Santa Fe October 2026 Events: A Week-by-Week Guide

At a glance

Source: each organizer's own page, checked October 12, 2026

Every week in October

• Saturdays, 8 AM to 1 PM. Santa Fe Farmers' Market. Santa Fe Farmers' Market Pavilion, 1607 Paseo de Peralta. Produce, chile, bread, honey, plants and a cafe, open every Saturday year round.
  MapDirections from the innOfficial page
• Sundays Oct 4, 11, 18 and 25, 10 AM to 3 PM. Railyard Artisan Market. Santa Fe Farmers' Market Pavilion, 1607 Paseo de Peralta. Local makers with art, jewelry, crafts and home goods.
  MapDirections from the innOfficial page

Week 1: Fri Oct 2 to Sun Oct 4

Harvest weekend in Santa Fe, with the first weekend of the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta (see the day trip section below).

• Fri Oct 2, 7:30 PM. Patton Oswalt (comedy). Lensic Performing Arts Center, 211 W San Francisco St. Tickets through the Lensic box office.
  MapDirections from the innOfficial page
• Fri Oct 2, 6:30 to 8:30 PM. Abiquiu Studio Tour opening reception. Abiquiu and the Chama River Valley. A free reception before the self-guided tour weekend of Oct 10 to 12.
  MapDirections from the innOfficial page
• Sat Oct 3, 11:00 AM. The Met: Live in HD, Cosi fan tutte. Lensic Performing Arts Center, 211 W San Francisco St. The opening broadcast of the Met Live in HD season.
  MapDirections from the innOfficial page
• Sat Oct 3 and Sun Oct 4, 10 AM to 4 PM. 54th Santa Fe Harvest Festival. El Rancho de las Golondrinas, 334 Los Pinos Rd. Chile ristra tying, grape stomping demos, a pumpkin patch, corn husk dolls, hayrides from 12 to 3, music, artisans, food trucks, and regional beer and wine. The gate takes card or mobile payment only, no cash. Festival admission can differ from regular admission, so check the official page.
  MapDirections from the innOfficial page
• Sat Oct 3 and Sun Oct 4, 9:30 AM to 5:30 PM. Santa Fe Society of Artists outdoor juried show. Downtown Santa Fe near the Georgia O'Keeffe Museum. Look for the white tents between Johnson Street and Sandoval Street. It returns the next weekend too, Oct 10 and 11, the final two weekends of the downtown season.
  MapDirections from the innOfficial page
• Sat Oct 3 and Sun Oct 4, 10 AM to 3 PM. Ski Santa Fe Fall Scenic Chair Rides. Ski Santa Fe base lodge, Hyde Park Road (NM 475). Aspen views up to 11,250 feet, weather dependent, last chair down at 3:30 PM, with live music on the La Casa Lodge deck on weekends. Weekends only through Sun Oct 11, and tickets are sold in person. Ski Santa Fe is 16 miles from the Plaza. See our Ski Guide 2026-2027.
  MapDirections from the innOfficial page
• Sun Oct 4, 3:00 PM. Santa Fe Pro Musica: Brooklyn Rider. Lensic Performing Arts Center, 211 W San Francisco St. Philip Glass string quartets.
  MapDirections from the innOfficial page
• Through Sun Oct 4, daily 10 AM to 5 PM. Taos Fall Arts Festival (day trip). Taos Plaza and downtown Taos. The festival runs through Oct 4 across the Historic Courthouse and venues on or near Taos Plaza.
  MapDirections from the innOfficial page

Week 2: Mon Oct 5 to Sun Oct 11

The Balloon Fiesta continues all week, and the Plaza hosts Indigenous Peoples' Day dances on the weekend.

