Spring into Beautiful Weather at Georgia's Festivals
ATLANTA, February 12, 2009 - A hearty mix of festivals stands ready to greet Georgia's visitors this spring. One can find almost anything, including live musical performances, diverse cultural experiences, community celebrations and authentic arts and crafts fairs. The Peach State's comfortable spring weather and beautiful scenery provide the perfect backdrop for springtime fun (see a combined list of festivals in this release below).
Georgia's filmmakers and musical artists thrive during the spring, with movie and music festivals entertaining people in all corners of the state. The 2009 Atlanta Film Festival will light up the Landmark Midtown Art Cinema, which last year screened 160 films selected from more than 1,600 entries representing 66 countries. A favorite Atlanta event stretching back to the late 1970s, its tradition includes such prominent filmmakers as Steven Spielberg, Julie Dash and Spike Lee. And with Georgia's film industry taking off under new tax incentives, this year is sure to be a hit.
The internationally acclaimed Savannah Music Festival is ready to debut its most artistically diverse lineup to date. For several weeks, Savannah overflows with a multitude of musical artists, styles and traditions, starting with Bonnie Raitt and The Randall Bramblett Band giving a special opening night concert. Dahlonega's Bear on the Square is a delightful mountain festival that effortlessly combines live music, delicious food, and an arts and crafts market. Twenty different acts are scheduled to hit the main stage, while workshops cover a diverse array of topics, from Old-Time Slow-Jam to Blues Harmonica. Shoppers will find a wide variety of traditional crafts and handmade items in the market. Or, head to the 22nd annual Lewis Family Homecoming and Bluegrass Festival in Lincolnton. Fifteen different acts will fill Elijah Clark State Park with music over three days.
Cultural opportunities abound throughout Georgia. Celebrating St. Patrick's Day takes a southern twist during March in Dublin. The city's St. Patrick's Festival has been going strong for 44 years and has been voted one of the Top 20 Events in the Southeast by the Southeast Tourism Society. Attendees enjoy such festivities as a barbeque cook-off, golf tournament, Leprechaun Road Race, birdhouse contest, quilt show, corned beef and cabbage dinner and St. Patrick's Parade. Valdosta hosts the Azalea International Folk Fair each year, which in 2008 became Georgia's Official International Festival. At the fair, watch dancers demonstrate styles spanning the globe, from Brazil to Indonesia, in the World Culture Folk Dance Competition. Food, games, magic, crafts and arts fill out the day.
The Inman Park Festival and Tour of Homes is a neighborhood fête that is widely regarded as Atlanta's most spirited and eclectic. Inman Park is Atlanta's first planned community, one of the nation's first garden suburbs and on the National Register of Historic Places. It exemplifies Atlanta's distinctive culture that favors green areas and parks to uninhibited development. One can find everything from antiques to handicrafts at Atlanta's biggest street market, tour turn-of-the-century Victorian homes alongside contemporary designs and conversions, or revel in dance festivals showcasing some of Atlanta's best ballet and modern dance companies.
Georgia's beautiful spring weather brings people together outdoors. Piedmont Park will once again come alive with the sounds of the Atlanta Dogwood Festival, now in its 73rd year. Hundreds of artists from around the country exhibit every kind of art imaginable and compete in the juried fine artists market containing sculpture, pottery, jewelry, photography and more. Music, food and a kids' village with activities such as face painting and rock climbing walls are fun for the whole family. Every spring, Vidalia throws a festival for Georgia's Official State Vegetable, the world famous Vidalia Sweet Onion. Roughly 8,000 people will descend on the city to see artists and crafters from throughout the southeastern states at the Vidalia Onion Festival. Nearby Vidalia Regional Airport hosts an air show during the festival, featuring military fly-bys, simulators, kid's rides, and the U.S. Special Operations 'Black Daggers' Parachute Demonstration Team.
