Florida Festival Fun for 2014

Visit Florida encourages tourists from across the world to enjoy the below listed intriguing events taking place in several regions of the Sunshine State of US in 2014

Florida Festival Fun for 2014

January:

February:

  • Annual Florida State Fair: A tradition since 1904 in Tampa, this is a celebration of the state’s best in agriculture, industry, entertainment and achievement.
  • Florida Renaissance Festival: (February/March) in Deerfield Beach – Ft. Lauderdale:  Take a step back in time to the 16th century – complete with hundreds of merchants and artisans in the crafts village, hundreds of performers on more than 12 stages, Celtic music performances, battling knights charging on horseback and sword fighting, middle-ages food, and even the world’s largest rocking horse.  http://www.ren-fest.com/
  • 76th Edison Festival of Light Grand Parade: (February 15, 2014) Parade starts at 7 p.m. at Edison Stadium and continues to the Fort Myers Downtown River District. During February, Fort Myers celebrates the birthday of its most illustrious historical resident, Thomas A. Edison, in befitting fashion. Edison, who built a home on the banks of the Caloosahatchee River and spent 46 winters there, invented the light bulb. So it’s appropriate that the month of activities culminates with a lighted night parade. Invention competitions, parties, craft shows and a 5K run are all part of the festival.  Celebrating 76 years, the month of February is filled with special events.  Visit website for details.www.edisonfestival.org
  • Boston Red Sox and the Minnesota Twins Spring Training: The Beaches of Fort Myers & Sanibel is the spring training home of the Boston Red Sox and the Minnesota Twins. What could be better than beautiful spring days and great baseball?  The destination makes it easy for fans to take advantage of all that it has to offer along with great accommodation deals for spring training.  For a complete listing of packages, special rates and information on planning a spring training vacation at Florida’s unspoiled island sanctuary, visit www.FortMyersSanibel.com.
  • 132nd Silver Spurs Rodeo: (February 21-23, 2014) Catch pulse-elevating events such as bull riding, steer wrestling, saddle bronc riding, bareback riding, and barrel racing, along with crowd-pleasing cowboy clowns, all part of this truly all-American sport. This popular Kissimmee tradition is the largest rodeo east of the Mississippi, and has been run and operated by generations of Kissimmee residents since its start in the 1940s as a way to sell war bonds. Now presented in an air-conditioned venue, the rodeo offers heart-pounding action and is annually ranked among the top 50 events sanctioned by the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA). Contact: Silver Spurs Riding Club, PH: 321-697-3495. www.silverspursrodeo.com

March:

  • Strawberry Festival: In Plant City this is one of the top 40 fairs in the USA. This annual event, popular for over 80 years, exhibits a wide variety of attractions and events, from top-grade entertainment, float parades, and marching bands, as well as fine arts and crafts to items and displays of agriculture, livestock, and horticulture interest. The main focus of the event, of course, is the 10,000 acres of strawberries growing in the local area. http://www.flstrawberryfestival.com/
  • Epcot International Flower & Garden Festival: (March-May) Held in Orlando, this annual Walt Disney World event features everything from themed flower and garden displays, interactive areas for kids and the popular Flower Power Concert Series featuring live performances from popular hitmakers of the 1960s and 1970s.

April:

 

  • Annual Interstate Mullet Toss: Perdido Key’s iconic beachside restaurant, bar and live music venue, which straddles the Alabama/Florida state line, also sets the stage for another quirky competition. During the 29th Annual Interstate Mullet Toss, April 26-28, participants will take turns tossing an actual mullet across the state line during a weekend-long beach party, complete with food, music and round-the-clock fun. http://www.florabama.com/news/140-the-flora-bama-hosts-28th-annual-interstate-mullet-toss-and-gulf-coasts-greatest-beach-party
  • 28th Annual Sandestin Wine Festival: (April 10-13, 2014) The 28th Annual Sandestin Wine Festival is the most established, continuously running wine festival in the Southern United States. Live music, culinary delights and wine tastings pair perfectly in the picturesque setting of Baytowne Wharf.

May:

  • Pompano Beach Fishing Rodeo: Known as a South Florida tradition, the 2-day, Pompano Beach Fishing Rodeo has been a popular attraction for almost 50 years. The event showcases both anglers and spectators in a number of events from an opening party and captain’s meeting, hundreds of anglers taking part in fishing tournaments and a final Awards Party.
  • ArtsQuest Fine Arts and Music Festival: (May 9-11, 2014) Art lovers won’t want to miss the annual ArtsQuest Fine Arts and Music Festival, which is celebrating its 26th year during Mother’s Day weekend in WaterColor, May 9-11, 2014. The festival will feature more than 130 international exhibiting artists, live music, artist workshops, a children’s exhibit and much more.

