Culture

New Orleans Second Line Parades: A Complete Group Guide

What second line parades are, how to find them, how to hire a brass band for your own private second line, and how to act when you're in one.

Last updated: May 2026

A second line parade is one of the most distinctly New Orleans things that exists. There is nothing else quite like it anywhere else in the world, and most visitors — even repeat visitors — never experience it properly.

Here’s the short version: a brass band plays, a club or organization leads the parade, and everyone else follows. That’s the second line. You just show up, fall in behind the music, and walk through the neighborhood with a few hundred of your new best friends.

For groups of 10-30, this is one of the best experiences New Orleans offers. Not a tourist attraction — a real thing that real New Orleanians do every Sunday, and have been doing for generations.

Quick Checklist

  • Check WWOZ (wwoz.org) for the weekly second line schedule — updated every Wednesday
  • Wear comfortable shoes; you’ll walk 4-6 miles over 2-3 hours
  • Bring a small amount of cash for stops at neighborhood bars along the route
  • Dress up — this is not a casual spectacle; it’s a celebration
  • Want your own? Hire a brass band 4-8 weeks in advance
  • Stay with the parade; do not wander to the front
  • Keep your group loose and moving — don’t form a wall

What Is a Second Line?

The tradition goes back to the late 1800s. Social Aid & Pleasure Clubs — New Orleans community organizations that historically provided financial support and social functions for their members — hold annual parades as a celebration. The club and the brass band they hire form the first line. Everyone who follows behind is the second line.

The parade moves through neighborhood streets with no fixed route (or a loosely announced one), stopping periodically at bars and homes along the way. It lasts 2-4 hours and covers several miles.

It is not a tourist attraction. It is not organized by the city for visitors. It is a living tradition that belongs to specific neighborhoods and communities. Visitors are welcome — always have been — but you’re guests in someone else’s celebration. Act accordingly.

The Basic Structure

Element What it is
The Social Club The organizing group — they hired the band and planned the route
The First Line The club’s members, usually in formal attire with matching jackets/sashes
The Brass Band 8-15 musicians — sousaphone, snare, bass drum, horns, a singing leader
The Second Line Everyone who follows — hundreds of people on a good Sunday
The Route Roughly 4-6 miles through the neighborhood, 2-4 hours
The Stops Bars, community spaces, sometimes private homes

How to Find Second Lines

The Official Source: WWOZ

WWOZ (wwoz.org) — New Orleans’ community radio station — maintains the definitive second line parade calendar. Check the “Parade Calendar” section. New schedules are typically published mid-week for the coming Sunday.

Most second lines run on Sunday afternoons, September through June. The season slows during summer (too hot, even by New Orleans standards) and stops entirely during Mardi Gras season when the city’s parade schedule is different.

Where They Start

Second lines typically start in their home neighborhood: Central City, the Seventh Ward, the Tremé, Uptown. The starting point and approximate route are announced in advance. Starting times are listed but treat them loosely — New Orleans time means the parade starts when the parade starts.

What to Expect When You Arrive

  • Show up at the listed start time and look for the crowd
  • The brass band will warm up and then kick off — you’ll hear it before you see it
  • Join the crowd that’s following the band
  • There are no tickets. No wristbands. No ropes.
  • Vendors line the route selling water, beer, snowballs
  • Neighborhood bars open their doors and set up outside service

How to Act in a Second Line

This matters. The second line is a community tradition, not a performance staged for visitors.

Do:

  • Dance — you are expected to participate, not watch
  • Buy things from vendors along the route (this is how they make their living)
  • Stop at the bars along the way
  • Dress up — people take their outfits seriously
  • Stay loose and move with the crowd
  • Clap, wave, holler — this is a celebration

Don’t:

  • Push to the front — the front belongs to the first line
  • Block intersections or create a wall that stops local traffic
  • Treat it like a photo opportunity while standing still
  • Blast your own music over the band
  • Take up space in a way that disrupts the flow

If you’re with a large group, spread out. A cluster of 20 tourists moving as a unit is the thing that creates friction. Flow with the parade, not through it.

What to Wear

Second line dressing is its own art form. The Social Aid & Pleasure Clubs put serious money and thought into their looks — matching custom suits, elaborate hats, fans, parasols.

You’re not expected to match the club. But this isn’t a spectator sport where you show up in whatever you grabbed that morning.

The basic standard:

  • Nice shoes (that you can walk in and don’t mind getting scuffed)
  • Something that shows you made an effort — bright colors, a dress, a button-down, something with personality
  • Comfortable but not sloppy

For groups: Coordinating colors or wearing matching bandanas or hats is completely appropriate and well-received. It shows you took the tradition seriously.

What not to wear: Running shoes and athletic shorts tell everyone you wandered over from a hotel and didn’t know what you were walking into.

Hiring a Brass Band for a Private Second Line

This is one of the best group activities New Orleans offers. You hire a brass band, announce a starting point, and lead your group through the streets. The band plays, people follow, and for 45-90 minutes your group has its own parade.

It is as good as it sounds.

