The annual Red Poppy Festival was postponed to October due to coronavirus concerns. Since there are no red poppy flowers in the fall, the event needed a new title, said Cari Miller, Georgetown Convention and Visitors Bureau tourism manager.
“We wanted a name that represented the poppy festival but also had an Oktoberfest flair to it,” she said.
That is how POPPtober Fest was born. The event will take place Oct. 23-25.
The bureau is working with a designer on new branding for POPPtober Fest, Miller said, adding that she hopes to unveil the new designs at the beginning of this summer, but it depends on what happens with coronavirus and all that has come with it.
The Red Poppy Festival 2021 will take place next April.
“We’ll be planning both of them at the same time,” Miller said. “It’s a very busy year for us. But a lot of what we had done for this year can be used next year regarding t-shirt designs and such.”
The bureau does not know at this time if the main musical acts will be the same as originally planned or if new, Miller said.
“It depends on musicians’ availability,” she said. “People book entertainers pretty far out. We’re about six months out from the festival now. ... October is a busy month. as far as events go.”
Friday night will still feature Dysfunction Junction, though, and the majority of local dance and music schools that perform throughout the weekend are on board with the October dates, Miller said. Most of the artisan vendors have also committed to October.
“Our first priority is always the health and safety of the guests at the event,” Miller said of the change in dates, “I think an October event will be fun; Oktoberfests are always fun.”
