Cultural Festivals in St. Pete/Clearwater

The largest festivals in the St. Petersburg/Clearwater area focus on cultural pride. Travelers crowd the Greek enclave of Tarpon Springs every January 6 for the region’s Epiphany Celebration, hosted by St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Cathedral. The day’s highlight comes when an Orthodox bishop tosses a cross into Spring Bayou. The town’s young men dive for it, and the finder of the cross is believed to enjoy a year of good luck. A Greek festival in Craig Park follows.

Celebrate Scottish heritage in Dunedin with the annual Highland Games and Military Tattoo, held each year in April. During the tattoo, you’ll see more than a dozen clans performing traditional Scottish military exercises. The Dunedin Highland Games feature feats such as the caber toss (a caber is a wooden pole weighing up to 130 pounds) and sheep dog demonstrations.

Largo goes into high gear at the end of February with the African American Heritage Celebration. It spotlights African-American music, dance, arts, crafts and food.

Fans of island music flock to Vinoy Park in St. Petersburg each June for the Tampa Bay Caribbean Carnival. It offers back-to-back calypso, soca, reggae and steel-drum bands.

Finally, St. Pete's gay and lesbian community celebrates every year with the St. Pete Pride festival. The last Saturday in June marks the St. Pete Pride parade and street fest, both on Central Avenue. The street festival serves up live music, carnival games, fair food and vendors.

If You Go:

Epiphany Celebration, www.epiphanycity.org

Dunedin Highland Games, www.dunedinhighlandgames.com

African American Heritage Celebration, www.pinellascounty.org/unity.htm

Tampa Bay Caribbean Carnival, www.tampacarnival.com

St. Pete Pride, www.stpetepride.com