St. Patricks Day Super Saturday Sidewalk Sale!

March is the month of St. Patrick's Day and you know we love the color green here at DHI! Therefore, join us next week for a Super Saturday Sidewalk Sale, Holmes Ave. Block Party, and the announcement of a new Downtown Huntsville Trail! You get all the details in this edition of the Downtown Explorer.

We are going all out for St. Patty's day in Downtown Huntsville! On Saturday March 13th, join us for a Super Saturday Sidewalk Sale on Clinton Avenue and a Block Party on Holmes Avenue! This outdoor event will include shopping, dining, drinking, gaming, and giveaways to celebrate this upcoming holiday!

Art Vendors and Buskers will be out from 11am to 3pm while local businesses will expand their merchandise to the sidewalk. At 3pm head over to Holmes Avenue for a fun block party with more shopping, dining, and entertainment.

View our Facebook Page to learn more about the art vendors, buskers, and updates on this event!

At this special Super Saturday, we are hosting an IG Reels contest!!! You must post an IG Reel on Saturday of you showcasing something green! Yes just show us something green! The more creative your IG Reel, the better chance you have of being a winner in this contest.

You can find green colored clothes in our local businesses, green plants from our art vendors, green colored food at our restaurants, and so much more! We want to see you having a great pre-St. Patrick's Day Saturday!!!

The best IG Reels will win a gift card to one of our Craft Beer Trail establishments!! Don't forget to tag us in your IG Reel to be entered to win!

Downtown Huntsville's 2020 Year In Review

This unique and rough year has sure surprised all of us. 2020 has been a year of transformations and adapting for Downtown Huntsville. As we wave goodbye, we wanted to take a look back at this extraordinary year and what came out of it in this last edition of the Downtown Explorer for 2020!

As the lockdowns began, we strived to do our best to continue to support downtown businesses and provide activities and events for the community. With physical distancing in mind, DHI made significant changes to some of your favorite annual events.

This year, we offered physically distanced Friday Night Art Walks, presented by
Amanda Howard Sotheby's International Realty, Food Truck All Stars, presented by valleymls.com, Downtown Open Putt Putt, presented by Crunkleton Commercial Real Estate Group, and Tinsel Trail, presented by Facebook! These fan favorite events looked a little different this year, but nonetheless, were just as exciting as years past.

Along with these events, we also created a few new ones for 2020! Our downtown businesses placed their merchandise on the sidewalks of downtown in our Super Saturday Sidewalk Sales. This new event was a great way to enjoy shopping in downtown while remaining outdoors in a fresh air environment.

These changes and new events showcased how adaptable our community, local artist, and small business owners are. We plan on continuing to make downtown safe for 2021!

Staying outdoors was a priority in 2020 and Downtown Huntsville is a perfect place to take advantage of that!

This year, we relaunched our Blue Bikes bike share program powered by Tandem Mobility and sponsored by Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Alabama. With 30 bikes across 11 stations its easier than ever to explore our downtown.

We also released a new set of our Explorer Vlogs showcasing some of the best parks around Downtown Huntsville. You can view the full playlist here.

Our 2020 Pop-Up Parks, presented by Redstone Federal Credit Union, were one of the major highlights of this year. All built by construction companies and architectures, these miniature urban parks included dog parks, physically distanced work spots, and many great relaxation locations.

Downtown Huntsville still has so much to offer outdoors including our Secret Art Trail, presented by Polaris Inc., and right outside the downtown core you can explore Monte Sano Mountain hiking, biking, and more.

Downtown's food and retail businesses sure took a hit this year, but they still have been able to adapt to these challenges.

DHI was able to launch a 7 week campaign known as the Super 7 in 2020! We asked the community to nominate and vote on their favorite breakfast items, food truck items, desserts, coffees, and beers within Downtown Huntsville. The results can be viewed here!

Our Craft Coffee and Craft Beer Trails are still an amazing way to get out and explore downtown while enjoying your favorite beverages. We even added a community favorite, Canadian Bakin, to our Craft Coffee Trail this year! In 2021 you can expect more exciting announcements regarding our trails, so stay tuned!

You can learn more about our downtown small businesses by watching our Small Business Profiles here. These short videos showcase what unique things these businesses bring to our Rocket City Center.

Although 2020 forced us further apart, it showed us how close together our community can be. Moving into 2021, lets continue to support our local community and businesses.

If you are looking for ways to enjoy a New Years cocktail safely this year, visit our Facebook or Instagram account! From all of us at Downtown Huntsville, Inc. we hope you have a great New Year!

More Holiday Markets and a Posh New Lounge to Close Out 2020!

There are some exciting new additions to Downtown Huntsville at the close of this year. In this edition of the Downtown Explorer, we invite you to our Holiday Night Market to celebrate the new lights over the Clinton Row Color Walk, and we invite you to the brand new Stella's Elixir Lounge in downtown! In addition, check out our list of local restaurants offering carry out, delivery, and dine-in holiday meals!

