EVANSVILLE — The Fall Festival is back for another year, promising plenty of food to eat and nonprofits to support.
The West Side Nut Club Fall Festival runs Monday through Saturday night on Franklin Street. Around 200,000 people will flow through the festival during a typical year.
There will be more than 100 food booths run by local nonprofits from schools, churches and animal shelters.
Here are a few things to know before heading to the West Side.
Where does the Fall Festival take place?
The West Side Nut Club Fall Festival takes place along Franklin Street on Evansville’s West Side.
There are two Fall Festival live camera feeds that visitors can see from 8 a.m. to 10:30 p.m.
When does the Fall Festival start?
The Fall Festival fully kicks into gear Oct. 6, but for those hoping to miss the big crowds, Family Day is set for Oct. 5.
Kiddie rides only will be open from 1 to 7 p.m. The nonprofit food booths will not be open at this time.
On Monday, it all opens up for visitors to flood Franklin Street. Food booths are open Monday-Saturday of the festival from around lunch time to 9 p.m., depending on crowd flow.
Carnival rides are open from 2-10 p.m. Monday and Tuesday.
Wednesday:
Thursday:
Friday:
All rides open from 11 a.m. to 10:30 p.m.
Saturday:
All rides open 10 a.m. to 10:30 p.m.
Could I still win the half pot this year at the Fall Festival?
Totally. This year’s half pot already has money it, as ticket sales started Oct. 1.
During the week of the Fall Festival, tickets can be purchased on Franklin Street:
The winner will be announced at 7 p.m. CST on Oct. 12 online. Last year’s half pot set a record, ascending to $2,000,075. The winner got $1,000,035.
How many food booths will the Fall Festival have?
The Courier & Press won’t offer a number of how many items to eat, but simply state there are 137 different booths to choose from. (To hit them all during the week, a visitor would need to do about 22 a day.)
Booths stretch along West Franklin Street from Wabash Ave to St. Joe Avenue.
This year’s Munchie Map is already out so locals, and visitors, can start their planning.
What are the special events each day of the Fall Festival?
How much are Fall Festival ride tickets and wristbands?
This year, the Fall Festival is moving to a digital ride ticket system from its ride provider, North American Midway Entertainment.
Digital credits loaded onto a card can be purchased at a self-service kiosk, as well as wristbands. According to information from the West Side Nut Club, there will be a one-time $2 activation fee for each newly purchased card.
Credit pricing is:
Kiosks will be located at:
Different rides require a different number of credits, and some rides include minimum height requirements.
METS offering lunchtime shuttle rides
The city will offer the METS bus rides to the public from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Monday – Friday with a route to the fall festival. The standard bus fare will apply for all passengers.
The fare is $0.75 per ride. Kids five and under ride free when with a paying adult. There is a limit of three free kids per adult.
Each day of the week, every half hour from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., the shuttle will pick up and drop off from the C.K. Newsome Community Center on the back 40 parking lot, then the Civic Center at the parking lot exit on Ninth Street and near the flagpoles on Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard.
The shuttle will pick up/drop off at the temporary bus stop corner of West Franklin Street and Wabash Avenue on the quarter hour. The first drop off will be at 11:15 a.m. the last departure is at 1:45 p.m.
This article originally appeared on Evansville Courier & Press: It’s almost Fall Festival time in Evansville. Here’s what to know.
Reporting by Sarah Loesch, Evansville Courier & Press / Evansville Courier & Press
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