City leaders expect busy St. Patrick’s Day weekend

SAVANNAH, Ga. (WTOC) - The Savannah St. Patrick’s Day Parade will have more than 340 entries of floats and marchers.

As far as the crowd, the waves of green across downtown Savannah are expected to blow previous years out the water.

The parade will kick off at 10:15 a.m. Friday and it’s expected to end anywhere from 2:15 p.m. to 3 p.m. in the afternoon, according to city leaders. Roads along the parade route like Abercorn and Broughton streets will reopen after the parade ends.

LINK >>> Your 2023 Guide to St. Patrick’s Day in Savannah

There are already signs up in parking spaces that say you can’t park in certain areas from 12:01 a.m. on March 17 until the parade is over.

If you’re planning to continue celebrations after the parade, bars will stay open until 2:55 a.m. in the morning of March 18. River Street, however, will close at 10 p.m. Friday through Saturday.

“People are making the decision to take a day off work and travel to Savannah and so they’re looking to have a good time here on Friday and if the weather is good we know we’re going to see a lot of residents who are going to venture downtown, too. Occupancy rates at hotels are near full and that’s not just downtown Savannah,” Savannah City Manager Jay Melder said.

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