Things To Do In Tampa This Weekend: Fun Festivals & Events In Tampa This Weekend

Vintage Market Days of Greater Tampa: “Timeless Traditions”
All Weekend, October 16-18, Various Times
Over 100 vendors fill the Florida Strawberry Festival Fairgrounds in Plant City with vintage clothing, furniture, home décor, original art, handcrafted jewelry, and repurposed treasures across three buildings, with food trucks, a live DJ, and swag bags for lucky shoppers each day.

Sourdough Focaccia Art Workshop*
Friday, October 16, 6 p.m. – 8 p.m.
Spellbound Sourdough’s hands-on workshop at Patio Lane Outdoor Living in Clearwater walks you through decorating a focaccia with seasonal vegetables and herbs, mixing your own dough, and taking home a live sourdough starter so the creativity doesn’t stop when the class does.

Rhythm & Hues: An Alleyway Art Show
Friday, October 16, 6 p.m. – 9 p.m.
The Rialto Theater Alleyway in Tampa Heights transforms into a free quarterly outdoor art show with local artists filling the space with color, rhythm, and creative expression.

Dishes & Wishes — Make-A-Wish Southern Florida
Friday, October 16, 7 p.m. – 11 p.m.
Make-A-Wish Southern Florida’s 30th annual gala at Armature Works brings together Tampa Bay’s top restaurants, handcrafted cocktails, and a live Spazmatics performance for a night that last year granted 30 wishes to local children and is ready to do it again.

Bassem Youssef: Belly of the Beast Tour
Friday, October 16, 7:30 p.m. – 9:30 p.m.
The comedian behind Al Bernameg, the most-watched political satire show in the Middle East with 30 million weekly viewers, brings his Belly of the Beast Tour to Tampa Theatre’s historic stage for a Friday night that is funnier and sharper than most things happening anywhere in the city.

Gulf Coast Bike Trek*
Saturday, October 17, 8 a.m. – 12 p.m.
The American Lung Association’s annual ride along the Pinellas Trail starts in downtown Dunedin with 10-, 25-, 40-mile, and metric century options, raising funds for lung health research and advocacy. Be sure to use the code LOVETHEBURG10 for $10 off registration.

Tampa Pig Jig*
Saturday, October 17, 1 p.m. – 10 p.m.
What started as a backyard barbecue among friends supporting a buddy with a rare kidney disease has grown into Julian B. Lane Riverfront Park’s biggest annual party, with live music, a corporate BBQ competition, cold beer, and millions raised for NephCure since 2011.

Tampa Bay Lightning vs. Vancouver Canucks
Saturday, October 17, 4 p.m.
The Lightning host the Vancouver Canucks at Benchmark International Arena for a Saturday afternoon home game that gives you a perfectly good reason to spend your evening on the ice.

Yuengling Oktoberfest
Saturday, October 17, 5 p.m. – 10 p.m.
Yuengling Draft Haus & Kitchen throws a free five-hour Oktoberfest with live music from The Bearded Brothers starting at 6 p.m., stein-holding contests, prizes, giveaways, and plenty of beer to raise in celebration of the season.

Rides by the River — Evening Edition
Saturday, October 17, 6 p.m. – 9 p.m.
Hundreds of collector cars, hot rods, imports, and exotics line up at Armature Works for a free evening car show benefiting Metropolitan Ministries, which makes this the rare Saturday night where you can admire unreasonable amounts of horsepower and feel good about it.

USF vs. Kent State
Saturday, October 17, 7 p.m. – 10 p.m.
The Bulls host Kent State at Raymond James Stadium for a Saturday night home game, and $20 to watch USF football under the lights is one of the easier decisions on the weekend calendar.

Tampa Bay Rowdies vs. Detroit City FC*
Saturday, October 17, 7:30 p.m. – 9:30 p.m.
The Rowdies host Detroit City FC at Al Lang Stadium in St. Pete for Ruff and Rowdies Night, with a limited number of dog-friendly tickets available in the Bayshore Lounge for anyone whose plus-one happens to have four legs.

The Florida Orchestra: Scheherazade*
Saturday, October 17, 7:30 p.m. – 9:30 p.m.
Conductor Michael Francis leads the Florida Orchestra through Rimsky-Korsakov’s Scheherazade at the Mahaffey Theater, with pianist Jeneba Kanneh-Mason making her TFO debut in Florence Price’s Piano Concerto in One Movement for a program built around storytelling, courage, and composers who earned their place in the canon.

Kids Market at Seminole Heights Great Pumpkin Patch
Sunday, October 18, 12 p.m. – 4 p.m.
Young entrepreneurs ages 5-17 set up their own booths and run their own businesses for a day at the Seminole Heights Great Pumpkin Patch, keeping everything they earn while building real-world skills in one of the most useful Sunday afternoon activities available to a kid.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers vs. Pittsburgh Steelers
Sunday, October 18, 1 p.m. – 4 p.m.
After finally picking up their first win of 2026, the Bucs host the Steelers at Raymond James Stadium looking to build some momentum and prove that last week against the Cowboys wasn’t a fluke.

Howl-O-Ween
Sunday, October 18, 4 p.m. – 6 p.m.
Sparkman Wharf’s annual dog costume contest is back with pop-up vendors, a complimentary treat bag for the first 50 registrants, and the kind of Halloween energy that is significantly more wholesome when everyone in a costume has four legs.