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This festival is all right. If it weren't just a couple of weeks after Yellow Daisy...I might like it even more. It is a big festival, claiming about 250 booths. However, once we arrived, we realized a good number of booths were for local businesses to advertise, not so much selling crafts. The downtown Duluth area is really cute, and we enjoyed walking around there. The booths were varied--we saw lots of bows. There is parking near the site (we found some there no problem), and there are also free shuttle buses from the local school parking lots. Pure Taqueria is on one end, and they were selling margaritas to go. It was pretty hot, so a cool beverage was really nice. There are also a number of food vendors that had tacos, crab cakes, hot dogs, Etc. Overall, it was a nice community festival. I think my expectations were too high after attending Yellow Daisy two weeks prior.
Have never missed a DFF in 25 years since I was born :) So of course, this review will be historical and commentary about the changes over the years. I always notice the new artists and remember the ones who come back every year. DFF has become the SE largest fall festival- citizens used to be happy to get just 1000 people, back when I was little, when only 25 tents dotted the back then small lawn and courtyard, but this year they estimated 100,000 attendees and Duluth has renovated its downtown with new cafes, bars, restaurants, and boutiques. It is certainly a nice stroll in the newness and seeing Southern folk culture, fall festivities, performances, and also making friends with the vendors over the years. Peak traffic: Busiest on Saturday noon to end of the day. Quietest on Sunday morning, but that's when the 5k happens around downtown, so join in the fun and cheer on the runners! Cash/credit- almost all vendors have Square Point of Sale, so they should accept credit card, but of course bring 50$ or more in cash for small purchases if you don't want to swipe 5$ at 60 booths and then have your bank calling you up for suspicious activity. Family and children: Great for the fam, for groups of friends, for visitng people, and all people Arts- Duluth fall festival is not as bougie and urban as the ones in Piedmont, Grant Park, or the ones in Atlanta, but this is the real reason why it's the SE largest one- it keeps the small town charm to remind you that this is a suburbia fall festival and not some high end arts festival. That being said, many of these artists do not have online accounts on etsy, social media, and so, much of this art is untainted. you will have some trite and bland stuff, but it just contributes to more booths and tents to appreciate. There are some special artists that you only see at the festivals and the art is untainted. the ones who are new are often very unique and have a fresh feel to them- some artists unfortunately become more commercialized over timeb/c of their success and lose originality. Other artists who come back over the years, sometimes have renaissances in their artistry. Some notable ones include Manami, an artist whose style includes circles, ethereal blues and greens, nature and swirls- she went through a renaissance this year with themes of animals and freedom. Another couple who come every year, paint hand made pottery of Southern gothic spiritual- you will see their mini jackolanterns, father moon, mother earth, and father tree spirit themes. This year, a new artist who makes PANJOs- that's right a banjo out of pans, showcased their work, and it was very popular. Another artist who creates giant rings out of wires and stones had a theme of big jewelry for big minded people- loved that their rings took up half your hand in such a classy elegant way that didn't scream costume jewelry but truly art, showcased their work for the first time. I've also seen beach trash made into beautiful decorations, yarn made into wire sculptures. Vendors- The one thing that I do wish they would put a cap on is the number of vendors for some endeavors. For example, usually the people with the dips, smack yo mama sauces, foods are all unique and have no competition. Within the arts, even the puppet makers, wood carvers, etc are not pitting against each other. The soap makers/lotion makers had too many this year, and I would argue that some of the sports memoralia, crochet/yarn places were against each other. But, the soaps definitely had too many booths this year, so while DFF has grown larger, it has to be careful about helping out local artists without encroaching on skills. as DFF gets larger, it is inevitable that there will be businesses like banks, construction, home living, chiropractics, etc having booths. There are even health screenings by the railroad track. What I do like is that, DFF seems to have done a good job in curbing the number of commercialized tents- it keeps teh fall festival truly a fall festival rather than bringing too many sponsors that turn this quickly into a home depot venue. Schools- Usually there are schools like Duluth High School who have their own booths here to raise money for their clubs and activites. I was actually surprised that there was less school presence this year compared to other schools. I think this would be great for other schools of art, public schools, etc to come participate in because it also helps kids become more in touch with their communities and realize the businesses out there, and also foster communal growth- I'm glad Duluth has made the downtown more walkable for the students in general though to hang out after school Food- you will find gyros, funnel cakes, barbecue, lemonade, desserts, etc. I do wish some more bakeries and diverse food venues came out- you had your kettle corn, dips, sauces, and typical festival food. There are a couple of stallls that sell wondrous breads and pralines and candied nuts.
