Pensacola Crawfish Festival: dates, tickets, music and parking

Last checked Oct. 11, 2026. Facts come from Fiesta Pensacola, the nonprofit that produces the festival. This page is updated for each year’s festival at the same address.

The Pensacola Crawfish Festival is a three-day spring festival of boiled crawfish, Cajun food and zydeco in Seville Square and Fountain Park in downtown Pensacola. The most recent one ran Friday through Sunday, April 24-26, 2026. The 2027 dates have not been announced; Fiesta Pensacola’s site still showed the 2026 dates when we checked on Oct. 11. We will update this page when they are set.

Know before you go (2026 festival)

• When: Friday, April 24, 11 a.m. to 11 p.m.; Saturday, April 25, 10 a.m. to 11 p.m.; Sunday, April 26, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. (2027 dates not yet announced)
• Where: Seville Square and Fountain Park, downtown Pensacola
• Cost: adults $5 a day; ages 6 to 12, $2 a day; 5 and under free
• Gates: Government Street (across from Hub Stacey’s) and Zaragoza Street (across from Pensacola Bay Brewery)
• Pets: not allowed
• Fiesta Pensacola: 850-433-6512, fiestapensacola.org

Tickets

Admission is paid at the gates, per day, according to Fiesta Pensacola’s festival page. The 2026 prices:

The two admission gates are on Government Street, across from Hub Stacey’s, and on Zaragoza Street, across from Pensacola Bay Brewery.

Food

The festival serves “thousands of pounds” of boiled crawfish from Louisiana, cooked by Pensacola’s Cordova Crawfish Company, the organizers say. Other Cajun dishes include boudin, jambalaya, etouffee, gumbo and fresh and fried seafood. For people who skip the crawfish there are chicken baskets, bloomin’ onions, hot dogs and po’boys, and for dessert fried Oreos, ice cream and funnel cakes. Drinks include Budweiser and Coca-Cola products.

The annual crawfish eating contest is run from the Cat Country tent in Fountain Park.

Music

The Main Music Stage is in Fountain Park. The 2026 lineup had Sunday headliners Dwayne Dopsie and the Zydeco Hellraisers and Chubby Carrier and the Bayou Swamp Band. Friday’s bill ran from noon to 10:30 p.m. with Tim Roberts, the 9th Avenue Brass Band, Dustin Ray, Adam Leger and Swampland Revival. Fiesta posts each year’s lineup on its festival page in the months before.

Parking and getting there

Parking is in downtown lots owned by private businesses, which will likely charge a fee, the organizers say; Fiesta Pensacola does not set or control those fees. For city spaces and lot maps, see parkpensacola.com.

Handicap parking is in the Bartram Park lot all three days, with a permit.

Bayfront Parkway stays open during the festival, the organizers say, so take care crossing it.

What to know

• No pets. City of Pensacola Code, Section 4-2-33B, bars pets from festival grounds. Service animals are welcome.
• Sunday closes early, at 5 p.m., while Friday and Saturday run to 11 p.m.
• Vendors apply through Fiesta Pensacola; food vendors email PCola Events at pcolaevents@gmail.com. Fiesta warns it never contacts vendors through Facebook or Instagram Messenger, and that such messages are scams.

Who runs it

Fiesta Pensacola, formed to celebrate the city’s founding by Tristan de Luna in 1559, produces more than 20 events a year, according to its about page. The crawfish festival is its spring event; its fall counterpart is the Pensacola Seafood Festival in the same park each September.

More: things to do in Pensacola, Easter in Pensacola and spring break.

Frequently asked questions

When is the Pensacola Crawfish Festival in 2027?

Fiesta Pensacola has not announced the 2027 dates. The 2026 festival ran Friday through Sunday, April 24-26, in Seville Square and Fountain Park.

How much does the Pensacola Crawfish Festival cost?

In 2026 admission was $5 a day for adults and $2 a day for children 6 to 12. Children 5 and under got in free.

Where are the Pensacola Crawfish Festival gates?

On Government Street across from Hub Stacey’s, and on Zaragoza Street across from Pensacola Bay Brewery, according to Fiesta Pensacola.

Can I bring my dog to the Pensacola Crawfish Festival?

No. Pets are not allowed on festival grounds under City of Pensacola code. Service animals are welcome.