Hey everyone! It's amazing that it's already time again to plan for Federal Hill's Columbus Day Festival. Feels like just yesterday we attended this event.
This event is weather sensitive. If there is questionable forecast we will update in the comments on our plans. We could move to another day to still attend the festival, or keep the same day but pivot and head downtown instead.
Easily one of the most anticipated annual events in Providence, Federal Hill's Columbus Day celebration is a multi day festival that spans multiple streets in Providence's Little Italy. Atwells Avenue, the main artery through Federal Hill, will be closed to traffic allowing us to roam freely around the street. Not only will the district's usual bars and restaurants be open, but over 80 vendors will line the festival route selling pretty much anything. The highlight is certainly the abundance of Italian food and drinks.
The festival also sports an amusement park complete with some basic rides and games! Don't make the mistake Eddie made a couple years ago and get on the spinning ride after one too many cocktails. He didn't throw up, but he certainly wasn't feeling his best after that questionable decision.
There's also multiple stages with live performances throughout the day. We'll likely miss most of the entertainment due to our later start, but we may catch some performances.
Many of the restaurants and bars will have outdoor stations where they are serving drinks. Typically their selection is limited to prebatched punches and some basic mixed drinks and cans. Still, you'll find plenty to enjoy. So far Federal Hill's festivals have avoided the stricter open container limits the city has imposed on the downtown festivals like PVD Fest and Pride. So, you should be able to enjoy a cocktail while you explore so long as you stay within the festival limits. Obviously, that could change but we haven't heard of any stricter container laws yet.
We may pivot our starting plans closer to the date of the event, so please take a quick look at the event description on the day. We'll also post in the comments if we change. However, let's meet at Harry's on the Hill. They should have some outdoor space and they have offer a full bar. They're less likely to be mobbed than the other spots on the hill. We'll stick around there for awhile to give people time to find parking and track down the group. Once we start moving it may be tough to find us, so please try to get here near the start of the event. Once we move we'll update in the comments if we decide to make any extended stops at a certain location (such as the carnival) for late comers or to regroup with people already here who may have wandered off to do their own thing.
If there's enough of us to justify it and there's a good spot, we may pick a bar as home base throughout the night. That way people can explore at their own speed without having to worry about losing everyone. If we do we'll post that in the comments as well.
Parking is likely going to be a nightmare around Federal Hill. If you don't mind walking, you may get lucky with parking in the downtown area. We highly recommend getting a ride through a ride share or friend/family.
Please reach out to the host(s) if you have any questions! See you all then!
https://federalhillprov.com/festivals/columbus-day-weekend-festival/
