Welcome to April! It’s festival season, pollen season, prom season, and spring flower season. Are you looking for things to do in April around metro Atlanta? This is your monthly guide to free and cheap fun in the month of April.

Below is an overview of annual April celebrations, plus events and activities that FREE, cheap, or discounted. Sometimes, we throw in a splurge alert item that we think is especially notable.

REMINDER:
Before making plans for a restaurant, special exhibit, concert, trampoline, or spa treatment, make sure to check Groupon for a deal! You can often save 50% or more.

You may also be interested in our weekly list of Free & Cheap Things To Do

April in Atlanta: top things to do this month

Below the spotlighted events, you’ll find a rolling day-to-day listing of April events.

♦ Free museum days

•  The High Museum Art hosts its Second Sundays FREE day on April 14, 2024.
Details on Second Sundays at the High

• The High Museum also hosts its FREE Access For All program on Wednesday, April 17, 2024 — you need to register in advance for this one.

•  The Museums On Us program offers FREE admission to Bank of America cardholders at four metro-area museums on April 6th & 7th.  This includes the High Museum, Tellus Museum, Atlanta History Center, and Center for Civil & Human Rights.
Details on Museums On Us

• Sunday Funday is a FREE drop-in day for families at the Carlos Museum. It’s happening on April 7, 2024.

• The Marietta History Center hosts its FREE monthly Family Fun Day on Saturday, April 20, 2024.

The High has added a new FREE admission day on 3rd Wednesdays. (Deposit Photos)

♦ Free craft and DIY workshops

Take advantage of one of these FREE crafting events — just click through for details and to register.
In most cases, supplies are provided.

• Sunday Makebreak at Michael’s — happening April 7th & 21st at all local stores.

 • Saturday Kids Club at Michael’s — happening on April 13th & 27th at all local stores.

• Home Depot Kids Workshop — make a lattice planter on Saturday, April 6th

• Lowe’s Kid Workshop — make a garden cart planter on Saturday, April 20th.

• Decatur Makers’ Family Build Night — happening on Wednesday, April 24th.

♦ Fairs & Festivals in April

Details for the biggest festivals are below — including the Inman Park Festival & Atlanta Dogwood Festival. Just scroll down a bit!

You can also browse our complete 2024 Guide to Festivals & Fairs in Atlanta.

• Cobb Parks Spring Arts Festival — April 6th
• Spring Festival on Ponce — April 6 & 7
• Amplify Decatur — April 13th
• Acworth Art Fest — April 13 & 14
• Atlanta Dogwood Festival — April 12–14
• Kennesaw Mountain Fest — April 13th
• Lemonade Days — April 17–21
• Alive in Roswell — April 18th
• Art on the Chattahoochee — April 20th
• Big Shanty Festival — April 20 & 21
• Chamblee Art Fest — April 20 & 21
• Sweetwater 420 Fest — April 20 & 21
• Smyrna Spring Jonquil Festival — April 27 & 28
• Inman Park Festival — April 27 & 28
• Duluth Spring Arts Festival — April 27 & 28
• Taste of Marietta — April 28th
• Roswell Moves — April 28

♦ NEW! Dino Fest at Stone Mountain Park

Thru April 28, 2024
(Weekends + spring break weekdays)

This is a brand new attraction at Stone Mountain Park! It features a lighted dinosaur parade and a special dino light and drone show, plus displays of life-size dinosaurs.
More info on Dino Fest and available discounts

Thanks to a limited-time offer from Groupon, you can buy a daily Attractions Pass at HALF OFF — that’s just $19.99, for both children and adults. (The regular price is $39.99 for adults, and $34.99 for kids.)

More discounts for Stone Mountain Park:
♦ Get a 1-year Mountain Membership for just $49.99

Photo courtesy of Stone Mountain

♦ Dogwood blossoms and more spring flowers

You’ll see flowers everywhere in April!
If you just want to wander through a gorgeous garden on your own, check out our huge list of great places to see spring flowers around Atlanta –– including parks, public gardens, wildflower trails, and more. Some are even FREE!

