25 spots within 60 miles of 92692
Ektaa Diwali Fest
Irvine
Orange County's largest Indian festival of lights, with live Indian music and dance, food booths, henna, kids' activities, and a traditional lamp-lighting ceremony at the Great Park.
🗓️ Oct–Nov (Diwali)
Visit site →Irvine Nowruz Festival
Irvine
A community Persian New Year gathering with live music and dance, Persian tea and cookies, cultural displays, and children's activities, honoring the spring renewal of Nowruz.
🗓️ ~Mar 20 (Nowruz / spring equinox)
Visit site →Sizdah Bedar (13-Bedar Persian Picnic)
Irvine
On the traditional 13th day of the new year, families spend the day outdoors picnicking across Mason Park's lawns, with community booths, traditional music and dance. One of SoCal's largest such gatherings.
🗓️ Early Apr (13th day of Nowruz)
Visit site →Noche de Altares
Santa Ana
Families walk among dozens of community-built ofrendas honoring loved ones along closed-off downtown streets, with live music, Aztec and folklórico dance, children's art workshops, and pan de muerto. A grassroots celebration running since 2002.
🗓️ Late Oct–Nov 2 (Día de los Muertos)
Visit site →Bowers Museum Lunar New Year Family Festival
Santa Ana
A free courtyard celebration with lion and dragon dances, live music, hands-on art activities, and face painting. A gentle, kid-friendly introduction to the holiday.
🗓️ Jan–early Feb (Lunar New Year)
Visit site →OC Arirang Festival
Garden Grove
An Orange County Korean festival (running since 1981) with music and dance, a talent and singing contest, K-pop and martial-arts demonstrations, an open-air market, and Korean street food like tteokbokki.
🗓️ Oct (Korean Festival)
Visit site →UVSA Tết Festival
Garden Grove · Tết (Vietnamese Lunar New Year)
The nation's largest Vietnamese Lunar New Year festival (since 1982), with a re-created traditional marketplace, a flower and cultural village, food, performances, and carnival rides. The venue moves year to year.
🗓️ Late Jan–mid Feb (Tết)
💵 $ admission (~$7–10)
Visit site →Old World Oktoberfest
Huntington Beach
Set in a Bavarian-style village with cobblestone streets, families hear live oom-pah bands brought from Germany and share bratwurst and pretzels. Weekday and Sunday daytime sessions are all-ages.
🗓️ Mid Sept–early Nov (Oktoberfest)
Visit site →Westminster Tết Parade
Westminster
Families line Bolsa Avenue through Little Saigon to watch floats, marching bands, lion dances, and youth and community groups process through the heart of the Vietnamese American community.
🗓️ Feb (Lunar New Year / Tết)
Visit site →BAPS Diwali & Annakut (Festival of Lights)
Chino Hills
A multi-day community festival at the landmark white-marble mandir, featuring the Annakut food offering, a kids' zone with rides, cultural performances, and a light-and-sound display.
🗓️ Oct–Nov (Diwali)
Visit site →Artesia Diwali Festival (Little India)
Artesia
A street festival in the historic Little India district along Pioneer Boulevard, with Bollywood performers, food, a community health fair, and the shops and lights of the neighborhood.
🗓️ Oct–Nov (Diwali)
Visit site →Festival of Philippine Arts & Culture (FPAC)
San Pedro
A day of Filipino folk dance, music, food, and an art fair in an oceanfront park, celebrating Filipino American heritage with live performances and craft vendors.
🗓️ Sept (Filipino arts)
Visit site →Philippine Independence Day Celebration
Carson
One of the largest Filipino Independence Day events in Southern California, with a parade, cultural exhibits, folk dance and music, Filipino food vendors, and a dedicated children's area.
🗓️ June (Philippine Independence)
Visit site →Monterey Park Lunar New Year Festival
Monterey Park
Blocks of downtown close for food and gift booths, carnival rides, lion dances, and live cultural performances. A long-running street festival in the heart of the San Gabriel Valley's Chinese American community.
🗓️ Late Jan–Feb (Lunar New Year)
Visit site →Cardiff Greek Festival
Encinitas · Greek
A coastal North County festival with Greek pastries, grilled food, traditional dancing, and church tours. A relaxed family weekend just off the I-5.
🗓️ Early Sept (Greek festival)
💵 $ admission (modest entry fee)
Visit site →Nisei Week Japanese Festival
Los Angeles
Nine days of taiko drumming, traditional dance, a grand parade, food stalls, and cultural exhibits across Little Tokyo. Families can watch ondo street dancing and try hands-on arts at the JACCC.
