If you know me you're not shocked that: a) I've been to a few festivals and b) I'm a huge fan of…read morelocal craft beer. This was not my first festival, but it was my first chance to go to Hogtown Beer Festival and I can say this one is well worth the price of admission. From planning to pours and plates, this event had a big festival's worth of awesome packed into a quaint, but bustling, space. The Location This year's festival took place in the Tioga Town Center, which provided a number of advantages including ample natural shading from trees, plenty of space for each beer/food tent, and comfy grass to walk on as the time ticks by (any fest-goer knows the woes of walking on hot asphalt for hours). I found the layout to be excellent in concept and decent in execution: 4 main sections where created, each providing numerous different beer/brewery options and a couple of different food choices. If you have a group and split up for any reason, it becomes really easy to find one another this way because you can reference the food options you see and sort it out. For me this location was perfect: so much shade to break the heat and so much room to move around. The other, larger festivals have several perks but comfort is typically not one of them due to overcrowding. If a line started to form at Hogtown's fest it was easy to deal with, but my past experiences generally require you squish against sweaty, suntanned limbs while frying in the sun. The Logistics From proper advertising and social media updates to well-informed staff and even a nifty beer booklet with maps and beer checklists, this crew worked very hard to be organized. Parking could have been a nightmare but they had a charter bus shuttling people from a roomy field for offsite parking (primetime for applying sunscreen too). Stations were positioned in numerous places for washing hands after a quick nibble and water coolers were all over the place to insure people were hydrated. The above said, there were some issues that I might even say are inevitable. To start, the locations of several beer tents were inaccurate on the beer booklet. Not a big deal, but it happened. The water coolers weren't marked or identifiable unless you knew they were there, but I don't recall any announcement about them. Another minor item, though I recommend clear labeling next time. The Libations & Stations There are two ways to win my heart at a festival when it comes to featured brews: go all-in on top-rated, diverse breweries or focus on all-local pours. Hogtown was more the latter, but did lean a little more on the macro-micro breweries than I prefer (think things you find at Publix versus your go-to beer shop). I know that these beers are helpful in transitioning new folk away from watery pilsners but for the price tag, it would be nicer to pull more quality into the mix (in the form of blossoming FLA breweries) than to inject average brands. For what was offered, I probably would only invite Floridians to travel into town for this one but all would get a solid showcase of Central Florida talent. I focused a bunch on getting to know some really great Florida spots like Infinite, Proof, and Coppertail as well as stopping by the Gainesville favorites to see what special goodies they blended up. This year many of the tents came with timed releases of unique/rare items which I love because it helps spread out the fun. One tent even had a few baskets to raffle and yours truly nabbed a growler bundle! As for the food, it was nice to see that largely the food was provided by local bizes as opposed to chains. A recently-closed German sausage hotspot made a guest appearance and generated a healthy buzz, which just goes to show the thoughtfulness of those in charge of the event. Most took cards for pay, and the choices were plenty diverse for any appetite. One vendor was even giving away pork sliders and mac n cheese for FREE! Final Thoughts Having this festival under my belt, I'm likely to go back next year especially if the same people are working on it. There were enough local breweries pouring to keep a vet enthusiastic and also some more common beers for those looking to go quantity over quality, which is fine. A little rough around the edges in some places, but largely an event put together by a group of well-seasoned beer fans. Next year I'd like to see a few more SOFLA beers invited up and I'd have enough to toss up an extra star.

Had a blast at this year's Hogtown Craft Beer Festival. Honestly, one of the better beer festivals…read moreI've been to - and I've been to a lot, including much larger ones like Hunahpu's Day put on by Cigar City Brewing in Tampa. HCBF had a phenomenal selection of beers and the nice option of having some free food (smaller bites) or larger, pay-as-you-go selections from food trucks and local vendors. The organizers did a great job keeping the check-in line moving quickly and putting together the "Passport", but my only criticism would be to wait until a little closer to the event to print the latter next year, as some of the vendors were not listed in the accurate "tent/pod" and some beer selections had been replaced by the breweries. Can't wait to come back next year!

Five years... So many basketball games, gymnastics tournaments--and now this unforgettable moment:…read morewatching my son walk across the stage of the O'Connell Center to receive his master's degree. What a thrill to witness the Warrington College of Business graduation. UF makes it truly special--each graduate's name lit up on the scoreboard, a professional photographer capturing that proud walk across the stage, and a celebration that honors every achievement. UF really does it right--this was so well organized and there was plenty of parking available. What an incredible way to mark this milestone!

Was an Amazing Concert and Night of Worship at the Tim Tebow and Zach Williams Break the Chains…read more Entry was very smooth and easy. Staff was friendly and helpful guiding us to our seating area. Vendors were well laid out for you to buy swag. Concessions ran smoothly as well. Bathrooms were very clean and in working order. I would recommend this Venue , if there is a concert, Collegiate game here, it will be organized, clean, and well ran. When we left the staff were still super friendly and asked me to do a QR Code survey for the event and how it was run.

22$ for 1 haunted house and to walk in a circle in a corn maze?! Are u kidding me! And you have to…read morepay an extra 30$ just so u can do everything else?! This is a scam. There was a few parts of the haunted house that were good. But not worth 22$, maybe 5$ at max. Not even that I am paying 22$ for children to wear a 5$ mask and throw red paint on themselves? This is ridiculous. I am a poor in come home and I just wasted over 50$ at this place just so my family could have fun and that was f-ing ridiculous. Would not suggest ever going here. Also I will never be coming back. It's cheaper and more fun just to go to Halloween horror nights. Wish I could give 0 stars and it's f-ing killing me to give you one bc you don't even deserve it with this trash.

