Frequently Asked Questions
Jump to: Festival • Tickets • Cashless Payments • Food & Drink • Getting Here • Other
Top questions
Hogs for the Cause 2026 is happening April 10th and 11th. The festival starts at 3:30pm on Friday and 11:00am on Saturday.
If you purchased General Admission or Judges tickets: Your ticket is the QR code you received upon purchasing tickets. If you have not received this email, please reach out to Tixr Customer Service.
If you purchased Boss Hog VIP or Goin' Ham Super VIP tickets: Your Hogs wristbands will be mailed to you in the weeks leading into the festival. If you have not received them by March 27th, please reach out to us.
No. Unfortunately, there is a manual process involved in exchanging tickets and we are all hands on deck preparing for the festival, we cannot accommodate exchanges at this time.
In New Orleans at the UNO Lakefront Arena Festival Grounds located at 6801 Franklin Ave, New Orleans, LA 70122.
Kids ages 10 and under get in free! No ticket necessary.
Things you can (and should) bring:
- Blankets
- Chairs
- Sunscreen
- Sunglasses, hats, fanny packs
- Strollers
- Personal cameras (no detachable zoom lens or flash)
- A poncho
- And other typical New Orleans festival items.
Please do not bring:
- Outside food and beverages
- Pets or animals
- Glass Bottles or Containers
- Coolers or Large Bags
- Large Umbrellas
- Bicycles, skateboards, scooters
- Weapons of any kind
- Explosives, fireworks, illegal drugs and drug paraphernalia (because we know that prescription for “glaucoma” is bogus)
- Unauthorized video, camera, or audio recording equipment
- Selling of merchandise or unauthorized/unlicensed vending
- Unauthorized solicitations, handbills, stickers, sampling, give-a-ways, etc.
If you have any questions about bringing medical necessities, please contact us.
Hogs For The Cause is a rain or shine event, so please plan accordingly. New Orleans weather is often unpredictable so check the weather before heading out to the festival.
In the event that dangerous conditions occur on site, we may change our schedule or even have to cancel. In those cases, we will notify all ticket buyers via email and on our social media channels.
No. Our barbecue teams are the only ones allowed to sell food on site. If you are interested in starting a barbecue team for Hogs, let us know!
You can pay for food and drink at the festival using Credit/Debit cards, Google/Apple Pay or an RFID wristband (RFID wristbands are ONLY issued to Boss Hog VIP or Goin' Ham Super VIP guests).
Please note: to expedite lines, the event is entirely cashless.
If you purchased General Admission or Judges tickets: Your ticket is the QR code you received upon purchasing tickets, which you will be able to scan at the entrance to enter. Please note there is NO re-entry.
If you purchased Boss Hog VIP or Goin' Ham Super VIP tickets: Your Hogs wristbands will be your way to enter and re-enter the festival. Simply scan your wristband in the VIP lane and head on in!
Festival
In New Orleans at the UNO Lakefront Arena Festival Grounds located at 6801 Franklin Ave, New Orleans, LA 70122
Yes! Hogs for the Cause is a great event for people of all ages. In fact, children 10 and under get in free and do not need a ticket.
While it varies every year depending on what the teams/sponsors bring, there are often slides, kids areas, and other activities for the little ones.
Our gates open Friday at 3:30 pm and Saturday at 11:00am
On Friday, the final musical performance ends around 10:00 pm, but many of the teams start their afterparties around that time while their meats cook for the following day. These parties can often last early into the morning.
On Saturday, the final musical performance ends around 7:30 pm, with the award ceremony starting afterward and usually lasting until about 10:00 pm.
Hogs For The Cause is a rain or shine event, so please plan accordingly. New Orleans weather is often unpredictable so check the weather before heading out to the festival.
In the event that dangerous conditions occur on site, we may change our schedule or even have to cancel. In those cases, we will notify all ticket buyers via email and on our social media channels.
Things you can (and should) bring:
- Blankets
- Chairs
- Sunscreen
- Sunglasses, hats, fanny packs
- Strollers
- Personal cameras (no detachable zoom lens or flash)
- A poncho
- And other typical New Orleans festival items.
Please do not bring:
- Outside food and beverages (c’mon people, it’s a fundraiser not a freeloadin’ picnic)
- Pets or animals
- Glass Bottles or Containers
- Coolers or Large Bags
- Large Umbrellas
- Bicycles, skateboards, scooters
- Weapons of any kind
- Explosives, fireworks, illegal drugs and drug paraphernalia (because we know that prescription for “glaucoma” is bogus)
- Unauthorized video, camera, or audio recording equipment
- Selling of merchandise or unauthorized/unlicensed vending
- Unauthorized solicitations, handbills, stickers, sampling, give-a-ways, etc.
