The Bogalusa Blues and Heritage Festival, held in Bogalusa’s Cassidy Park, comes back for its eighth year. The festival is a two-day event, occurring on Friday, September 27 and Saturday, September 28. In 2015, OffBeat named it the Best Festival Outside New Orleans. 

The heritage in Bogalusa Blues and Heritage Fest is taken directly from the Bogalusan swamp. It began as a tribute to Professor Longhair, born Henry Roeland Byrd. The festival has also honored Vinton, Louisiana native Clarence “Gatemouth” Brown. 

The festival has two stages: the Blues Stage and the Heritage Stage. On Friday the gates will open at 3 p.m. and music will be playing from the Blues Stage, starting at 5:30 p.m. On Saturday, gates will open at 10 a.m., and the music will start at 11:45 a.m. Last year’s lineup included Bobby Rush and Ruthie Foster. This year’s headliners are Mia Borders and Paul Thorn, who’s been performing at the festival since 2013.

If you like the outdoors, the Bogalusa festival has also prepared camping spots along the Bogue Lusa Creek which runs around the park. You can book RV camp sites, which have water and 50- to 30-amp electrical hookups. You can also book tent sites, with space for up to 6 people. Two general admission tickets are included with an RV camp site booking, and you’ll receive a general admission ticket for each person you book to be in a tent.

You can bring your own food, ice chests etc. to the camp sites, but not onto the festival grounds. Other things you can’t bring include pets or drones, and you can’t take flash photography.

General admission tickets start at $10 for one day and go up to $25 for both days. Children 12 and under accompanied by a guardian can attend for free. The VIP pass, which includes access to the VIP gated area, restrooms, air-conditioned tent, and Friday evening dinner. Tickets can be bought here.