Fair Grounds Race Course sits at 1751 Gentilly Boulevard in New Orleans, Louisiana — a working thoroughbred racetrack most of the year and, for two weekends every spring, the beating heart of the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival. Racing fans know it as Fair Grounds Race Track or the home of the Louisiana Derby; locals and music fans often just call it “the Fair Grounds,” or by an older nickname, the Louisiana Fairgrounds.
Racing has run on this ground since 1872 under the Louisiana Jockey Club, and the site’s horse-racing roots stretch back even further, to 1838. That makes Fair Grounds Race Course one of only a handful of American tracks that can trace continuous racing history back to the 19th century — and its double life as a 145-acre Jazz Fest campground each spring makes it one of the more unusual, storied venues in American sports and music.
Quick Answer
Fair Grounds Race Course — also searched for as Fair Grounds Race Track, the Louisiana Fairgrounds, or the New Orleans Fairgrounds — is a thoroughbred racetrack at 1751 Gentilly Boulevard in New Orleans, Louisiana. Racing at the site dates to 1872 under the Louisiana Jockey Club, and each spring its 145-acre infield becomes the home of the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival.
A Racetrack Turned Music Mecca
Outside of festival season, Fair Grounds Race Course operates as a working thoroughbred track with a one-mile dirt oval and a seven-furlong turf course, hosting live racing and the Grade II Louisiana Derby each winter and spring. The grandstand has been rebuilt more than once, including after a 1993 seven-alarm fire and again after Hurricane Katrina flooded the property in 2005, with racing resuming on Thanksgiving Day 2006.
Each April and May, though, the infield and surrounding grounds are reconfigured into a festival city. Founded in 1970 and moved to the Fair Grounds in 1972, the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival built its identity around the site’s open space, allowing organizers to add stages and tents as the event grew from a modest gathering into a two-weekend, multi-day showcase.
What’s in a Name: Fair Grounds Race Track, Race Course, and the Louisiana Fairgrounds
The property has carried several names over the years. It began as the Union Race Course, was renamed the Creole Race Course in 1859, and finally became Fair Grounds in 1863 — the same year New Orleans horsemen pioneered pari-mutuel wagering that would later be adopted nationwide.
Today, “Fair Grounds Race Course” is the formal name, but you’ll see it written and searched for in several other ways: Fair Grounds Race Track, the New Orleans Fairgrounds, or the Louisiana Fairgrounds. All of these refer to the exact same property at 1751 Gentilly Boulevard — there isn’t a separate venue by any of those names. The full corporate name today is Fair Grounds Race Course & Slots, operated by Churchill Downs Louisiana Horseracing Company.
One of America’s Oldest Racetracks
The Louisiana Jockey Club held its first organized meet on the site on April 13, 1872, and racing’s roots there go back further still, to an 1838 race course organized by Bernard de Marigny and other prominent New Orleans citizens. That lineage is why Fair Grounds Race Course is consistently ranked among the two or three oldest racetracks still operating in the United States — with rankings shifting slightly depending on how each source counts continuous operation, especially after New Jersey’s Freehold Raceway closed in 2024.
Either way, more than 150 years of thoroughbred racing on the same Gentilly ground puts Fair Grounds in rare company among American sporting venues, right alongside its status as one of the largest annual music gatherings in the country.
The Louisiana Derby and the Racing Season
Fair Grounds’ marquee race is the Louisiana Derby, a Grade II stakes event and a key prep race on the Road to the Kentucky Derby points series. The live racing season traditionally runs from Thanksgiving through late March, building toward Louisiana Derby Day — a pre-ticketed, marquee event — by way of undercard stakes like the Lecomte Stakes and Risen Star Stakes.
Racing takes place on the track’s one-mile dirt oval and seven-furlong turf course, with simulcast wagering and a sportsbook lounge available on non-race days. Exact race dates shift year to year, so check the track’s official racing calendar before planning a visit.
Stages Across the Infield
When Jazz Fest takes over, performances spread across roughly a dozen stages and tents scattered over the racetrack grounds, including the Festival Stage, Gentilly Stage, Congo Square Stage, Blues Tent, Jazz Tent, and Gospel Tent, alongside food booths celebrating Louisiana cuisine and crafts areas highlighting regional artisans. Recent years have featured around 14 stages running across the festival’s two four-day weekends.
The layout lets fans wander between genres, from second-line brass bands to headline pop and rock acts, all within the footprint of a working horse track — a combination that makes Fair Grounds Race Course unlike almost any other music venue in the country.
Planning Your Visit: Hours, Tickets & Parking
For live racing, general admission to Fair Grounds Race Course is typically free, with a small admission fee applying only on Stakes Days, Specialty Programming days, and Louisiana Derby Day; children 12 and under are usually admitted free every day. Clubhouse seating carries its own tiered fee that’s higher on weekends and marquee race days, and standard parking is normally free. Racing hours and post times vary by day and by season, so they’re worth double-checking before you go.
Jazz Fest admission works differently: festival tickets are sold separately from racetrack admission, through the festival itself rather than the track’s box office, and typically go on sale months before the event. Because hours, fees, and race and festival dates all change from year to year, use the official Fair Grounds Race Course website for current racing hours and admission prices, and the official New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival site for Jazz Fest tickets and set times.
fair grounds race course new orleans FAQs
Is Fair Grounds Race Course a music venue or a racetrack?
Both. It operates as a thoroughbred racetrack most of the year, but each spring its 145-acre infield hosts the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, one of the country’s largest music festivals.
Is “Fair Grounds Race Track” the same as Fair Grounds Race Course?
Yes. Fair Grounds Race Track, Fair Grounds Race Course, and Fair Grounds Race Course & Slots all refer to the same property at 1751 Gentilly Boulevard in New Orleans; the names are used interchangeably.
What is the “Louisiana Fairgrounds” or “New Orleans Fairgrounds”?
Both are informal nicknames locals and out-of-towners use for Fair Grounds Race Course. There is no separate venue by either name — it’s the same racetrack and Jazz Fest site on Gentilly Boulevard.
Is Fair Grounds Race Course the oldest racetrack in the U.S.?
It’s among the oldest. Racing there dates to 1872 under the Louisiana Jockey Club, with roots stretching to 1838, making it one of the two or three oldest thoroughbred tracks still operating in America, depending on how each source counts continuous history.
When did Jazz Fest start being held at the Fair Grounds?
The festival moved to the Fair Grounds Race Course in 1972, two years after its 1970 debut in Congo Square. It has been held there most years since, with two notable exceptions: the 2020 and 2021 festivals were canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and Jazz Fest returned to the Fair Grounds in 2022.
How many people attend Jazz Fest at the Fair Grounds?
Attendance has grown from about 350 people at the 1970 debut to roughly 450,000 to 500,000 across the eight-day festival run in recent years.
Is general admission to Fair Grounds Race Course free?
General admission to live racing is typically free, with a small fee only on Stakes Days, Specialty Programming, and Louisiana Derby Day; kids 12 and under are usually free every day. Jazz Fest tickets are sold separately and are not free. Check the official site for current pricing.
What is the address of Fair Grounds Race Course?
1751 Gentilly Boulevard, New Orleans, Louisiana 70119, in the city’s Mid-City/Gentilly area.
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