Don’t miss out on this fantastic chance to support the outreach programs @ The Sandbox Children’s Museum on Hilton Head Is. and win 2 Jetblue tickets and a 3 day, 2-night stay at a Marriott Vacation Club.

Purchase tickets online here. Only 500 tickets will be sold for this raffle.

Sandbox @ the Stables
10AM-2PM Mon. May 27 2019
Lawton Stables in Sea Pines Resort, Hilton Head Is.

The Sandbox Children’s Museum on Pope Avenue will be closed on Memorial Day.

Hosted by Lawton Stables in Sea Pines Resort

Lawton Stables
190 Greenwood Dr.
Hilton Head Island, SC 29928

Sandbox @ the Stables is a Memorial Day Celebration benefiting The Sandbox. Learn more here. 

Activities (some free, some require activity tickets) scheduled include:

• Craft projects
• Inflatable water slides and bounce houses and a mini train ride!
• Pony rides
• Facepainting
• Family games
• “Island Explorer” Corner: Excavation Station, I3 (Imagine.Invent.Inspire.) Makerspace, Mad Scientist, Spin the Wheel (Everyone’s a winner!) and Friends from The Coastal Discovery Museum and The Outside Foundation!

The Cowpoke Caper Parade is back again at High Noon. Come dressed as your favorite cowpoke and bring your cowpoke name – creativity is key. Free bandanas to the first 50 entries.

New this year: a visit from “Captain Jack Sparrow.”

Food available for purchase.

Admission is $5 per person; tickets for concessions and activities are $1 each(some activities are free). Sandbox Annual Members receive $5 in concession tickets for each paid admission. Become a member here.

$6 per vehicle for entry into Sea Pines Resort gate.

Park and Ride: Guests parking is at the Trolley Stop inside the Greenwood Dr. Sea Pines Gate. Ride the free trolley to Lawton Stables. (There is NO Event parking at Lawton Stables)

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The Sandbox Children’s Museum is a SouthernMamas.com advertiser 

Join the Forsyth Farmers’ Market for an afternoon of fun, good food, live music and refreshing beverages on Sun. April 28 2019. Activities for kids as well. All funds raised go to support the mission of the Forsyth Farmers’ Market.

Forsyth Farmers Market picnic @ Old Dairy Farm
Sun. April 28 2019, 4-7PM
2500 Tennessee Ave
Savannah, GA 31404-3123
Hosted by Forsyth Farmers’ Market

Purchase tickets online here.

Save the date for Savannah Children’s Museum annual Bug Fest 2019.

Savannah Children’s Museum will host its annual Bug Fest event Sat. May 25, 10AM-4PM.

Included in daily admission and FREE for members, Bug Fest is one Coastal Heritage Society’s biggest events of the year, involving demonstrations and activities all dealing with our creepy crawly friends. Find info on how to become a member here. 

Savannah Children’s Museum
655 Louisville Rd
Savannah, GA 31401
(912) 651-4292

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CHS Summer Camps

Don’t forget, Coastal Heritage Society Summer Camps are now open for registration.
Spots go quickly, so register now to ensure your child has THE best week of summer camp they could ask for. Visit www.chsgeorgia.org/camps to learn more.

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SCM Special Open Days & Closures

April 22: Special Open Day at SCM & Earth Day Programs
May 12: All Coastal Heritage Society sites FREE for mothers & grandmothers in honor of Mother’s Day
May 20-May 21: Special Open Day at SCM
May 25- Bug Fest @ Savannah Children’s Museum
June 3-July 12: Summer Camps at Savannah Children’s Museum, Georgia State Railroad Museum. Details here. 

Coastal Heritage Society is a SouthernMamas.com advertiser 

Join Crowned Elite Athletics in Savannah for a fun filled skills day when school is out on Fri. April 19 2019, 9AM-3PM.

Levels 1 – 5 skills camp, focused on perfection and progression. Tumbling, Stunting, Jumping and Flexibility. Become the best cheerleader you can be.

Bring a lunch.

Spring Fling One-Day Camp
9AM-3PM Fri. April 19 2019
Open to the public. Ages 5 & older.

$55 ONLINE REGISTRATION / $65 AT DOOR

Register online here or call (912) 308-5719.

