If you could plan only one art weekend in La Quinta this fall, which would it be? The four-day, juried show at the Civic Center in mid-November, or the free Saturday on Main Street a little over two weeks later? For people who live here year-round, the question changes once you look at the full calendar. One of them happens once this fall. The other comes back again and again through early April.
La Quinta Art Celebration ENCORE runs November 12 through 15 at La Quinta Civic Center, 78495 Calle Tampico. Art on Main Street opens its season in Old Town on Saturday, November 28. For the rest of the season, the free show sets the weekly rhythm and the ticketed one is the single big event.
The Weekend That Costs $25
ENCORE is the fall edition of the La Quinta Art Celebration. Its spring edition is already set for March 4 through 7, 2027. So the Civic Center lawn hosts this festival twice a year, and November is the first of the two.
According to the festival's October 9 preview, this year's field has 154 artists, and 43 of them are showing at the event for the first time. The featured artists include Rebecca Molayem and David Palmer. That share of newcomers means more than a quarter of the booths will be new even for people who went in the spring.
Here are the practical details from the festival's own pages:
- Hours: 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. daily, Thursday through Sunday
- Admission: $25 for one day or $30 for a multi-day pass, and children under 12 get in free
- Parking: self-parking is $10, and the Getting Here page also lists free parking at the Village of La Quinta
- Tickets: sold through the festival's ticket page
The multi-day pass costs $5 more than a single day. That makes a Thursday preview plus a Sunday return trip easy if you live nearby and want to see the field before buying. Everyone else has to fit the visit into one day.
The Free Saturday That Comes Back Ten Times
Art on Main Street works differently. Main Street turns into an open-air gallery with more than 80 local and regional artists at each show. Work ranges from photography and jewelry to ceramics, glass, textiles, woodwork and sculpture, and admission is free.
Its real advantage is how often it happens. This is the full 2026–27 schedule, every date a Saturday from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.:
- November 28, 2026
- December 12, 2026
- January 2, 2027
- January 16, 2027
- January 30, 2027
- February 13, 2027
- February 27, 2027
- March 13, 2027
- March 27, 2027
- April 3, 2027
The two shows side by side:
| La Quinta Art Celebration ENCORE | Art on Main Street | |
|---|---|---|
| Dates | Nov. 12–15, 2026 | 10 Saturdays, Nov. 28, 2026 to Apr. 3, 2027 |
| Hours | 10 a.m.–4 p.m. | 9 a.m.–3 p.m. |
| Admission | $25 day, $30 multi-day, under 12 free | Free |
| Artists | 154 juried, 43 first-timers | 80+ local and regional per show |
| Setting | La Quinta Civic Center, 78495 Calle Tampico | Main Street, Old Town La Quinta |
Taken together, the two schedules shape the season. ENCORE puts the year's largest juried field in town for one long weekend. Art on Main then keeps the art going in Old Town every other Saturday or so until spring. Its March 13 date falls the weekend after the spring Art Celebration, so the pattern repeats in March.
Sunday Mornings Are Already Back
The third part of the calendar is already running. KESQ reported on October 4 that the outdoor Certified Farmers Market in Old Town La Quinta was back for the season. It sets up at 78100 Main Street with local produce, flowers, prepared food and artisan vendors. The Old Town market page lists Sunday hours of 8 a.m. to 1 p.m., with eggs, honey and chef-prepared foods alongside the produce.
That puts the market on the morning after every Art on Main Saturday. On ten weekends this season, Old Town has art on Saturday and the market on Sunday. During ENCORE weekend, the Sunday market overlaps the festival's last day, a short distance away on Calle Tampico.
Where Lunch Fits Between the Booths
For a long day in the village, the Old Town dining directory lists DSRT Club, Gabinos, Lola's at The Cove, Main Street Coffee, Nitroinfusions, RD RNNR, Stuft Pizza, The Grill on Main, and YES PLEASE Café & Dessert Shop.
DSRT CLUB is the city's own pick this year. At the State of the City address, NBC Palm Springs reported that the Old Town restaurant won Best Restaurant. It is at 78075 Main Street, Suite 105, and soft-opened in September 2023, according to The Desert Sun. The Desert Sun's opening coverage described a menu with a lobster-tail-and-veal "land & sea," branzino, Creole stew and grilled octopus. The restaurant's own site lists lunch on Fridays and Saturdays from 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. Dinner runs from 4:30 p.m., until 8:30 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and until 9 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays. Saturday lunch lines up with an Art on Main morning. For a Sunday at ENCORE, call ahead.
Lola's at The Cove, at 78015 Main Street, opens daily at 2 p.m. and serves until 9 p.m. Its menu is shareable plates, wine and cocktails. Art on Main closes at 3 p.m. and ENCORE at 4 p.m., so Lola's is already open when either show winds down.
Two newer places on Highway 111 work for the start of the day. Keke's Breakfast Cafe opened August 27 at 79892 Highway 111. It serves from 7 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., according to The GEM, which quoted Senior General Manager Vicente Rojas Miranda calling it "another welcoming breakfast option" for La Quinta. Shake Shack opened August 12 at 78-772 Highway 111, and on opening day it gave $1 per sandwich sold to FIND Food Bank, KESQ reported. General Manager Joseph Sanchez grew up in La Quinta and told NBC Palm Springs the job meant "being able to come back here and be part of my hometown."
For something sweet on the drive home, 1/2sies Co. won Best New Business at the same State of the City address. It sells half-size doughnuts and ice cream at 50921 Washington Street, Suite C-1. Its contact page lists hours until 9:30 p.m. on weekdays and 10 p.m. on weekends.
Where the Calendar Goes After November
The busy stretch doesn't end when November does. The City's Tree Lighting Ceremony returns to the Civic Center Campus on Friday, December 4, from 6 to 9 p.m. It's free, with Santa, train rides and live performances. Eight days later, on December 12, Art on Main holds its second show of the season.
A longer-term item is also on the city's calendar. In the City's June 2, 2026 update on SilverRock, Turnbridge Equities said it expected to present renderings and site development permit applications to the Planning Commission and City Council by the end of the year. Construction was described as on track to start "by next summer." Those dates are the developer's projections. Under the amended plan, the 134-acre site would include a luxury hotel of about 154 rooms, 445 residences, 40,000 square feet of commercial space, a new golf clubhouse closer to the Avenue 52 entrance, and a 20,000-square-foot community building. If that timeline holds, the renderings would go public before the end of 2026, while the season's Art on Main calendar is still in its first month.
If a season of art and Sunday markets on Main Street has you wondering what your own La Quinta home would look like presented to buyers, Tim Smith Real Estate Group can show you. Request a home valuation, and our team will give you a clear read on value along with the preparation and storytelling that make a desert property stand out.
