The Nuestro Folklore Dancers will perform at this year’s La Fiesta del Pueblo on Sept. 28.

TIFTON — La Fiesta del Pueblo, the largest Hispanic festival in South Georgia, returns Sept. 28, according to a press release.

Since its beginnings in 1996 in the rural town of Omega, La Fiesta has been bringing the taste, sound, history, culture and traditions of Latin American countries to Tifton and surrounding areas.

The festival will be in Fulwood Park and run from 10 a.m. — 10 p.m. Guests can celebrate the day with fun, authentic food, Mariachi music and folkloric dances. Admission to the festival and to most of the children’s activities is free.

The day will be packed with non-stop entertainment, including Mariachi Garibaldi, dancers, local performers and more.  

This year, there will be two stages.

The Howard Center stage will be taken by professional dancers from Dancers’ Pointe Company LLC, an international group known as APU INKA with Andean music and traditional Peruvian dances, Group MexicAzteca Dancers, the Mariachi Band Garibaldi, ABAC Cultura Latina, Nuestro Folklore Dancers, Tifton High School Spanish Club, Aposento Alto Band and The International MEGA DJ from Hidalgo.

The Tift Regional/Coca Cola stage will be occupied by singers and music to delight the children’s area with the 501 Legion Star Wars group, Platanito the Clown, and the traditional street dance featuring two live bands, “Los Rodriguez de Nuevo Leon” and “Los Compas de Nuevo Leon,” from  7-10:00 p.m.

Typical foods prepared by vendors will be for sale and this year there will be people selling food from Mexico, Venezuela, Brazil, El Salvador, Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic as well as a variety of arts, crafts and commercial items. The children’s area will include face painting, children’s crafts, bouncing houses, giant slides, kiddie train rides, climbing wall and bungee jumping.  Booths with information about health, education, social services and community organizations will also be located in the festival area.

In 2018, La Fiesta attracted around 11,000 people from 23 counties in Georgia and 10 states. The festival has been recognized by the Georgia Council for the Arts-Office of the Governor Grassroots Arts program as an outstanding recipient of grassroots funding in previous years, with the council saying that La Fiesta del Pueblo showed how arts can change lives and be used as a tool to strengthen Georgia communities.

Fiesta del Pueblo is not only a festival promoting culture and traditions from Latin American Countries in Tifton and surrounding areas but also feeds the endowment for the Maria Cervantes Scholarship. Each year the scholarship is fed with money received from vendors in the festival. This scholarship fund helps deserving young boy/girl to pay for some of their college tuition in ABAC.

For additional information, contact Dina Willis at 229-386-7265/229-386-0354 or check the festival webpage at www.lafiestadelpueblo.org.