June:

  • Florida Country Superfest: At 840 square miles, Jacksonville is the largest city in the continental United States.  Jacksonville has been chosen to host the first annual Florida Country SuperFest on June 14 & 15, 2014. The two-day music festival will bring some of the biggest names in country music to the “River City by the Sea” including Eric Church, Big & Rich, Luke Bryan, Miranda Lambert and Florida Georgia Line.

July:

  • Annual Hemingway Days Celebration: Stocky white-bearded Ernest Hemingway look-alikes, aspiring writers and fans of the author’s work gather in Key West every year for the annual Hemingway Days celebration. The festival honors the legacy of the American literary giant who lived and wrote in Key West throughout the 1930s.  In addition, fans of the author can visit his former Key West home at 907 Whitehead St., now a museum open for daily tours.  The preliminary Hemingway Days 2014 dates are July 15-22. http://www.fla-keys.com/hemingwaymedia/
  • Swamp Stomp: In Tallahassee, this is an annual music festival at the oak-shaded grounds of the Tallahassee Museum. It showcases outdoor performances by the supreme singer-songwriters of the Florida folk music elite. The Swamp Stomp also features outdoor games, close-up animal encounters, living history demonstrations, and environmental education activities.

August:

  • Annual IFE-ILE Afro-Cuban Dance Festival:  Celebrating Afro-Cuban culture and folklore through the arts, IFE-ILE’s Afro-Cuban Dance Festival features everything from traditional and contemporary dance and music performances, lectures, workshops, poetry readings, and other art forms. A successful event for more than 11 years, this festival attracts thousands to the streets of Miami to enjoy and celebrate Afro-Caribbean and Cuban culture. http://www.ife-ile.org/

September:

  • Womenfest: In Key West this has been a popular event for more than 20 years, Womenfest, known as the best and most southern “party for lesbians and their friends”, offers everything from clothing-optional pool parties and a lively dance club scene, to a golf tournament and women-only water excursions from jet ski activities to dolphin watching. http://www.womenfest.com/

October:

  • Biketoberfest:  A fun-filled, family event that attracts 75,000 to 100,000 motorcycle enthusiasts from throughout North America and Europe. Festivities include street festivals, concerts, charity rides, expos, seminars and celebrity appearances. Popular annual activities include motorcycle shows and rallies that showcase new, vintage and custom bikes, demonstration rides on the newest machines from top manufacturers, and on-track motorcycle action at the world-famous Daytona International Speedway. http://www.biketoberfest.org/
  • Epcot International Food & Wine Festival: (October/November) In Walt Disney World this culinary celebration features cuisine and beverages from more than 25 countries. Appetizer-sized portions can be found in kiosks around the World Showcase at Epcot, Walt Disney World. It’s the perfect opportunity to try traditional cuisines from around the world. Your Epcot admission is all that’s needed to participate in this popular event.

November:

  • The Great Gulfcoast Arts Festival: Established in 1971, this is a three-day, juried art show held in historic Seville Square in downtown Pensacola. Featuring more than 200 of the nation’s best painters, potters, sculptors, jewelers, graphic artists and craftsmen, as well as local cuisine, live entertainment, and a children’s art festival, the festival has become one of the largest juried art shows in the Southeast. Admission to the Great Gulfcoast Arts Festival, which takes places the first weekend of November, is free.  Additional event details may be found at www.ggaf.org.
  • The Florida Seafood Festival: A two day event annually drawing tens of thousands to the  historic town of Apalachicola in scenic Franklin County. The Festival is held at the mouth of the Apalachicola river under the shady oaks of Apalachicola’s Battery Park. The festival features delicious seafood, arts and crafts exhibits, seafood related events, Musical Entertainment. Some of the notable events include Oyster Eating and Oyster Shucking contest, Blue Crab Races, Photo Contest, Parade, 5k Redfish Run, The Blessing of the Fleet ,History of the Festival Exhibit, Fireworks Show and King Retsyo’s Ball.http://www.floridaseafoodfestival.com/

December:

  • Art Basel:  In Miami Beach this is the favorite winter meeting place for the international art world. Paintings, sculptures, drawings, installations, photographs, films, and editioned works of the highest quality are displayed in the main exhibition hall, while ambitious artworks and performances become part of the landscape at nearby beaches, Collins Park and SoundScape Park. https://www.artbasel.com/en/miami-beach
  • St. Petersburg Power & Sailboat Show: The largest boat show on the Gulf Coast, is set to sail into the Progress Energy Center for the Arts Mahaffey Theater Yacht Basin and Albert Whitted Park in St. Petersburg, Fl. The show will feature an impressive selection of power boats and sailboats in water and on land, including a 40,000-square-foot clearspan tent housing all types of marine gear. Show-goers will find hundreds of power boats and sailboats including family cruisers, runabouts, fishing boats, magnificent sailing yachts, personal watercraft and much more. 
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