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Beyond the festival weekend, Dahlonega is home year-round. Search Dahlonega homes for sale at Gold Peach Realty or call (770) 283-1223.

The 1836 courthouse on the Public Square, now the Dahlonega Gold MuseumThe 1836 courthouse on the Public Square, now the Dahlonega Gold Museum

An independent visitor guide. Not the festival’s official website.

The 72nd annual Gold Rush Days Dahlonega, Georgia. October 17 and 18, 2026

Gold Rush Days fills Dahlonega’s Public Square with arts and crafts booths, food, live music, old-time contests and a Saturday parade. The 72nd annual festival runs Saturday and Sunday, October 17 and 18, 2026, and opens at 9:00 AM both days. The parade starts Saturday at 3:00 PM, rain or shine. This independent guide puts the schedule, parking and plans in one place.

See the scheduleWhere to park

A Gold Peach Realty community guide. Thinking about more than a weekend here? Call Gold Peach Realty at (770) 283-1223.

Saturday & SundayOctober 17 and 18, 2026On the Public SquareBooths open 9 to 5:30Parade Saturday at 3Dahlonega, Georgia

Dates and times are the organizer’s. The 2026 schedule opens at 9:00 AM both days, and 5:30 PM is the organizer’s standing closing time for booths.

The 2026 schedule, hour by hour

Saturday, October 17

  1. Gold Rush 5K

    Sponsored by the Dahlonega Rotary.

    Race

  2. Festival opens

    Booths open around the Public Square.

  3. Historic Holly Theater Presents Dahlonega's Got Talent

  4. Nealy Webster

  5. Pie Eating Contest

    Contest

  6. Gainesville Ballet Company

  7. Historic Holly Theater Presents Dahlonega's Got Talent

  8. The Raven Welch Band

  9. Beard Growing Contest

    Contest

  10. Grand Marshal Announcement

    The parade’s grand marshal is announced.

  11. Apple Bobbing

    Contest

  12. Hog Calling

    Contest

  13. King and Queen Coronation

    The King and Queen are nominated by neighbors and must be over 60.

  14. The Oak Grove Boys

  15. Gold Rush Parade

    Rain or shine. The parade ends at the University of North Georgia drill field.

    Parade

  16. Radford Windham and Step Back Cadillac

  17. Booths close

    The organizer’s standing closing time for booths.

Sunday, October 18

  1. Festival opens

    Booths open around the Public Square.

  2. UNG String Band

  3. Historic Holly Theater Presents Dahlonega's Got Talent

  4. Team Bell and Friends Gospel

  5. Cross-cut Saw Competition

    Contest

  6. Sam McDuffie

  7. Gold Country Squares

  8. Sniffy & The Lips

  9. Arm Wrestling Tournament

    Contest

  10. Booths close

    The organizer’s standing closing time for booths.

Start times are transcribed from the organizer’s published 2026 schedule at goldrushdaysfestival.com. The closing time is from the organizer’s vendor page. Check the organizer’s page on the day. Last checked October 12, 2026.

Six times worth knowing

All six are on the organizer’s 2026 schedule.

A faded colour snapshot of a parade float lettered '1828 GOLD DIGGERS' carrying a giant gold coin, a man in prospector dress and a woman in a white ball gown, passing 1950s cars, a bungalow and spectators.
The Dahlonega Business and Professional Woman’s Club float at Gold Rush Day, October 1956.Photo: Chestatee Regional Library System Collection, courtesy of the Digital Library of Georgia, No known copyright (US)

Saturday 3:00 PM

The parade

Rain or shine, around the square and on to the university drill field.

Saturday 1:45 PM

Hog calling

One of four contests on Saturday.

Saturday 2:00 PM

King and Queen coronation

Nominated by neighbors. Both must be over 60.

Sunday 11:15 AM

Cross-cut saw competition

The first of Sunday’s two contests.

Saturday 10:15 AM

Pie eating contest

The first contest of the weekend.

Saturday 8:00 AM

Gold Rush 5K

An hour before the booths open, sponsored by the Dahlonega Rotary.

Downtown closes to cars. Park outside and walk in.