If you have any questions about bringing medical necessities, please e-mail us at info@hogsforthecause.org.
The schedule page gets posted usually the month leading into the festival. There you can find all of the artists that are playing and when/what stage they are playing on.
No. We love our furry friends but despite pets being allowed in the early days of the festival, we do not allow any pets at the event.
If you have a service animal or a medical necessity to bring a pet, please email info@hogsforthecause.org.
You cannot re-enter if you buy a general admission ticket. Re-entry is allowed if you have a Boss Hog VIP ticket or Goin' Ham Super VIP ticket.
We typically post the festival map in the week leading up to the event. Feel free to see if it is up here: http://hogsfest.org/map/
Hogs for the Cause provides accessible entrances for guests with disabilities at the main entrance of the festival grounds as well as ADA restrooms. Please email info@hogsforthecause.org for more information.
With all the delicious food at Hogs, it gets quite busy during regular meal times. We recommend planning your trip to Hogs to avoid our busiest times of Friday from 5:00 PM-7:00 PM and Saturday from 11:30 AM-2:30 PM.
Cashless Payments
While the event is still cashless, we will accept credit and debit cards, Apple and Google Pay, as well as RFID wristbands as forms of payment.
Food and Drink
Yes, in the days leading into the event, we'll post the menus here: http://hogsfest.org/menus/
We sometimes are able to post menus earlier than that, but our barbecue teams plan their menus independently of the event (and in top secret!), so we often do not have information on what they will be serving until close to the event.
Friday at Hogs has been dubbed Bacon and Wings Night. Friday is the opening day of the festival and features a full music lineup across multiple stages. Since the teams are often cooking their meats for Saturday's competition throughout the day/night, we added a Bacon Competition for fans to enjoy. The teams all cook up and serve their most decadent bacon dishes.
Since 2021, we've also added the addition of a Wings Competition to the mix, so come out Friday and enjoy chicken wings of all flavors and varieties.
Yes, especially towards the end of the event. The barbecue teams try to bring enough food to last the whole event. However, since how much food to bring is often a "best guess" it can and often does sell out. This is especially true for popular dishes.
If you see a dish you really want, we highly recommend getting there early.
Yes. Although our competing teams generally only offer meat-based dishes, there will be vegetarian food options available.
Food - The barbecue teams set their prices so it highly varies depending on the item. Typically you can expect to pay between $10-20 for a meal.
Drinks are usually between $5-10.
When we post a map in the days leading to the event, it will contain a list of locations for each of the teams. You can find the map here.
Every team sells food (while their supplies last)! Teams do sell out, so we strongly encourage a “get there early, eat everything” plan of attack.
There are 4 main judged food categories:
- Pork Ribs
- Boston Butt/Pork Shoulder
- Whole Hog
- Porkpourri
In order to be considered for the “Grand Champion” title, a team must enter at least three of the four above food categories and raise at least $4,000.00 in fundraising. In addition to the food categories, teams may compete in the remaining lagniappe categories also.
We have many bars located throughout our festival site serving a variety of beers (both domestic and craft), cocktails and non-alcoholic drinks.
Yes! Our bars will have non-alcoholic and kid-friendly options.
Getting Here
FAQs Coming soon. Check out our getting here page for more info.
Other
Hogs For The Cause is a 2-day barbecue festival full of food, music, beer, and fundraising. Join us for Bacon & Wings Night on Friday and BBQ all day Saturday. Dance the weekend away to both local and national artists while savoring all of the delicious food options from bacon boudin sushi to smokin' ribs and so much more. Join us for the tastiest BBQ festival in New Orleans!
Yes. You can make direct donations to Hogs for the Cause online or by mail. Visit our donations page for more details. To mail a donation directly to Hogs for the Cause, send checks to P.O. Box 792300, New Orleans, LA 70179. Remember: Your donations are tax-deductible to the full extent as allowed by the IRS.
In 2009, Hogs for the Cause hosted a pig roast to raise money for a boy named Ben Sarrat. Li’l Ben had been diagnosed with an incurable form of brain cancer. In that first year, roughly 200 people showed up to watch a pig turn slowly on a spit and raise money to help Ben’s family. Fast-forward a few short years (eight years and counting), and Hogs for the Cause is now one of the largest barbecue competitions and music festivals in the country. Our charitable purpose remains the same: helping families fighting pediatric brain cancer.
Registration for teams opens in October and registration must be completed online. You must fill out the form and pay your site fee and cleanup deposit when you register.