Crowned Elite Athletics, (912) 308-5719, crownedeliteathletics.com, 202 Bourne Blvd, Suite 160 Savannah, GA 31408, Crowned Elite Athletics is a SouthernMamas.com advertiser

Celebrate Easter 2019 on the Savannah River. Join the Savannah Riverboat Cruises family, including the Easter Bunny, for their annual Easter Sunday Brunch Cruise or Easter Dinner Cruise on the Savannah River.

After brunch, children will meet the Easter Bunny, have photos taken and receive a special Easter surprise on the boat.

Details here.

Easter Cruises

2019 Easter Brunch Cruise
Prices: Adult: $63.95 – Child (ages 5-12): $35.95; Children 4 & under are free

Join the Savannah Riverboat family, including the Easter Bunny, for their annual Easter Sunday Brunch Cruise! All your favorite breakfast and lunch entrees will be served on the 1.5 hour brunch cruise. After brunch, children can enjoy pictures with the Easter Bunny and receive a special Easter Egg surprise. Venture up to the top deck for a live narration by the Captain while taking in the sights of historic Savannah.

April 21st; Boarding at 12pm; Sailing 1-2:30pm

Details here.

2019 Easter Dinner Cruise
Prices: Adult: $63.95 – Child (ages 5-12): $35.95; Children 4 & under are free

Celebrate Easter on the Savannah River. Join Savannah Riverboat family, for their annual Easter Dinner Entertainment Cruise. Enjoy their delicious dinner buffet on this 2 hour dinner cruise. Bring your family and friends and come take in the sights and sounds of historic Savannah.

April 21st; Boarding at 6pm; Sailing 7-9pm

Groups of 25 or more, please contact the group sales department for discounted pricing information.

Details here.

Savannah Riverboat Cruises is a SouthernMamas.com advertiser

Here’s your chance to have professional family photos made in an ideal Savannah springtime backdrop in Forsyth Park and support a good cause at the same time.

Book a slot for your family photos at a Spring Family Photo Fundraiser, 4-6PM on Sun. April 7 2019 in Forsyth Park, Savannah.

For $100 you get to keep all the photos taken during your shoot. Proceeds support the Montessori Education Society of Savannah.

Book your portrait session online here.

Talented Savannah photographer Yanir Yakabovits  of YY Images is donating his time to help Montessori Education Society of Savannah raise additional funds to support upcoming Montessori training for teachers.

Springtime is a fun time to visit Wormsloe State Historic Site in Savannah. Events include:

Build A Fort, Sat. April 13 2019 @ Wormsloe State Historic Site

Noble Jones built his own fortified home and you can too. Join us for a day of construction to build your own (cardboard) colonial fort. This this is a fun fortified architecture session for the whole family. Come prepared to make a mess.

Activities run from 10 am to 12 pm and repeat 2 pm to 4 pm.

Admission: $2 – $10
Saturday, April 13, 2019
10AM-4 PM
912-353-3023.
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Full Moon Hike, Sat. May 18 2019 @ Wormsloe State Historic Site

Put on your hiking shoes, bring a flashlight, and come to a full moon hike in the Wormsloe maritime forest. Get a rare glimpse of the twilight and night time wildlife that make Wormsloe their home. The hike will start at the Visitors Center and be approximately 2 hours on a 3 mile trail.

Sunset will be at 8:02PM and moonrise will be at 8PM. Registration is limited, please register in advance by calling the park office (912-353-3023).

Admission: $4 – $12
Saturday, May 18, 2019
7:30-10PM
912-353-3023.

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War of Jenkin’s Ear, Sat. May 25 2019

It is 1742 and the Spanish are coming! Learn about the War of Jenkins Ear and Georgia’s role in the 1739 – 1748 war between Britain and Spain. Join us for a presentation about the conflict at the Visitors Center at 10:00 am and 2:00 pm followed by military drills and black powder weapons demonstration.

Admission: $2 – $10.
Saturday, May 25, 2019 10AM-4PM
912-353-3023.

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Wormsloe State Historic Site
7601 Skidaway Rd.
Savannah, Georgia 31406

Come one come all to the most magical event in Savannah, the Happily Ever After Ball.