🗓️ Aug (Nisei Week)
Visit site →Olvera Street Día de los Muertos (Novenario)
Los Angeles
At LA's historic birthplace plaza, families view community altars and can join nightly candlelit Novenario processions led by Aztec dancers, with blessings, performances, weekend face painting, and shared pan de muerto.
🗓️ Late Oct–Nov 2 (Día de los Muertos)
Visit site →Golden Dragon Parade (LA Chinatown)
Los Angeles
One of the longest-running Lunar New Year parades outside China, with a mile-long procession of lion and dragon dancers, marching bands, and dance troupes through Chinatown.
🗓️ Feb (Lunar New Year)
Visit site →Grand Park's Downtown Día de los Muertos
Los Angeles
A week-long open-air exhibition of community ofrendas across the park, where families add memories to a shared Community Ofrenda and join all-ages workshops, face painting, and a closing night of music and dance.
🗓️ Late Oct–Nov 2 (Día de los Muertos)
Visit site →Holi & The Beach
Redondo Beach · Holi (Festival of Colors)
A waterfront Holi celebration with scheduled color throws, Bollywood DJs, food vendors, and dancing. The organized color play is a highlight for children.
🗓️ Early–mid Mar (Holi)
💵 $ admission (from ~$10)
Visit site →LA Greek Fest
Los Angeles · Greek
A multi-generational neighborhood celebration at St. Sophia Cathedral with homemade Greek food, live music, folk dancing, and cathedral tours.
🗓️ Early Oct (Greek festival)
💵 $ admission (~$5–10)
Visit site →LA Korean Festival
Los Angeles
One of the largest Korean cultural festivals in the U.S., held in Koreatown's Seoul International Park, with traditional and K-pop performances, a parade, Korean BBQ and street food, and interactive cultural exhibits.
🗓️ Sept–Oct (Korean Festival)
Visit site →Día de los Muertos at Hollywood Forever
Los Angeles · Día de los Muertos
A large ticketed celebration with elaborate ofrendas across the cemetery grounds, Aztec dancers, art displays, and vendors. Afternoon sessions are the most family-oriented; later sessions skew toward adults.
🗓️ Late Oct–Nov 2 (Día de los Muertos)
💵 $ admission (~$25–30)
Visit site →Cherry Blossom Festival at Descanso Gardens
La Cañada Flintridge · Japanese (Cherry Blossom / Hanami)
Families stroll groves of flowering cherry trees and enjoy koto music, origami demonstrations, walking tours, and seasonal Japanese food. A relaxed outdoor outing well-suited to young children.
🗓️ Spring (cherry blossom season)
💵 $ admission (garden entry ~$15)
Visit site →Farhang Foundation Nowruz Celebration
Los Angeles
One of the world's largest free Nowruz festivals, with Persian music and dance, arts and crafts, children's activities, and the signature Grand Haft-Sîn table display at UCLA. Confirm the current year's plan with the organizer.
🗓️ ~Mar 20 (Nowruz / spring equinox)
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Dates move every year.Many of these follow lunar or lunisolar calendars, and some street festivals change venue, so always confirm the current year's date and location with the organizer. Looking for your community year-round? See our International Communities guides.
Frequently asked questions
Where can I celebrate Lunar New Year with my family in SoCal?
Major family-friendly Lunar New Year celebrations include the Monterey Park Lunar New Year Festival and LA Chinatown's Golden Dragon Parade, plus Vietnamese Tết events like the Westminster Tết Parade and the UVSA Tết Festival in Orange County, and the gentle, kid-focused Bowers Museum Lunar New Year festival in Santa Ana. They typically run from late January into February.
Where is Diwali celebrated in Southern California?
Orange County's largest is the Ektaa Diwali Fest at the Great Park in Irvine; there's also the Artesia Diwali street festival in Little India, the BAPS Diwali & Annakut at the marble mandir in Chino Hills, and Deepotsav at Balboa Park in San Diego. Diwali falls in October or November each year.
When and where is Nowruz (Persian New Year) celebrated in SoCal?
Nowruz is celebrated around the spring equinox (about March 20). The Farhang Foundation's celebration at UCLA is one of the largest free Nowruz festivals in the world, and there are community gatherings in Irvine, followed by the Sizdah Bedar outdoor picnic on the 13th day. Confirm each year's date with the organizer, as the holiday's exact timing shifts.
Do these festivals happen on the same dates every year?
No — many follow lunar or lunisolar calendars (Lunar New Year, Diwali, Nowruz, Día de los Muertos), so the dates move each year, and some street festivals change venue too. We list the approximate season for each; always confirm the current year's date and location with the organizer before you go.