On Sept. 8 and 9, the Old Fourth Ward Fall Fest is back for its third year.

The Atlanta BeltLine Partnership and Rival Entertainment are partnering “to present this free, two-day festival that embraces the spirit and culture of the Atlanta BeltLine Lantern Parade.”

The Lantern Parade was started in 2010, and last year, over 70,000 people went.

Old Fourth Ward Fall Fest will be held at the Historic Fourth Ward Skatepark Field, located in Atlanta at 830 Willoughby Way, NE.

The festival is located on the Eastside Trail of the BeltLine, an “ideal place to view the Lantern Parade, which steps off at 8:15 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 9 from the southern end of the Eastside Trail at Irwin Street.”

The festival will start on Friday, Sept. 8 at 5 p.m. and last through 11 p.m. Live music will kickoff that night at 5:30 with local musician Sydney Rhame. The music lineup following Rhame will go as follows:

7 p.m. Trash Panda
8:45 p.m. Family and Friends

On Saturday, the live music continues as follows:

1 pm Breeze Kings
2:30 p.m. The Pussywillows
4 p.m. Electric Darling
5:30 p.m. I.R.E.
7:15 p.m. Walden

In addition to live local music, the festival features food trucks, a DIY lantern making area, a kids’ play area, Whole Paws Pet Zone, a covered sports bar and more.

The food and drink selection will feature “Atlanta’s favorite food trucks, free samples of Bai’s newest enhanced water flavors, free Fontis water hydration stations and a full bar featuring Strongbow Cider, Old Fourth Distillery cocktails, beer and soft drinks.”

A new addition to the beer selection is a ticket-based craft beer event on Sept. 8, which will consist of 75+ locally brewed beers. You can purchase a ticket by clicking here.

As for the DIY lantern making area, all attendees are invited to participate in making a lantern for the parade. A recent press release recommends buying a DIY Lantern Kit prior to the festival by clicking here.

These kits are $20 and “include 16″ round lantern with support stick, LED lantern light with batteries and access to the festival’s DIY decorating tent with all the arts and crafts supplies needed to create a glowing parade lantern.”

Pets are encouraged to come with festival-goers, but dogs are required to be on a leash and cannot participate in the parade. There will be a station for pets to play and drink water brought to the festival by Whole Foods Market called the Whole Paws Pet Zone.

Parking will not be allowed on Willoughby Way or Ashley Avenue, so festival-goers are invited to walk, run, ride bikes or take public transportation instead. For any drivers, refer to the festival website at www.oldfourthwardfallfest.com for parking directions and other information.