Have your little ones put on a costume and meet their favorite princess or pirate. Get dolled up at Rapunzel’s hair palace or have a sword fight with Captain Jack. Go under the sea with a magical mermaid or catch a chill with Anna and Elsa. There’s always dancing, delicious treats and fabulously fun things to see and do.

This annual event is presented by Tara Skinner Weddings and Events. Tickets sell out EVERY YEAR so buy yours now.

100% of the proceeds from sponsorships and ticket sales will go to the local Savannah charity, the Coastal Children’s Advocacy Center. Please email crystal@taraskinnerevents.com for questions.

Happily Ever After Ball
Sun. March 31, 2019
10AM – 12PM OR 1-3PM (2 different sessions)
@ Brockington Hall, 213 East Hall St. Savannah, GA 31401
Cost: $20 per person (adults & children must purchase tickets – children younger than 1 year are free)

Purchase tickets via Eventbrite here.

FREE Chick Hatchery 

The beloved 4-H Chick Hatchery tradition will be at Savannah Mall for 2019.

This favorite FREE Savannah Easter tradition, the Chick Hatchery, will start Wed. April 17 and run through Fri. April 19 2019 10AM-8PM, indoors near the Easter Bunny at Savannah Mall.

Kids of all ages can watch the chicks emerge from their eggs and hold a newly hatched chick. For more than two decades, Chatham County Cooperative Extension 4-H has run the hands-on display hatchery during the Easter season. (912) 652-7981 Kids of all ages can watch the chicks emerge from their eggs and hold a newly hatched chick.

For more than two decades, Chatham County Cooperative Extension has run the hands-on display hatchery during the Easter season.

(Please note the hatchery is at the Savannah Mall in 2019, not the Oglethorpe Mall where it was in 2017.)

Easter Egg Hunts 2019

SouthernMamas.com Easter Egg Hunts Guide 2019 includes free egg hunts, Easter festivities in Savannah, Richmond Hill, Bloomingdale, Hilton Head Is.

The annual Savannah chick hatchery, where kids can hold newly hatched chicks, will be @ Savannah Mall.  For more than two decades, Chatham County Cooperative Extension 4-H has run the free, hands-on display hatchery during the Easter season.

Get all the Easter Egg Hunt & Chick Hatchery details here.

Headed down to Pope Avenue for Hilton Head Island’s Annual St. Patricks Day Parade this Sunday March 17 2019?

Then come by and play for a few minutes at The Sandbox Children’s Museum on Hilton Head Is.

The Sandbox Children’s Museum will be open 1-3PM Sun. March 17 2019 with FREE General Admission.

Small concessions and facepainting available for purchase. Space and activities limited in the event of inclement weather.

Walking traffic only is strongly suggested as one side of Pope Ave will be closed most of the afternoon for the parade and there is only one way in and one way out of the museum parking lot so driving/parking is not recommended.

Free museum admission
Sun. March 17 2019, 1-3PM
@ The Sandbox Children’s Museum
18 Pope Ave.
Hilton Head Island, SC 29928

The Sandbox Children’s Museum is a SouthernMamas.com advertiser 

Spring Celebration All About Birds @ UGA Aquarium, May 11 2019

Celebrate World Migratory Bird Day at the UGA Aquarium on Sat. May 11 2019, 12:30-4:30PM.

Learn about the incredible diversity of shorebirds that visit our coast during their migratory journeys. Bring the family for a fun day of hands-on activities, interactive presentations and animal encounters.

Cost: General Admission to the UGA Aquarium. Cash & checks only for aquarium admission. Learn more here.

Questions? Contact Kayla Clark at kayla270@uga.edu or 912-598-3345.

You are invited to attend the 3rd annual STEAM Fest, an interactive family-friendly event designed to showcase STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Math) education activities, @ Georgia State Railroad Museum in Savannah.

2019 STEAM Fest will be Sat. March 30, 10AM-3PM @ 655 Louisville Rd. Savannah, GA 31401.

Community partners will include: Oatland Island Wildlife Center teaching about animal biology, NASA Solar System Ambassadors Program will be educating on astronomy and space science, and Snapology of Savannah will provide STEAM-based LEGO® activities for event attendees. There will also be an indigo dyeing program focused on the science and history behind the dyeing process.

