This year's Savannah St. Patrick's Day Parade, the 185th edition, is Wednesday, followed by a blow out on River Street that is expected to go into the wee hours of Thursday.
In honor of St. Patrick's dedication to Christianity, the starts with a Mass at the Cathedral of St. John the Baptist. The parade then steps off at 10:15 am. It is expected that more than 400,000 people will visit Savannah to help celebrate the second largest St. Patrick's Day Parade in the United States.
If you're planning to drive in, go early. The city is quite congested all day. As many as 400,000 visitors arrive to this city adding to the nearly 200,000 people who live here.
The easiest way to drive in is to go to the Savannah Mall and catch a shuttle ($3 downtown and back). The transit spot is near the mall's carousel. The shuttles run 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. If you hope to stay downtown longer for the River Street festivities, regular CAT routes restart at 3, so you can still catch a bus back to the mall.
The activities around River Street run most of the day, but live music starts at 2 p.m. and runs late. There's also a variety of interactive games, food and, of course, cold frothy beverages.
All River Street Festivals are free and open to everyone. Adults will need to get arm bands if they plan to buy alcoholic drinks.