Friday from 4-6pm, visit the Downtown Holiday Night Market in the newly-lit Clinton Row Color Walk. 15 local art vendors will line the color walk selling one-of-a-kind merchandise perfect for gifting for the holidays! Come celebrate this new addition to our Color Walk as well as the upcoming holidays. See you soon in Downtown Huntsville!

Impeccably posh without pretension, Stella’s Elixir Lounge is THE place to meet after work, gather with friends, or impress your date. They will be serving your favorite libations on their rooftop in Downtown Huntsville on Holmes Avenue. After a successful grand opening last Tuesday, Stella's Elixir Lounge is ready for your visit! They invite you to experience their 4,000 square foot lounge boasting a comfortable mix of open air seating areas with cozy fire pits and a swanky indoor bar serving your favorite elixirs until 2 am every night. Visit them today in Downtown Huntsville located right next to Moe's Original BBQ.

Multiple downtown restaurants will be offering carryout, delivery, and dine in meals this holiday season! Don't stress over cooking a big meal this Christmas and order locally instead. Check out our list below!

Canadian Bakin Holiday Pre-Orders
Char Restaurant Holiday Catering
Commerce Kitchen Christmas Feast
Cotton Row Candlelight Christmas Eve Dinner
Fresko Grille's MEZZA Party Tray for the holidays
GrubSouth Free Delivery List
Mazzara's Kitchen Family Feast
Ruth Chris' Holiday Carryout Meal and Christmas Day Dine in

Shop then Drop in Downtown Huntsville!

Downtown Huntsville is truly a magical place during the holidays, and this year is no exception. Our downtown shops have the best gifts in stock for every member of your family! You can also stop in next weekend at Lowe Mill Arts and Entertainment Center for their Winter Solstice Market, their largest market of 2020, and celebrate at La Esquina Cocina's Posada Hispanic Holiday Market! Shop local this year to support these small businesses and local artists!

Our downtown core shops have created an amazing Holiday Gift Guide for anyone and everyone you need to shop for! Go shopping in Downtown Huntsville soon to get these one-of-a-kind presents!

May May's
Stockings- $42
Toy Blender- $48
Truck Party Bath Squirters- $19
Kids Beanie- $26
Kids Pajama Set- $52

Caley Paige Home and Gifts
Pillow- $72
Woven Table- $130

Silhouette Boutique
Cork Yoga Mat- $107.00
Tamed Wild Flora Goddess Candle- $26.00
Crossbody Purse- $86.00

Harrison Brothers Hardware
Serving Platter- 65.00
Rocket Painting- $132.95,
Local Jelly- $8.95

Indigos Boutique
Hand Bag- $39.99
Set of Drinking Glasses- $34.99

Elitaire Boutique
Mamuye Whiskey Leather Bag - $168
Fozi Snakeskin Crossbody Leather Bag - $148
Navy Sweater Dress - $90

Wheelhouse Salon
Limited-Release Wheelhouse "Debbie" shirt- $15
Oribe Dry Texturizing Spray- $48

The Huntsville Museum of Art Store
Frida Kahlo Vogue Tote- $42
“Women In Art” Puzzle- $16.50
Studio Roof Paradise Bird- $16

Earlywork's Children's Museum Gift Shop
Yoda- $45
Ornaments- $12.

Roosevelt and Co.
Sweater - $155
Shirt - $165
Jeans – $176 - $225
Messenger Bag - $198
Scarf – $95 - $195

This Friday, La Esquina Cocina is hosting a Posada, a traditional Hispanic Christmas festival with live music and vendors! This is a great opportunity for the Latin community to be able to experience this tradition and its a great way to educate yourself of the rich Hispanic culture, especially during the Christmas season.

Confirmed art vendors include:
Yala Avenue
A Cute Angle
Stucchi's Jewelry
Luna Moth Candle
Candies con Fuego
Havana Bama Cafe

Free hot chocolate (the infamous Abuelita chocolate) will be offered as well as some giveaways from local shops. Have fun hitting pinatas and...visiting SANTA at this Hispanic Holiday Market! This is a COVID-safe event, and it is family and pet friendly!

La Esquina Cocina is so excited to showcase this Hispanic tradition!

Can't get enough of these Holiday Markets? Neither can we!

On Saturday, December 19th, come to the largest artist market of the year at Lowe Mill Arts and Entertainment Center! The Winter Solstice Artist Market is the perfect place to bring your out-of-town family members to show them the best local artist and makers North Alabama has to offer. Stroll through the socially-distanced vendor artist market throughout the grounds, and take a step inside to shop the fantastic studio artists in the building! The Winter Solstice Market is the perfect place to find any last minute gifts as you get ready to celebrate the holidays - and the end of 2020!