Georgia State Railroad Museum will offer enhanced programming throughout the day, including executive railcar tours, hand car activities, operating steam locomotive train rides, plus other science and engineering demonstrations.

Admission to STEAM Fest is included in the cost of regular admission to Georgia State Railroad Museum, $10 for adults and $6 for children under 12. This event is FREE for Coastal Heritage Society members.

2019 STEAM Fest
Sat. March 30, 10AM-3 PM
Georgia State Railroad Museum
655 Louisville Rd
Savannah, Georgia 31401

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ONGOING KID-FRIENDLY PROGRAMS @ COASTAL HERITAGE SOCIETY SITES, SAVANNAH

LOYALISTS AND LIBERTY BATTLEFIELD TOURS @ Savannah History Museum
Thursday-Saturday 10:30AM, 12:30PM, and 2:30PM
March through history and learn about the American Revolution in Savannah! Experience a black powder demonstration, immerse yourself in 1779 Savannah, and hear about the personalities that shaped the city’s fight for freedom!

OLD FORT JACKSON PROGRAMS @ Old Fort Jackson
Enjoy exciting interactive programs about life as a soldier for adults, kids and families. Guests can also learn various drills and forms of military communication used and watch a cannon demonstration using some of the oldest artillery in the Southeast. Daily cannon firing programs begin @ 11AM & 2PM

Coastal Heritage Society is a SouthernMamas.com advertiser

Kick off St. Patrick’s season in Savannah with this new, FREE family-friendly Irish Heritage festival: Celtic Ceol Feis in Emmet Park, Sat. March 9, 2019, 11AM-6PM.

Enjoy Irish dancing and music, Irish food & kids’ activities.

Opening ceremonies with presenting of the colors & national anthems will kick off the festival at 11AM.

Irish music & dancing follows featuring headliner Padraig Allen & McLean Avenue Band; Irish Dancers of Savannah; Harry O’Donoghue; Legacy Irish Dance Academy; Tracie Brown with her Celtic harp.

Kids’ activities include: the Waterfront Kidz Zone, plus The Coastal Heritage Society & Savannah Children’s Museum will have “Plant a Shamrock” gardening activities. The Savannah Waterfront Association will also be leading pen-pal letter writing to Irish children of an adopted sister elementary school in Ireland. Children’s author Lynda Suwala will do readings & kids’ activities connected to her new picture book, “In the Land of Ireland”.

Free & open to the public.

Irish cuisine, Irish beer and beverages will be for sale.

Hosted by the Savannah Waterfront Association.

You’re invited to Art Start Stroller & Toddler museum tour, art activity @ Telfair Museums’ Jepson Center in Savannah on the 3rd Thursday morning of each month.

Art Start March Theme:  Jaume Plensa: Talking Continents.  This artist is widely known for large-scale public artworks and more intimate and meditative installations that aim to unify people through connections of spirituality, the body, and shared memory. This exhibition includes 19 cloud-like, stainless steel sculptures composed of letters from various languages. 

March 21 2019, 10:30AM / Jepson Center (207 W York St.) Learn more & register online here. 

Telfair Museums’ youngest patrons are invited to the museum for story time, a special tour, and an art activity. Strollers, crying babies, toddlers, and older siblings are all welcome here. Come play and learn.

$5 per child / adult members free / adult non-members $12

Upcoming Art Start & Toddler Tours

March 21 2019 theme: Jaume Plensa: Talking Continents. Register online here. 
April 16 2019 theme: Rembrandt. Register online here. 

Art Start Stroller & Toddler Tour
Telfair Museums’ Jepson Center
Jepson Center for the Arts
207 W York St.
Savannah, GA 31401

Learn more & register online here. 

Telfair Museums is a SouthernMamas.com advertiser

We’re sad to learn that a longtime Savannah spring tradition has come to an end.

Coastal Georgia Botanical Gardens in Savannah will no longer offer pick-your-own strawberries.  Nor will these gardens on Canebrake Road offer pick-your-own blackberries in summer.

