First” this, “oldest” that… toss in “most beautiful” and “most haunted,” and you may be talking about Savannah, Georgia, established in 1733. For Girl Scouts, the city is hallowed ground as the birthplace of Girl Scouts of the USA founder Juliette Gordon Low. For the Irish and wannabes, it’s where the ghost of St. Patrick himself must surely lurk about each March 17 when everything turns shamrock green, from beer and grits to the water spouting tritons’ horns and swans’ beaks in the famous Forsyth Park fountain.
In my view, Savannah’s four seasons are Spring (all flowers and romance), Summer Vacation, Holiday, and glorious October, when the humidity and summer crowds disappear, the days are often beachy-warm, and the nights have just the right touch of chill.
Ghostly things
October is perfect for a ghost tour in one of the most haunted cities in the world. The bony fingers of bare tree branches draped in ghostly tangles of Spanish moss make you shiver just a bit more. Two walking tours are designed especially for families with kids. On the Fraidy Cat Ghost Tour, local guides tell the tales and secrets of those who lived and died either tragically or mysteriously hundreds of years ago (and possibly never left?). The perfect amount of spookiness earns all the feels with thousands of five-star reviews (madcattours.com). The Grave Tales Ghost Tour will both spook you out and make you laugh with ghostly tales of goings-on among the gravestones, historic homes, restaurants, and inns.
ghostcitytours.com/savannah/grave-tales-tour
“Where’s Noble’s Bones? A Bone-Chilling Scavenger Hunt” happens each Saturday in October at the beautiful Wormsloe State Historic Site. Kids and grownups follow clues to find lost “bones” of the plantation’s first owner. Prizes are involved. Free with admission to Wormsloe.
Quidditch, anyone?
Each October, the Georgia State Railroad Museum and Savannah Children’s Museum transform into a Harry Potter-style wizarding world. Immersive activities involve potions and spells, wand-making, muggle studies, owls, and other magical creatures. Games include Frogwarts Quidditch and Frogwarts Summon. This year’s event is on Sunday, October 19. For advance tickets to Frogwarts visit https://bit.ly/Frogwarts2025
Both museums are in Tricentennial Park along with Battlefield Memorial Park. Savannah Children’s Museum, designed for kids 18 months to 10 years, is a massive outdoor play-and-explore museum, built into the ruins of the old Central of Georgia Railway repair shops. There’s an exploration maze, puppet theater, art maker space, sensory garden, nature kitchen, and activities that include the museum’s mascots, Tippy the Tortoise and Pogo the Turtle.
The huge Georgia State Railroad Museum includes historic steam and diesel rail cars, with train rides on weekends through November, and a vintage handcar ride on the railroad track (think Wile E. Coyote vs. the Road Runner). Artifacts and exhibits tell a century of stories of railroad history and technology, industrial slavery, and segregation. The complex operates the oldest functioning railroad repair and restoration facility in the U.S.
The “See 3” pass is good for any three of Coastal Heritage Society’s participating museums over a three-day period, including Georgia State Railroad Museum, Savannah Children’s Museum, Savannah History Museum, Revolutionary Battlefield Memorial Park, and Old Fort Jackson. chsgeorgia.org
Old Fort Jackson, 10 minutes from downtown, is one of the oldest standing brick forts in the U.S. With its impressive collection of tools and weaponry, it’s very cool to visit —never mind that it lost to the British in the Revolutionary War and to the Union in the Civil War. Still, historical interpreters proudly offer daily weapons demonstrations and, sometimes, to the delight of passing riverboat passengers, they unleash some awe-inspiring cannon fire.
Wiener dog races
How much do Savannahians love their doggies? The springtime Dog Carnival draws thousands, and there is even a historic tour for dogs and their humans. oliverbentleys.com.
October has two wiener dog events: The Wiener Dog Races and Costume Contest on the Riverfront on Oct. 11, and the more laid-back Wag-O-Ween, Oct. 25-26, which also draws costumed dogs of all varietes and their humans go trick-or-doggie-treating at over 100 businesses throughout downtown. Wiener dogs (dachshunds) are not particularly fond of following directions, so watching their humans try to inspire them to move at all, much less in a straight line, you will laugh your tail off. Fees apply to race contestants only; spectating, costume contests, and other activities are free.
Pirate Shenanigans
Despite Savannah’s sophistication, there’s not an ounce of elegance on nearby Tybee Island. It celebrates the 1950s with sherbet-colored cottages, seafood shacks, and sea oat-covered dunes, plus its circa 1733 lighthouse and crumbling fort dating back to the Spanish-American War. And its festivals. Best for kids is the annual Tybee Island Pirate Festival and Parade, which is Oct. 11 this year. There’s a pirate encampment, face painting, kids costume contest, juggling, puppet shows, sword show, and carnival. The parade starts at 3 p.m.
Inside Tips
There is always plenty to do, eat, and buy along Savannah’s historic Riverfront where the sight of incoming cargo ships and blasts of airhorns are breathtaking. Be sure to score free samples at the candy, fudge, and popcorn shops, hop aboard the free riverboat shuttle for a short trip across the river and back, and enjoy Octoberfest happenings Oct. 4-19. You will need a car to visit Tybee, Wormsloe, or Old Fort Jackson, but for everything else you can walk or grab the DOT, a free off and-on-trolley that makes 20 stops around the Historic District from the river to Forsyth Park connectonthedot.com.
Much more at visitsavannah.com