3 days ago
As last year, the fall festival was a blast! This year I went on the same day and time and it was more crowded than last year. No parking available unless you kept driving around to catch someone leaving. I arrived at 10:30 and driving for 20 minutes. More people on a Sunday. The word definitely got out about this festival. They had more vendors and more food. The food prices were higher than I expected. I really wanted the footlong corn dog. One vendor had it as a combo with fries for $20. Another vendor had the regular corn dog for $8 and no side. So when you come expect to pay. The food looked and smelled great! Many vendors with jewelry, leather bags, beaded bags, doggie treats and goodies and etc. there was a lot to look at and discover, plus they had entertainment. read more
I used to go to this festival every year as a kid and absolutely loved all the activities, different foods & stalls! I got to go back this year after a longgg time and was kind of surprised in how it turned more into a food festival, there was literally a whole strip just dedicated to food vendors. There was such a wide variety of foods from all sorts of different authentic cuisines to snacks and homemade treats for on the go! We ended up getting a frozen pink lemonade, elotes and the impossible gyoza. One of the stalls did sell fresh apple cider donuts and I would definitely recommend getting them if you go! Overall such a good time and experience with your friends and family! You can easily spend a couple hours here and they have a mini pumpkin patch, face painting, live music you name it! It's only one weekend though so be sure you're free! read more
The Duluth Fall Festival is the perfect festival. It's a large one so it attracts a lot of people and is able to spread them out over the many acres of the downtown area. The festival makes full use of downtown Duluth, including its main street and off-streets, amphitheater, grassy lawns, and of course, the storefronts adding unique cuisine to the fun. The vendors feature a wide and diverse craft/art vendor selection with the occasional booth selling air conditioning or whatever. There is a massive outdoor food court area and childrens' play area as well. The weather today was perfect and the place was packed. We spent some money on hand-crafted items too! read more
This festival is all right. If it weren't just a couple of weeks after Yellow Daisy...I might like it even more. It is a big festival, claiming about 250 booths. However, once we arrived, we realized a good number of booths were for local businesses to advertise, not so much selling crafts. The downtown Duluth area is really cute, and we enjoyed walking around there. The booths were varied--we saw lots of bows. There is parking near the site (we found some there no problem), and there are also free shuttle buses from the local school parking lots. Pure Taqueria is on one end, and they were selling margaritas to go. It was pretty hot, so a cool beverage was really nice. There are also a number of food vendors that had tacos, crab cakes, hot dogs, Etc. Overall, it was a nice community festival. I think my expectations were too high after attending Yellow Daisy two weeks prior. read more
Have never missed a DFF in 25 years since I was born :) So of course, this review will be historical and commentary about the changes over the years. I always notice the new artists and remember the ones who come back every year. DFF has become the SE largest fall festival- citizens used to be happy to get just 1000 people, back when I was little, when only 25 tents dotted the back then small lawn and courtyard, but this year they estimated 100,000 attendees and Duluth has renovated its downtown with new cafes, bars, restaurants, and boutiques. It is certainly a nice stroll in the newness and seeing Southern folk culture, fall festivities, performances, and also making friends with the vendors over the years. Peak traffic: Busiest on Saturday noon to end of the day. Quietest on Sunday morning, but that's when the 5k happens around downtown, so join in the fun and cheer on the runners! Cash/credit- almost all vendors have Square Point of Sale, so they should accept credit card, but of course bring 50$ or more in cash for small purchases if you don't want to swipe 5$ at 60 booths and then have your bank calling you up for suspicious activity. Family and children: Great for the fam, for groups of friends, for visitng people, and all people Arts- Duluth fall festival is not as bougie and urban as the ones in Piedmont, Grant Park, or the ones in Atlanta, but this is the real reason why it's the SE largest one- it keeps the small town charm to remind you that this is a suburbia fall festival and not some high end arts festival. That being said, many of these artists do not have online accounts on etsy, social media, and so, much of this art is untainted. you will have some trite and bland stuff, but it just contributes to more booths and tents to appreciate. There are some special artists that you only see at the festivals and the art is untainted. the ones who are new are often very unique and have a fresh feel to them- some artists unfortunately become more commercialized over timeb/c of their success and lose originality. Other artists who come back over the years, sometimes have renaissances in their artistry. Some notable ones include Manami, an artist whose style includes circles, ethereal blues and greens, nature and swirls- she went through a renaissance this year with themes