“The Gardens will no longer have pick-your-own berries due to our budget in keeping the fields up but we are turning that area into a teaching garden,” writes Kahlitah Greene of Coastal Georgia Botanical Gardens via email.

We know many of you have enjoyed taking your kids there for years to pick berries, picnic and enjoy the gardens. The gardens have offered pick-your-own berries since 1994.

The following farms have early strawberries this year and offer pick-your own. Please call ahead & check their Facebook pages for updates on the strawberry fields’ status.

Please let us know about other pick-your-own berry farms in the area by emailing anne@southernmamas.com

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Dempsey Farms U-Pick, St. Helena Is., SC

Dempsey Farms –  a family owned operation on St. Helena Island, SC,  11 miles east of Beaufort – has opened for the Spring 2017 U-pick strawberry season on a limited schedule. Please call for hours & to confirm the u-pick fields are open. When the fields get picked out, the u-pick fields close so berries can ripen.
(843) 838-3656
Payments: Cash or checks
1576 Sea Island Parkway
Saint Helena Island, SC 29920

Learn more here. 

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Ottawa Farms U-Pick, Bloomingdale, Ga.

U-pick strawberry fields updated on their Facebook page here.

702 Bloomingdale Road
Bloomingdale, Ga 31302
Call ahead to check when fields are open for picking: 912-748-3035

Learn more here.

The Greening of the Forsyth Park Fountain, parades on Hilton Head Is., Tybee Is. & in Savannah – all are part of the special month of March in Savannah.

(Reminder: No Tara Feis Irish Celebration this year. Read why here)

St. Patrick’s festivities for 2019 include:

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GREENING OF THE FORSYTH PARK FOUNTAIN, SAVANNAH

Fri. March 8 2019, Noon-1PM. Details here. 

See the Forsyth Park fountain be dyed green. Free & open to the public.

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CELTIC CEOL FEIS, EMMET PARK, SAVANNAH

Sat. March 9 2019, 11AM-6PM

This is a new, family-friendly Irish Heritage festival featuring Irish music, Irish dance, kids’ activities & more. Details here. 

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TYBEE IRISH HERITAGE CELEBRATION PARADE

Sat. March 9 2019, 3PM Tybee Is.’s Butler Avenue. Details here. 

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SAVANNAH ST PATRICK’S DAY PARADE

Sat. March 16 2019, 10:15AM.  Details here. 

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HILTON HEAD ST. PATRICK’S DAY PARADE

Sun. March 17, 2019, 3PM

36th Annual Hilton Head Island St. Patrick’s Day Parade. Details here.

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FAMILY-FRIENDLY IRISH BOWLING

Ancient Order of Hibernians’ Irish Road Bowling Tournament
Sat. March 23 2019, 10AM @ Hutchinson Island Racetrack
Cost: $20 per person, $60 per team.
Details & register here. 

From the sheep’s body to the finished wool product @ Sheep to Shawl Festival 2019 @ Oatland Is. Wildlife Center in Savannah.

Observe and participate in the magical creation of a woolen shawl through all the stages of wool processing at this annual fundraiser for Oatland Island Wildlife Center.

Members of The Fiber Guild of the Savannahs join Oatland staff and volunteers in making this traditional spring celebration fun for the whole family. the Oatland sheep will be sheared throughout the day with crafts, games, hay rides, and much more!

Sheep to Shawl Festival
Sat. March 9, 2019
10AM-4PM
Admission: Adults: $5
Children, Seniors, Military: $3

Details here.

Mardi Gras Tybee
Sat. March 2, 2019, Noon–6PM with the Mardi Gras Parade on Butler Avenue to Tybrisa Street starting at 2PM. Free & open to the public.

Details here. 

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17th Annual Tybee Island Irish Heritage Celebration Parade
Sat. March 9 2019, 3PM on Butler Avenue to Tybrisa Street

Tybee Island will be decked out in green with a family-friendly parade including floats, marchers and musical bands. This fun, family-friendly event is done in a unique, quirky way that only Tybee Island can do, and families are encouraged to dress in green and celebrate. The fun starts at 3PM at the Tybee City Hall and proceeds down Butler Avenue to Tybrisa Street and is free and open to the public.

Learn more here. 

