Rainbows Festival Phoenix 2027: Dates, Heritage Square, What to Expect & Where to Go After
Rainbows Festival is Phoenix Pride's free spring street fair at Heritage Square Park, drawing 25,000 people over a late-March weekend. Here is what is confirmed for 2027, how the 2026 edition ran, and where to go when the stages shut at 6.
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Rainbows Festival & Street Fair is the spring half of Phoenix Pride's calendar: a free, two-day street fair at Heritage Square Park in downtown Phoenix that Phoenix Pride says draws more than 25,000 people each year, second in Arizona only to the Phoenix Pride Festival in October. The 2026 edition ran March 28–29 from 10 AM to 6 PM. Phoenix Pride had not announced 2027 dates when this guide went up; the festival has landed on the last weekend of March in recent years, which points to March 27–28, 2027. Treat that as expected until the official page confirms it, and we will update this guide when it does.
Rainbows Festival 2027 at a Glance
- Official name: Rainbows Festival & Street Fair, produced by Phoenix Pride, which bills it as "Arizona's Greatest Street Fair"
- Expected dates: Saturday, March 27 and Sunday, March 28, 2027 (2026 was March 28–29; 2027 dates not yet announced)
- Hours in 2026: 10 AM to 6 PM both days
- Where: Heritage Square Park, downtown Phoenix, around 6th Street and Monroe
- Admission: free and open to the public
- Size: two stages, more than 150 exhibitors and sponsors, local food trucks, craft cocktails
- Crowd: more than 25,000 over the weekend, per Phoenix Pride
- Pets: allowed on a leash
Pro Tip
Phoenix Pride runs two big weekends a year: Rainbows in late March and the Phoenix Pride Festival and Parade in October. If you can only make one and want the parade, that is October. Rainbows is the easier weekend: free, downtown, walkable from the light rail, and over by dinner.
What's on in Phoenix
Live from our events calendar — updated daily.
What Rainbows Festival Is Like
Heritage Square is a block of restored Victorian houses and brick plazas on the east side of downtown, and for two days it fills with vendor booths, sponsor tents, food trucks and two stages. In 2026 the stages were the Hensley Beverage Company Main Stage and the Community Stage, both with ASL interpreters, and the program runs continuously from opening to close. Phoenix Pride publishes the performer lineup closer to the date.
It is a daytime, family-and-dogs kind of event. Craft cocktails and beer are sold inside the grounds, but outside alcohol is on the prohibited list, so do not bring your own. The Phoenix Pride info booth sits at 6th Street and Monroe for lost and found, accessibility questions and interpreters.
Saturday and Sunday
Both days run the same hours. The festival closes at 6 PM both days, which is early for a Pride weekend and exactly why the bars on 7th Avenue and Central fill up from the late afternoon.
Pro Tip
Late March in Phoenix is usually in the 80s by early afternoon. Shade at Heritage Square is limited, so bring a hat and water.
Getting There and Parking
- Light rail: the eastbound stop is at 3rd Street and Jefferson, the westbound stop at 3rd Street and Washington, both a few blocks from the park. This is the easiest way in, and it connects to the Melrose and Central Avenue bars afterward
- Heritage Square Garage: 123 North 5th Street at Monroe, attached to the festival, $21.50 a day in 2026
- Phoenix Convention Center East Garage: 601 East Washington Street at 6th Street, $21.50 a day in 2026, with a bridge over the street into the festival
- Pre-booking: Phoenix Pride points to SpotHero for reserving a space ahead of time
Where to Go After the Festival
The grounds close at 6 PM, and the weekend moves north. Two clusters are a short rideshare or light rail trip away.
Melrose District (7th Avenue)
The Melrose stretch of 7th Avenue between Indian School and Camelback is the city's gayborhood, and on Rainbows weekend it carries the after-party. Stacy's, The Rock, Boycott Bar and Pat O's Bunkhouse Saloon are all within a couple of blocks of each other on 7th Avenue.
Melrose District bars
Stacy's at Melrose, Phoenix
Phoenix, Arizona
The Rock, Phoenix
Phoenix, Arizona
Boycott Bar, Phoenix
Phoenix, Arizona
Pat O's Bunkhouse Saloon, Phoenix
Phoenix, Arizona
Central Avenue and Beyond
Kobalt sits at Park Central on Central Avenue, one light rail stop from Melrose, and Charlie's on Camelback is the big dance bar and a Rainbows sponsor. Cruisin' 7th on 7th Street is the neighborhood bar for a quieter night.
Central Avenue and Camelback bars
Kobalt, Phoenix
Phoenix, Arizona
Charlie's Phoenix, Phoenix
Phoenix, Arizona
Cruisin' 7th, Phoenix
Phoenix, Arizona
Anvil, Phoenix
Phoenix, Arizona
Plan Your Rainbows Weekend
Every Phoenix bar, the weekend's parties and the Rainbows Festival in one place, with the map to get between them.
Where to Stay for Rainbows Festival
Downtown puts you within walking distance of Heritage Square; Midtown and Uptown put you closer to the bars. Both are on the light rail line, so either works.
Pro Tip
The Kimpton Palomar and the Westin are a ten-minute walk from Heritage Square. FOUND:RE is on Central at Roosevelt Row, one stop north, and closer to the Central Avenue bars.
Rainbows Festival and Phoenix Pride
Phoenix Pride produces both events. Rainbows is the free spring street fair; the Phoenix Pride Festival and Parade is the ticketed October weekend, and our guide to it lives at the Phoenix Pride hub.
Frequently Asked Questions
When is Rainbows Festival 2027?
Phoenix Pride has not announced the 2027 dates. The festival has run on the last weekend of March in recent years (March 28–29 in 2026), so March 27–28, 2027 is expected. We will update this guide when the dates are official.
Where is Rainbows Festival held?
At Heritage Square Park in downtown Phoenix, near 6th Street and Monroe. The Phoenix Pride info booth is at 6th and Monroe.
Is Rainbows Festival free?
Yes. Phoenix Pride describes it as a free event open to the public.
What are the festival hours?
In 2026 the festival ran 10 AM to 6 PM on both Saturday and Sunday.
Can I bring my dog?
Yes, on a leash.
How do I get there by light rail?
Use the 3rd Street and Jefferson stop eastbound or 3rd Street and Washington westbound, both a few blocks from the park.
How big is Rainbows Festival?
Phoenix Pride says it draws more than 25,000 people each year, with two stages and more than 150 exhibitors and sponsors, making it the second-largest LGBTQ+ event in Arizona after the Phoenix Pride Festival.
How is it different from Phoenix Pride?
Rainbows is the free spring street fair in downtown Phoenix. Phoenix Pride is the ticketed October festival and parade. Both are produced by Phoenix Pride.
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Robbie S.
I'm Robbie, the founder of Out x Out. I'm from Minneapolis, though I'm spending 2026 building this community from the road — somewhere between South America and Asia. The idea for Out x Out came from a trip to Berlin, where the gay nightlife calendar was years ahead of ours: you could see not just where to go out, but which night to go — so naturally I wanted that kind of insider info for every city in the US (and beyond... eventually). I'm more of a behind-the-scenes type, but the whole point of this is connection: I'd take one real one over a hundred surface-level ones, and I'm trying to build that for the community, city by city.
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