Warner Robins' semiannual Mossy Creek Barnyard Festival is a popular destination every spring and fall, where one can see things the way they used to be. 'Ole Timers' demonstrate how to weave chair seats with corn shucks, make black pot soap over an open fire, weave Nantucket baskets, hand dip candles, build dulcimers and other traditional skills. Horseback rides, ventriloquists, home-churned ice cream and a jamboree go alongside the arts and crafts creations from 26 states. At another twice-annual festival, the Cotton Pickin' Fair in Gay, skilled artisans and antique specialists share remnants of farm life from days gone by. Return to 1910 and taste homemade jams and jellies, hunt for priceless antiques, admire skilled watercolors and oils or study the pottery and quilts. Live entertainment uplifts the atmosphere made light by good people and quality products.
Cities throughout Georgia host festivals that are unique to their communities and gems for visitors. Macon's Cherry Blossom Festival celebrates the city's more than 300,000 gorgeous Yoshino cherry trees that flower during the spring. Guests enjoy gracious southern hospitality among hot-air balloons, road races, colorful parades, historic tours and dazzling fireworks. National recording artists and military bands play on stages by night, dancing takes over the streets in a street party, and fashion shows and gala balls round out the experience. More than 100 entries and 1,000 participants animate the parade at the Pine Tree Festival in Swainsboro. Swainsboro raceway gets things moving with the Pine Tree 150 Race, while attendees size up the contestants at the bbq grill-off. The Baxley Tree Fest features food, arts and crafts, an antique tractor show, petting zoo and Friday night street dance.
More Than a Taste of Calhoun is set to be the best Taste yet. One can sample enticing food and shop for handmade crafts while listening to live music and talented storytellers. Discover a fiddling contest, food and crafts at 1890's Day in Ringgold. The 18th Annual Sacred Heart Garden Festival mixes exhibits, lectures, entertainment and unique vendors with the rare chance to tour private gardens throughout Augusta. The historic courthouse square in Forsyth is the location of the Forsythia Festival. This two day arts and crafts show is complete with children's fair, 5k run, live entertainment, and golf and horseshoe tournaments.
Georgia's flourishing tradition of spring festivals continues strong in 2009. Whether you love musical performances or artistic demonstrations, cultural experiences or community celebrations, the Peach State has a festival for you. Visit www.exploregeorgia.org and discover a festival for you.
The Georgia Department of Economic Development (GDEcD) is the state's sales and marketing arm, the lead agency for attracting new business investment, encouraging the expansion of existing industry and small businesses, locating new markets for Georgia products, attracting tourists to Georgia, and promoting the state as a location for film, video and music projects, as well as planning and mobilizing state resources for economic development.
Atlanta Dogwood Festival – April 17-19 – www.dogwood.org
Atlanta Film Festival – April 16-25 – www.atlantafilmfestival.com
Azalea International Folk Fair – March 7 – www.gainternationalfolkfair.org
Baxley Tree Fest – April 17-18 – www.baxley.org/site/page5500.html
Bear on the Square – April 17-19 – www.bearonthesquare.org
Cherry Blossom Festival – March 20-29 – www.cherryblossom.com
Cotton Pickin' Fair – May 2-3 – www.cpfair.org
Forsythia Festival – March 6-15 – http://forsythiafestival.com
Inman Park Festival and Tour of Homes – April 25-26 – www.inmanparkfestival.org
More Than a Taste of Calhoun – April 25 – www.exploregordoncounty.com
Mossy Creek Barnyard Festival – April 18-19 – www.mossycreekfestival.com
Pine Tree Festival – April 17-May 9 – www.emanuelchamber.org/2009-Pine-Tree-Festival-Timber-EXPO.71.0.html
Sacred Heart Garden Festival – April 19-25 – www.sacredheartgardenfestival.org
Savannah Music Festival – March 18-April 5 – www.savannahmusicfestival.com
St. Patrick's Festival – February 28-March 29 – www.saintpatricksfestival.com
Vidalia Onion Festival – April 25-26 – www.vidaliaonionfestival.com