Experience the beauty as thousands of lights illuminate the water at the 1000 Lights Water Lantern Festival @ Lake Mayer Park in Savannah.

Enjoy local food, music, and entertainment prior to the lantern launch at sunset. Kids ages 9 & younger are free. Get your tickets at www.1000lights.com

1000 Lights Water Lantern Festival
Sat. March 9, 2019, 4:30-8:30PM
Lake Mayer Park
7235 Sallie Mood Dr.
Savannah, GA 31406

Art, food trucks, crafts, games, trail hikes. grab a bite from a food truck, create a masterpiece, play a game, or even hike a trail @ the Spring Art Festival 2019 @ Skidaway Island State Park, Savannah.

Pet-friendly, kid-friendly event

Cost: $5 Park pass
To register as a Food Truck or Vendor email: SkidawayIslandStatePark@yahoo.com or call 912.598.2300

Spring Art Festival
Sun. March 31, 2019, 11AM-3PM
Skidaway Island State Park
52 Diamond Cswy,
Savannah 31411

You’re invited to a FREE lively annual celebration of acclaimed author and Savannah native Flannery O’Connor – the Flannery O’Connor Annual Birthday Parade & Street Fair – Sun. 1-4PM March 24 2019 in LaFayette Square in Savannah’s Historic District.

Free family fun, live music and more near the Flannery O’Connor Childhood Home, located at 207 E. Charlton St. Featuring live music, a wacky parade, coffee/tea/cake, and more. Local authors will present their writings and vendors will share vintage, custom, a creatively crafted wares. Another favorite: chicken-poop bingo for kids.

The parade starts at 3PM.

Attendees are invited to walk in the parade, bring handmade signs and sing along. Live music throughout the event will be provided by a cavalcade of singer-songwriters and musicians from some of Savannah’s finest local bands. Music for the parade will be played by an all-star line up of the Sweet Thunder Strolling Band.

Costumes inspired by Flannery O’Connor characters, settings or the author’s life are encouraged but optional.

You’ll also be welcomed to visit the Flannery O’Connor Home free to get a sense for our Flannery’s Depression-era childhood. Photo-ops with a gorilla, a peacock bandshell, and throughout the home will be available.

The event is free and open to the public.

Learn more here. 

ABOUT THE FLANNERY O’CONNOR CHILDHOOD HOME:
The Flannery O’Connor Childhood Home, located at 207 E. Charlton Street in the heart of Savannah, Georgia, is dedicated to preserving the legacy of one of the South’s greatest writers. An established 501 3(C) nonprofit organization, the Flannery O’Connor Childhood Home has been meticulously restored to reflect the authentic period furnishings of a Depression-Era Savannah rowhouse and to offer insight into the years that O’Connor lived in Savannah, from 1925 to 1938. The Home proudly presents a series of free lectures each spring and fall as well as other events throughout the year. For more information, please visit www.flanneryoconnorhome.org or call 912.233.60

Savannah Ogeechee Canal Spring Festival 2019
Sat. March 30 2019, 10AM-3PM
Featuring games, scavenger hunt, Native American Indian Heritage, Gopher Tortoise Education, Recycle Program with Beauregard Treefrog and Connie The Canoe Lady Live Show

Savannah–Ogeechee Canal
681 Fort Argyle Rd
Savannah, Georgia 31419

Come to the Fairy & Gnome Festival 2019 @ Oatland Island Wildlife Center in Savannah for a day of enchantment, Sat. May 4, 2019, 10AM-2PM

This family-themed festival is all about the “wee folk” getting up close with the natural world and encouraging imaginative play. Dress in costume and flaunt your wings in our fashion show; mine for magic gems; frolic in the enchanted forest for a fairy surprise; construct a fairy village; enjoy games and crafts inspired by the natural world.

Bring the whole family and stroll through Oatland’s magical trails and maybe you will catch a glimpse of a fairy or gnome looking for a place to call home. Additional fees may apply. All proceeds go to feeding our magical animal kingdom.

Cost: regular admission to Oatland Island Wildlife Center as well as some extra fundraising activities during the event. Find admission costs here.

Fairy & Gnome Festival 2019
Oatland Island Wildlife Center
711 Sandown Rd.
Savannah, 31410
(912) 395-1500