Coastal Companion

Your ultimate guide to the coast

Concourse d’Elegance Amelia Island, Fl 2010

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The world’s finest vintage motor cars will again visit Amelia Island, on March 12 – 14, 2010, for the highly anticipated annual event, The 15th Annual Amelia Island Concourse d’Elegance.

The Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance is a vintage auto event featuring over 250 rare classics from seldom-seen private collections nationwide. The show takes place at The Golf Club of Amelia Island at Summer Beach adjacent to The Ritz-Carlton, Amelia Island.

The event is often referred to as the ‘Pebble Beach of the East Coast’, attracting collectors and car enthusiasts from all over the world to the Northeast coast of Florida.

The event will honor the 40th anniversary of Porsche’s inaugural victory at the 24 Hours of Daytona and Le Mans and showcase a number of influential 917s. This model is by many considered to be one of the most significant racecars of our time. This year’s Concours will also honor Sir Stirling Moss, OBE and the 50th Anniversary of Moss’ victory in the last Cuban Grand Prix.

St Patrick’s Day Celebration in Savannah 2010

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The city of Savannah is known for its rich history and for its many festival. This time of year festival season is in full swing. Savannah hosts the largest St. Patrick’s Day party in the South over several days, with a St Patrick’s Day parade, green fountain and lots of beer on this Irish party day. This is one of the most popular events in Savannah, it is said that 400,000 people will show up to celebrate Irish heritage.

Go Green!
Start your celebration early and head to Forsyth Park at lunchtime on Friday March 12, 2010.  Watch the water turn green at noon.
This event is sure to be a hit with the younger crowd. With the nice, warm weather we’re having, it might be a perfect time for a picnic in the park.

Tara Feis, an Irish Festival
Then on Saturday, we’ll go all out with a genuine Irish Festival, Tara Feis taking place on  Saturday March 13. This is a festival celebrating Irish culture with lots of fun for the whole family from food, to music and dance and much more. The festival is held in Emmet Park. The event is free and open to the public, this year’s event features the Cathie Ryan Band. Tara Feis festival takes place in Emmet Park from 11 a.m.- 5 p.m. For more information call 912.651.6417 or http://www.savannahga.gov/arts.

Then there is of course the River Street celebration in the historic downtown district on March 16-17, 2010. This is the main waterfront location for all Paddy Day partygoers coming to town.

The 2010 St. Patrick’s Festival on Historic River Street takes place along the waterfront, includes the following area: River Street from East Broad Street to Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard. Festivities in this area include games, food, beverages, and live entertainment. The event itself is free, but partygoers must purchase a wristband ($5) to consume alcoholic beverages on the plaza and inside River Street businesses on Tuesday and Wednesday. Wristbands will be sold at kiosks on the plaza, and at businesses on River Street. Already on Tuesday, the party starts with the I-95 Battle of the Bands.

For more details about St Patrick’s Day on Riverstreet, visit www.riverstreetsavannah.com

The City Market also hosts an Irish celebration on March 16-17.

St Patrick’s Day Parade
Don’t miss the parade itself. This year it’s the 186th time for the St. Patrick’s Day parade, so this is one of the oldest in the United States. The parade features bands and marching groups from across the country. Savannah St Patrick’s Day parade starts at 10:15 a.m. (Here is the map of the parade route)

For more information visit www.SavannahStPatricksDay.com

The city will double in size for St Patrick’s Day – so plan to come early and stay late. For more information about St Patrick’s Day and places to stay, contact Savannah CVB at 1-877-SAVANNAH
St Patrick's Day Parade in Savannah, Georgia

The Sack of St Augustine 2010

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This is a great opportunity to relive history in St Augustine when the Historic Florida Militia re-enacts the Sack of St. Augustine, March 6th, 2010. The sack happened back in the year of 1668. Captain Robert Searle and his privateers left Jamaica and set course for St Augustine to loot the silver ingots held in the royal coffers at St. Augustine.

At the encampment at the Fountain of Youth Archeological Park on Magnolia Drive, visitors can relive history. Take an up-close look at authentic 17th century arms, equipment and food at the encampment.
(The camp is set up Friday thru Sunday)

Then, on Saturday March 6, the buccaneers will gather and proceed to the Plaza de la Constitucion in downtown historic district of St Augustine. At 5 p.m. they will attack Spanish soldiers and St. Augustine citizens. Townspeople and soldiers will flee up St. George Street to the Redoubt at Orange and Cordova Streets in the Historic St Augustine.

For more information, please call 904.534.6168 or visit the website

Scottish Games & Festival 2010 Jacksonville, Florida

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This popular festival promises to bring a “wee bit o’ Scotland” to the coast, with bagpipes, music, dancing and more.

The Northeast Florida Scottish Games & Festival include Kilted Golf Tournaments, Pub Crawls, Kirkin‘ o‘ the Tartans, Whiskey Tasting, Parades of Tartans & Ceilidh (Scottish Musical Evenings).

There’s also live entertainment with a variety of groups such as Need Fire, Mother Grove,  Highland Reign and Ron Davis. The Navy Band Southeast is also scheduled to perform. Check the website for more information.

The Northeast Florida Scottish Games & Festival 2008 will be held Saturday, February 27, 2010. Gates open at 9:00 a.m. The location for these Games is Clay County Fair Grounds on State Road 16, 2497 SR16 W Green Cove Springs. Tickets prices are $10 per person in advance or $12 at the gate.

Call 904.725.5744 for more information or visit the Northeast Florida Scottish Games and Festival website.

Savannah Irish Festival 2010

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The 18th annual Savannah Irish Festival takes place February 12-14, 2010 at the Savannah Civic Center in Savannah, Georgia. The festival begins Friday night in the Civic Center Ballroom from 6:30pm – 9:00pm when it’s time for Ceili. Participants will be taught Irish folk dance in large groups. Then on Saturday, February 13, the festival is open from 10:30am until 8:00pm and on Sunday, February 14, from 12:00pm until 7:00pm.

Four stages of entertainment bring fun for the entire family throughout the weekend.
Come to the Irish Festival and enjoy some of the top Irish traditional acts in the world. There will also be performances from The St. Vincent’s Academy Chorale, two schools of Irish Dancers, Glor na h‘Eireann, and the Irish Dancers of Savannah.
There’s free arts and crafts area for kids as well as entertainment on stage geared towards children.
The Festival Cultural Stage will focus on a variety of topics of Irish History, Irish Literature and Irish Music. On top of that, there will also be a large numbers of vendors setting with booths where you can browse interesting Irish items.



This will be a weekend filled with fun for the whole family, including music and plenty of Irish Dancing. Please join us this year for Valentine’s Day weekend. Stroll through our romantic city and enjoy the largest Irish Festival in the South.

Festival Ticket Information:
$5 donation taken at the door for the Friday night Ceili in the Civic Center’s upstairs ballroom.

A one day ticket for Saturday or Sunday costs $12 and a two day ticket is $16, plus service charges for both from the Civic Center Box Office.

Children Under 14 are admitted FREE.

You can purchase tickets the day of the event, or call 912-651-6556 or 800-351-7469.

Read about other events for Valentine’s Day in Savannah