What's Happening on the Gulf Coast: Late October Into Mid-November 2026

Alright y'all, let's talk about the elephant in the room first, because I told you last week we were watching Hurricane Isaias, and you deserve the follow-up. Here is the good news, and it is genuinely good: we dodged a bullet. Isaias came ashore near Destin, Florida on Friday night, October 9 as a Category 2 with winds around 105 miles per hour, and the worst of it hit the Florida Panhandle, not our beaches. Gulf Shores and Orange Beach reported minimal damage, mostly downed trees and debris, with the main visible ding being some stucco siding blown off the Summerchase condos in Orange Beach. The evacuation order for visitors south of the Intracoastal was lifted by Saturday morning, the beaches reopened Sunday, October 11, visitors were cleared to return Monday morning, and the Flora-Bama was open again less than 24 hours after landfall, which honestly might be the most on-brand thing I have ever seen. The state emergency was extended through the end of October while cleanup wraps up, Foley has been hauling storm debris, and life here is back to normal, which is exactly what I meant when I said this coast bounces back fast.

After the Storm: What Recovery Means for Buyers and Investors

Here is the part I want you to actually hear, whether you already live here or you are looking at Baldwin County from somewhere else: the way a community handles a storm tells you more about living here than any brochure ever will. Crews were on the streets before the rain stopped, the utilities came back fast, and the tourism folks put it about as plain as it gets: "we dodged a bullet." The insurance conversation matters more than ever after a storm like this, so if you are buying, get quotes before you make an offer, know your flood zone, and do not let the beach tax catch you off guard. For sellers, the fall market is already picking back up, and for investors, watch how the off-season rental season shakes out now that the beaches are fully open. The honest read: the fundamentals of this market did not change because of one storm. The coast is open, the calendar is stacked, and the next few weeks are some of the best of the year.

One more thing worth knowing if you follow county politics: the Baldwin County Commission approved a 180-day zoning moratorium as part of the storm response, so if you are a builder or a developer with plans in the pipeline, that is worth a conversation sooner rather than later. It is a pause, not a stop, and it is mostly about making sure growth stays orderly while the county recovers. If you have questions about what it means for a specific property, reach out, that is what I do every day.

This Weekend: British Cars, the Jubilee Festival, and a Fire Arts Night

The next couple of weekends are sneaky busy, so here is your heads-up before the calendar fills up:

• The 31st Annual British Car Festival rolls into Fairhope on Saturday, October 17 from 9 AM to 3:30 PM at Fairhope United Methodist Church on South Section Street, with more than 140 classic and modern British cars on display and free admission for spectators. The club's theme this year is "The Ghosts We Drive," and if you are a car person or you just like walking a pretty small-town street in the fall, it is a great Saturday morning in Fairhope.
• Across the bay, Daphne hosts its 38th Annual Jubilee Festival on Saturday and Sunday, October 17 and 18 at Lott Park, the Eastern Shore's big fall arts and crafts festival with vendors, food, live music, and a kids' area. It is one of those classic Baldwin County community days that remind you why the Eastern Shore feels different from the beach towns.
• And on Thursday, October 22, the Arts Afire Fall Festival at the Coastal Arts Center of Orange Beach on Canal Road runs 5 to 7 PM with hot glass demos, raku pottery firings, kids' crafts, face painting, live music, and a pet costume contest. Free, and one of the best free community nights on the beach side.

Halloween Week: The Community Side of the Coast

I keep saying there is a difference between vacationing somewhere and actually living there, and Halloween week is the best proof of that all year. Here is what is worth your time:

• Trunk or Treat at The Wharf is Wednesday, October 28 at 6 PM at Portside on Main, the classic kid-friendly way to do Halloween without crossing a scary threshold.
• Foley Hometown Halloween closes down downtown Foley on Thursday, October 29 from roughly 5:30 to 8 PM with games, prizes, and the costume contest. Check visitfoley.com for the final schedule and just show up. It is the definition of a Baldwin County small-town night, and I mean that as a compliment.
• Fairhope's Witches Ride is the same night, Thursday, October 29 at 5:45 PM at the Halstead Amphitheater: a costumed charity bike ride through downtown benefiting the Baldwin Humane Society, followed by a Witches Ball. One of the most fun, most Fairhope things on the whole calendar.
• Treats on the Trail at Gulf State Park is Friday, October 30 for the little ones, and the NIRSA Region 2 Soccer Championships run October 30 through November 1 at the Foley Sports Tourism Complex, which brings a ton of visiting families into town for the weekend.
• Halloween itself, Saturday, October 31: OWA in Foley runs the Primal Fear haunted house Friday and Saturday nights through late October plus Pumpkins on Parade all month, with Wag-O-Ween for the dogs on Halloween day, and the Flora-Bama's Annual Halloween Costume Contest caps the night at the line. If you want to see this coast's community side, that is the week to be here.

