There's a lot going on this weekend, but one longtime event in particular is going to be hard to miss.
Whether it's your friends begging you to come or blowing up your social media feeds with enticing pictures, you're likely to hear lots about the 46th Inman Park Festival and Tour of Homes.
And going in, there’s a handful of things you should probably know.
Parking in the neighborhood can be difficult on a normal weekend, so organizers highly recommend not driving to the festival. Instead, you could...
- Take MARTA to the Inman Park/Reynoldstown station.
- Ride a bike. Free and secure valet bike parking will be provided by the Atlanta Bicycle Coalition at the intersection of Alta Avenue and Euclid Avenue, the intersection of Waverly Way and Elizabeth Street and on Edgewood Avenue between Waddell and Krog Streets.
- Walk there on the Beltline.
- And of course, you can always use Uber or Lyft.
2. Mentally prepare for music, dancing, eating and shopping.
Plenty of live music is planned across multiple stages, including bands like Mudcat, Rainmen and Bitteroots. Dance performances will be hosted each day at the Trolley Barn, 963 Edgewood Ave., at 4 p.m. And an arts and crafts market will include 129 artists while a street market will have more than 270 booths of antiques and handcrafted wares such as soap, plants and jewelry. Of course, festival staples like pizza, barbecue and beer will also abound.
A group of people will try once again to beat the Guinness World Record for "largest gathering of people dressed as garden gnomes." The attempt will take place at the parade on Saturday at 1:30 p.m. They are trying to beat the record of 478 gnomes, achieved in the U.K. in 2011. Last year, they had 260 people gathered wearing pointy red hats and boots.
4. Admission is free.
There’s no cost to attend the festival itself, which runs from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. The festival began in the early 1970s as a means to attract attention to gentrification efforts that sought to revitalize the community.
5. But Tour of Homes admission is not free.
The Tour of Homes is a self-conducted tour of more than 8 eight homes, but you’ve got to pay a price to explore these Victorian homes and remodeling jobs. Tickets can be purchased for $15 online (print your confirmation), or for $20 by cash or check at the following locations:
- Little Five Points Pharmacy (484 Moreland Ave.)
- Nandina Home and Design (245 N. Highland Ave.)
- Inman Dry Goods Boutique (743 Edgewood Ave.)
- The Collection (723 Lake Ave.)
One child under 12 may accompany each ticketed adult. Tour tickets are valid the entire weekend but each house can only be visited once per ticket.
Tour of homes preview: noon-4 p.m. Friday.
Tour of Homes: noon-6 p.m. Saturday and Sunday.
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