Home For The Holidays? Take In These 21 Tampa Bay Events

TAMPA BAY, FL — The “most wonderful time of the year” is also one of the busiest in the Tampa Bay area, with holiday events, cultural festivals and other celebrations filling up the December calendar.

Many of these events and activities are ingrained in local history and cultural identity — from Tampa to St. Pete up into Pasco County and south into Sarasota and Bradenton.

Taking part in them creates a sense of belonging and shared experiences unique to the greater Tampa Bay area.

We’ve rounded up 21 can’t-miss holiday events:

• Holiday Lights in the Gardens, through Jan. 3, at the Florida Botanical Gardens in Largo
• Winter Village, through Jan. 4, at Curtis Hixon Park in Tampa
• Christmas Town, through Jan. 5, at Busch Gardens in Tampa
• European Holiday Market, Dec. 4-6, Bradenton Area Convention Center in Palmetto
• Cookie Walk and Craft Bazaar, Dec. 6, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church in New Port Richey
• Winter Wonderland, Dec. 6, 6 p.m., on Old Main Street in Bradenton
• Sarasota Holiday Parade, Dec. 6, 7 to 9 p.m., downtown Sarasota
• Atomic Holiday Bazaar, Dec. 6-7, Robarts Arena in Sarasota
• Historic Old Northeast Candlelight Tour of Homes, Dec. 7, 3 p.m., Old Northeast neighborhood in St. Petersburg
• 12 Days of Christmas Making Spirits Bright Parade, Dec. 9, 4 p.m., Clearwater Beach
• Candlelight Service of Remembrance, Dec. 10, 6:30 p.m., at Curlew Hills Memory Gardens in Palm Harbor
• Keel Farms Christmas Wine Run 5K, Dec. 13, 8:30 a.m., at Keel Farms in Plant City
• Clearwater Yacht Club’s Holiday Lighted Boat Parade, Dec. 13, 6 to 10:30 p.m., from Mandalay Channel to Clearwater Point
• The Pops Orchestra: “A Christmas Carol” concert, Dec. 13-15, Manatee High School in Bradenton
• Hanukkah in Coachman Park, Dec. 14, 4 to 7 p.m., Coachman Park in Clearwater
• Hanukkah in the City, Dec. 14, 5:30 to 8 p.m., City Hall Plaza in Tampa
• “A Christmas Carol,” Dec. 18-21, at Richey Suncoast Theatre in New Port Richey
• Holiday Lighted Boat Parade, Dec. 20, 6:15 p.m., Tampa Riverwalk
• Hanukkah in Ellenton, Dec. 21, 5 p.m., at the Ellenton Outlets
• A Drag Queen Christmas, Dec. 22, 7:30 p.m., at the Mahaffey Theater in St. Petersburg
• First Night of Kwanzaa, Dec. 26, 5 to 8 p.m., at the St. Pete Youth Farm

If you’re planning a holiday event — or any event — feature it, so nearby readers see it all across Patch — including in roundups like this!