Visited the Winter Village a few days before Christmas and had a great time! We arrived around 6:30…read morepm and enjoyed all of the lights, decorations and activities! We did not reserve ice skating in advance, so we were not able to skate the night we went since the next available time to reserve wouldn't be until 9pm and we did not want to wait that long. We visited some of the cute shops and made a few purchases. I am a huge supporter of shopping local so I was really glad to support some local Tampa businesses. I managed to pick up some gifts for friends and some dog treats for Baxter! We enjoyed a few drinks and an ice cream sundae and we picked up a pupsicle for our pup since he was with us when we visited! He was a huge fan of it! We walked the riverwalk for a bit and just enjoyed the night outside on such a nice evening. This is such a great event offered during the holiday season!

I have visited the Winter Village several times in the past few years and have enjoyed stopping by…read more Ice skating, pop-up stores, and nice holiday music. It is great to see families and couples enjoying the holiday season here.

We found this drive-in after googling drive-in's near us - this location is about an hour from us,…read morebut worth the drive for sure. We grew up with a drive-in in our town and we loved it as kids, so we wanted to take our kids, this was their first drive-in movie experience and it didn't disappoint. Toy Story 5 was playing, they recommend showing up an hour early on their website, we arrived at 8pm and found a spot easily, but it's definitely a good idea to show up early because it was already packed with cars when we showed up. You also need a radio, preferably battery operated, so you can tune into the station (I believe it was 89.3) and listen to the movie - unless you want to leave your car running the entire time and use your car radio. We decided to sit in the back of my husband's truck, which was a vibe - just make sure you check the weather so you don't end up getting rained on and also recommend bringing some bug spray because there are lots of mosquitos that will pester you if you don't have something to keep them away. We will be back for a family movie night, this is such a fun family experience - I wish there were more drive-ins around still but they're few and far between unfortunately.

We have been going to the Ruskin Family Drive-In since we moved to the area in 2018. We absolutely…read morelove coming here. From the amazing owners, delicious snacks, ability to bring our friendly pups, to watching new (and sometimes classic) moves from the comfort of our SUV or pick up truck bed. They typically play two movies and admission is currently $7 a person. Much cheaper thsn other theaters. They make a lot of the snacks from scratch using high quality ingredients. Pizzas and grilled cheese are made upon order and never disappoint. We have also enjoyed the popcorn, nachos, and hotdogs. The chili is also homemade. Since they don't make much profit on the movies, they charge $5 for a snack voucher to use in concession. We always spend more than that, so we welcomed the change. Snacks are all very reasonably priced and so is admission. The owners are some of the kindest people I know. We used to take our elderly lab here and before he passed we took him to say goodbye and enjoy one last movie. They even came out to give him extra love since he was a regular with us and his fur sister. Ruskin Family Drive-In is a family owned business that will make you feel like one of the family. I enjoy coming here more than a typical movie theater for all these reasons and more. We will be regulars here forever! Check out the movie and stsrt times in their website or Facebook. Please check it out and support a local business and one of the oldest functioning drive ins.

I'm glad we went to get the Strawberry Fest (the shortcake was DELICOUS) you had me a shortcakes!…read more The livestock was small and hard to locate. The midway was HUGE! The crowd was WALMART ON STEROIDS! The parking was ok...we got lucky on a spot. Vendor area was like a Flea market. I can't say we will every go back but we survived. See u Soon!

I look forward to the Strawberry Festival in Plant city every year now !…read more The fair runs from Late February into the second week of March every year and offers discounted tickets at local Publix stores. It goes back to late 1930 when local members of the newly organized Plant City Lions club has the idea of an event to celebrate the bountiful harvest of strawberries and boy am I glad they did ! There is strawberry everything at this fair - from popcorn to strawberry shortcakes , ice cream , donuts and even fresh picked strawberries for purchase to take home ! There are a ton of rides, food vendors , Local vendors and live animals for all ages to enjoy! I loved the pig races and eating all the delicious fairy food . I really wanted a pair of red cowboy boots ( yes they have retail vendors on site ) but left without them darn it . Parking is not so fun as there is no designated lot so you have to find a lot to park in and ranges from $10-30. This was my 3rd time coming and I will definitely come back with the family and friends to enjoy fun moments .

Our visit started as an unexpected stop on a day out and I am so glad we chose to attend for the…read morefirst time. The weather was beautiful and live music created a fun vibe as we spent hours on end at Julian B. Lane perusing the various talents of creatives local and beyond. We were excited to pick up a few pieces and make connections with great organizations for the arts. I loved watching the chalk artists at work, in awe of their talent, creating beauty with such simple tools. The onsite food trucks were fantastic and A Boy Named Sous is now on our list of trucks to follow! Our kids weren't with us on this day, but the kid's area looked amazing and it was great that there were many interactive exhibits and workshops for them. I highly recommend a visit to this festival and we plan to attend every year!

Great free event right on the river of Julian B Lane park - dog-friendly and kid-friendly. I am…read morecontinually surprised by the quality of the art and exhibits every year. There are artists from all over the country with different styles. Best event in Tampa

my son & i came here to celebrate a bday party & it was such a good time! the entrance leads you…read moreright into the gift shop (parents be aware) - but the process was seamless to enter. there was a whole room w/ animatronic dinosaurs that moved - the boys loved that! there is a shaded patio w/ lots of seating for eating & a splash pad right next to it too. they had a food cart & some other options for snacks as well. the playground was extensively built & the park itself is a generous size. they had neat attractions such as gemstone panning, fossil digging, & a rideable dinosaur cart as well as a train! we had so much fun celebrating our friends & my son said he couldn't wait to go back again. see yall soon !!

