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People attend the opening night of A Night In Old San Antonio (NIOSA) at La Villita in 2024.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Salgu Wissmath\/San Antonio Express-News<\/p>\n
Western-style food was sold at NIOSA from a chuckwagon, shown at left behind the Mexican Market in this undated photo.<\/p>\n
Conservation Society of San Antonio<\/p>\n
A Night in Old San Antonio as seen in 1964.\u00a0<\/p>\n
File photo<\/p>\n
Revelers gather for the Conservation Society\u2019s River Festival in 1941, a forerunner of A Night in Old San Antonio.<\/p>\n
Courtesy \/ Conservation Society <\/p>\n
News that A Night in Old San Antonio will not happen next year spread quickly\u00a0after organizers announced they were hitting \u201cpause\u201d on the event.<\/p>\n
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Many\u00a0longtime revelers who grew up attending NIOSA shared their memories on social media. Others lamented not attending in April, especially if 2026 could end up being the event\u2019s last year.<\/p>\n
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The Conservation Society of San Antonio, the nonprofit that produces NIOSA, announced Wednesday that the four-day celebration, an official Fiesta event for over 75 years,\u00a0will take a hiatus in 2027<\/a> so organizers can \u201creview, retool, and reinvigorate the beloved tradition.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n Conservation society officials cited declining attendance, rising costs to produce the event and a lack of adequate space, as reasons for canceling the 2027 installment.\u00a0Attendance at NIOSA has dropped sharply in recent years\u00a0\u2014 down 48% since 2000, Conservation Society President Betty Buech\u00e9 said. The event has not been profitable the \u201cpast couple of years,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n Buech\u00e9 attributes the declining numbers<\/a> to waning interest in large events, safety concerns and high ticket and food prices. Reaction on social media supports this, with several saying they stayed away in recent years because it was becoming too expensive to attend and no longer as enjoyable.<\/p>\n ALSO READ: NIOSA canceled for 2027 as organizers ‘pause’ to regroup<\/a><\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n Despite reports of declining attendance, plenty of San\u00a0Antonians see NIOSA as an essential part of Fiesta and can\u2019t\u00a0imagine the annual celebration without\u00a0it.<\/p>\n \u201cThis one hurts,\u201d WOAI radio host\u00a0Chris Duel wrote on X<\/a>. \u201cFor those of us who grew up in San Antonio, this isn\u2019t simply the loss of another Fiesta event. It feels like losing a piece of home.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNIOSA is a true treasure of FIESTA! \u00a0Happy to help save this event in any way I can!,\u201d San Antonio Zoo President & CEO Tim Morrow wrote on X<\/a>.<\/p>\n San Antonio Explained\u00a0looks at the origins and evolution of\u00a0NIOSA<\/a>, an event with roots dating to the 1930s that\u2019s become a cherished Alamo City tradition.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n Its origins<\/p>\n A one-night harvest festival<\/a> was held in 1937 at Mission San\u00a0Jos\u00e9 as a way to celebrate the city\u2019s cultures. The event, hosted by the conservation society, was created to raise money for the group\u2019s preservation efforts. It later became known as the Indian Festival, a one-night street fair held in the fall that was inspired by the traditions of San Antonio\u2019s early days.\u00a0<\/p>\n By most accounts, the event originated with a format that would become its signature: an outdoor festival showcasing food, dance and music in sectioned areas dedicated to specific themes that celebrate the historical influences on San Antonio.<\/p>\n The fall event continued into the 1940s in various formats and names, including the River Festival and River Jubilee. In 1946, city officials, recognizing the event\u2019s growing popularity, asked the conservation society to move the one-night festival to the\u00a0spring so it could coincide with Fiesta.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n The event underwent another name change in 1948, when it was officially renamed A Night In Old San Antonio\u00a0\u2014 or NIOSA, as it soon became known. The acronym, which the conservation society later trademarked, was even used in the event\u2019s first year, according to historical accounts.<\/p>\n ALSO READ: San Antonio Explained: How Historic Market Square evolved as city\u2019s signature site<\/a><\/p>\n Its evolution<\/p>\n NIOSA became an official Fiesta event in April 1948, when the event moved to La\u00a0Villita, news accounts show. It started as a one-night event that was held on the Tuesday of Fiesta.\u00a0<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n The growing popularity of NIOSA\u00a0prompted\u00a0organizers to expand to two nights in 1954, and to three nights two years later. In 1958, the four-night format that Fiesta revelers would enjoy for decades was adopted.<\/p>\n In its early years, much of the food sold at\u00a0NIOSA was prepared by volunteers in their homes. Among the foods sold\u00a0were tamales, chili, homemade candies, kabobs, tortillas and various baked goods.<\/p>\n Volunteers have been essential to the event, manning its various booths and serving on committees that work year round. There are countless stories of volunteers who have served for decades<\/a>, and generations of families who have spent Fiesta on NIOSA grounds.<\/p>\n In recent years, roughly 10,000 volunteers have worked at\u00a0NIOSA in a single year.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n