Tampa, Florida

===Events===
[[File:Gasparilla Pirate Fest 2003 - Pirate Flagship Invading Tampa.jpg|thumb|left|Gasparilla and pirate ship]]
Perhaps the most well known and anticipated events are those from Tampa's annual celebration of "Gasparilla", particularly the [[Gasparilla Pirate Festival]], a mock pirate invasion held since 1904 in late January or early February. Often referred to as Tampa's "[[Mardi Gras]]", the invasion flotilla led by the pirate ship, ''Jose Gasparilla'', and subsequent parade draw over 400,000 attendees, contributing tens of millions of dollars to the city's economy. Beyond the initial invasion, numerous Gasparilla festivities take place each year between January and March, including the Gasparilla Children's Parade, the more adult-oriented [[Sant'Yago Knight Parade]], the [[Gasparilla Distance Classic]], Gasparilla Festival of the Arts, and the [[Gasparilla Film Festival|Gasparilla International Film Festival]], among other pirate themed events.<ref>[http://www.tboextra.com/gasparilla/ "TBO EXTRA Gasparilla".] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100403211150/http://tboextra.com/gasparilla/ |date=April 3, 2010 }} [http://www.tboextra.com/ ''TBOEXTRA.com''.] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081120184353/http://www.tboextra.com/ |date=November 20, 2008 }}. Retrieved March 29, 2010.</ref> The Gasparilla parade is the third largest parade in the United States.<ref name="hundredth">{{cite news |url=http://www.tampabay.com/news/gasparilla-parades-100th-edition-marked-by-mostly-behaved-revelry/2215951 |title=Gasparilla parade's 100th edition marked by mostly behaved revelry |work=Tampa Bay Times |date=January 31, 2015 |access-date=October 6, 2015 |archive-date=December 22, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151222105133/http://www.tampabay.com/news/gasparilla-parades-100th-edition-marked-by-mostly-behaved-revelry/2215951 |url-status=live }}</ref>

[[File:Tampa Convention Center from Bayshore.JPG|right|thumb|[[Tampa Convention Center]], built at the site of [[Fort Brooke]]]]
Other notable events include the [[Outback Bowl]], which is held New Year's Day at [[Raymond James Stadium]]. Each February, The [[Florida State Fair]] brings crowds from across the state, while "Fiesta Day" celebrates Tampa's Cuban, Spanish, German, Italian, English, Irish, Jewish, and African-Cuban immigrant heritage. The [[India International Film Festival (IIFF) of Tampa Bay]] also takes place in February. In April the MacDill Air Fest entertains as one of the largest military air shows in the U.S. [[Guavaween]], a nighttime street celebration infuses [[Halloween]] with the Latin flavor of [[Ybor City]].<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20070606223101/http://www.tampagov.net/news_and_events/feature_events/ "Feature Events".] [http://www.tampagov.net/ ''TampaGov''.] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150828145343/http://www.tampagov.net/ |date=August 28, 2015 }}. Retrieved March 29, 2010.</ref> Downtown Tampa hosts the largest anime convention in Florida, [[Metrocon]], a three-day event held in either June or July at the [[Tampa Convention Center]].<ref>[http://www.metroconventions.com/control.cfm?ID=602 "Metrocon About Metrocon".] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120827170717/http://www.metroconventions.com/control.cfm?ID=602 |date=August 27, 2012 }} Retrieved August 13, 2012.</ref> Ybor also hosts "GaYbor Days", an annual street party in the [[LGBT]]-friendly [[GaYbor]] district.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.tampabay.com/features/events/article657346.ece?comments=legacy |title=GaYbor Days will make your Fourth fabulous&nbsp;– St. Petersburg Times |work=Tampa Bay Times |access-date=February 23, 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110607045702/http://www.tampabay.com/features/events/article657346.ece?comments=legacy |archive-date=June 7, 2011}}</ref> The [[Tampa International Gay and Lesbian Film Festival]], held annually since 1989, is the city's largest film festival event,<ref>[https://www.tiglff.com/pressRls/Clip%20Ranks%20in%20top%2025%20Events%20release.doc "Clip ranks in top 25 events"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110717055938/https://www.tiglff.com/pressRls/Clip%20Ranks%20in%20top%2025%20Events%20release.doc |date=July 17, 2011 }}, August 1, 2008. [https://www.tiglff.com/ ''Tampa International Gay and Lesbian Film Festival''.] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110129131013/http://www.tiglff.com/ |date=January 29, 2011 }}. Retrieved March 29, 2010.</ref> and one of the largest independent gay film festivals in the country.<ref>Feist, Brian. November 2007 [http://past.tiglff.com/documents/gaz-Nov07-web.pdf "The Last Word"] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110717054825/http://past.tiglff.com/documents/gaz-Nov07-web.pdf |date=July 17, 2011 }}, page 46. ''The Gazette''. Retrieved March 29, 2010.</ref>

Tampa hosted the [[2012 Republican National Convention]] and the [[15th IIFA Awards|15th International Indian Film Academy Awards]] in April 2014.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.usnews.com/news/entertainment/articles/2014/04/26/travolta-spacey-in-tampa-for-bollywood-oscars |title='Bollywood Oscars' sail into Tampa with pirate-themed opening number and lots of star power |work=U.S. News & World Report |last=Lush |first=Tamara |agency=Associated Press |date=April 27, 2014 |access-date=July 29, 2021 |url-status=live |archive-date=May 9, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210509103939/https://www.usnews.com/news/entertainment/articles/2014/04/26/travolta-spacey-in-tampa-for-bollywood-oscars }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Tampa, Florida to Host 2012 Republican National Convention |url=http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-503544_162-20004827-503544.html |author=Brian Montopoli |date=May 12, 2010 |publisher=[[CBS News]] |access-date=October 23, 2011 |archive-date=January 18, 2013 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130118192111/http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-503544_162-20004827-503544.html |url-status=dead}}</ref>

Since 2015, Tampa has hosted the annual Tampa Riverfest, typically held during the first weekend of May. Held at the [[Tampa Riverwalk]], the festival welcomes many musical artists and local restaurants.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://theculturetrip.com/north-america/usa/florida/articles/the-best-festivals-in-tampa-fl/ |title=The Best Festivals in Tampa, FL |last=Johnson |first=Diann |website=theculturetrip.com |date=April 7, 2018 |access-date=July 29, 2021 |url-status=live |archive-date=May 9, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210509181921/https://theculturetrip.com/north-america/usa/florida/articles/the-best-festivals-in-tampa-fl/ }}</ref>