• Tue Oct 6, doors 8:00 PM. Bella White, presented by Lensic 360 (all ages). Meow Wolf House of Eternal Return, 1352 Rufina Cir. Standing room, with Georgia Harmer as guest act. Buy tickets only through the Meow Wolf ticket site.
  MapDirections from the innOfficial page
• Wed Oct 7, 7:00 PM. Route 66: The Main Street of America. Lensic Performing Arts Center, 211 W San Francisco St. A documentary with a filmmaker Q&A, tied to the Route 66 centennial. Kings Rest sits on the old Route 66 stretch of Cerrillos Road.
  MapDirections from the innOfficial page
• Thu Oct 8, 7:30 PM. Jeremy Dutcher. Lensic Performing Arts Center, 211 W San Francisco St. A Lensic concert.
  MapDirections from the innOfficial page
• Fri Oct 9, 7:30 PM. Snarky Puppy. Lensic Performing Arts Center, 211 W San Francisco St. A Lensic concert.
  MapDirections from the innOfficial page
• Sat Oct 10 and Sun Oct 11. Santa Fe Indigenous Peoples' Day Weekend dances. Santa Fe Plaza. Dances on the Plaza are listed Oct 10 at 10 AM, 2 PM and 3 PM, and Oct 11 at 11 AM and 1, 2 and 3 PM, with more time slots still to be announced. Please be respectful. The organizer links a powwow etiquette video. The weekend continues Monday, Oct 12.
  MapDirections from the innOfficial page
• Sat Oct 10 to Mon Oct 12. 32nd Abiquiu Studio Tour. Abiquiu and the Chama River Valley. A self-guided driving tour of artists' studios in Abiquiu and the Chama River Valley, with limited stops on Monday. Use the Arts Council's official map.
  MapDirections from the innOfficial page
• Sat Oct 10 and Sun Oct 11. Last weekend for the downtown outdoor art show and fall chair rides. Downtown Santa Fe near the Georgia O'Keeffe Museum. The Santa Fe Society of Artists show runs 9:30 AM to 5:30 PM. Fall chair rides at Ski Santa Fe run 10 AM to 3 PM through Sun Oct 11.
  MapDirections from the innOfficial page

Week 3: Mon Oct 12 to Sun Oct 18

Films, awards, galleries and a powwow on the Plaza.

• Mon Oct 12. Honoring Native Nations Powwow. Santa Fe Plaza. Native art booths open at 9 AM, Grand Entry and Parade of Nations at 12 PM, and the day closes at 4:30 PM, with food trucks. Please be respectful.
  MapDirections from the innOfficial page
• Wed Oct 14, 7:30 PM. Akram Khan Company: Thikra, Night of Remembering. Lensic Performing Arts Center, 211 W San Francisco St. A dance performance.
  MapDirections from the innOfficial page
• Wed Oct 14 to Mon Oct 19. 18th Santa Fe International Film Festival. Lensic Performing Arts Center, 211 W San Francisco St. Screenings are at the Lensic, Sky Cinemas Railyard and Midtown, Jean Cocteau Cinema and CCA. The full screening schedule is now posted on the festival page. The opening night film is In Memoriam, with writer and director Rob Burnett and star Marc Maron in attendance.
  MapDirections from the innOfficial page
• Fri Oct 16, 6:30 PM. Festival Visionary Award to Zahn McClarnon. Lensic Performing Arts Center, 211 W San Francisco St. Part of the film festival.
  MapDirections from the innOfficial page
• Sat Oct 17, 11 AM to 3 PM. Canyon Road Paint & Sculpt Out. Canyon Road Arts District. Artists work in public along Canyon Road. The official page has the parking map and shuttle information.
  MapDirections from the innOfficial page
• Sat Oct 17, 11:00 AM. The Met: Live in HD, Macbeth. Lensic Performing Arts Center, 211 W San Francisco St. A live broadcast on the Lensic screen.
  MapDirections from the innOfficial page
• Sat Oct 17, 6:00 PM. Festival Lifetime Achievement Award to Pam Grier. Lensic Performing Arts Center, 211 W San Francisco St. A Q&A follows. Part of the film festival.
  MapDirections from the innOfficial page
• Opens Sat Oct 17. New Mexico Museum of Art: new exhibitions. New Mexico Museum of Art, 107 W Palace Ave. The Santa Fe New Mexican's Pasatiempo reports a Zara Kriegstein solo exhibition and a photography exhibition on Japanese American incarceration sites. Check the museum for hours.
  MapDirections from the innOfficial page
• Opens Sun Oct 18. Museum of International Folk Art: La Nueva Mexico, Art & Life in the Interior Lands. Museum of International Folk Art, 706 Camino Lejo (Museum Hill). Pasatiempo describes about 150 historical objects. The museum lists a free public opening celebration on Oct 18 from 1 to 4 PM, with music, refreshments and hands-on art making. Check the museum for hours.
  MapDirections from the innOfficial page
• Sun Oct 18, 4:00 PM. The Santa Fe Symphony: Schubert & The Bells. Lensic Performing Arts Center, 211 W San Francisco St. A Halloween-themed program with Schubert's Unfinished Symphony, Saint-Saens' Danse macabre and Rachmaninoff's The Bells, about 1 hour 40 minutes with intermission.
  MapDirections from the innOfficial page
• Sun Oct 18, 7:30 PM. Tyler Ballgame, a Lensic 360 concert. Tumbleroot. The Lensic lists this show at Tumbleroot.
  MapDirections from the innOfficial page

