The new year is filled with exciting things to celebrate and experience in Oakland. With BIG games coming to the Bay Area and new additions to signature city-wide annual events, restaurant openings, legendary anniversaries, and inspiring community activities – 2026 is going to be another amazing year in The Town! Check out the many reasons to come to Oakland, and while you’re here, plan to stay awhile and enjoy all that The Town has to offer!
WHAT’S NEW IN OAKLAND 2026
SPORTS
Pickle Athletics Opening
Oaklands first and only indoor social pickleball club has just opened! Pickle Athletics offers Pickleball, a cafe, sauna, fitness, wine and more! Anyone can book a court and play anytime or sign up for one of their special events - on court or off! Pickleathletics.com
HBCU Flag Football
As part of Oakland’s Super Bowl week celebrations, the city proudly invites the community to the Divine 9 & HBCU Flag Football Classic, taking place Friday, February 6th from 3–7 PM on the campus of Laney College. This free, family friendly event brings together food, fun, music, culture, and the vibrant spirit of the Divine 9 and Historically Black Colleges and Universities for an unforgettable afternoon of pride and community connection. Attendees can enjoy lively entertainment, cheer on dynamic flag football matchups, and experience the rich traditions that make Oakland a hub of culture and creativity. Reserve your free tickets today at Visitoakland.com.
Super Bowl LX Official Events
Oakland’s great location makes it a perfect place to stay during Super Bowl LX. If people are fortunate to have tickets to the game – they are just 40 minutes from Levi’s Stadium. If they don’t have tickets – not to worry! The Bay Area Host Committee (BAHC) announces the BAHC Live! Oakland Fan Zone, a community celebration featuring the official Bay Area Super Bowl Watch Party in the East Bay. The free public event will take place on Sunday, February 8 from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. at the Henry J. Kaiser Center for the Arts, bringing the excitement of the game directly to Oakland families, local businesses, and the vibrant East Bay community. Stay in The Town and celebrate Super Bowl LX in one of the Best Small Cities in the U.S.! Visitoakland.com
FIFA World Cup Official Events
Oakland is proud to be part of the FIFA World Cup festivities taking place in June. Watch for official FIFA events happening in Oakland as well as restaurants and hotel offers. Located just 40 minutes from Levi’s Stadium, Oakland is a perfect place to call home during the Worl Cup games. Stay in the #1 Best Food City in the U.S., enjoy the cuisine, culture and community of Oakland in addition to attending the FIFA events.
RESTAURANT OPENINGS
Reem’s
Reem’s California will make its triumphant return to Oakland, with a flagship bakery in Jack London Square this spring. The space will feature a worker-owned café alongside an expanded wholesale production kitchen, bringing fresh, culturally rooted Arab breads and spreads to more communities across the Bay area.
Flour + Water Pizza Shop
In early 2026, Flour + Water Hospitality Group opens Flour + Water Pizza Shop on the street level of The Lark Uptown at 24th and Harrison in Oakland. The West Coast pizza concept from co-chefs Thomas McNaughton + Ryan Pollnow was born from the team’s full-service Flour + Water Pizzeria in San Francisco’s North Beach neighborhood. The chefs are known for their "slow dough" approach and use of high-powered electric deck ovens that result in 13'' pizzas with a lightly charred cornicione and sturdy structure. Beyond the hot pies, the Pizza Shop menu features antipasti, salads, Double8 Dairy soft-serve, and a curated selection of wine, beer and non-alcoholic beverages. Flourandwater.com
Saints Smokehouse
Celebrity chef and Food Network Chopped Champion, Chef Rashad Armstead is opening Saints Smokehouse this February in a new Downtown location on 13th Street. This restaurant will be more than just an experience; it will have Chef Rashad’s heart and soul in every element of the space and in the smokin’ bites. Serving delicious comfort food and award-winning barbecue, Saints Smokehouse celebrates tradition and community.
Real Cutie Pies
This newly opened dessert shop in Downtown Oakland, is located at 341 17th Street. The shop specializes in individually sized desserts known as Cutie Pies, featuring a rotating menu that changes weekly. Guests can enjoy a variety of popular flavors including Peach Cobbler, Banana Pudding, Apple Crisp, Horchata, and Pecan Pie, Vegan options available. The Weekly rotating menu encourages guests to discover new and limited flavors. Realcutiepies.com
CULINARY EVENTS
Oakland Restaurant Week
Oakland Restaurant Week returns March 12 - 22, 2026 and features specially-designed dining experiences and offers from 165+ restaurants including local gems, food trucks, Michelin-starred restaurants and newly opened eateries. It’s ten days of lunch and dinner specials, and infinite possibilities of deliciousness. Oakland Restaurant Week is about celebrating Oakland’s diverse collection of restaurants and the talented chefs that give the #1 Best Food City in the U.S. its vibrancy. The program is hosted by Visit Oakland and offered at no cost for all Oakland restaurants to participate. Oaklandrestaurantweek.org
Create Your Own Tea Workshops
Teas With Meaning offers Create Your Own Tea Blend Workshops biweekly throughout 2026 at several partnered restaurants and community spaces across Oakland. These intimate, hands-on workshops invite guests to slow down, connect, and craft a custom loose-leaf tea blend using thoughtfully sourced herbs and botanicals. Each experience includes guided storytelling around tea traditions, ingredient education, and time to create one or more personalized blends to take home.
