Just wondering if anyone has any info on Saint Patty's Day in Savannah. Might be a fun destination for a long weekend in 2001. And I imagine the weather's a lot nicer than in NYC.

Yes, it's great, but you had better plan now! It is difficult to get a hotel room any where close to the city. You will want to stay close to downtown, as traffic is horrid. As far as the weather, it is difficult to predict for Savannah in early March (St.Pat's). There may be high's in the 70s or only as high as the upper 50s. If you plan right, its well worth the trip.

Savannah has the second largest St Pat's parade in the country. Previous poster is correct about lodging and temperatures, though it is more likely to be on the high side of the estimate than the low side.

I was there years ago, so things may have changed, but although I enjoyed the parade, the rest of the festivities were, according to my travelling companion, like being at a frat party. Can't vouch for that, as I never went to any frat parties as an undergraduate. But if that is what they're like, I'm glad I skipped that part of college.
The weather was great.

Errm...where to start?

I'm Irish and whilst visiting a friend of mine (in North Carolina) earlier this year, we decided to check out Paddy's day in Savannah.

It was impossible to find accommodation so ended up in some dodgy little town about 20 miles out. Taxi's were few and far between and cost a fortune.

We missed the parade but were there for the street party. At best I can only describe this as a scrum. I realise that since you can only drink from 21 in the States, the half a million or so college kids there hadn't had much practice - but I swear most of them had never touched alcohol before and they really couldn't handle it. I FELT SO OLD!! And quite what the deal is with girls being given beads and showing their breasts was, please let me know! I though that sort of thing stopped being entertaining when you reached puberty..?

For god's sake don't go near the toilets any later than 9pm - to say that it's disgusting is something of an understatement. And DO stock up on drinks whenever you can as the queues are dreadful - for some reason you can have as many test-tube shots as you want but only one (weak) beer at a time. And not a Guinness in sight..

In all honesty though, I DID enjoy myself, if only because I got to feel nostalgic (and I'm only 25...).

As a last note, however, my friend and I were rather intrigued that despite this whole festival, NOT ONE person could tell us where Ireland was or who St Patrick was...

I was there once YEARS ago when the NYC St Patty's Day parade was snowed out. Savannah had the so-called honor of having the largest SPD parade in the world that year. Since I was only 10, I couldn't vouch for the party scene. But, all across the USA, St. Patrick's day has become a HUGE excuse for a party, regardless of it's heritage!

Well, it sounds like something I'll definitely plan to miss. I was in Savannah last year in April - it was very beautiful but a little boring, lots of retirees on tour and I didn't find any nightlife to speak of. I'm 42 and not into frat parties but I enjoy live music in smaller venues. I thought maybe there would be some good Irish music in a few bars, a little bit of a party, but not a wild bacchanalian Mardi Gras scene (the origins of the breast bearing for beads, probably, Kate). Anyway, thanks all for your viewpoints. Sounds like Savannah is like NYC on St. Patrick's in that the good parties are private, and not on the street.

Ess, sorry but you missed the one bar where you could have found a small band with Irish music...Kevin Barry's on River St., just west of the Hyatt. As far as St Patrick's Day though, absolutely, forget it. Terrible.

Otherwise, for live music look in City Market, Malones or ....whatever else has sprung up since we've been gone. This is a small town though, no sophisticated music scene here!! Keep your expectations in line with the size of the town and you'll be fine.

We live near Savannah and have been advised by natives to avoid the St Patrick's Day event like the plague -- advice we've chosen to follow. However, we have been in New Orleans on St Patrick's Day. They have a great parade and, while there's some of the same 'element' referred to earlier, given that it IS New Orleans, at least there's much more to do there than in Savannah if you tire of the St. Patrick's day festivities -- and more than one good Irish bar with real Guinness!