I've been attending Porchfest since its inception, and it continues to grow each year. What started…read morewith just a handful of porches and a few bands has blossomed into a vibrant event featuring 18 porches and 72 bands--it's truly amazing to see how much it's expanded! In the early days, you could easily hop between porches to catch all the bands, including the main headliner, but now, with so many bands and multiple headliners, planning ahead is key. I recommend checking the band schedule in advance, watching their YouTube videos, and deciding who you want to see. However, if you're attending with a group, you might have to adjust your plans on the fly. The event runs all day, starting at 11 a.m. with bands kicking off at noon and the last set finishing around 7:45 p.m. To avoid traffic, plan to arrive by 10 a.m., as parking can be a challenge. We live in Sanford and typically use our bicycles or golf cart to get there. This year, we took the golf cart and parked about a 5-minute walk away at 11th Street and Magnolia Avenue. Keep in mind, the event spans Myrtle, Magnolia, Park, and Oak Streets between 5th and 12th Streets, so expect plenty of walking. Comfortable shoes, sun gear, and a light jacket are essential, and bringing your own cooler with drinks, food, and chairs will make your day more enjoyable. Food trucks are plentiful at the event, but since it's a family-friendly gathering, alcohol is not sold on-site. You're welcome to bring your own beverages, but remember to drink responsibly to keep the atmosphere fun and respectful. There's a strong police presence, and streets are blocked off to ensure everyone's safety. Two areas for improvement: There were long lines at the Porto-lets, especially in high-traffic spots, and they weren't consistently maintained by staff like you might see at larger events. While not a deal breaker, having more attention in this area would enhance the experience, particularly for families. Additionally, some trash receptacles weren't being emptied regularly, which affected cleanliness. Overall, Porchfest is a must-see event. It's the largest outdoor gathering in Sanford and a fantastic way to spend a day--exploring historic homes, enjoying great music, and making memories with friends and family.

The Sanford Porch Festival is free. They have a perimeter with the streets closed to traffic…read more There were 19 bands with a variety of music. For food they had food trucks. They had Porta Potties but they should have had more of them for the number of people attending. Also, parking was hard to find. Some people brought lawn chairs to watch the bands. Other people brought their dogs with them.

It's a great idea and it's a great place to go. Lots of stuff going on and their is music and lots…read moreof vendors with different stuff and things you can get. It's great for adults and young adults, but if you have little ones I would no bring them. Lots of people drinking and loud music and their is really noting for the little ones. Tip: not good for little kids.

Great event held the second Thursday of every month in downtown Sanford…read more Every month is a different theme with lots of samples and a meal included for 7 bucks. Can get very packed so get there early

This is one of the largest annual events in Sanford. Since it's inception (probably about 10 years…read moreago?) It seems to have grown bigger every year. This time around, the city decided to close down the second lane on SR 46 west bound just after airport Blvd. We were waiting in traffic just to park for close to 30 minutes without any movement. Finally we were able to pull off the main road, park in the Sunrail lot and walk the rest of the way (about 10min). This wasn't a big deal since we had Halloween calories to burn . I am not sure why the city decided to do this but when we got to the event, there was plenty of parking space in the main lot. With parking out of the way, the event is free so you just walk right on in, purchase tickets from one of several ticket booths then enjoy the rides and games. There are several large rides that are great for kids and adults but nothing compares to what Disney or Universal Studios is packing. There is plenty of seating but for a limited time. Once this place fills up people tend to hold tables and NEST for the remainder of the evening. There is a variety of food to choose from such as: Mexican, Philippino, and Latin American dishes along with standard American fair foods like pizza, corn dogs, funnel cakes, hamburgers, hot dogs, sausage and peppers, cheese steak, fried fish and chicken wings. This year, they had a great idea with the Beer Garden. They divided the line up so that at one tent you could only purchase Bud Light and at the other tent you could purchase all of your other drinks. Bud Light is King here since the Wayne Densch is within walking distance. This did help move the line along much more quickly than previous experiences. There are several craft style shops to explore that have great homemade jewlery, soaps, games, gift type items and clothing to choose from. There is a basket raffle with a lot of great prizes that can be won at the close of the event. There is also a large stage In front of the church with live music playing most of the day and evening. Tonight (11-2-19) Hayfire was the headliner and they are always on point. Tomorrow (11-3-19) The American Hotrods go on at 6:00pm. If you like some 80's Rock, you need to check them out. If you are in the area, definitely check out the Community Harvest Festival before the event ends Sunday (11-3-19 @ 8:00pm)

