Durham  Events Calendar
    
         
    
        Inspiring FOMO since 1869
    
                 
        Every day in the Bull City, there’s a wide variety of events happening to help you connect with our vibrant community. In fact, our event calendar hosts more than 5,000 visitor-friendly, Durham-grown events per year. Event organizers, small businesses and other organizations put together events like concerts, social gatherings, fund raisers, fairs, festivals and more, all designed for connection and sharing of cultures. If you're already here or planning a trip, use our search function below to find events suited to all interests and ages, from festivals and holiday headliners to creative DIY events, trivia nights, art exhibits, makers' markets and more. 
Plan a Trip Around Durham's Biggest Annual Events 
Durham is home to many homegrown festivals and events that happen annually and are easy to plan a trip around. From beats to barbecue and everything in between, check out our seasonal events page  to find the perfect time to visit the Bull City. 
             
        Submit an Event to our Calendar 
If you're a Durham-based venue or organization and you'd like us to include your event on our calendar, follow the link below to find our submission guidelines and submit your information.
Submit an Event 
                         
		
    
    Featured Events
    
         
 
            
    
                
                        
                        
            
            
				
                    Thanksgiving: History & Legacy Tours
                
                
                                
                    
                         
                    The modern Thanksgiving holiday stems from a mid-19th century campaign by Sara Josepha Hale for the adoption of a national thanksgiving holiday. President Abraham Lincoln created the federal holiday in 1863 during the American Civil War. So how did our Thanksgiving narrative come to focus on a fantastical meal shared between colonists and American Indians? What messages did Americans hope to convey with the Thanksgiving holiday? What were some popular Thanksgiving foods of generations past...
                    
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                    2025 Chefs for Change Gala
                
                
                                
                    
                         
                    Enjoy a multi-course dinner prepared by five of North Carolina’s top chefs—Matt Kelly, Gray Brooks, Aaron Benjamin, Michael Lee and Chris McLaurin—along with a live auction led by professional auctioneer Scott Peterson of Custom Benefit Auctions. Most auction items will be exclusive, chef-focused culinary experiences. Proceeds benefit Families Moving Forward, Durham’s primary emergency shelter for families with children.
                    
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                    NC Comicon
                
                
                                
                    
                         
                    With its creator-focused vision and intimate, all-encompassing atmosphere, NC Comicon is a prime destination for fans and creators of all walks and passions to learn, celebrate, and share in a wide variety of interests and fandoms, from comics to cosplay, gaming, film, animation, design, and more. Regardless of age or experience level, all are invited and welcome at NC Comicon!
                    
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                    Civil War: Part 2 Airsoft Event
                
                
                                
                    
                         
                    Ultimate Airsoft Event! Choose your side — West Coast Syndicate or East Coast Coalition — and get ready for an unforgettable day of action, teamwork, and adrenaline
For ages 8 and up.
                    
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                    Chocolate & Bourbon Pairing
                
                
                                
                    
                         
                    This luxury class will take you through different Mystic Bourbons and the chocolate pairing that brings out the amazing flavors. Learn about, and taste, all of their spirits along with a classic chocolate pairing.
                    
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                    Durham Art Walk Holiday Market
                
                
                                
                    
                         
                    Support local artists and help keep Durham’s creative spirit shining bright this holiday season! The Durham Art Walk Holiday Market returns, transforming downtown into a festive marketplace filled with fine art, handmade gifts, live music, and holiday cheer. The Durham Art Walk Holiday Market is a festive fine arts and crafts event that kicks off the holiday season in downtown Durham! The Holiday Market invites art lovers to experience a weekend featuring local artists, live...
                    
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                    Cigar & Bourbon Pairing
                
                
                                
                    
                         
                    Join a professionally led course on the art of pairing cigars and bourbon. This class is for new cigar smokers and seasoned cigar smokers alike. Get ready to indulge in a unique pairing experience that will tantalize your taste buds and elevate your senses. This course will demonstrate hand-rolling techniques along with proper cutting, lighting and smoking. Then move to the porch to indulge in a guided pairing journey including a trio of bourbons to...
                    
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                    Handel’s Messiah
                
                
                                
                    
                         
                    Since 1933, Handel’s Messiah has been the fulcrum of the Chapel’s concert life and a cherished Duke holiday tradition. Handel’s masterwork traces the history of humanity’s divine redemption through Christ’s birth, death, and resurrection, in music that is both treasured and timeless. This year Messiah will be performed with period instruments and Baroque-era tuning, as Handel himself would have heard it. Each performance will last approximately two hours and fifteen minutes with intermission. Seat cushions...
                    
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                    Durham Holiday Parade
                
                
                                
                    
                         
                    Cheer on dynamic floats, hometown bands, drill teams, schools, and community groups as they make their way down Main Street at the Durham Holiday Parade. The procession will conclude with a guest appearance from Santa. 
Free EventRain or Shine
                    
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            Pure Soul's Open Mic Night Frights 
        
                
        
            Pure Soul, a black owned vegan restaurant located in good old Durham, is all about kindness, belonging, and feeding people good comfort...
            
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            Fall-o-ween 
        
                
        
            Enjoy a family-friendly fall festival full of food, games, candy, and fun for all ages! There will be activities for kids and plenty of...
            
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            Halloween Party at Durham Beer Garden 
        
                
        
            🎃 Halloween Party at Durham Beer Garden! 👻
Get ready for a frightfully fun night! They’re throwing the ultimate Halloween...
            
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            Friday Night Live Music on the Lawn at Bull McCabe's 
        
                
        
            Enjoy family friendly live music every Friday night from 6-9pm! There's never a cover! Each week we feature different local artists from...
            
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            The Duke Street Dogs 
        
                
        
            The Duke Street Dogs are a four-piece acoustic band out of Durham, NC. They play songs written by Dog Michael Borstelmann, as well as...
            
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            Halloween Party on the Patio 
        
                
        
            Featuring Dr. Captain and the Fleet.
5-8pm - Incendiary Brewing Tap Takeover7:30-8pm - COSTUME CONTESTPrizes awarded in these categories:-...
            
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            Pregame Fridays! 
        
                
        
            Every Friday at Club Era they pick a spotlight artist playlist. All you need to do is show up on the dance floor with your moves and vibes!
            
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            Tobacco Road Presents: Soul Cypher 
        
                
        
            Soul Cypher is the brilliant melodic creation of Durham's own, DJ Twenty3. A masterful mix of R&B, Hip hop, and Soul ad-libs you can feel...
            
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            The Get Down: Halloween Edition 
        
                
        
            Up on the rooftop, down with the boogie, home before witching hour. Gold Dust is bringing it back with an All Hallows Eve costume party –...
            
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            Halloween Bash: The Fabulous Nitelife Boogie 
        
                
        
            Hold on to your ghouls and goblins. The Fabulous Nitelife Boogie is BACK at the Blue Note Grill for their always-packed, legendary...
            
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            Scrap Paper Shakespeare presents “Titus Andronicus” 
        
                
        
            Shakespeare’s bloody tale of revenge presented for your spooky appetites!
North Carolina-based theater troupe Scrap Paper Shakespeare...
            
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            The 8th Annual Rocky Horror Picture Show Halloween Ball 
        
                
        
            A Retro annual tradition! More than just a movie screening, Retro presents a full-theatrical, FX-driven, light show-blazing, fog-blowing,...
            
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