Daffodils at Oakland Cemetery

♦ Tutankhamun: His Tomb and Treasures

Last call + a 20% OFF sale!
This blockbuster exhibit is getting ready to close and leave town. You have until Sunday, April 7th to see Tutankhamun: His Tomb & Treasures” at the Exhibition Hub Art Center.
Save 20% on tickets with the promo code TUTCLOSING20.

This exhibit features to-scale replicas of the treasures found within King Tut’s tomb, and offers a captivating look into the wonders of Ancient Egypt. Located at 5660 Buford Hwy in Doraville (near the 285 interchange).
More info and tickets

♦ Atlanta Dogwood Festival

April 12 – 14, 2024
Piedmont Park, midtown Atlanta

The Dogwood Festival is the queen of all Atlanta festivals, now in its 87th year!  This iconic spring event is the third oldest fine arts festival in the country and the longest running festival in Atlanta. There is so much to do — music, live performances, food, a fine art market, midway rides, and more. 
Admission and entertainment is FREE but there are ways to upgrade your experience with VIP tickets.
Atlanta Dogwood Festival details

♦ Georgia Renaissance Festival

Weekends from April 13 to June 2, 2024
Plus Memorial Day Monday
Fairburn, GA

Well worth the drive! Travel back in time to days of yesteryear and yore, with this popular themed festival. There are multiple discounts and ways to save on the price of admission, including a BOGO deal for opening weekend.
Get the details and view the discounts

Photo courtesy of GaRenFest

♦ Illumine light show at Oakland Cemetery

April 18th to 28th
(select dates)
Oakland Cemetery

Illumine is a self-guided experience spread across the Oakland Cemetery grounds, using light, shadow, sound, and projections to create an experience and tell a story.
You’ll see dozens of artistic displays throughout the cemetery, including lanterns, light-boxes, illuminated headstones and mausoleums, and projections of archival images and film. The cemetery’s gardens and oldest trees become part of the light show as well.
Illumine will also feature live music, craft cocktails at pop-up bars, and an Oakland pop-up shop.
More info on Illumine

Photo courtesy of Atlanta Fair

♦ Van Gogh: The Immersive Experience

This immersive exhibit lets you step into a Van Gogh painting as you explore his life and work through 360-degree digital projections and a virtual reality excursion through the French countryside. It’s running all month long.

Located at the new Exhibition Hub Art Center, 5660 Buford Highway in Doraville.
There are over 250 FREE parking spots here, and it’s right off I-285 near Spaghetti Junction.
More info and tickets

♦ Lemonade Days Festival

April 17 – 21, 2024
Brook Run Park
Dunwoody

This charming local festival features carnival rides, live music, petting zoo, antique car show, arts and crafts vendors, food, and the annual Dunwoody Idol talent contest.
Details on Lemonade Days

♦ Inman Park Festival

April 27 – 28, 2023
Along Edgewood Ave, in Inman Park

It’s been called Atlanta’s “most spirited and eclectic” street festival, and it’s our personal favorite here at Atlanta On The Cheap.

The Inman Park Festival & Tour of Homes takes place each year during the last weekend of April. It includes a street parade, artist market, food, three stages of live music, a tour of the historic neighborhood homes, and some of the best people-watching in town!

Festival admission, the parade, and the live entertainment is FREE but there is a charge for home tour tickets.
Details for the Inman Park Festival & Tour of Homes

♦ Strawberry festivals and you-pick fields

Fresh, local strawberries are a sign of spring in Georgia!  It’s the perfect time to plan a pick-your-own outing or enjoy a strawberry festival at a Georgia farm.
We’ve put together a list of strawberry festivals and you-pick farms that are within an hour drive from downtown Atlanta.
Find a strawberry festival or farm

Deposit Photos

♦ Spring walks and easy hikes

The April weather is warm and pleasant, and wildflowers line many trail paths.

• Cobb County Trail of the Month program will meet at Allatoona Park in Acworth on Saturday, April 12, 2024. Register in advance.

• Wednesday morning group walks at Mason Mill Park are lead by a guide, starting at 10 a.m. each Wednesday. No reservation needed!

• Here’s a short list of some of our favorite spring walks to do on your own:

• Stroll around the lake and thru the woods at Murphey-Candler Park
• Visit old homestead ruins on the nature trail at Mary Scott Nature Park
• Walk the paved trail at the Peachtree Creek Greenway

Upcoming April events: