I wanted to know everything you need to know about ybor city and Gasparilla???

Question

Were going on a whim this weekend and two of us our under 21 please get back too me..

Answer 1

~~ Ybor City is a historic district in Tampa, Florida.
Located near downtown Tampa, the district's many nightclubs and bars makes it a popular evening and weekend hotspot in the Tampa Bay area.
It is one of three National Historic Landmark Districts in Florida.
The link below has a wealth of information for Ybor/Tampa.
Including attractions, restaurants, museums, sporting activities, theme parks, zoo, malls etc:
http://www.hisuitestampa.com/attractions/

~~ The Gasparilla Pirate Festival:
Each January (27th this year), Ye Mystic Krewe of Gasparilla and the City of Tampa hosts the Gasparilla Pirate Festival, named for legendary pirate captain José Gaspar who operated out of the area.
The invasion begins when the "Krewe" (made up of residents of the city) arrives on a 165' long pirate ship, the Jose Gasparilla, in Tampa Bay and land near downtown Tampa.
The mayor of Tampa then lends the key of the city to the pirate captain of Ye Mystic Krewe of Gasparilla and a parade ensues down Bayshore Boulevard, one of Tampa's major streets.
The krewes throw beads, coins and other items while shooting blank pistols from floats during the parade.
The average attendance for the event is over 400,000 people.
Information from:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gasparilla_Pirate_Festival
This is the link to the festival's website:
http://www.gasparillapiratefest.com/
(It's very cool, you should have a lot of fun)

Answer 2

gasparilla is a lot of fun -- before the parade there is the floatilla that sails up into downtown following the pirate ship the jose gaspar. everyone gets stinky drunk all day long (sorry drinking age is 21) and you get beads and after there is a party downtown.

i think what you would like better is actually the knights of sant'yago parade in ybor. gasparilla has become COMPLETELY commercialized and the knights parade is still run by the krewe of sant'yago. it is what is known as the "gasparilla night parade" it is feb 10 and much more like a street party.

there are lots of clubs in ybor that you can get into no problem -- they just charge more cover for under 21. while you are there eat lots of cuban food! Get cuban sandwiches and italian cookies from alessi bakery on cypress street

http://www.alessibakeries.com/

la teresita on columbus is the locals favorite hands down -- you will not believe how many plates of food you get for dirt cheap.

the columbia restaurant in ybor is major tradition. if you are there at the right time you get a flamenco show.

Answer 3

Ybor City is now part of Tampa, Hillsborough County, Florida. It was settled by white and black Cubans and by Sicilians and other Italians. One of the newspapers published there, La Gazeta, is the only trilingual newspaper published in the U.S., in English, Spanish, and Italian. It has been a thriving cigar-making source for over a hundred years.

Business and city leaders dress in pirate costume and lead the Gasparilla Fest Parade annually and play as though they are attacking the city; not quite a re-enactment, more of a symbolic act. Gasparilla (Jose Gaspar) was a legendary pirate or buccaneer whose supposed exploits are commemorated.

Don't neglect trying the local specialties in the restaurants; Cuban sandwiches, arroz con pollo, ropa viejo, black beans and rice, etc.

There may still also be a short cruise available from the Hillsborough River near the Brorein Bridge to Egmont Key which is great for searching for seashells and sand dollars, where the oldest man-made structure still standing in the Tampa area is: the Egmont Key Lighthouse from the 1850s.