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The oldest city in the US state of Georgia, Savannah has southern charm in spades. With its cultural essence, antebellum architecture, restaurants with a creative bent, stylish boutiques & haunted stories, this southern escape is brimming during October. With most of the festivals this month and the pleasant temperature, this is a detailed guide to visiting Savannah during October.
Festivals In Savannah
Savannah Greek Festival
Celebrated for almost 67 years, this festival evokes the Grecian vibes in you. This three-day festival is culturally exploding with Greek food on the menu, traditional dance & music, church tours as well as plenty of stalls to shop. Nevertheless, the festival’s primary focus is food and has everything from familiar Gyros & Greek salads to authentic food dishes such as Spanakopita, comprising spinach with feta cheese, Dolmades having rice, beef & herbs in grape leaves, Greek lamb & chicken, the famous desserts such as Baklava, which has pecan and spices, Finika are honey dipped spiced cookies, Kourabiedes which are buttered cookies and a lot more.
- Location: St Paul’s Hellenic Centre
- Date: October 12th to October 14th
Annual Oktoberfest
Even though Oktoberfest has its root in Germany, people celebrate German heritage and culture along Savannah’s waterfront. This three-day festival is an exciting celebration with German cuisine, music, dance, and Savannah’s renowned Wiener dog races. Traditional German dishes such as pretzels, brats, cheese beer dip, kalte ente with German beers selection are sold by food vendors. Alongside, artists showcase painting, pottery, jewelry, and photography.
- Location: Rousakis Riverfront Plaza
- Date: October 6th-8th
Savannah Film festival
For ardent film lovers, Savannah Film Festival hosts an array of competitive film screenings, workshops, panels as well as award ceremonies. This is an 8-day event where cinematic creativity is revered through submissions from emerging filmmakers to award-winning professionals. Tickets to individual events can be purchased at savannahboxoffice.com, and the Savannah pass starts from $100 and has access to all screenings and panels. Each year more than 63,000 individuals attend the festival.
- Location: Downtown Savannah
- Date: 22nd October to 29th October
Ghost Tours
Savannah has a reputation for spooky history, and October is the Halloween month indeed. There are plenty of ghost tours in Savannah, a few of which are for strong-hearted and a few are child-friendly tours. On this tour, one can learn about the haunted history of Savannah, visit the Ghost City Haunted Pub Crawl, stay at a haunted house or witness the famous ghost sightings such as Marshall House, Kehoe House, 17thHundred90Inn, and a few more. Ghost City Tours is Savannah’s group tour specialist who arranges tours, spooky accommodations, and events overall.
Ghost tours such as The Beyond Good And Evil Tour and The Dead Of Night Ghost Tour combine elements of ghosts, occult, and demons through the narration of spooky stories, explore haunted locations, the cemetery as well as the Ghost City Haunted Pub Crawl has a spooky fun night with drinks. The Pirates House, The Olde Pink House, and Moon River Brewing Company are a few of Savannah’s haunted restaurants with amazing food.
Shalom Y’all Jewish Food Festival
Celebrating Jewish culture and heritage, this annual event is presented by Congregation Mickve Israel. Having traditional cuisine, music, and dance, this festival has live music, magic shows, puppeteers, and so much more. Jewish delicacies such as potato latkes, homemade challah, blintzes, noodle kugel, corned beef sandwiches, hummus, and brisket in the view of historic homes and Forsyth fountain makes this event scenic and culturally alluring.
Savannah Pride Festival
One of Savannah’s prime festivals, the Savannah Pride Festival has colorful murals lined across the streets, and unique shopping stalls can be witnessed across every corner. Also, one can learn about Savannah’s social efforts for the LGBTQIA+ community at First City Pride Center. Another festival, such as Mermaid Festival, can be gravitating, which is celebrated at Tybee Island, Savannah’s Beach.
Scenic Sights In Savannah
Savannah has plenty of scenic sights to bask in, similar to its cultural essence. Here are the few prime ones in October.
Pumpkin Patches
If Fall had a mascot, there is no other option than pumpkin. Although Savannah’s Historic District is kinda crowded for pumpkin patches and thus, the outskirts of the city are the best options. Poppell Farms has a huge 10-acre pumpkin patch with pony rides and pumpkins all around, as well as celebrates Halloween with dark, haunted activities. Madrac Farms & Holiday Farms are the other two options for pumpkin picking, corn maze, farm animals, and so on.
Trolley Tour Of Savannah
The trolley tours of Savannah give a local essence of Savannah by a tour of its streets and attractions. Both Old Town Trolley Tours & Old Savannah Tours give us a glimpse of the history of Savannah while touring around the town. The cobblestone streets, historic buildings, housing shops & renowned restaurants, along with the scenic view, make the best of it.
Visit Savannah’s Oldest Historic Sites
Be it the First African Baptist Church, the Congregation Mickve Israel, which is the third-oldest Jewish congregation in America, the only synagogue in North America having Gothic style architecture, as well as the Cathedral Basilica of St John the Baptist, a photographed landmark in Savannah are few of the oldest religious sites exuding the cultural essence of Savannah.
Also, Bonaventure Cemetery dating back to the 1700s, is one of Savannah’s famous destinations for Southern Gothic architecture and design. The Davenport House Museum, the oldest brick structure in the city, has an array of artifacts of life in the 1800s as well as the Pin Point Heritage Museum, which reflects about Gullah Geechee community, are some places for history buffs.
Must Visit Restaurants In Savannah
If you wish to have a meal in a historical setting, a reservation at The Pirates House will make you travel back in time. Established in 1973 as a refuge for seafarers, this place is a great dining affair for the family.
The Oldie Pink House with opulent interior and classic southern food, Vics On The River, which is located in the historic 19th-century warehouse with an upscale dining experience, and The Grey is a retro-modern eatery, Mrs. Wilke’s Dining Room with wholesome Savannah’s dining experience, Clary’s cafe for best breakfast in Savannah, Fog & Fig Cafe for health conscious individuals and Leopold’s Icecream for delectable dessert are few of the best restaurants worth trying in Savannah.
Places To Stay In Savannah
Savannah has accommodations to suit all budgets ranging from hotels and motels, historic inns, bed & breakfasts run by families, haunted hotels, vacation rentals, and even camping options. The elegant Marshall House, the upscale Kehoe House, and the oldest hotel, 17thHundered90Inn, are haunted hotels but still an upscale stay.
Gastonian, The Inn On West Liberty, and Green Pam Inn are a few Bed & Breakfast options starting from a minimum of $216 for a day. Lucky Savannah Vacation Rentals, Savannah Vacation Collection, My Beach House Vacation Rentals as well as historic inns such as River Street, President’s Quarter Inn, Historic Inns of Savannah, and Planters Inn On Reynolds Square are a few other accommodation choices. The price range starts from $176 for the latter.