Rose Festival Weekend Starts Close to Home: A 2026 Guide From the Aza...
read article
The 93rd Texas Rose Festival runs Thursday, October 15, through Sunday, October 18. Most of it happens across town at the Rose Garden, on Front Street and at UT Tyler. One event stays on the Azalea District's side of town, at Bergfeld Park, 1510 S. College, where the festival crowned its first queens more than ninety years ago.
That history explains how this year's weekend is laid out. Knowing which events are free, which need tickets and which overlap on Saturday morning makes the whole festival easier to plan.
Where the Festival Started
Visit Tyler places Bergfeld Park just off Broadway and College, between Fourth and Fifth Streets. The City of Tyler's virtual landmark tour lists Bergfeld Park & Amphitheatre as a local landmark. Here's the history it gives:
- 1909: Rudolph Bergfeld donated the land to the City.
- 1913: The site was developed as a park.
- 1933 and 1934: The first two Rose Festival coronations were held at the park.
- 1935: Gen. R.E. Woods paid for an amphitheater.
- 1936 to 1939: The festival was held in what became the General Woods Amphitheatre.
- January 8, 1985: The City approved the park's landmark designation.
The coronation has since moved to the R. Don Cowan Fine & Performing Arts Center on University Boulevard. The park still has the amphitheater, along with picnic areas, tennis courts, a playground, restrooms and "Splasher" the Dolphin Fountain sprayground, according to Tyler Parks and Recreation.
The Rose Festival Arts & Crafts Fair keeps the park part of the festival. Tyler Parks and Recreation hosts it, and this year it runs:
- Saturday, October 17: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
- Sunday, October 18: 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Admission is free, both days have live entertainment, and food trucks will be selling food. The sources disagree on the fair's size. The Parks and Rec event page lists more than 70 booths, and the festival's printed brochure says more than 90 vendors. When applications were last posted, several vendor categories were already full, including crochet, charcuterie boards, pottery and baked goods.
Saturday Is When the Free Events Overlap
Because the fair opens at 9 a.m. Saturday, the free event closest to the Azalea District starts at the same moment as the biggest free event across town. According to the 2026 festival brochure, Saturday, October 17, runs like this:
- 9:00 a.m.: Pre-Parade Activities at CHRISTUS Trinity Mother Frances Rose Stadium.
- 9:00 a.m.: Texas Rose Festival Parade, heading west from Glenwood Blvd. and Front St. KETK-TV sponsors and televises it. Watching along the route is free.
- 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.: Rose Festival Arts & Crafts Fair at Bergfeld Park.
- 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.: Rose Display at the Rose Garden Center. Free.
- 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.: Palette of Roses Art Show & Sale at the Rose Garden Center. Free.
- 1:00 to 3:00 p.m.: Queen's Tea at the Tyler Municipal Rose Garden's Queen's Court, 420 Rose Park Drive. Free.
- 1:00 to 3:00 p.m.: Master Gardeners Rose Garden Tour at the Tyler Municipal Rose Garden. Free.
The Saturday fair closes at 5 p.m., so the bigger events can come first. Someone could watch the parade on Front Street in the morning, go to the Rose Garden for the 1 p.m. Tea, and still reach the College Street fair that afternoon. If you'd rather skip the Saturday rush, the fair also runs Sunday from 11 a.m.
The brochure describes the parade as more than 120 entries: custom floats for the Queen and her court, plus color guards, bands, car clubs, dance teams, Shriners and dignitaries. Standing along the route is free. The brochure lists home-side seats in Rose Stadium at $10. At least one parade participant's event page says stadium seating is free this year, but the brochure is the festival's own schedule, so plan on the $10 seat.
The Queen's Tea is your chance to meet the Rose Queen and her court in their full coronation costumes. The Queen's family and the festival traditionally host it, and admission is free. The brochure also points out that it's a good time to see the 14-acre Tyler Rose Garden in bloom.
Getting to the Parade From South of Downtown
Parade-day closures can change from year to year, so last year's plan is a guide to the area affected rather than a 2026 schedule. In 2025, KETK reported that Front Street closed from Glenwood Boulevard to Rose Stadium. Side streets closed around 6:30 a.m., and Front Street itself closed at 7:45 a.m. A parade organizer suggested parking on nearby side streets or toward the Cotton Belt building. Those times were for 2025 and may change. The parade still starts from Glenwood and Front this year, so expect closures in the same area.
The Bergfeld Park fair page gives no parking directions. For questions about the fair, the brochure lists Tyler Parks and Recreation at 903-531-1214.
Thursday, Friday and Sunday
The days before and after Saturday are calmer, and most of what happens is free.
Thursday, October 15. At 10 a.m., the 93rd Texas Rose Festival Ribbon Cutting and Morning Prayer Service opens the week at the Rose Garden Center. It's free and open to the public. The Rose Display and the Palette of Roses Art Show & Sale both run from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., also free. According to the Palette of Roses Art League, the show runs October 15 through 17.
Friday, October 16. The Rose Display and the art show are open again from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday is also when most of the ticketed events happen.
Sunday, October 18. The Rose Display runs from noon to 4 p.m. at the Rose Garden Center, 420 Rose Park Dr. The Bergfeld Park fair reopens from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Tyler's Old Rose Dress Display lasts beyond the festival weekend. It shows vintage Ladies-in-Waiting dresses from past Rose Festivals at the Goodman-LeGrand Museum, 624 N Broadway Ave. Hours are Tuesday through Saturday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., through November 7, with a $3 suggested donation per person. From the Azalea District, it's a straight drive up Broadway.
The Ticketed Events
The 2026 theme is "Celebrations Through the Seasons." According to the Tyler Morning Telegraph, it moves through the seasons and the holidays that come with them. All four ticketed events are on Friday, October 16.
| Event | Time | Venue | Brochure price | Etix listing |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ladies' Luncheon, with speaker Jan Showers | 11:00 a.m. | The CrossWalk at Green Acres Baptist Church | $75 and up | $79 individual, $154 Azalea |
| Men's Luncheon, with speaker Chad Hennings | 11:15 a.m. | Cascades of Texas, 4511 Briarwood Road | $75 and up | $79 individual, $154 Azalea |
| Matinee Coronation | 2:00 p.m. | R. Don Cowan Fine & Performing Arts Center | $15 to $50 | $24 to $54 |
| Evening Coronation | 7:00 p.m. | R. Don Cowan Fine & Performing Arts Center | $30 to $85 | $38 to $89 |
The online prices are higher because Etix adds fees. For the luncheons, the ticket page shows a $150 Azalea ticket plus a $4 fee, for $154 total. Tickets are on sale now. You can buy them online at texasrosefestival.org or in person at the Cowan Center Box Office, 3900 University Blvd. The box office is open Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., and the phone number is 903-566-7424. The box office is closed on weekends, so people who buy in person have until 4 p.m. on Friday, October 16. That's the day of the Coronations.
The festival is still run by volunteers, and its own materials describe it as promoting pride in Tyler and Smith County along with the history of the rose-growing industry. Most of that story is now told across town at the Rose Garden. The early chapter, from the first two coronations through the late-1930s festivals in the General Woods Amphitheatre, happened at Bergfeld Park.
At Sovereign Place Real Estate, we love when a Tyler tradition comes back to our side of town. If you're walking to Bergfeld Park or meeting friends at the Queen's Tea and have a question about the Azalea District's historic homes, Stephanie is happy to talk it over.