Events calendar
The Boise events calendar, and when to book
Boise punches well above its size on events, and a handful of weekends fill the city's lodging months in advance. Here is the year, month by month, with an honest read on how far ahead each one requires you to plan.
Dates shift year to year. The months below are reliable; the exact weekends are not. Always confirm with the organizer before you build a trip around one.
The five weekends that sell out
If your trip depends on any of these, book three to six months ahead. Not a sales line — it is simply when this house and most of the North End's rentals go.
- Treefort Music Fest — a five-day downtown music festival, late March
- Boise State home football weekends — on the university's famous blue field, September through November
- Hyde Park Street Fair — the neighborhood's big annual street festival each September, three doors from our house
- Spirit of Boise Balloon Classic — dawn hot-air balloon launches, Labor Day weekend
- Boise State graduation — May and December
Winter
December
- Winter Garden aGlow — hundreds of thousands of lights at the Idaho Botanical Garden, late November through December 31.
- The Nutcracker — Ballet Idaho with live orchestra, mid-December.
- Eguberriko Azoka — the Basque Christmas market on downtown's Basque Block (Boise has one of the largest Basque communities outside Europe), early December.
- Idaho Potato Drop — free New Year's Eve celebration downtown, complete with a glowing potato.
January – February
The quietest lodging months of the year, and the best value. Bogus Basin — Boise's community ski area, a 35-minute drive north of the house — is fully open, with skiing under lights into the evening, the lower foothills trails are usually clear, and the hot tub earns its keep. If you want the North End at its most local, come now.
Spring
March
- Treefort Music Fest — five days, hundreds of artists, a dozen downtown venues, plus offshoot "forts" for film, comedy, food, storytelling and yoga. The biggest weekend of the Boise year. Book six months out.
- Boise Spring Home & Garden Show and the Boise Roadster Show, both at Expo Idaho — the fairgrounds about 15 minutes west.
- Seven Arrows Powwow at Boise State.
April
- Race to Robie Creek — billed as the toughest half marathon in the Northwest. Registration sells out in minutes; lodging fills the same weekend.
- Capital City Public Market and the Boise Farmers Market open for the season, Saturdays through fall.
May
- Boise Music Week — free community performances across the city, a Boise tradition since the 1910s.
- Idaho Shakespeare Festival opens its outdoor season, running into September.
- Boise State graduation — a quiet lodging squeeze most visitors do not see coming.
- Boise Greek Food Festival and the Famous Idaho Potato Marathon.
Summer
June
- Alive After Five — free Wednesday-evening concerts downtown, running all summer.
- Savor Idaho — the state's wine and cider showcase at the Botanical Garden.
- Boise Music Festival — a single-day, big-name outdoor show.
- Snake River Stampede in Nampa (25 minutes west), one of the country's top-ranked professional rodeos.
- River float season opens at Barber Park once flows drop to safe levels — usually late June.
July
- Fourth of July — parades, fireworks and drone shows across the valley.
- Music on the Mountain — free Saturday concerts at Bogus Basin, twenty degrees cooler than town.
- Boise Twilight Criterium — professional bike racing through downtown at night.
- San Inazio Basque Festival — free, all-ages, on downtown's Basque Block at the end of the month.
August
- Western Idaho Fair — ten days of rides and livestock at the Expo Idaho fairgrounds, a tradition since 1897.
- Caldwell Night Rodeo — over a century running, half an hour west.
- Boise Soul Food Festival — a free one-day celebration downtown.
Fall
September
The busiest month of the Boise year, and the best one to visit.
- Spirit of Boise Balloon Classic — dawn hot-air balloon launches from Ann Morrison Park, the big riverside park near downtown, over Labor Day weekend.
- Hyde Park Street Fair — 13th Street closes for a weekend of music, food and craft booths, in its fifth decade. Three doors from the house, and the single best weekend to be staying here.
- Boise State football home opener — the university's famous blue field, and the beginning of the fall lodging crunch.
- Art in the Park — a 70-year-old open-air art show in Julia Davis Park.
- Boise Pride Festival — downtown, one of the state's largest gatherings.
October
- Taste of Downtown Boise — set-price sampler menus across downtown restaurants.
- Old Boise Oktoberfest and the Idaho Horror Film Festival.
- Boo at the Zoo at Zoo Boise through the second half of the month.
- Peak foothills hiking, and peak color on the drive up Bogus Basin Road.
November
- Boise Half Marathon and the Boise Holiday Parade, now nearly eighty years running.
- Festival of Trees — designer-decorated trees benefiting Saint Alphonsus hospital.
- Bogus Basin typically opens for the season, snow permitting.
So when should you come?
| If you want… | Come in… |
|---|---|
| The best weather and the best light | Late September – mid October |
| Skiing, quiet streets and the best rates | January – February |
| Live music everywhere | Late March (Treefort) or June–July |
| Floating the river and long warm evenings | July – August |
| The neighborhood at its most festive | September, Hyde Park Street Fair weekend |
| Wildflowers and green foothills | April – May |
Our calendar is synced live across Airbnb and VRBO, so whichever you check, you are seeing the same availability.
Availability
Check your dates
Calendars and pricing are synced live across Airbnb and VRBO. Whichever platform you prefer, you are looking at the same availability for the same house.
Check-in after 4:00 PM · Checkout by 11:00 AM · Maximum 6 guests