Find Out Everything About Guavaween in Ybor City

Ybor City, Florida’s Guavaween is a Latin themed Halloween celebration on the last Saturday in October in Ybor City celebrating Tampa’s nickname, The Big Guava. The festivities have been going on in Ybor for more than 20 years and garner more attention every year. The event attracts more than 120,000 people each year to Ybor City, most of which are dressed in Halloween costumes. Guavaween throws festivities during the day that are very family oriented including a scavenger hunt and safe trick or treat for your kids. Just before dark, Guavaween has the Mama Guava Stumble Parade very similar to that of Gasparilla where candy and beads are thrown to the giant crowds as they enjoy their beverages.

This parade is the main fundraiser for the Ybor City Chamber of Commerce (www.ybor.org) and there is a charge to get into Seventh Ave since it is fenced off for the festivities. These festivities include local and national recording artists, past Guavaween celebrations have included Eve 6, Tonic, Sevendust, Nonpoint, Puddle of Mudd, Fuel, and has skewed mostly toward rock bands for the last few years. But, there are multiple stages around the few blocks that are blocked off for the event and you can find whatever music suits you. One of the local radio stations, 98 Rock (www.98rock.com/main.html), has the most popular stages at the event and if you would like to see the headlining artist then you should make your way to the crowd a fair amount of time before the scheduled time. There are also costume contents, food and beer vendors.

Some other tips are that the parking can be notoriously impossible to deal with and the locals tend to park at other locations like the USF Sun Dome, Raymond James Stadium, Florida State Fairgrounds, and ride shuttles that are provided by the city. Also, while there are definitely children’s events during the day, the evening’s festivities are usually very adult oriented and it is not recommended to have your children there after dark, as the costumes tend to be very risqué. If you have little ones, be sure to attend the Guavaween Family Funfest from 10am to 3pm to thoroughly enjoy what Ybor City’s Guavaween has to offer your family. Guavaween can attract people with extremely elaborate costumes and it is recommended that you do your best to go all out and have a great time. People who are in the best costumes will receive compliments all night while walking down Ybor City’s Main Street, Seventh Avenue. Make sure you have fun with it and wear a costume because Mama Guava does not like a party killer.