Fourth Ward Holiday Sip & Stroll has been CANCELED

Fourth Ward Holiday Sip & Stroll-CANCELED

HTTPS://www.FOFW.org/sip-and-stroll

A festive event for extraordinary times.

2020 Tour Dates and Times
Thursday, Dec 3rd:                   5-9 pm
Friday, December 4th:             5-9 pm
Saturday, December 5th:        5-9 pm

NOTE: there will be no Sunday tours this year.

Due to COVID-19, the 2020 Holiday Tour will be an outdoor-only, evening porch-crawl-style stroll through Fourth Ward. PLEASE NOTE: No interior home tours will be allowed this year, due to COVID-19 health & safety protocols. Masks will be required for all tour-goers, vendors & volunteers. Additional safety information below.

Celebrate the season with a festive outdoor evening stroll through Historic Fourth Ward, decorated for the holidays. This self-guided, porch-crawl-style tour will include seasonal music, carriage rides, and food & beverage tastings in the most walkable and picturesque Victorian-era heart of the neighborhood. The event will take place from 5-9 pm on December 3rd, 4th, and 5th. Due to COVID-19, capacity is strictly limited; day-specific tickets ($20) may be purchased online only.

Hospitality partners offering complimentary on-site tastings include: The Balvenie Scotch, New Amsterdam Vodka, Petty Thieves Brewing, Potts Chocolate, Muddy River Distillery, Copper Barrel Distillery, Southern Distilling, Broken Shed Vodka, Zia Pia, and Sea Level (New England Clam Chowder).

Hospitality partners offering a complimentary small bite or seasonal beverage at their restaurants include: Poplar Tapas, Queen City Grounds, and Pizzeria Sapienza.

TICKETS – $20
Due to COVID-19, crowd capacity is strictly limited to 300 people per day, and tickets are valid ONLY for the date noted on your purchase. If Covid conditions improve, we may release additional tickets closer to the event. Children who cannot be carried must have a ticket. 

PLEASE NOTE: When purchasing your ticket online, you WILL NOT RECEIVE PAPER TICKETS BY MAIL. When you arrive at the tour, simply check-in at the Ticket Booth at the corner of W. 9th & N. Poplar Streets. Please bring a printed or digital copy of your ticket with you; we will scan your ticket for contact-free check in. You will then receive your guidebook and tasting tickets (both required for touring) and you will be on your way!

***Tickets are non-refundable: Friends of Fourth Ward is a non-profit, volunteer-powered organization and the Holiday Sip & Stroll is a fundraising event for the neighborhood and multiple charities, including: Hope Haven, Frontline Foods, Charlotte Symphony, Joedance Film Festival (pediatric cancer research), and Charlotte Green Team; for these reasons, we are unable to issue refunds on ticket purchases. Thank you for understanding! If we are forced to cancel the tour due to worsening Covid conditions, we will refund ticket purchases, less ticketing fees.

Safety Protocols and Tickets

• During tour hours, tour-goers must redeem their tickets at the Ticket Booth at W. 9th & N. Poplar Streets to receive their tour guidebook and tasting tickets.
• Friends of Fourth Ward has consulted with the Mecklenburg County Health Department, and will follow its recommendations, as well as CDC guidelines.
• Health screenings and temperature checks will take place upon check-in at the ticket booth.
• Face coverings are required. NO MASK = NO ENTRY. Masks must be worn at all times while entering/leaving the event while strolling through the event site, and while approaching and leaving tasting stations. Masks may be temporarily removed for tastings only.
• Sanitizing stations will be set up at the ticket booth and all tasting locations. Tour-goers are asked to sanitize frequently.
• Tour-goers are asked to social distance, and to enjoy the tour with their immediate family or friend group (AKA, their COVID “bubble” or “pod”).
• NOTE: Due to the evolving COVID-19 crisis, event details, vendors or activities may change at any time.

This event sells out well in advance every year, so buy your tickets early! Tour is rain or shine. We look forward to seeing you! Happy Holidays! Special thanks to Gold Sponsor Allen Tate Realtors for making this event possible!

Tour Parking
All tour stops are within walking distance of one another. We encourage guests to use ride-share services OR to access Center City via Light Rail. (Both the 7th Street & 9th Street Station stops are accessible to Fourth Ward. Limited, free on-street parking is available throughout the neighborhood. Follow this link for additional, real-time parking information in Center City: http://www.charlottecentercity.org/transportation/parking/

Advertising & Sponsorship
Interested in advertising or sponsorship for the tour? Please email Beth Walker at bethwalker@earthlink.net.   

Questions?
Additional information, press kits, and group rates are available. Please contact us at: hometours@fofw.org

History of the Fourth Ward Holiday Home Tour​
Founded in 1977 by neighbors who visited each other’s homes to feast, sing carols and enjoy holiday décor, the Friends of Fourth Ward Holiday Home Tour has evolved substantially over the years.  In 1979, the event opened to the public and quickly became a successful fundraiser for the neighborhood.  The Holiday Home Tour is the largest fund raiser for the Fourth Ward Neighborhood. Funds help improve the safety and quality of life in the Fourth Ward and Uptown Charlotte area. Improvements include better lighting for our neighborhood and park, the crosswalk at Harris Teeter, bags for the dog walkers to use to keep our neighborhood clean, a new playground on 9th street, additional bicycles for our policeman, additional supplies for our local firemen, and support for local schools. Additionally, we donate to the following organizations: Frontline Foods, Hope Haven, Joedance Film Festival, Charlotte Symphony and Charlotte Green Team. Come have fun and help us continue to make the center city a great play to live, work and play!

History of Historic Fourth Ward
In the mid-1830s, Charlotte was divided into four political wards. The northwest quadrant was called Fourth Ward – a prosperous area that was home to merchants, ministers, physicians and numerous churches, forming a strong center of social and religious influence. By the early 1900s, the trolley had expanded beyond uptown Charlotte, making nearby “suburbs” such as Dilworth the neighborhoods of choice. Fourth Ward entered a period of decline that continued until 1976, when the Junior League undertook a restoration program that fired the imaginations of adventurous urban “pioneers”.

Today, Historic Fourth Ward is an active, charming community of grand Victorians, luxury condominiums, urban apartments, parks and businesses, as well as cultural, religious and educational activities – all within walking distance of Charlotte’s thriving uptown business center.

Tour proceeds benefit the non-profit Friends of Fourth Ward neighborhood organization