I bought tickets to this event as a surprise date for my boyfriend and I. I read through some…read morereviews and was a little nervous as most were pretty negative. However, this place is amazing, I highly recommend! It was $25 per ticket and that gave us unlimited entrance into the corn maze and 1 free enter to the haunted house. On top of these were putt putt, basketball, music, and a cute goat named Molly which were all included in the entrance price. Additional events and specials such as hamster ball, mechanical bull riding and food and drink were also available for an up charge. First was the haunted house. While in line, we were informed that the actors are not allowed to touch us and we are not allowed to touch them as well as the strobe lights which were apart of the house. Through the house, actors, decorations and props kept it very entertaining and different then any other haunted house I've been too. Many actors jumped out and either screamed, shrieked, said something ominous or simply told us where to go or to hurry up. This plus the interesting costume/makeup of the actors kept it frightening and surprising. The corn maze was definitely a one of a kind experience. We went through the maze twice and both times were amazing. During the second time, a worker who was off duty became friends with my boyfriend and they devised a plan for the actors to specifically attack me. This made the experience more enjoyable as well as frightening. Again, there were many actors with many different disguises and body paint to keep you on your toes as well as being a new element of shock around each corner. The maze wasn't much of a maze as you would think. There were no dead ends but there were a couple cut outs that the actors used to hide in. Overall, it was a great experience. I loved how personal the actors became with the guests. During the haunted house, one actor would mention that he'll "see me later" and then would reappear saying "found yuh" or "I told you I would be back". There was another actor during the corn maze who would block my path while remaining quiet and almost taunting me to try to walk past. This made the experience so much better then if they just jumped out and said "boo" and then disappeared. I would recommend that there be better crowd control for the sake of the actors. I did notice a lot of younger kids who would purposefully mess with the actors such as hiding in the maze with them, taking selfies with then without consent and even touching or harassing the actors. I feel like this messed with the safety of the actors and the enjoyment of the other guests. Other than that, this place is amazing and definitely worth it. The price is a little high but the actors definitely deserve it for what they put up with.

Jen came to our home over the Christmas holidays and instructed our family in painting ceramics. We…read moreall had a great time. Although, I was originally not too keen on the idea of painting anything ceramic I soon changed my mind. After seeing my adult children having so much fun following Jen's instructors painting Christmas decorations, I decided to pick a tree and grab a brush. Jen is a perfect instructor. She offers encouragement to her students and has unlimited patience.

This is one of the nicest college ballparks I've been to! All of the seats are great. The…read moreconcessions are super expensive, but what do you expect?! Go gators!

A classic Grapefruit League stadium but new. Spacious seating, grassy berms in the outfield, and…read moremodern scoreboard. Not many places to hide from the Florida sun during day games. Decent views of field but diminished by the safety netting for foul balls. Not many concession stands so lines can be long.

Hubby and I drove down from Jacksonville to check this place out last weekend. It was super…read moreinexpensive compared to most Halloween events. One adult ticket was $15. Remember they are a cash only event! We definitely had a good time and didn't wait too long for the attractions. First, we went to the House on the Haunted Hill. There was a short line and they let one party in at a time. It was pretty scary! The house exits to the haunted corn maze. Beware of scare zones! The last thing we did was the haunted hay ride. This was very good! You load up onto a trailer pulled by a tractor and pick a bench to sit on. They drive you through the corn and trees then the scare tactics take over. And they are not afraid to get up close and personal! We didn't eat there but the smells coming from the BBQ food truck were tempting. They also had a boiled peanut stand. There are several over small activities and games including a non-haunted corn maze. Great place for the kids to run around even if you don't do the scary stuff. Don't forget your sneakers and the bug spray!

This was so much fun!! More fun than halloween horror nights the people that work there are all…read morevolunteers and something about being in an actual cornmaze is what puts it over the top. so much worth the price and 2 very nice vendors! If you like being scared the haunted house and the hay ride ateso fun and creepy.

SwampCon is a multi-genre convention held in the Spring semester at the Reitz Union at the…read moreUniversity of Florida every year. Looking to do some CosPlay? They have it. Want to do some dragon busting (as my old Navy shipmates used to say) and defeat the evil wizards? Come on in, there will be a room full of players. There really is sort of everything you could want at this smaller convention if you are into geeky or nerdy things. Anime viewings pretty much the entire time, panels on a bunch of different things, and a general coming-together of people from all aspects of life who have similar interests in things that are not so mainstream. The entrance fee is free, they just ask that you register in order to get into the various panel rooms and vendor areas. The registration acts as a way for them to show how many people attend each year so that annual funding of the event can be justified. It was unfortunate that the various food vendors entrenched in the Reitz Union did not take note that SwampCon was going to be happening, as they had decided to keep their normal hours. This meant that half of the food vendors (Papa John's Pizza, the Orange and Brew, etc.) were closed up completely, so the rest had to handle the load. The line for Subway was out the door and across to the elevators, with only one make line open. However, I cannot fault SwampCon for that. That is just piss-poor management on the part of the various store locations that serve food for not scheduling enough people or even opening in the first place. The convention itself is a fun time, and I was there both days, all day long. I caught a panel or two, saw a bunch of cosplay getups, and just generally enjoyed myself. I certainly plan on returning again next year!

SwampCon is an awesome convention and the best part is that it is FREE!…read more Saw a lot of cool cosplay and Doctor Who Musical was cute~~

The concession stand was mouthwatering and no one appreciates a good consession stand like I do…read more All of the acts were good including the show hosts. The sparkling lightman show was one of my favorite acts and Princess Bubbles' show was great as well. Everything done with the water falls was also my favorite and it kept the inside of the tent cool. It was a nice outing and I enjoyed myself. I almost forgot to mention the show with the scary dinosaurs in it. It was unexpected and funny.