Annual EventsCurated by Locals

Burning of Zozobra

Name: Burning of Zozobra
Address: Fort Marcy Park, Santa Fe, NM, Santa Fe, NM, US
Telephone: (855) 969-6272
Price range: $

Old Man Gloom

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WHEN: Friday September 4th, 2026 (always the Friday of Labor Day Weekend) Tix go on Sale July 4th. WHERE: Fort Marcy Park. (Check website for details on where to park and how to get to the field.) The burning of the 50 foot-tall effigy known as Zozobra, a.k.a Old Man Gloom, began in 1924 and has become an annual tradition for Santa Feans to burn away "doom and gloom" in time for fall.

Help the Santa Fe Kiwanis help kids. Click link above for more info.

Let go of your worries by putting them inside Santa Fe's historic troublemaker! Upload a document or a photo, choose where your gloom goes inside Zozobra or give the unique gift of gloom-riddance to someone else.

The burning of Zozobra, (Spanish for "the gloomy one") is the 1924 inspiration of artist Will Shuster, one of Santa Fe's famed Cinco Pintores, and is presented annually by the Kiwanis Club of Santa Fe, the Friday of Labor Day weekend.

Read my blog post about Zozobra.

Why We Love It

“There is no event more Santa Fe than this. Watching a 50-foot puppet go up in flames while an entire city cheers away its worries — you'll never forget it.”

Insider Tip

Get there by 4pm for a good spot. The closer you are, the more you'll feel the heat when he burns. Write your 'glooms' on paper beforehand â€” they stuff them into the effigy.

Season note: Friday before Labor Day weekend only â€” one night a year

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