Beware! Today my daughter was playing at the splash area and suddenly started screaming that she…read morewas bleeding. There was a screw tucked between the tiles and she cut her foot! The young manager was called and he seemed overwhelmed with what to do with a crying child. Really just overwhelmed with the situation. Overall I'm disheartened by the response by the team because as my daughter was limping through the souvenirs, she really wanted a toy. But all the manager offered was a small discount. My daughter kept apologizing like she was the one who did something wrong when it's their fault she cut her foot by not keeping chairs and materials safe. It was a $10 toy. It's not like we demanded refunds or free tickets for a future visit. And they couldn't be bothered to help her trip end on a good note. It's it like we did something wrong. No one expected a screw to be sticking up in the splash pad area! Thank you for nothing.

If you like to drink local At this beer fest you must be…read moreAnd what's even better than being there with Stacy Z.! With excitement we all line up, to check in and get our wristbands, so once the clock strikes two we are through the gate, glasses in hands! The event is very well organized: benches under shade for a quick recline, water from kegs keep glasses clean, and pot-o-lets with no line! It makes me oh so proud to see the long, long line at Funky Buddha. Though thankfully I can skip it and focus on North and Central Florida. Beer brewed with tupelo honey, key limes, oranges and mangoes! Try a girl scout cookie stout and oh all the ales aged in barrels! Copperpoint meets Coppertail, Two Henry's get a Barley Mow, Crooked Thumb with a Crooked Can, How many beers can you drink in a row? Alligator and Swamp Head from Gainesville, 7venth Sun, Cigar City and Pair-o-dice. Drinking from Islamorada to Pensacola Bay My oh my I am in paradise!

Went to the 2018 version. $50 apiece at the gate - DO THIS. The pre-order line was like two…read moreblocks long, and we just walked up to a cashier and were through in seconds. Again- do NOT pre-order tickets. You'll be waiting for half an hour, and the whole event is only three hours long. Great time, though. Several dozen breweries, all giving out beer. Most had their head brewers (in some cases, even the owners) in attendance, so if you're a craft beer person you can talk shop or pick their brains. Many of the big boys in attendance (CCB, Rapp, Big Storm, etc) along with dozens you're almost certainly unfamiliar with. Definitely crowded, but I never waited more than a minute in any line. You'll always find something here. Personal story note - I'm a UWF grad (go fightin' squids!) and was repping my Alma with my UWF shirt. I got tons of comments, high-fives, and shouts of "go Argos!" But the best was an old dude who opened the conversation with "hey, UWF, me too! You smoke reefer?". Lol

Such a beautiful place and a really nice experience for all ages…read more My friend and I went there last night to visit and absolutely loved it. The admittance is $8/adults and kids under 2 get in for free. It's a small area but so festive. There is a 1/4 mile trail of walking around to see various light displays and characters. They have a scavenger hunt paper for kids to fill out while walking, but we enjoyed it as well. There is also a little maze to go through - super cute! After the light displays you can get a free gift at the concessions. There are a variety of food options (I recommend the fresh donuts and hot chocolate) that are very reasonably priced. You can tell it's more about the family friendly feel than the profit. Around the area they play Christmas movies for kids and have tons of games to keep them occupied - duck races, connect-4, coloring, letters to Santa, photograph area, and ping-pong. I highly recommend for all ages to enjoy as it is really a nice outing if you are looking to experience something some small town festivities for the holidays.

Be warned, there is no Guava at the Guava music festival. But there are a lot of great bands…read morecombined with a carnival for overall great fun. I loved the Carnival/ Music idea. I couldn't quite figure out why the carnival rides were playing music too. It was hard to hear the concert while you were on a ride, but the general idea of having rides at a concert is brilliant. I also indulged in a Pina Colada, fair food and at my favorite food trucks which made my taste buds happy too! We had so much fun bopping back and forth to our favorite bands. I did not like the Nectar stage. It did something to the music, bad echo or something that made everyone who played that stage sound a little...well they just sounded bad. It would have been a nice break from the heat had there not been so much smoking in that small space. Being a non smoker myself, I couldn't stand to be in there very long. My favorite stage was actually the one by the carnival rides. Everyone was mellow and just enjoying the music. Several people had blankets out and there was no pushing and shoving to get to the stage. The stage with the best sound would definitely be the Amphitheater however they really do need soo much more security. Every time I come here someone stands in the aisle in front of my seat blocking the walk way. I even witnessed one guy who paid extra for box seats but since they were 2nd level box seats, there was no security to get the general admission people out of his seats... what a waste of his money. I would have thrown a fit!

This festival was a blast!…read more I felt like everything was well organized and coordinated. The 4 stages where bands performed were great, especially the one with AC ;) No complaints on the sound or anything like that. Got to know some new bands and was happy with that. The food trucks were great, everything my friends and I tasted, we loved! We just wish the stands and trucks sold water or sodas, MANY of them didn't so that was inconvenient. Konan BBQ was amazing!!!! We also enjoyed the Pad Thai made to order, and a truck called The Maine Thing which had delicious lobster rolls. They did NOT skimp on the lobster here....very good portions! There were water bottle refill stations which was a great concept, but there was a leak in the hose that provided the water, so anyone refilling their bottles had to step in mud :( I felt that there should be more shaded areas or shade provided with the two stages that were in the sun. It was NOT easy standing in the sun for 2 hours straight. Take sunscreen for sure!!!