SUMMER IN ATLANTA | Our Must-Do List of Events and Festivals

Hot Southern Summers are no match for the city’s seasonal festivities. Whether you’ll be celebrating Independence Day with fireworks at Stone Mountain Park or soaking in the culture at one of Atlanta’s many arts & culture festivals, there are endless ways to enjoy Atlanta this summer. Check out a few of our top picks below.

Piedmont Park Arts Festival | Saturday, Aug 17, 10 AM – Sunday, Aug 18, 5 PM

Named as one of the TOP 100 Arts Festival in the Nation by Sunshine Artist Magazine, we are honored to produced and host the annual Piedmont Park Arts Festival located in Atlanta’s largest park, Piedmont Park. 1215 Piedmont Avenue, Atlanta, GA 30309.

The Piedmont Park Summer Arts Festival is a 2-day outdoor event with an emphasis on the visual arts and family fun presented by the Atlanta Foundation for Public Spaces, for people of all ages, customs, and interests. The Midtown community of Piedmont Park is considered to be home to one of the largest and most enthusiastic art buying communities in metro Atlanta. The Piedmont Park Summer Arts and craft festival bringing back the tradition to Atlanta’s arts community.

This event will feature up to 250 painters, photographers, sculptors, leather and metalwork, glass blowers, jewelers, and crafters! The Festival will also offer artist demonstrations, live acoustic music, an Emerging Artists Pavilion, a children’s play area, plus festival foods and beverages with healthy alternatives.

The Piedmont Park Summer Arts Festival is organized by the Atlanta Foundation for Public Spaces, LLC, who also partners with the fall fine arts Chastain Park Arts Festival and more than a dozen other events, along with a board of experts in various artistic disciplines. The festival will uphold the highest standards supporting the arts and offer participating artists the environment to nurture an appreciation for their skills.

Grant Park’s Summer Shade Festival | August 24, 10 to 10 & August 25, 11 to 7

For more than a decade, Atlanta art and music lovers have flocked to Grant Park each August to bid adieu to summer at the Summer Shade Festival. We’ve got two days of outdoor fun planned for all ages including a 5K Run for the Park, food trucks, craft beer, an entertaining Kids Zone and a music line up that just gets better every year. And did you know you can ride your bike to the festival and park it for free with the Atlanta Bicycle Coalition Bike Valet?

So, bring your blanket, bring the whole family, but don’t bring any pets, and spend summer’s final weekend at the Grant Park Summer Shade Festival presented by the Beacon Atlanta.

The Grant Park Summer Shade Festival is an annual fundraiser for the Grant Park Conservancy (GPC), a non-profit, membership-based organization committed to the restoration, renovation, beautification and maintenance of historic Grant Park. 

Stone Mountain’s Fantastic 4^th Celebration | Nightly, July 1-7 at 9:30 PM

Voted the “Best Place to see Fireworks in Atlanta” by Atlanta Journal-Constitution readers, a “Must-See Fireworks Show” by USA Today and one of Reader’s Digest’s picks for “America’s Most Spectacular Fourth of July Fireworks.”

Enjoy a day full of adventure with great family attractions and special live entertainment including performances by the Zuzu African Acrobats, then stay into the evening to experience the Lasershow Spectacular followed by the exact same patriotic fireworks finale each night of the celebration!

Access to the Lasershow and fireworks is included with paid daily or annual parking. Attractions and entertainment are included with a daily All-Attractions Pass or annual Mountain Membership.