SAVANNAH, Ga. (WSAV) — Savannah’s St. Patrick’s Day celebration is still rocking the city, and that’s exactly what local businesses are looking for.

St. Patrick’s Day and the parade has passed but the Hostess City is still expecting a huge crowd this weekend for celebrations. Some local businesses made a bounce back after a two-year hiatus from the parade.

“It was amazing, it was a lot of fun. We enjoyed it,” said Melissa Swanson, owner of The Rail Pub in downtown Savannah. “You have your hiccups and everything but it worked out really well and had a great staff and happy to be back.”

Happy to be back on a big scale indeed. Business is booming for some local bars and restaurants despite smaller numbers compared to pre-pandemic St. Patrick’s celebrations.

“It seemed like what I was expecting to be. I wasn’t disappointed in the numbers,” Swanson said. “I wasn’t disappointed in the people who were here. I don’t think there was less people in this area but I have heard it was a little bit scattered.”

However, another business said people were scattered which resulted in about half the business they expected.

“I think it was a lot less busy than we thought it would be,” said Abby Warren, a bartender at The Grove. “I was surprised I was walking on river street and it was not body to body like it was in the past couple of years. But other than that I think it was a good turn of events. I still think its a little dead though. I hope it picks up further into the weekend.”

Businesses tell me, the lack of alcohol vendors did not seem to impact their sales. They did like seeing an expanded to-go cup zone and think it was a plus for locals.

“I think it was wonderful to be able to share it with the other businesses especially in that area. Because it kind of spreads the love,” Swanson said. “A lot of locals don’t come downtown because its such a touristy thing. And it gives them a place to go celebrate and not have to worry about coming downtown and adding to the clutter of the chaos.”

Looking ahead to the weekend, there’s live music and events all around going on. we have them on our website. and if you’re trying to avoid traffic download the Waze app for the best live updates.