Week 4: Mon Oct 19 to Sun Oct 25

Photography, lantern-lit stories and the first Dia de los Muertos celebration of the month.

• Thu Oct 22, 7:30 PM. Silkroad Up Close: Kinan Azmeh, Maeve Gilchrist and Kaoru Watanabe. Lensic Performing Arts Center, 211 W San Francisco St. A Lensic concert.
  MapDirections from the innOfficial page
• Fri Oct 23, 5 to 7 PM. CENTER Santa Fe new exhibition opening. CENTER Santa Fe, 1570 Pacheco St Unit B1. The gallery reopens with a new exhibition. Regular hours afterward are Tuesday to Friday, 12 to 5 PM.
  MapDirections from the innOfficial page
• Fri Oct 23 and Sat Oct 24, 5 to 9 PM. Spirits of New Mexico. El Rancho de las Golondrinas, 334 Los Pinos Rd. Lantern-lit Halloween storytelling, family-friendly but spooky. Tickets are sold only online, none at the gate, and no cash is taken. Guests 21 and older need ID for alcohol.
  MapDirections from the innOfficial page
• Sat Oct 24, 6:30 to 8:30 PM. Review Santa Fe Portfolio Walk (free). Santa Fe Farmers' Market Pavilion, 1607 Paseo de Peralta. A free public photography showcase.
  MapDirections from the innOfficial page
• Sat Oct 24, 7:30 PM. Thee Sinseers. Lensic Performing Arts Center, 211 W San Francisco St. A Lensic concert.
  MapDirections from the innOfficial page
• Sat Oct 24 and Sun Oct 25. 43rd Taos Mountain Balloon Rally (day trip). Behind the Taos County Courthouse, Albright St, Taos. Morning mass ascensions both days, live music Saturday evening, vendors, and a trick or treat balloon glow Saturday after dark. The detailed schedule had not been posted yet.
  MapDirections from the innOfficial page
• Sun Oct 25, 11 AM to 4 PM. Dia de los Muertos Annual Community Celebration (free). Museum of International Folk Art, 706 Camino Lejo (Museum Hill). Hands-on art, sugar skull decorating, face painting, Los Ninos de Santa Fe dances and pan de muerto on Museum Hill.
  MapDirections from the innOfficial page
• Sun Oct 25, 3:00 PM. Santa Fe Pro Musica: Attacca Quartet with Caroline Shaw. St. Francis Auditorium, New Mexico Museum of Art. Chamber music in St. Francis Auditorium.
  MapDirections from the innOfficial page
• Sun Oct 25, 7:00 PM. National Theatre Live: The Misanthrope. Lensic Performing Arts Center, 211 W San Francisco St. A broadcast of the stage production.
  MapDirections from the innOfficial page

Week 5: Mon Oct 26 to Sat Oct 31

A Halloween and Dia de los Muertos weekend worth planning around.

