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 events each year. 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
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, call-backing, motion picture extravaganza! Fasten your garter belt and come up to the Carolina Theatre’s historic 1000-seat lab and see what’s on the slab! This madcap musical begins when rain-soaked Brad and Janet take refuge in the castle of Dr. Frank-N-Furter, a transvestite mad scientist from outer space who is about to unveil his greatest creation! This...
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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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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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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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Art Exhibition — Labor&Materials and The Intuitionist
21c Durham is unveiling two new exhibitions with Labor & Materials and The Intuitionist. The exhibitions feature a thematic group...
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Coming into Focus: A Snapshot of Photography at the Nasher
Recently the Nasher has added over 2,000 photographs to its collection, including works by the best-known practitioners from the nineteenth...
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Studio Ghibli Film Series
For decades, Studio Ghibli has created breathtakingly beautiful movies that have captivated and inspired audiences for generations through...
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Art Exhibition — Southern Grammar
A compelling new group exhibition curated by Raleigh-based painter Clarence Heyward featuring work by Jō Baskerville, Jeremy Biggers, and...
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Miler Lagos: The Merx Tree
This site-specific installation by Colombian artist and engineer Miler Lagos is made of cardboard boxes collected on Duke’s campus, stacked...
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Art Exhibition — Beverly McIver’s “Notes to Self: Personal Work 1994-2025”
Notes to Self features a selection of new work, as well as seminal paintings, prints and collages on view for the first time. These works...
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Art Exhibit — Sherman Fleming: Unsettled
Known for his provocative performances, Sherman Fleming (b. 1953), is an influential multimedia artist based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania....
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Art Exhibit — The Disobedient Ones
Cornelio Campos and Rodrigo Dorfman, two consolidated visual Latino artists living in North Carolina, come together for their first...
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Holder Hill Farm Pumpkin Patch
Pick your own pumpkin straight from the vine, see and feel other crops, take a hay ride around the farm, visit with farm animals, take a...
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$1.50 Oysters at Alley Twenty Six
Durham’s Alley Twenty Six is now offering $1.50 raw oyster special from 4-5 p.m. Tuesdays-Fridays. A selection of oysters are sourced from...
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Pre-Theatre Menu at Alley Twenty Six
Durham’s Alley Twenty Six offers a Pre-Theatre Menu from 4-5:30 p.m. Tuesdays-Sundays. The three-course menu includes appetizer, entree,...
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Día de los Muertos Ofrenda
Honor the dead with Día de los Muertos Ofrenda, a Day of the Dead altar piece, at Duke Chapel. Visitors are invited to contribute to this...
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