The Apple Arts Festival in downtown Ellijay

The fairgrounds hold over 250 vendors of handmade arts and crafts, plus live music, on-site demonstrations and food. The 2026 vendor list also had a petting zoo and pony rides, a kids train ride, a kids zone, blacksmith forging, chair caning and chainsaw carving. The organizer says the list is subject to change.

Source: Georgia Apple Festival (official site), 2026 Vendor List; Gilmer County Chamber, Georgia Apple Festival

The Gilmer Chamber said the 2026 festival had over 250 vendors of handmade arts and crafts. Older descriptions use a larger figure: the City of Ellijay's 2023 festival page and the New Georgia Encyclopedia both mention more than 300. The organizer posts a vendor list each year and says it is subject to change.

Source: Gilmer County Chamber, Georgia Apple Festival; City of Ellijay; New Georgia Encyclopedia, Ellijay

Apply through the organizer. The Chamber says applications open each year on January 1 and are due by March 31, and the FAQ says vendors are notified starting in May. Items must be handmade, handcrafted or grown by the artist, who must be on site. For 2026, craft booths cost $300 for one weekend or $500 for both, plus a $25 fee.

Source: Georgia Apple Festival (official site), FAQs; Gilmer County Chamber, Know Before You Go

It is a free sister festival to the Georgia Apple Festival, held in downtown Ellijay on the same weekends. The Gilmer Chamber organizes it, with more than 65 juried vendors of handcrafted and specialty goods, plus food. The Chamber describes it as pet-friendly and accessible, and it is held rain or shine.

Source: Gilmer County Chamber, Apple Arts Festival: Vendors; 2026 Apple Arts Festival; Apple Arts FAQs

The Apple Arts Festival is in downtown Ellijay, in the parking area behind the Downtown Ellijay Welcome Center at 10 Broad Street. That is a separate site from the main festival at the Lions Club Fairgrounds on South Main Street. In 2026 the Chamber also listed a downtown lot on Hipp Street among the main festival's shuttle lots.

Source: Gilmer County Chamber blog, The Apple Arts Festival Returns To Ellijay This Fall; Festival Parking

In 2026 the Chamber listed Apple Arts hours of 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturdays and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Sundays, on Oct. 10-11 and 17-18. Some Chamber pages say it keeps the same times as the main festival, which opens at 9 a.m., so check the current year's schedule before you go.

Source: Gilmer County Chamber blog, The Apple Arts Festival Returns To Ellijay This Fall; 2026 Apple Arts Festival

Yes. Admission to the Apple Arts Festival is free. Its FAQ says free public parking is available throughout downtown Ellijay, though the Chamber's Eventeny listing calls downtown parking limited. The main Georgia Apple Festival at the Lions Club Fairgrounds is a separate event and charges $10 per person.

Source: Gilmer County Chamber, 2026 Apple Arts Festival; Apple Arts FAQs

Yes. The Apple Arts Festival in downtown Ellijay is pet-friendly, and its FAQ welcomes well-behaved, leashed pets. That makes it the choice for dog owners on festival weekends, since pets are not allowed at the main Georgia Apple Festival at the Lions Club Fairgrounds. The Chamber says service dogs are welcome.

Source: Gilmer County Chamber, Apple Arts FAQs; 2026 Georgia Apple Festival event listing