of animals and freedom. Another couple who come every year, paint hand made pottery of Southern gothic spiritual- you will see their mini jackolanterns, father moon, mother earth, and father tree spirit themes. This year, a new artist who makes PANJOs- that's right a banjo out of pans, showcased their work, and it was very popular. Another artist who creates giant rings out of wires and stones had a theme of big jewelry for big minded people- loved that their rings took up half your hand in such a classy elegant way that didn't scream costume jewelry but truly art, showcased their work for the first time. I've also seen beach trash made into beautiful decorations, yarn made into wire sculptures. Vendors- The one thing that I do wish they would put a cap on is the number of vendors for some endeavors. For example, usually the people with the dips, smack yo mama sauces, foods are all unique and have no competition. Within the arts, even the puppet makers, wood carvers, etc are not pitting against each other. The soap makers/lotion makers had too many this year, and I would argue that some of the sports memoralia, crochet/yarn places were against each other. But, the soaps definitely had too many booths this year, so while DFF has grown larger, it has to be careful about helping out local artists without encroaching on skills. as DFF gets larger, it is inevitable that there will be businesses like banks, construction, home living, chiropractics, etc having booths. There are even health screenings by the railroad track. What I do like is that, DFF seems to have done a good job in curbing the number of commercialized tents- it keeps teh fall festival truly a fall festival rather than bringing too many sponsors that turn this quickly into a home depot venue. Schools- Usually there are schools like Duluth High School who have their own booths here to raise money for their clubs and activites. I was actually surprised that there was less school presence this year compared to other schools. I think this would be great for other schools of art, public schools, etc to come participate in because it also helps kids become more in touch with their communities and realize the businesses out there, and also foster communal growth- I'm glad Duluth has made the downtown more walkable for the students in general though to hang out after school Food- you will find gyros, funnel cakes, barbecue, lemonade, desserts, etc. I do wish some more bakeries and diverse food venues came out- you had your kettle corn, dips, sauces, and typical festival food. There are a couple of stallls that sell wondrous breads and pralines and candied nuts. read more
3 years ago
10 years ago
Being a self proclaimed veteran of the Duluth food truck Friday events, I had an expectation in my head of what the Duluth Fall Festival would look like, but when I got there, that expectation was smashed, and replaced with something so much more massive than food truck Fridays. First off, Vendors, vendors VENDORS. Vendors ranged from hot dog kiosks to candles, to radio stations to the AJC newspaper or even free spine evaluation. There really was something for EVERYone here. FOOD So so much food. I either tried or purchased the following: Funnel Cake Alligator sausage Italian Ice (Pina Colada) Lemonade Funnel cake ($7) was MONSTROUS, and the size of the actual plate itself. I shared this with two other people, and we still weren't able to eat even half of it. It was tasty, not super greasy, but powdered sugar went everywhere. Alligator Sausage ($5) was a decent sized sausage on a stick, that had an italian sausage flavor to it. Very aggressive seasoning that made it so you couldn't really taste the alligator. True enough, I don't have prior experience with Alligator meat to compare it to, but as a sausage it was great. As an Alligator sampler, I dunno. Italian Ice The Shaved Ice ($4) came in two varieties. A smoother, more concentrated flavor of the Italian Ice, that was what I tried (I really enjoyed it) or the Hawaiian shaved ice equivalent, which was less flavor, more coarse ice, and you got more of it than the Italian ice. Either way, on a hot day both of these are a good choice Lemonade The Lemonade ($6) was a large cup that came with a ton of ice, and wasn't sugary sweet. I was happy about the limited sugar, but not about the extra ice. I can kinda see why they would pack it full of ice, because their promotion was $3 refills for the entire day. This isn't a value though if you only get one of these. The drink was tasty though, and refreshing on the hot day. Beyond vendors and food, there were also several rides that were all packed with people, and if that wasn't your speed, there also was live music, silent auctions, and countless other ways to have fun. Parking for the festival was actually not so bad for me, but I came a little earlier. After leaving, parking was definitely "park on the grass" busy. Getting into the festival wasn't too difficult, mainly due to the multiple entryways and that there was no fee to get in (and thus, no long bottleneck lines). For my first Duluth Fall Festival, I think it was a success. I had lots of fun, was stuffed with food, and visited a decent amount of vendors! Honestly, the only bad part about the festival was the summer like temps during a fall festival, but that's out of the festival's hands. If you missed it this year, be sure to catch it next year, and maybe you'll see me there! read more
7 years ago
10 years ago
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