Workshops will be hosted on a rotating schedule at participating Oakland venues, allowing guests to experience tea in welcoming, local spaces while supporting small businesses. Guests can participate by reserving a spot, arriving ready to explore flavor, wellness, and intention, and leaving with a deeper connection to tea and community. Withmeaning.org
Preserved Culinary Workshops
Preserved is a retail culinary shop and workshop space in the heart of the Rockridge neighborhood. In addition to offering a selection of artisanal food products alongside high-quality, do-it-yourself fermentation supplies and kitchen tools, Preserved hosts hands-on workshops 3-4 times a week. Their workshops are technique-driven, and feature take-away items to continue the processes you learn at home. From sourdough bread baking, to kimchi, pickling and jam making; dumpling and pastas, koji and miso making, their expert instructors cover a broad range of food preservation and scratch-made cooking skills. In 2026 Preserved introduces FREE Friday community events including Demos, Food & Culture Swaps, Cookbook Swaps, Maker Spotlights and a gathering we are calling "Making in Community" which brings people together to make/preserve a large batch of something seasonal. Preservedgoods.com
CULTURAL & COMMUNITY EVENTS
Black Panther Party 60th Anniversary
In 2026, “Resistance, Resilience and Survival” will be the theme as the Black Panther Party Museum commemorates the 60th anniversary of the Black Panther Party’s founding. Two major exhibitions will draw from the Party’s archives, as well as smaller installations, all of which will offer visitors rare access to original documents, photographs, and ephemera to tell the story of the Panthers. At the cornerstone of the Museum’s programming will be conversations with veteran Panthers, movement elders, scholars, artists, and organizers, as well as workshops, film screenings, cultural events and more. Blackpantherpartymuseum.com
Summer Opera Festival
West Edge Opera presents the 2026 Summer Opera Festival on Lake Merritt in the historic Opera Scottish Rites Center. The 2026 season includes Britten's Turn of the Screw, Handel's Rinaldo and the west coast premiere of Geter's American Apollo conducted by Oakland Symphony Music Director Kedrick Armstrong. The Festival runs August 1-16, 2026. Westedgeopera.org
Oakland Style
The annual five-day celebration of art, fashion, music, cuisine and culture - Oakland STYLE, returns October 8 – 12, 2025 and introduces several new and exciting events along with many signature favorites. Guests will enjoy a cocktail event and mixology competition, a fashion design competition, A Taste of Style dinner and fashion show, High Tea + High Fashion at the Claremont Club & Spa, art walks, sneaker workshops and exhibits, live music events, an epic block party and so much more. Oakland STYLE is not to be missed! Oaklandstyle.com
OAKLAND AIRPORT UPDATES
Alaska Airlines is expanding its footprint at Oakland San Francisco Bay Airport (OAK) with the launch of four new daily, year-round nonstop flights to San Diego International Airport (SAN). Service will begin on April 22, 2026. The new service will be operated on Embraer E175 aircraft, offering travelers a comfortable and efficient way to connect between two of California’s most vibrant coastal cities. Iflyoak.com
About Oakland
Oakland celebrates its diverse community, artistic vibe, beautiful scenery, locally owned shops, multi-cultural cuisine and civic pride. Located on the east side of the Northern California Bay Area, Oakland is bordered by 19 miles of coastline to the west and rolling hills to the east. It is conveniently located near three major airports and can be easily accessed via railway, bus or ferry. Measuring 78.5 square miles, Oakland is the eighth largest city in California. The Town is home to numerous parks, family attractions, theaters, museums, live music venues and performing arts companies.
About Visit Oakland
Visit Oakland is a non-profit organization marketing Oakland, California as a travel destination.
Visit Oakland offers a wide variety of complimentary services and materials for travelers interested in visiting Oakland. For more information, check out visitoakland.com. Want to share the Oakland love with the world? Follow @visitoakland on Instagram, Facebook, Tik Tok, and LinkedIn. #visitoakland #oaklandloveit
# # #
