INDIANAPOLIS — The 2026 Feast of Lanterns takes place on Saturday, August 22, from 4- 11 p.m. at Spades Park (1800 Nowland Avenue). Admission is free for this family-friendly event, which features glowing paper lanterns, live music, local makers, and food trucks. The Near Eastside tradition transforms the park into a magical evening oasis, with many community booths, vendors, a beer and wine garden, kid’s zone, food trucks, and over 60 local artisans.
There will be performances by Ethereal, Busman’s Holiday, Brandon Meeks, Rock E Bassoon, and Sweet Poison Victim. Don’t miss the IPS All-School Marching Band! Attendees are encouraged to bring their own lawn chairs or blankets to enjoy the live performances.
Free parking is available around the corner at Factory Arts District’s large parking lot, or at Teacher’s Treasures on 10th St. Due to a lack of street parking in the area, guests are encouraged to use ride-share, using designated drop-off and pick-up zones. There will be free bicycle parking at a “Pedal and Park” station just across the north pedestrian bridge on Pogue’s Run Trail. Please be courtesy and do not park in front of homes on side streets.
The Feast of Lanterns is a historic festival based on the Near Eastside of Indianapolis. In the late 1800s there were of small gatherings and decorated front porches in nearby neighborhoods like Woodruff Place. By 1909 these neighborhood events had morphed in to a single, larger festival that took place in Spades Park. Neighbors came out to hang paper lanterns — lit first by candles and later by electric lights. The park, historic bandstand, and numerous bridges were illuminated by the colorful lantern lights. Nearby homes would participate by decorating their porches. As time passed, the event continued to be celebrated. But by the 1940s the event was held only sporadically and eventually not at all.
In the early 2000s neighbors from Windsor Park and Springdale were looking to begin an outdoor music festival and re-discovered the historic Feast of Lanterns festival. The theme of colorful lanterns lit throughout the park was incorporated with local music, craft vendors, and neighborhood booths. This year’s Feast of Lanterns, hosted by Lanterns Foundation, brings a refocus on the origins of the event, local neighbors and neighborhoods working together to not only put on a festival but also to build community.