The streets around the Public Square close at 6:00 PM on Friday and reopen at 8:00 PM on Sunday, by the organizer’s vendor schedule. The spaces you would normally use on the square are full of booths.

No festival parking plan or shuttle has been published for 2026. The parking page has what is known, where the public deck normally is, and what nobody has confirmed for the weekend.

Parking and road closures

Elevated summer view across the brick-edged public square: angled parking full of cars, two-storey storefronts including a painted brick building with green trim, street trees, and wooded hills behind. No crowd and no event.
The Public Square from the Gold Museum balcony on an ordinary day in 2023.Photo: BullDawg2021, CC BY-SA 4.0, original

Why a mountain town celebrates gold

Twenty years before California, the rush was here.

  1. 1829

    The rush begins

    Thousands of prospectors pour into what was then the Cherokee Nation. georgiaencyclopedia.org

  2. 1838

    The Dahlonega mint strikes its first coins

    It makes almost 1.5 million gold coins before closing in 1861. georgiaencyclopedia.org

  3. 1954

    The list of Kings and Queens begins

    The organizer’s list of Gold Rush Days royalty begins with Ross McDonald and Nina Head. goldrushdaysfestival.com

The courthouse in the middle of it all

The brick building the booths wrap around is the 1836 Lumpkin County Courthouse, now the Dahlonega Gold Museum. Georgia State Parks says it holds a complete set of the coins struck at the Dahlonega mint and a nugget of more than five ounces. Two gold mines in Dahlonega offer panning.

Where to pan for gold

Straight-on view of the two-storey red brick courthouse front: four white columns, white balcony, arched iron gate and the date 1836 over the fanlight. Bare trees and an overcast sky.
The Dahlonega Gold Museum on the Public Square, 2006.Photo: HowardSF at English Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0, original

Stay longer than the weekend

This guide is published by Gold Peach Realty, a brokerage that works in Dahlonega. If the festival has you wondering what it would be like to live here, these are some of its current listings.

See homes at goldpeachrealty.com or call (770) 283-1223

Quick answers

When is Gold Rush Days 2026?

Gold Rush Days 2026 is Saturday, October 17 and Sunday, October 18, 2026. The festival is always held on the third full weekend of October. goldrushdaysfestival.com

What time does Gold Rush Days open and close?

The festival opens at 9:00 AM on both Saturday and Sunday. The organizer’s standing hours for booths are 9:00 AM to 5:30 PM. The 2026 schedule itself does not print a closing time. goldrushdaysfestival.com

What time is the Gold Rush Days parade?

The parade is Saturday, October 17, 2026 at 3:00 PM. The organizer says it goes ahead rain or shine. goldrushdaysfestival.com

Is Gold Rush Days cancelled if it rains?

The parade goes ahead rain or shine, according to the organizer. No rain policy for the festival as a whole is published, so check the organizer’s site on the day if the weather looks bad. goldrushdaysfestival.com

Where do I park for Gold Rush Days?

Outside the closed downtown streets, then walk in. The University of North Georgia parking deck on South Chestatee Street is normally open to the public on weekends, but nothing published confirms it for festival weekend. As of October 12, 2026 no festival parking plan or shuttle has been published. dahlonega.org

Is this the official Gold Rush Days website?

No. This is an independent visitor guide published by Gold Peach Realty. The official site is goldrushdaysfestival.com, run by Gold Rush Days Festival, Inc. goldrushdaysfestival.com

The whole guide

Schedule

Every act, contest and start time for both days, typed out.

Parade

Saturday at 3:00 PM, rain or shine. Route, end point and what to expect.

Parking

When downtown closes to cars, and where the public lots are.

Things to do

Contests, booths, music, the parade and the Gold Museum.

Gold history

The 1829 gold rush, the branch mint, and a festival since 1954.

Plan your visit

Getting there, when to arrive, where to find a room, what to bring.

Gold panning

Two gold mines and the Gold Museum, and what each one offers.

Questions

Dates, hours, parade, parking and rain, each with its source.

Homes for sale

See all 22 homes for sale

© 2026 Georgia MLS (GAMLS)

Listing information is provided by Georgia MLS (GAMLS), the copyright holder. Information is deemed reliable but is not guaranteed.

Last updated: October 31, 2026 7:12 pm EDT