Highland City Town Center has so much to offer! It's much bigger than you'd realize just driving by…read moreit on 98, and you kind of have to literally drive through it to see all that is there. There's one main bigger building where the Publix is, a Dairy Queen and some other restaurants as well as a physical therapy place and other things. Then there are probably about 5-6 other sub buildings with even more stuff. Something I really like about this plaza is the food offerings. Hibachi Express is a great hibachi/ sushi place with reasonable prices, Savory Thai has splendid thai food, and Gators dockside has an awesome all you can eat wings night. There are more fast food options as well, like Sonic and Subway (I guess it's fast?). There's a bar, a car wash, a bank/ credit union, Advance Auto Parts and Mavis, a post office, a dentist and more. It really has so much!

Palm Center is most easily passed by and ignored. There are tons of strip mall/ centers in Lakeland…read morelike mostly any city, so this one doesn't particularly stick out upon first glance. But recently I've found myself visiting Palm Center a lot more often. It's actually got quite a lot going for it. At this strip you can get in a workout (Plant Fitness), eat some sushi or sandwiches (New Moon Sushi & Subway), get car essentials (NAPA), office & house essentials (Staples & Big Lots), get your haircut (Lakeland Barber), go to church (Access Church), or get your alcohol restock (ABC Liquors). You can also get a nice pre or post workout, church or shopping juice or smoothie from Juice Box, go shopping at the Christian Bookstore, get your taxes taken care of at H&R Block, or hit up the consignment store. Oh, and there's a Cici's Pizza if you don't want sushi or a sub. I still haven't named all of the businesses in this complex, but you can see my point right? The only unfortunate thing is that despite the range of Palm Center, it's really not well maintained. A lot of it seems to be nearly falling apart and dirty especially on the outside. Thus, why the strip is also so easily passed by. It's not nice on the outside, so many know that equates to being looked over a lot. But don't! Because Palm Center has much to offer!

This place is massive, great prices and quality. A little Spanish language would help at times but…read morethey are very friendly and knowledgeable. You will find plants, produce, tools, clothing..etc. towards the back you have food .. but I didn't have time to get there next time for sure. There are two parking areas. There are two parts to this flea market one for wholesale and the other for retail. Easy to locate and a great starter to your day.

I like it! But! Now that i process the moderate time i spent there? It's massive n hooot! Like i do…read morerecommend u bring a drink n some bags or cart to carry your stuff. I got confused from the gps taking me to the Farmers market side. But both parkings connect. My map picture shows u which is which. Left is flea market n right is hidden behind business for the farmers market. Huge heads up!; although they open from 3AM to 6PM? 75% leaves before 11am! Its crazy how we just got there around 10:45ish? N immidietly they started packing! I seriously missed outa some good bargains. More on their loss, cuz we buy n help local shops hard! We found so much good things on the first building on the left if u look at our map near my car location. I cant judge the rest of the vendors but i plan on coming back since they open daily ish. Heres the bad: A lot of prepackaged food products under the sun without covering. Stay away from that. Melted vitamins n candies. No fda approval anywhere. So many vendors buy from good will or any drift stores, don't even remove the tags. For example. Guy bought poor looking cups at $1.98 n tried to up price it at $20. I ell him he bought for $1.98 and they weren't even polished just heavy damaged. No price negotiations i left it. (Important notes: i know the value of metals in the current economy, the value of items n got a phone on hand to do research on the spot to come into a fair price. I do not support gaugers) A lot of products on the mud! Holy crap! It's crazy how much clothes n toys on the. Mud! Place is hella huge! Some vendors in the mud, there is a paved road in main areas but like i said nit every vendor in pavement. Did i mentioned hot as hell? Bring umbrella and some snacks n drinks. Farmers side parking closes at 4pm, park on flea side. But i think u can just drive across. Since i like to end in good notes; Its huge!! Lol Can find anything Has bathrooms, some vendors offer food n drinks. BRING A SPANISH SPEAKING FRIEND!! (Im bi lingual mom knows like 4, kindness is your go to card no matter what) Mostly wheelchair friendly, i say that with the notion that the pavement ends at the entrance at most the vendors i saw. Just a fyi, bring a buddy. FREEE PARKING. And to end this, place isn't for fancy types. I grew up with these types of markets n i love adventure! So i blend in just fine. Next time im coming full camo n no cute dresses or shoes lol and a cane! My legs kept getting really tired counter balancing the uneven floor. Its a 4/5 for me but ill update after i come back n hit it full with proper gear and backup plan.

