Free & Cheap Things to Do in Savannah

Parks & Nature

Savannah's crown jewel is a stunning 30-acre park anchored by an iconic 1858 fountain that has appeared in countless films and photographs. Live oak trees draped in Spanish moss arch over wide promenades, and the park hosts free concerts, farmer's markets, and community events year-round.

Address: 2 W Gaston St, Savannah, GA 31401

Tip: The park is beautiful any time, but early morning and late afternoon light on the fountain is exceptional for photos. The Saturday morning farmer's market (year-round) is a great spot to grab cheap local food. Free parking available on surrounding streets.

Arts & Culture

A free passenger ferry connects downtown Savannah's River Street with Hutchinson Island across the Savannah River. The short crossing offers great views of the historic riverfront, passing cargo ships, and the Savannah skyline — a genuinely scenic experience that costs absolutely nothing.

Address: 2 W Bay St, Savannah, GA 31401

Tip: Runs daily with frequent departures. The ride takes only about 5 minutes each way, but the views of the riverfront are worth hopping on and off several times. Ferries are named after notable Savannah women. Great photo opportunity as large container ships pass on the river.

History & Culture

The largest National Historic Landmark District in the country, Savannah's grid of 22 oak-shaded squares surrounded by Federal and Regency townhouses is entirely free to explore on foot. Each square has its own character, monuments, and benches — a living outdoor museum that stretches for over 2 square miles.

Address: Savannah, GA 31401

Tip: Download the free Visit Savannah app for a self-guided walking tour of the squares. Chippewa, Madison, and Monterey squares are among the most photogenic. The district is very walkable — good shoes are all you need. Evening walks when the squares are lit by gas lamps are particularly atmospheric.

Historic Sites

A 100-acre Victorian-era cemetery on a bluff above the Wilmington River, draped in Spanish moss and shaded by live oaks — one of the most photographed cemeteries in America. Made famous by the book and film 'Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil,' Bonaventure is the resting place of poet Conrad Aiken, songwriter Johnny Mercer, and Georgia colonial-era families. Wandering the moss-draped lanes is completely free.

Address: 330 Bonaventure Rd, Thunderbolt, GA 31404

Tip: Open daily 8am–5pm. The Bonaventure Historical Society leads free, hour-long guided tours on the second Saturday and second Sunday of each month at 2pm — no reservations needed. Bring a printed map (free at the front gate office) since GPS doesn't always work well between the moss-draped lanes. Allow at least 90 minutes to wander.

Historic Sites

Savannah's most stunning interior — a soaring French Gothic Revival cathedral built in 1876 with twin spires towering 207 feet above Lafayette Square. The interior is breathtaking: vibrant stained-glass windows, intricately painted ceilings, marble altars, and Stations of the Cross hand-carved in Bavaria. Designated as the Mother Church of the Diocese of Savannah, the cathedral remains one of the city's most beautiful free attractions.

Address: 222 E Harris St, Savannah, GA 31401

Tip: Open to visitors Mon–Sat 9–11:30am and 1–4:30pm; Sunday 1–4:30pm only. Docent tours run during open hours — to schedule, email cathedralbasilicatour@gmail.com. Funerals and weddings can occasionally close it to visitors. Wheelchair accessible via the Harris Street elevator entrance.

Walking Tours

Savannah's iconic cobblestone waterfront, where 19th-century cotton warehouses now house galleries, candy shops, taverns, and restaurants. The Riverwalk runs nine blocks along the Savannah River, with cargo ships gliding past at eye level. Free to wander day or night — sample handmade pralines at River Street Sweets, watch street performers, and catch the seasonal First Friday Fireworks displays from the riverfront.

Address: River Street between MLK Jr. Blvd and East Broad St, Savannah, GA 31401

Tip: The cobblestones are uneven and steeply sloped — comfortable shoes are essential. Free parking is hard to find; consider the Savannah Visitor Center (3-hour free with validation) or the free DOT shuttle from downtown. First Friday Fireworks happen most months April through October — show typically starts at 9:30pm.

Arts & Culture

A 670,000-square-foot adaptive reuse project that transformed a 1912 power plant on the western end of River Street into Savannah's newest entertainment hub. The JW Marriott lobby — free to walk through — houses a museum-quality collection of geodes, fossils, and a 100-million-year-old amethyst dragon sculpture. Free live music plays nightly along the riverwalk plaza, and three rooftop bars offer cheap drinks with the best skyline views in the city.

Address: 400 W River St, Savannah, GA 31401

Tip: The geode and fossil exhibits in the JW Marriott main lobby are open to anyone who wants to walk through — no purchase needed. Friday and Saturday nights bring the most live music to the outdoor plaza (free). Most rooftop bars open at 3pm; sunset cocktails are a Savannah ritual.

Historic Sites

The most photographed driveway in Georgia — a 1.5-mile avenue of 400+ moss-draped live oaks leading to colonial-era ruins of the home of Noble Jones, one of Savannah's original 1733 colonists. The site includes a small interpretive museum, the tabby ruins of the Wormsloe estate (Georgia's oldest standing colonial structure), nature trails through the maritime forest, and a demonstration area with costumed interpreters showing 18th-century crafts on busy weekends.

Address: 7601 Skidaway Rd, Savannah, GA 31406

Tip: Open daily 9am–4:45pm. The famous oak avenue is just past the entrance gate — admission is required to drive or walk down it. Costumed interpreters demonstrate colonial crafts on Saturdays. Bring bug spray in summer (mosquitoes off the marshes). About a 20-minute drive from downtown Savannah.