On the weekly side, the Fairhope Farmers Market rolls every Thursday from 2 to 6 PM behind the Public Library, and the Coastal Alabama Farmers and Fishermen's Market keeps its Saturday market going off Miflin Road in Foley year-round. Those are the best weekly finds on this side of the county, and fall is their best season.

Early November: Songwriters, Painters, Planes, and Craft Beer

This is where the calendar gets genuinely special. Early November is the quiet, honest season down here, and the county packs the good stuff into two weeks:

• Plein Air Fairhope runs November 2 through 7, when around 60 artists set up easels all over town, from the streets to the bayfront pier, painting what they see. The paintings go up at the Eastern Shore Art Center with a reception during the First Friday Art Walk on Friday, November 6, and you can buy original Fairhope art straight from the artist. It turns the whole town into an open-air studio.
• The 42nd Annual Frank Brown International Songwriters Festival runs November 5 through 15 across Gulf Shores, Orange Beach, Pensacola, Perdido Key, and Foley: more than 200 nationally acclaimed songwriters and over 600 performances in 11 days, many of them free at places like the Flora-Bama. You wander in, sit a few feet from the person who wrote the song you love, and hear it stripped down to just them and a guitar. It is the best music week in the Southeast and almost nobody from out of town knows it yet. Full schedule at frankbrownsongwriters.com.
• The Blue Angels Homecoming Air Show is November 6 and 7 at NAS Pensacola. The show itself is staged on the base, so you cannot see the full performance from the Alabama beaches, but the jets fly transit and practice runs over the coast all weekend, and there is nothing like looking up from a Gulf Shores beach towel and seeing the Blues rip by.
• The Coastal Alabama Food Truck & Craft Beer Festival takes over the Gulf Shores Town Green and Public Beach on Saturday and Sunday, November 7 and 8 from 11 AM to 5 PM, with a dozen-plus of Alabama's favorite food trucks, local and regional craft beers, lawn games, and free admission. One of those days that feels like a neighborhood cookout with 10,000 of your closest friends.
• The Fairhope Film Festival runs November 12 through 15, a walkable showcase of independent, foreign, and documentary films across downtown Fairhope venues with filmmaker Q&As and more than 30 screenings. Details at fairhopefilmfestival.org.

A Quick Look Past Mid-November

Since a few of you always ask what is coming next, here is the honest heads-up before it sells out: White Tie Rock Ensemble's Christmas Rock Experience hits the OWA Theater on Thursday, November 19, OWA's Tree Lighting with its 36-foot tree, fireworks, and synchronized light show is set for Saturday, November 21, and the Coastal Half Marathon, 5K, and 1-Mile runs the Saturday after Thanksgiving, November 28, out of the Orange Beach Sportsplex on the Gulf State Park backcountry trails. And The Wharf keeps its game day football at Portside on Main every Saturday through November 28. I will have a full holiday guide for you in a couple of weeks, but if you are planning a Thanksgiving trip, book your spot now.

What's New Around Town: Restaurants, Business, and Roads

The coast keeps adding good spots, and a few are worth knowing whether you live here or you are thinking about moving:

• Bake Blue Bakery, a mother-daughter run shop, opened a brand-new storefront in Spanish Fort earlier this month, and Southern Sip, a new "dirty soda" shop, opened inside the Piggly Wiggly in Fairhope. Small businesses are the heartbeat of Baldwin County, and both are already finding their people.
• Half Shell Oyster House held its official ribbon cutting in downtown Foley over the summer, Coastal Roots Skin Care and Ocean Marine Group cut ribbons in Foley recently too, and BJ's Wholesale Club has been open in Foley since late September with Shake Shack still on the way at Tanger Outlets. Retail follows rooftops, and Foley keeps proving it.
• On the roads: the I-10 Mobile River Bridge and Bayway project, the largest infrastructure build in Alabama history, is officially underway after its October 2 groundbreaking, and restriping is already extending east toward the Malbis exit. The county also opened a new traffic pattern for the new Intracoastal Waterway Bridge, is resurfacing a long stretch of US-90, and just wrapped up work on several county roads around Foley. Expect some lane shifts as all of it ramps up, and know it is a short-term pain for a long-term upgrade.
• Two bigger ones for anyone watching the map: the county and Loxley approved a $16.3 million connector road extending Bedrock Boulevard to connect Highway 31 and Highway 59, including a new bridge over the Fish River, and the County Road 64 widening in the Belforest area keeps moving with new federal money and underground utility work underway this year. That corridor is going to look different in five years.
• Economically, the Foley council moved forward on rezoning roughly 121 acres for a new industrial park plus a Johnstone Supply project, Bay Minette's redevelopment into a Hilton-brand hotel is advancing on the strength of the Novelis aluminum plant momentum, and Daphne is pursuing state funding for a new recreation and fishing pier at Bayfront Park. Jobs follow rooftops, and rooftops follow jobs, and this county keeps adding both.

The Market Read for Buyers, Sellers, and Investors

The last full numbers we have, for August, showed a market that is more balanced than the wild years: in the Resort Area of Gulf Shores, Orange Beach, and Fort Morgan, the average residential sales price came in around $776,553, down from about $829,364 a year earlier, with closed sales at 156 and average days on market down to 107, while the Traditional Residential market posted a year-over-year increase. Countywide, the average home value sits around $376,000 and homes are going pending in about 54 days, with more inventory and more negotiating room than at any point since the 2021 to 2023 frenzy.

Here is the honest read for the next few weeks: if you are a buyer, you have more choices and more leverage than you have had in years, especially inland in Foley and the county towns, and the fall market after a storm often brings out motivated sellers. If you are a seller, pricing it right from day one and being ready for a slightly longer timeline is the play. If you are an investor, watch what the Frank Brown festival and the off-season do to short-term rental occupancy, because November is where the real rental math lives. And before you make an offer anywhere, get insurance quotes first. The beach tax is real, and the difference between two similar homes a mile apart can be shocking. Trust me, pictures lie. An insurance quote tells you the truth.

People Also Ask

Are the beaches in Gulf Shores and Orange Beach open after Hurricane Isaias?

Yes. Isaias made landfall near Destin, Florida on October 9, 2026, and Gulf Shores and Orange Beach reported minimal damage. The evacuation order was lifted on October 10, the beaches reopened on October 11, and visitors were cleared to return on the morning of October 12. All bridges and roads to the beaches are open, and the Flora-Bama reopened within 24 hours. Some storm debris cleanup continued through the month, so check city updates at orangebeachal.gov and gulfshoresal.gov if you are traveling.

What is there to do in Gulf Shores and Orange Beach in late October and November?

Arts Afire Fall Festival is October 22 at the Coastal Arts Center, Trunk or Treat at The Wharf is October 28, Treats on the Trail at Gulf State Park is October 30, and the Flora-Bama Halloween Costume Contest is October 31. In November, the Frank Brown Songwriters Festival runs November 5 through 15, the Coastal Alabama Food Truck and Craft Beer Festival is November 7 and 8 at Gulf Shores Public Beach, and the Blue Angels fly over the coast during their homecoming weekend November 6 and 7.

When is the Frank Brown Songwriters Festival in 2026?

The 42nd Annual Frank Brown International Songwriters Festival runs November 5 through 15, 2026 across Gulf Shores, Orange Beach, Pensacola, Perdido Key, and Foley, with more than 200 songwriters and over 600 performances, many of them free at venues like the Flora-Bama. The full lineup is at frankbrownsongwriters.com.

What is happening in Fairhope in November?

Plein Air Fairhope runs November 2 through 7 with its exhibition and sale at the Eastern Shore Art Center during the First Friday Art Walk on November 6, the Fairhope Film Festival runs November 12 through 15 downtown, and the Fairhope Farmers Market continues every Thursday from 2 to 6 PM behind the Public Library. The Witches Ride is the big Halloween-week event on October 29.

Is November a good time to visit or move to the Alabama Gulf Coast?

November is the quiet, honest season. The crowds are gone, hotel rates drop, the weather is crisp and mostly sunny, and the Frank Brown Songwriters Festival gives you a reason to come. If you want to see what year-round coastal living really feels like without the summer energy, this is the month to visit. The tropics are winding down, but keep an eye on the forecast through the end of the month, because the season is not fully over until it is over.

That is the honest rundown for the next few weeks, straight from someone who lives here. We got through the storm, the beaches are back open, and it is shaping up to be one of the best stretches of the year: the British Car Festival this weekend, Halloween week with all its small-town charm, and then the Frank Brown Songwriters Festival, which is the can't-miss week of the whole season. For the complete Halloween calendar, my Mid-October Through Halloween guide still has the full details, and the Mid-October Into Early November guide has the storm-week rundown. Come see it, whether you are visiting, relocating, or just curious what it is really like to live here. And if you are thinking about buying while you are here, that is what I do every day, so let's talk.

Got Questions?

If you have questions about any of these events, how the storm affects a pending deal, insurance, the zoning moratorium, or what it is like to live in Baldwin County year-round, I am happy to talk. No scripts, no pressure, just honest answers from someone who has been here since 2015 and helps people make these decisions every day.

Schedule a call with me or email me at andyh5710@gmail.com.

See y'all at the beach. — Andy