Travel the World This Month

Oktoberfest and International Night at the Port are festivals not to be missed.

New Orleanians and tourists alike are being treated to a trip around the world this month.

The festival line-up for October highlights a variety of cultures; cultures that have become such an integral part of the New Orleans makeup.

Since 1928, the New Orleans German community have been celebrating Oktoberfest – a festival that originated from a wedding celebration with the people of Munich for Prince Ludwig I to his Princess Therese in German Bavaria in 1810. From its remote beginnings, it has become a worldwide excuse to overindulge on German food and beer.

Unsurprisingly, New Orleans embraced the festivities when the New Orleans Deutsches Haus opened their Oktoberfest to the public during the 1960s. Locals and tourists alike have been bopping away to Oompah music, swigging their favorite beer, yodeling and eating sauerkraut ever since. Oktoberfest takes place every Friday and Saturday from October 10 to 25.

And then there’s International Night at the Port of New Orleans, where over 15 countries will be represented through music, cuisine, arts and crafts. A newcomer to the festival scene, International Night made their debut last year, and will be under the lights of the Crescent City Connection again this Saturday, October 18.

While diversity fills the festival line-up; step outside the Greater New Orleans area and the calendar is packed with festivals that celebrate Southern Louisiana’s way of life – from seafood festivals, to the Angola Prison Rodeo to creole and gumbo festivals.

As the weather attempts to cool down, the festival scene more than makes up for the quieter summer months; leaving locals and tourists alike spoilt for choice.