Historic Sites

Founded in 1773, this is one of the oldest Black churches in North America — and the current 1859 sanctuary on Franklin Square was built by enslaved congregants in the evenings after their day's work. The basement floor preserves a hidden Underground Railroad chamber: the diamond-pattern airholes drilled in the floorboards allowed freedom-seekers to breathe while hidden below during the day.

Address: 23 Montgomery St, Savannah, GA 31401

Tip: Tours run Mon–Sat at 1pm only — buy tickets online or arrive at least 15 minutes early. Active worship still happens here, so respectful behavior is expected. The tour includes the sanctuary, museum, and basement Underground Railroad room. Allow about an hour. Group tours of 10 or more must be reserved in advance.

Arts & Culture

A striking contemporary art museum housed in the renovated 1853 Central of Georgia Railway depot, anchoring the Savannah College of Art and Design's downtown campus. The rotating exhibitions feature emerging international artists alongside heavyweight names like Kara Walker and Jamel Shabazz. The award-winning building itself — a fusion of antebellum brick and ultra-modern glass — is worth the visit.

Address: 601 Turner Blvd, Savannah, GA 31401

Tip: College students with ID get in free, as do SCAD alumni and SCAD students/faculty/staff. Family ticket (3 or more) is $20 — best value for groups. Open Tue–Sun; closed Mondays. Allow 1–2 hours; the small but high-quality permanent and rotating collections don't take all day.

Historic Sites

The third-oldest Jewish congregation in America (founded 1733) and the only Gothic-style synagogue in North America. Named one of the '15 Most Beautiful Synagogues in the World' by Condé Nast Traveler, the 1878 sanctuary on Monterey Square shelters a 15th-century Torah — the oldest in North America — plus letters from George Washington and a Pulitzer-winning museum collection of Jewish American history.

Address: 20 E Gordon St, Savannah, GA 31401

Tip: Docent-guided tours Mon–Fri at 10am, 11am, 1:30pm, and 2:30pm; closed for lunch 12pm–1:15pm. Closed Saturdays and Sundays (except Super Museum Sunday in February). Tour entrance is at 20 Wayne Street. Reserve in advance via the website's Book Your Tour page; pay at the gift shop on arrival.

Arts & Culture

Housed in the former A.S. Varn & Son oyster and crab factory on Moon River, this small but powerful museum tells the story of Pin Point — a Gullah-Geechee community founded by formerly enslaved African Americans in the 1890s. Exhibits cover the community's distinctive language, cuisine, religious traditions, and the seafood-shucking economy that sustained it. Justice Clarence Thomas grew up here.

Address: 9924 Pin Point Ave, Savannah, GA 31401

Tip: Open Thursday–Saturday only, 9am–4pm. Closed Sun–Wed. About a 25-minute drive from downtown Savannah. Best paired with a drive past nearby Moon River, made famous by Savannah-born songwriter Johnny Mercer. Closed Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve, Christmas, and New Year's Day.

Walking Tours

One of Savannah's 22 historic squares, laid out in 1815 and centered on a bronze statue of colonial founder General James Oglethorpe. Best known to film fans as "the Forrest Gump square" — the bench scene was filmed on the square's north side at the corner of Bull and Hull Streets in 1994. The original prop bench is now at the Savannah History Museum; the square itself is free to wander and ringed by the Savannah Theatre, First Baptist Church, and the 1847 Moses-Eastman House.

Address: Bull Street between Hull and Perry Streets, Savannah, GA 31401

Tip: The square has live oaks for shade and benches throughout. No actual movie bench remains here — fans take photos at the filming location at the north end. Pair with neighboring Wright Square (one block north) and Lafayette Square (three blocks south) for a free historic-squares walking tour.

Historic Sites

An 1860 Italianate mansion on Monterey Square, famous as the setting of John Berendt's 1994 nonfiction bestseller Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil and Clint Eastwood's 1997 film adaptation. Antiques dealer Jim Williams (the murder defendant from the book) restored the house in the 1970s and lived there until his death; his sister Dr. Dorothy Kingery now owns and runs the museum. The 35-minute guided tours cover the main four rooms and the carriage house.

Address: 429 Bull Street, Savannah, GA 31401

Tip: Tours run every 20–40 minutes, first-come first-served, Mon–Sat 10:30 AM–4:10 PM and Sun 12 PM–4 PM. Tickets sold at the carriage house at 430 Whitaker Street. For groups of 6+, call 912-238-0208 to reserve. Metered street parking only.

History & Architecture

An 18-mile drive east of downtown Savannah, Georgia's oldest and tallest lighthouse stands 145 feet above the Atlantic on Tybee Island. The current 1867 lighthouse is the fourth at this site (the first dates to 1736, ordered by James Oglethorpe), and visitors can climb the 178 steps to the top for sweeping views of Tybee, Cockspur Island, and the South Carolina coast. Admission includes the Tybee Museum across the road in Battery Garland.

Address: 30 Meddin Drive, Tybee Island, GA 31328

Tip: Open Wed–Mon 9 AM–4:30 PM (closed Tuesdays). Last ticket at 4:30 PM, lighthouse closes at 5 PM. 2-hour parking included in admission. Pair with the free public beach access on Tybee — North Beach is a short walk from the lighthouse lot. Tickets sold on-site only.