Your guide to a perfect St. Pat’s day in Five Points

St. Pat’s in Five Points is more than a neighborhood celebration. It’s one of the biggest such celebrations in the Southeast.

Saturday, March 18, the street festival will celebrate its 35th anniversary with tens of thousands of people green with Irish pride. This year’s schedule is packed with 16 bands, road races, a parade, a new craft beer tasting room and, where it all goes down quietly, the silent disco. Gates open at 9 a.m.

To help navigate said schedule, Go Columbia took on the task of planning out what we consider the perfect celebratory day – and trust, it was not easy. So let it be said that how we plan to “go” about our day should in no way inhibit how you spend yours. No matter how you do it, as long as you do it responsibly, then consider St. Patrick (and your mother) proud.

7:30 a.m.: A running start

Saturday mornings are usually spent sleeping waaay in, but it’s worth getting up early to be a spectator – or better yet, a runner – at the Get to the Green road race. In honor of its 15th anniversary, a 15K has been added to the 5K and 10K events.

10 a.m.: A ‘musical mile’

Find a good spot for the St. Pat’s Parade. This year’s parade includes a “musical mile,” which definitely sounds like something you’d want to check out. And then there’s the bonus of free swag in the form of candy, beads and anything shaped like a shamrock that could be flung at you (safely, of course) from a moving vehicle. All in all, #winning.

11 a.m.: Take some down time

Now is a good time to check out the arts and crafts vendors, along with food offerings. A few local fare highlights include Pawleys Front Porch, Southern Belly BBQ and White Duck Taco – the perfect way to fill the hour before the music kicks off. This is also a good time to sign the #StPatsinFivePoints Wall on the 800 block of Harden Street and enter a selfie into the #StPatsSelfie2017, #StPatsinFivePoints contests.

Noon: So many choices

This is where it gets tricky. There are five official stages – new this year is the bluegrass stage on Santee Avenue – with bands starting at similar, if not the same, times. So in our best imitation of Oprah: You get a band! And you get a band! And you … get the point. They’re all great in different ways, so this is where you be the judge on which stage you start with. Also of note: If you need to check in on your March madness bracket, the Bud Light porta-bar on Harden Street has you covered.

1 p.m.: Tasting time

If you’re of legal age, then it’s about time to check out the new craft beer tasting room. With the promise of 40 beers from 20 breweries, there’s more than enough sampling to go around. Located in the Yesterdays parking lot, you buy a sample cup ($2) and pay for your samples ($2 each). Among local brewers, Swamp Cabbage will have a Sabal Palm and its Red IPA, and Conquest will have Artemis Blonde and “Old Nap” Scotch Ale.

3 p.m.: Silence!

It’s imperative to check out the silent disco at some point during the day, and this is ours. At the 800 block of Harden Street (by the College Street stage), you will find headset-clad partyers jamming to local DJs – Bois Obscur, Dylan Deekay, Guy L, Jade Frost and LUCiD. One word: epic.

5 p.m.: In the home stretch

Back to the festival for the last two hours of can’t-miss live music. We can’t outright say which band we’re super excited to see, but if you want to find us, just look around: We’ll be wearing green.

7 p.m.: And, that’s a wrap

That’s a wrap folks – at least officially. The party will continue on throughout Five Points, as well as spread downtown and throughout the Midlands. And as always, no drinking and driving. In fact, along with your entry to the festival comes a $10 voucher for Checker Yellow Cab toward your fare home or to a hotel. Consider it a little luck of the Irish.

This story was originally published March 15, 2017 at 10:52 AM with the headline "Your guide to a perfect St. Pat’s day in Five Points."