Southgate Shopping Center is a little "strip mall" located in South Lakeland. It stands out from…read moremost, because of it's lovely vintage arch still standing from when the little mall was first built in 1957. Interestingly enough, to many locals, it's biggest claim to fame is a cameo in the locally filmed 1990 movie "Edward Scissorhands" (you can see the arch leg from the beauty salon scene). Right now it holds a nice variety of stores: Publix, Office Depot, Hallmark, Babe's Shoes & Apparel, Beall's Outlet (just opened last month), Tuesday Morning, and Crowder Brothers Ace Hardware. There are a few empty stores, but it's not noticeable. There is also a stand alone Five Guys Burgers and a Starbucks in the front of the parking lot. The parking lot is quite large and maintained nicely.

This Market has significantly expanded. So happy for them. This market is on the first Fridays of…read moreevery month from 5-9 pm. It is at the Grove in the section where they have Ice Dream and it's set up to stroll down to the Krates. There's coffee vendors, baked items, crafts, home decor, apparel, there are tons and tons to look at. My all time fave is the Lima Bakery. They have passion fruit cheesecake. It is a Peruvian baker that I have tried so many of her wonderful treats. Passion fruit cheesecake is my fave and she sells alfajores which are short bread cookies and also lucuma desserts which is a Peruvian fruit. They are located next to the Axe place. This is a wonderful set up so these businesses can have more people coming through in both areas. I love how you end up at the Krates which is perfect for a Friday night. Walking around, hearing some music, and getting a bite. I personally choose not to eat at the Krates on a Friday night. I just don't want to wait in the lines. But it's fun to see people loving on Wesley Chapel. People watch, shop, enjoy a bite, listen to music and kids can play while everyone just enjoys. I mean they always say TGIF and this is a good way to relieve all the week's stresses!

Haven't been here before but from the images I have seen so far it looks pretty promising for…read morebuying and supporting small businesses

Lake Miriam Square more recently had a complete face lift, and now the decent-sized plaza is…read morebrightly lit, clean and spacious. This plaza has a lot to offer, from a wide range of businesses. There's of course all kinds of food- sushi, italian, açaí bowls & healthier food, Mexican, ramen, cake & Publix with their whole specialty areas (pizza, mexican bowls, sushi and the like). PDQ sits just on the far corner of the area as well. But there's also a dry cleaners, barbers, a nail salon & hair salon, dog groomers, a whole spa, pool supplies, a dentist and a Starbucks & bank on the opposite side (plus more). Tons of parking available and great businesses to patronize. It's a nice area and pretty easy to navigate in and out of.

Went to the flea market today for some food! Tried some menudo, leche de Tigre (Peruvian ceviche)…read moreand pupusas (Salvadoran stuffed flattened discs) All the food was amazing. Food all came out very quick . Could walk around and browse and digest food, only to stop at another stall to shop and eat.

The website reads $20 for a spot for the week. We took 2 spaces so $40. We got there on Sat and…read morethey gave us an ok location. We made a few dollars even though there was very little foot traffic and decided to come back on Sun. They told us they would put us in a great high traffic area. We get there on Sunday where they doubled the rent now $80 and put us way in the back behind a parking lot and blocked the aisle off in both directions "so cars don't come through" we got to see maybe 50 people out of the thousands that were in the main section of the market. It's no wonder the vendors are charging criminal prices for their wares. Over priced food, overpriced drinks and overpriced produce. When my husband went to the office e to complain he was laughed at. We will not be back.

This is a really wonderful store I discovered on Main Street during the Bartow Bloomin Arts…read moreFestival. It is located right across the street from the historic courthouse that has been turned into a history museum. The Krazy Kricket was started by Lee Putnam and Susan Blenk who had a love of decorating and repurposing furniture. They started out selling items in a tent before graduating to a space in an antique store. In 2014 they were finally able to open their own store in the spot formerly occupied by the Appleseeds gift store. According to their website they carry mostly new gifts, a sprinkling of antiques, Ce-Ce Caldwell's  Natural Chalk + clay paint, Spartina, Mud Pie, Haute Baby and a variety of other brands." As soon as I walked into the store I could instantly see it was full of all of the things I love starting with the gorgeous flamingo chair. They had the line of Spartina Florida purses and totes that I adore. They had many beautiful home decor items, candles, funky jewelry, colorful scarfs, clothing, and cool bags. In the back of the store they have machinery that can custom embroider anything you want. You could literally pick up anything in this store and it would make the perfect gift for me. It's a good thing I don't live in Bartow because this store would be seriously damaging to my bank account. If you like girly things and you are in the downtown Bartow area you will definitely want to visit the Krazy Kricket.