This festival is a lot of fun. Food, games, rides, and prizes. There are raffles and silent…read moreauctions. Also a live band plays on stage. While here be sure to do a tour of the church. It's really beautiful.

The Sanford Food Truck Fiesta is a blast for us locals! It's fun supporting small businesses and…read moretrying out what they have to offer. The vibes are always high. I do wish that the fiesta would be open a bit later.

A food festival is a great excuse to leave the house! For $35 I got to sample some of the best food…read moretrucks around Central FL and sip on some drinks. It was the perfect day to feel the Sun on your face and try local favorites. The event is well organized with trucks posted in advance. You can also purchase your food Passport in advance online so you don't have to risk them selling out. Parking is free and all within walking distance of the event. They also make sure to block all a road entrances so it feels very safe. I stopped at The Tea Lizard, Cafe Rouge, Chonky's Kitchen, Steak Shack, Beezer Eats, Parlor Kitchen! Pro tip: 1. Look for a small tent/bar outside the main West End bar location. This is where you pick up your passport and tickets. It took me a minute to find it but the staff inside the main bar directed me 2. Arrive between 1pm-3pm to have plenty of time to scope out the scene and try as much as possible. You don't want to be in a time crunch with over 40 trucks to try.

SWEET! Something…read morefor everyone for sure. Beer tent, food trucks, fresh produce, live music, live demos, beautiful weather, kids corner, you really couldn't ask for a better way to spend a Saturday afternoon in the park. Chipotle really does go ALL out when they bring a setup to an event, it's impressive. Big Wheel, Fantastic Hummus, Over Rice, John & Shirley's Catering, so many awesome munchie options to choose from. SO many vendors to check out including: Back to the Roots Bamboo Leaf Tea Blodgett Gardens Chews Naturally Cindy's Quilting Crispy Farms Eat More Produce Emma's Sweets Ensemble Pieces FABU Pottery Farmworker Association of Florida Fat Cat Foods Field to Feast Fork to Spade Glazed N Infused Heavenly Flan Homegrown Co-op Iced Bakery Jillian Says! Lafleur Nursery Living Towers Local Roots Midtown Eco-Village Natural Goodness Pasargadae Farm Peak Season Pops Perfect Pickler Pure Sweet Life R&B Organics Random Acts of Pottery St. Johns River Honey Sunchowder's Emporia The Butcher's Pantry Urban Herbs Wild Ocean Seafood Market Out of the new spots I have tried, Peak Season Pops was my fav! So fresh and delicious. I had a great time walking around and chatting with everyone, learning about so many new things and tasting delicious goodies. I can't wait for next year and until then, I am totally going to look into growing my own herbs!

This is a relaxed event focused on local food.read more

Everything was awesome! Great atmosphere, great people, great music!…read more If you are looking for a fun filled day with the family this is the place!

This is a hidden gem! We went to a concert there and the acoustics are great. It is very clean and…read morethe seats are very comfortable. They bring in food trucks for the food. We thoroughly enjoyed finding this place!

