Gasparilla Pirate Festival In Tampa
It's Like Mardi Gras With Beads, Parades, Krewes and Pirate Costumes
Aug 2, 2009
It looks like Mardi Gras in January, but the Gasparilla Pirate Festival in Tampa if a family friendly event that includes pirate costumes, parades and lots of Mardi Gras beads thrown to revelers throughout Tampa.
When a fully functional pirate ship appears on the horizon of Tampa's Hillsborough Bay with cannons firing, flags flying and ferocious, authentic-looking pirates brandishing their weapons from every mast, beam and sail of the ship, the facts of whether Jose Gaspar actually ever invaded Tampa disappear into a fun-loving fantasy celebration.
Gasparilla Pirate Festival
Gasparilla Festival is a week long celebration the last week of January that includes numerous parties and social events. While many of those events include a generous amount of alcohol and frivolity, the week begins with a family-friendly, alcohol-free extravaganza where children are the centerpiece of a parade on Bay Boulevard. Pets are encouraged to get into the act and a fireworks celebration tops off the evening.
But the big "invasion" happens a week later in the Harbor where a real pirate ship sails into town. The city bought a real pirate ship, which is kept around as a tourist attraction in the harbor the rest of the year. The pirates, who are otherwise prominent, respectable business people, storm the city, hold the mayor at dagger point for just a few minutes and then are given the keys to the city and the party officially begins.
A focal point is the 3.5 mile parade along Bay Boulevard, ending at a carnival with concerts, food, rides and more good times until the wee hours of the morning.
Where to Buy a Pirate Costume
Jill Wax’s vintage clothing and costume store called “La France” on 7th Avenue in the Ybor City region of Tampa is the premiere pirate outfitting center for Gasparilla. Jill and her staff are busy throughout the year, but especially in January. offering tips on applying make-up to create facial scars, on how to apply hooks in place of arms and wooden pegs in place of legs. For women, they choose bustieres to accentuate other body parts, while men choose three-cornered hats and mismatched gold earrings. Accessories such as stuffed parrots, golden treasure chests and pirate flags are all available here.
History of Gasparilla Pirate Festival
The Mardi Gras-style party has been going on in Tampa since 1904 when the society editor for the local paper suggested Jose Gaspar and pirates as a theme for a city-wide celebration. Since then, things have just continued to grow.
All of this reflects the history of Tampa, which may or may not have been invaded by real pirates. However, it was an important port for blockade runners during the Civil War and at least three ships from those days lay at rest on the bottom of Tampa Bay. It’s also a city where Teddy Roosevelt and his Rough Riders embarked for the Spanish-American War, and where more than one million cigars a day were rolled before the 1956 trade embargo with Cuba.
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