• Mon Oct 26, 7:30 PM. Julian Lage Quartet. Lensic Performing Arts Center, 211 W San Francisco St. A Lensic concert.
  MapDirections from the innOfficial page
• Tue Oct 27, 7:00 PM. Next Generation Native Film Showcase (free tickets). Lensic Performing Arts Center, 211 W San Francisco St. A free ticketed event.
  MapDirections from the innOfficial page
• Fri Oct 30, 4 to 6 PM. Halloween Boo Bash for kids and families (free). Lensic Performing Arts Center, 211 W San Francisco St. Trick or treating, pumpkin decorating, crafts, games and face painting. Registration is encouraged.
  MapDirections from the innOfficial page
• Fri Oct 30, 8 PM to 1 AM. Ghost Light Groove, a Lensic Halloween dance party (21+). Lensic Performing Arts Center, 211 W San Francisco St. DJs, a costume contest and a full bar.
  MapDirections from the innOfficial page
• Fri Oct 30 and Sat Oct 31. Dia de los Muertos on the Santa Fe Plaza (free). Santa Fe Plaza. Friday runs 4 to 10 PM. Saturday continues with mariachi, community ofrendas, food trucks, face painting, a candlelight parade at 8:15 PM and a dance party from 8:30 to 10 PM. Schedule subject to change, so check the official page for the day's start time.
  MapDirections from the innOfficial page
• Sat Oct 31, doors 8 PM. The Cosmic Howl Ultimate House Party (21+). Meow Wolf House of Eternal Return, 1352 Rufina Cir. Halloween after dark with multiple DJ stages, performers, a costume contest and a themed cocktail.
  MapDirections from the innOfficial page

Day trip: Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta, Oct 3 to 11

The 54th Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta runs Saturday, Oct 3 through Sunday, Oct 11 at Balloon Fiesta Park, 4401 Alameda Blvd NE in Albuquerque. Albuquerque is roughly an hour's drive from Santa Fe, and event mornings take longer, so check the live directions before you leave.

• Morning sessions run every day. Gates open at 4:30 AM, Dawn Patrol is about 6:00 AM, and balloons launch about 7:00 AM.
• Mass Ascension mornings: Sat Oct 3, Sun Oct 4, Wed Oct 7 (Flight of the Nations), Sat Oct 10 and Sun Oct 11 (the Farewell).
• Special Shape Rodeo: Thu Oct 8 and Fri Oct 9 mornings. Kids' Day: Fri Oct 9.
• Evening sessions open at 3:00 PM: Sat Oct 3 Twilight Twinkle Glow, Sun Oct 4 Balloon Glow, Thu Oct 8 and Fri Oct 9 Special Shape Glowdeo, and Sat Oct 10 Night Magic Glow with Music Fiesta (a separate ticket). There are no evening sessions Monday to Wednesday or on the final Sunday.
• General admission starts at $20 plus a fee per session, children 12 and under are free, and one ticket covers one session. Parking is $20 cash. Mornings start around 40 degrees and warm to about 70 by noon, so bring layers.

Fall color near Santa Fe

The aspens along Hyde Park Road (NM 475) between Hyde Memorial State Park and Ski Santa Fe turn gold in the fall, according to New Mexico Tourism, and color can last only about a week in any one spot, so it is hard to time. Check recent photos or reports the week you travel. The Forest Service lists the Aspen Vista Picnic Site with a vault toilet and no drinking water. Hyde Memorial State Park lists no Wi-Fi or cellular service, so tell someone your plan. From our court, Ski Santa Fe is about 40 to 42 minutes by car, per Google Maps, checked October 12, 2026. See the Ski Guide 2026-2027 for winter driving notes.

Where to stay for a Santa Fe October

Kings Rest Court Inn is a simple family motor court on Cerrillos Road, family owned and operated since 1981. Every room has covered parking at the door with no parking fee and no resort fee, plus a fridge, microwave and free Wi-Fi. We are on the old Route 66 stretch into Santa Fe, and the Plaza is about 7 to 11 minutes away by car, per Google Maps, checked October 12, 2026. The Railyard, with its markets and the Farmers' Market Pavilion, is about 5 minutes away.

Plan your Santa Fe October stay

Ready to plan your October? Book direct for our best available rate, free covered parking at your door and no resort fee. The Plaza is about 7 to 11 minutes away by car, so full days out end with an easy ride home.