What It Looks Like

  • The band shows up to your starting location
  • They play traditional New Orleans brass band music
  • Your group follows behind
  • The band takes you through a neighborhood — usually a mix of preplanned and improvised route
  • Other locals often join in

Private second lines are common for:

  • Bachelorette parties
  • Corporate retreats
  • Wedding parties (post-ceremony or pre-reception)
  • Milestone birthdays
  • Reunions
  • Large group arrivals into a venue

Finding and Booking a Brass Band

There are dozens of working brass bands in New Orleans. Most are available for private events. Ask your accommodation host, check local event companies, or search for established bands.

What to discuss when booking:

  • Duration (45 minutes, 60 minutes, 90 minutes)
  • Starting location
  • Number of people in your group
  • Whether you want a fixed route or a roaming format
  • Any specific songs (they have a repertoire; requests are usually fine)

Book 4-8 weeks ahead for popular dates — weekends, especially around events. During Mardi Gras, Jazz Fest, and other major festivals, brass bands are extremely booked.

Gratuity: Budget for a tip in addition to the booking fee. This is expected and appreciated.

Cost Range

Pricing varies by band, duration, and date. Expect to budget meaningfully for this experience — it’s a professional performance. The per-person cost for a group of 20-30 is typically quite reasonable for what you get.

Don’t lowball. These musicians are professionals, this tradition is their livelihood, and a good brass band can make your entire trip.

Where to Watch vs. Where to Follow

For first-timers who want to understand the tradition before joining in, watching the beginning of a second line from the side and then joining the second line once it passes is completely appropriate.

Good observation points:

  • The starting spot, before the parade kicks off — you’ll see the club assemble, the band warm up, the neighborhood gather
  • Any intersection along the route where you can see the band approaching from a distance

When to join:

  • Once the parade passes your position, simply step in and follow
  • There’s no admission, no ticket, no announcement — just fall in with the crowd

The Music

The brass band tradition in New Orleans is built on a specific repertoire:

  • Traditional hymns and spirituals, played uptempo
  • New Orleans funk standards
  • Hip-hop songs rearranged for brass (more common now, especially with younger bands)
  • Call-and-response patterns between the band leader and the crowd

The snare drum leads the beat. The sousaphone holds the bottom. The horns carry the melody. And a good band makes you feel the music before you hear it because of how it moves through a narrow street.

If you know nothing about this music, that’s fine. Your body will know what to do.

Pro Tips

  1. Wear the right shoes. Second lines cover 4-6 miles on asphalt and uneven sidewalks. You will regret heels. You will also regret filthy sneakers if you overdressed everything else.

  2. Hydrate before you go. The excitement plus the dancing plus the New Orleans heat will get to you faster than you expect. Vendors sell water but it’s easier to start prepared.

  3. Keep your group’s phones charged. You’ll be moving through multiple neighborhoods over several hours. Dead phone = lost group member.

  4. Buy something from the vendors. Cold water, snowballs, cold beer — this is their event too, and they’ve set up specifically for this.

  5. If you hire a band, brief your group beforehand. Explain what a second line is. Explain the culture. The group that arrives knowing what they’re doing will have three times the experience of the group that shows up cold.

  6. Don’t try to lead the band. They know where they’re going. Your job is to follow.

  7. Video is fine; standing still to video is not. Keep moving. Film while you walk.

Pairing a Second Line with Your Trip

Second lines run on Sunday afternoons. That’s the anchor for your Sunday schedule.

The Sunday second line day:

Time Activity
Morning Slow start, brunch at home base
12-1 PM Walk or drive to second line starting neighborhood
1-4 PM Second line (check WWOZ for exact time)
4-6 PM Rest, freshen up
Evening Dinner, then Frenchmen Street or early night before Monday departures

This is the best possible use of a Sunday in New Orleans if your timing works out. Nothing else you can do in three hours is as uniquely New Orleans.

Groups of 10-30: Where to Stay

For groups doing a private second line, your accommodation’s starting location matters. Most brass bands can meet you at your rental and begin the parade from there — which is a spectacular way to open a corporate retreat, a wedding weekend, or a milestone birthday trip.

Castleday Retreats — Three private villas in the Bywater, each sleeping up to 30. The Bywater location is ideal for second lines: you’re deep in the neighborhood where this tradition lives. Hiring a band to kick off from your villa and move through the Bywater and Marigny is a legitimate once-in-a-lifetime experience for a group. Private pools and full common areas mean the party continues after the parade.

The Syd — Multiple villas in the Lower Garden District, each sleeping up to 22. Easy streetcar access means you can get to any starting neighborhood efficiently. If you’re hiring a private band, Lower Garden District makes a natural starting point for a parade through Uptown streets.

Book the Experience

A second line — public or private — belongs on every group itinerary. It is the thing that makes New Orleans different from every other city where people go to have a good time.

For accommodations that put your group in the heart of the culture:

  • Castleday Retreats – Bywater, private villas, up to 30/villa
  • The Syd – Lower Garden District, multiple villas, up to 22/villa