The City of Altamonte Springs puts on their Independence Day Celebration and fireworks show every…read moreyear on the 3rd of July and the call it Red Hot & Boom. We love that they pick the 3rd because it opens an opportunity to see another show on the 4th, thanks for that! After last years celebration, we were very saddened to hear that 2023 was going to be their last year putting this event on. I guess the public outcry was so great that they decided Red Hot & Boom must go on, and we are so glad it did. In my opinion, it's the best fireworks display in the central Florida region, I can say that because I've been to all the big events several times over the course of my 24 years living in the area. Who else has two identical displays going off simultaneously,with and extended finale, one on the west side and the other on the east side of Cranes Roost Park. Nobody else does this but The City of Altamonte Springs, so Thank You for continuing this tradition!!! As always, there is plenty of food, beer, and merchant vendors on site. There was at least 65 Porto John's available with hand sanitizer stations. There was five bands who kept us entertained all the way up to the moment before the fireworks were launched. Great job City of Altamonte Springs and a big Thank You to all of the sponsors for keeping this show going, us little people truly appreciate it!

Red Hot & Boom in Altamonte Springs on July 3rd, 2022 was seriously the best fireworks celebration…read morein a long time. This was super organized. It is free to get in and free to park. There is tons of space to sit all around Cranes Roost Park. Bring your chairs and blankets. I'd say bring those chairs so you are most comfortable. The sponsors really did a good job including the local radio station bringing some great entertainment and pop singers. It was very fun filled. The fireworks were in so many directions and they were huge and eye popping and had some energetic music with it. This was a blast and really made for a perfect independence celebration. This will definitely be a must do every year now. After seeing these fireworks, other fireworks are very difficult to beat.

In my opinion this is one of the best food and wine events in Central Florida! I've been three…read moretimes I think and each year I'm blown away. Are tickets expensive? Yes. But you'll definitely eat and drink your way through some of the best food you'll ever get at an event of this type. I ate tomahawk steak and caviar within minutes of each other. One of the vendors (maybe Jack Daniels?) was custom fitting cowboy hats, for free! Aside from the food and the drinks there were two stages this year and of course this event is a fundraiser so you know your money is going to a good cause. If you are on the fence about attending this event I urge you to just do it! You won't regret it!

Welcome back to arguably the biggest charitable/foodie event in Winter Park, or maybe all of the…read moreOrlando area. It is a one-night-only event for the purpose of raising funds for a couple of charities, chosen every year by co-founders John Rivers (he of 4 Rivers fame) and David LaRue, who's with ABC Fine Wines and Liquors. Their charities of choice this year are 4Roots and After School All Stars. Tix were $240 for VIP, $140 for general admission. It is western-themed, held under a big tent in the center of WP, with over 30 restaurants participating and contributing their time and treasures. That's right: the food and time are donated by each participating restaurant, and the drinks, by the fine wine / beer / spirit distributor. It is quite the show! Covid caused a reluctant cancellation in 2020 - a date had been set, but alas, with the surge, it had to bite the dust. Absence clearly made the heart (and palate) grow fonder - this year's resurgent event was sold out, with the VIP ones gone a week before the event. This year, VIPs are allowed an extra 30 minutes early check-in (in addition to the 60 minutes that's part of the VIP treatment: they get to go in when it's still light out, at 5:30, while general admission starts at 7 pm. You'd also get to ogle at the silent auction items (many wines/liquors donated by the same liquor distributors), and sample early foods before the crowd hits. The 'big hitters this year are a couple of champagnes from Taittinger, and two offerings from Caymus (one a Suison-Caymus Petit Sirah that's not easily available here, being so much in the shadow of its better-known siblings), along with quite a few big Napa Cabs. For us, the winners in the food area are Luke's 'duck ham', a Reel Fish snapper canape, a very smokey paella from 4 Rivers, the j'ne-sais-quoi taste in the Morimoto ramen, and a surprisingly good congee-thing from Hawkers. Just how many oysters the folks from 1921 served I can't tell. As in past years, we did not get to sample everything - you just run out of time and room in the tummy. I do think it'd be very helpful if they can provide some sort of map as to where everyone is: down to where the wines/spirits they tout can be found. I couldn't find where Norman Van Aken was at all night long... a big miss on my part. If you do go next year, and I'd highly recommend it, get your tix early or risk being disappointed. Also, consider either a ride-share option or park yourself: valet gets pretty crazy coming AND going. I know the price of admission is high, but it is a great event, and it's for a good cause.