In the spring of 1718, French explorer Jean-Baptiste Le Moyne, Sieur de Bienville arrived at a distinctive crescent-shaped bend of the Mississippi River. The high ridge along the river banks offered a good lookout vantage, so he established a town called La Nouvelle Orleans. Thus modern-day New Orleans was founded. Three hundred years later, the vibrant city exudes a unique culture and resilient spirit honed by history, diversity, and just maybe a little bit of magic. Throughout 2018, the New Orleans Tricentennial will celebrate with special events and projects that will take this authentic treasure into its next century.

New Orleans Tricentennial Events

New Orleans is enthusiastic about festivals – Mardi Gras being the Grand Dame. Even before adding Tricentennial special events, the New Orleans Tourism Marketing Corporation (NOTMC) tallied 138 events already on the books for 2018. None the less, New Orleans is always up for a party so they’ll be adding Tricentennial celebrations to existing events and hosting additional Tricentennial specific happenings.

Women of New Orleans: Builders and Rebuilders (10/16/2017 – 7/31/2018) – A series of close to 40 exhibits, performances, lectures, blogs and a new app will shine a spotlight on the prominent role women played in creating the cultural, physical and social infrastructure of New Orleans.

Salazar: Portraits of Influence in Spanish New Orleans, 1782-1802 (3/8/2018 – 9/2/2018) – The Ogden Museum of Southern Art exhibits about 30 of the most pertinent works of Josef Francisco Xavier de Salazar y Mendoza for a view of Spanish colonial New Orleans.

French Quarter Festival presented by Chevron (4/12/2018 – 4/15/2018) – 23 stages featuring every Louisiana musical genre from traditional and contemporary jazz to R&B, New Orleans funk, brass bands, folk, gospel, Latin, Zydeco, classical, cabaret, and international.

Tricentennial NOLA Navy Week (4/19/2018 – 4/25/2018) – Navy ships from the U.S. and around the globe will be in New Orleans for a weeklong festival, including free ship tours and a cook-off between the ships.

Tall Ships^® New Orleans 2018 (4/19/2018 – 4/22/2018) – A selection of antique ships will be on display at Woldenberg Park for the weekend.

Voices of the Congo Square (4/20/2018) – This vibrant stage production at the Orpheum Theater brings to life the pulsating live music and movement of the Mardi Gras Indians.

New Orleans Tricentennial Dog Parade (4/22/2018) – Celebrate New Orleans’ 300th birthday with a four-legged parade at NOLA City Bark.

New Orleans Jazz Fest (4/28/2018 – 5/06/2018) – With a lineup of names like Aretha Franklin, Sting, Lionel Richie, Trombone Shorty & Orleans Avenue, and dozens more, you won’t be disappointed in this annual festival. This year’s Jazz Festival will close with a Tricentennial Fireworks show.

Fete des Fromages (11/17/2018) – The festival will bring together cheese vendors from all around France and America, celebrating French culture with cheeses, wines, and music.

New Year’s Celebration (12/31/2018) – The year’s fun will end on New Year’s Eve, when “Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve” will broadcast from the Crescent City, and a fleur de lis will drop from the top of Jax Brewery.

Tricentennial Projects Improving New Orleans for Residents and Visitors

Tricentennial Volunteer Challenge – This project will accumulate 300,000 hours of volunteer service on 300 projects throughout 2018 to provide an estimated community impact of $7.2 million. Individuals and groups can select from the list of projects and register online. http://2018nola.com/300000-for-300/

New Airport – Due to the growth of business and vacation travel to New Orleans over the last decade, the city has outgrown its airport. A new North Terminal with 35 gates and a garage to accommodate more than 2,000 cars is under construction and scheduled to open in February 2019.

Streetcar Expansion – The iconic streetcars of New Orleans have provided transportation to residents and visitors for over 100 years. For the New Orleans Centennial, the Rampart-St. Claude streetcar line was expanded and a new line on Loyola Avenue gives visitors more access to the city.

Bourbon Street Makeover – Sitting at the heart of the French Quarter, the infamous 13-block long street is known the world over as a party place, but it’s also steeped in history and legend dating back to the city founding. For the first time in 90 years, all of the utility infrastructures have been repaired or replaced and Bourbon Street is sporting a fresh new concrete surface.

The New Orleans Tricentennial is definitely the year to visit or revisit this unique, free-spirited city and help celebrate the diversity and history that makes it so special.