WATCH SATURDAY | Gasparilla Invasion at 11:30 a.m.
Gasparilla Pirate Fest
Pre-Invasion Celebration
The festivities begin with the Gasparilla Charity Concert and Pre-Invasion Celebration 5 p.m. Friday, Jan. 29, at Curtis Hixon Waterfront Park in downtown Tampa. Tickets are $20. Buy them online here.
Music schedule:
6 p.m. The Hip Abduction
7:30 p.m. Howie Day
9 p.m. The Swon Brothers
Gasparilla Invasion
The big event starts 11:30 a.m. Saturday, Jan. 30, in Hillsborough Bay. Here's a map of the parade route:
Parking and street closures
Expect some parade-related backups because of street closures. Depending on the time of day, portions of West Kennedy Boulevard and West Platt and Cass streets will be closed. You can find a map and schedule of closures at https://shar.es/1hI3Ot
Bayshore Boulevard will close 10 p.m. Friday.
You'll want to keep this list handy of parking garages that will be open in downtown and Ybor City.
From 8 a.m. to noon on the parade day, parking violations will only result in a warning. Between noon and 10 p.m., you can expect to get a ticket. After that, police will have your vehicle towed.
Mayor Bob Buckhorn will give Tampa’s key to the city to the pirates at the Tampa Convention Center at 1 p.m., which leads to…
Gasparilla Parade of Pirates
The parade goes from 2 to 5 p.m., beginning at Bayshore and Bay to Bay boulevards. The route goes along Bayshore to Brorein Street and then north on Ashley Drive. It ends at Cass Street and Ashley Drive.
If you looking to get to the parade area, you can take the bus or trolley. You can check the details here.
Here's a map of the route:
Wet Zone
Good news: You can drink along the parade route, only in designated areas. The areas are along the parade route and Curtis Hixon park in downtown.
If you drink outside this area, you risk an open container violation. The first offense will cost you $75, and the fines increase to $450 for your forth offense.
Gasparilla Outbound Voyage
The Krewe of Sant' Yago host the 2016 Illuminated Knight Parade at 7 p.m. Feb. 13. in Ybor City.
Ye Mystic Krewe of Gasparilla will close out this year’s celebrations at Channelside with music from 2 p.m. to 10 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 27.
