspired by horror movie characters and tropes.
The three-event lineup will kick off Thursday, Oct. 29, with the Pub Crawl, which is moving from Third Street bars to Baton Rouge’s “bridge bars,” located under the Mississippi River bridge. Open to guests 21 and older, the creepy, cocktail-filled crawl will start at Oxbow Rum Distillery and will feature costume contests, specialty drinks and themed surprises.
The festival continues Friday night with a parade that will lurk through downtown Baton Rouge on Halloween Eve. This year’s parade registration is free, making the event accessible to everyone from walking groups to dance troupes to small businesses.
This accessibility is key to the mission of 10/31 Consortium. The organization aims to promote community and creativity surrounding Halloween, making it easier for children and families to participate.
“We believe that neighborhood events like trick-or-treating promote a sense of community and togetherness and reinforce the notion that we stand together and not alone,” says Stein.
The festival will conclude with the Costume Ball on Halloween night, featuring live music from Petty Betty, a silent auction, fundraising games and a cash bar. Attendees must be 21 and over and should come dressed in their most creative costumes or formal attire.
The ball helps fund the nonprofit’s programs, including its Great Costume Giveaways, which have provided more than 6,000 Halloween costumes to children who might not otherwise have the means to get them. Families are invited to “shop” new and gently used costumes free of charge each year.
Stein recalls many impactful stories of families benefiting from the 10/31 Consortium’s programs, including a New Orleans mother who drove to Baton Rouge because, according to her, gas was cheaper than purchasing a new costume. These are just small details that fuel the organization’s mission of “strengthening communities, inspiring creativity and creating opportunities for children and families through the power of Halloween.”
“It’s consistently ranked as a favorite holiday for children,” Stein says, “but it’s sorely overlooked as a time for giving.”
Pub Crawl
Thursday, Oct. 29, 6 p.m.
Downtown Baton Rouge “bridge bars”
Halloween Parade
Friday, Oct. 30, 7 p.m.
Route runs through downtown, starting and ending at North Boulevard
Costume Ball
Saturday, Oct. 31, 8 p.m.
Lod Cook Alumni Center
This article was originally published in the October 2026 issue of 225 Magazine.
