Hello Wednesday.
April 24 2024
Living in Central Florida has its perks. This fall, the local theme parks are alive with terrifying experiences, festive fall activities, and exclusive, special-ticketed events. Here’s how + where you can ring in the spooky season at various Central Florida theme parks.
Busch Gardens Tampa Bay | Multiple seasonal events | Various nights through Oct. 31 | If you want festive variety, Busch Gardens has you covered with Howl-O-Scream, Bier Fest, and the Sesame Street Kid’s Weekends. Bier Fest and the Sesame Street event are both included with regular park admission and are kid-friendly, while Howl-O-Scream is geared more towards adults and is a separately ticketed event.
Legoland Florida Resort | Brick or Treat | Select nights through Oct. 31 | Bring the kiddos, and head down the road to Legoland for Brick or Treat. This kid-friendly event is included in the cost of your daily admission ticket + includes spooky meet-and-greets, LEGO Halloween monsters, festive eats, and a special fireworks show.
Universal’s Halloween Horror Nights | Photo via @taraadams24
Universal Orlando | Halloween Horror Nights | Through Oct. 31 | Perhaps the most terrifying of events, Halloween Horror Nights is wall-to-wall frights with multiple haunted houses and scare zones like ‘Netflix’s Haunting of Hill House,’ or the ‘Texas Chainsaw Massacre.’ The event requires a special, $70+ ticket.
Gatorland | Gators, Ghosts, and Goblins | Select nights through Oct. 31 | Slither on over to Gatorland for their Halloween event, perfect for the whole family. Here, guests can enjoy dressing up (in family-friendly costumes, of course), for haunted zones, spooky museums, interactive meet-and-greets, and devilishly delicious treats.
Use the buttons below to share this story with your theme park partner, trick-or-treat trio, or ghoulish group.
Today
- James Hicks Art Reception | Fri., Oct. 8 | 5-7 p.m. | Hillcrest Coffee | Free | Come meet the artist behind the new exhibition at the Polk Museum of Art, James Hicks. 🎨
Saturday
- Down the Rabbit Hole Performing Arts Festival | Sat., Oct. 9 | 5-9:30 p.m. | Munn Park | Free | Bring the whole family to experience a scavenger hunt, performers, vendors, artists + food trucks. 🐇
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Henry Hidden Train Hunt | Sat., Oct. 9 | 10 a.m.-2 p.m. | Robert W. Willaford Railroad Museum, 102 N Palmer St. | Free | Part of Plant City’s Railfest, scavenger hunt and train enthusiasts can hunt down all 10 of Henry Plant’s missing train cars using hidden clues.
Sunday
- Second Sunday Artisan Market-October | Sun., Oct. 10 | 12-5 p.m. | Lakeside Village, 1479 Town Center Dr. | Free | Shop festive fall finds + unique hand-crafted goods created by local artists. 🍂 Ⓟ
Monday
- Backbone Invitational | Mon., Oct. 11 | 8 a.m. | The Club at Eaglebrooke | $140+ | Golf for a cause — the proceeds for this event go toward the Jensen’s Heart of Gold Foundation and includes lunch, award ceremony + auction. ⛳
Tuesday
- Business Watch Academy Workshop | Tues., Oct. 12 | 7:30-9:30 a.m. | Front Page Brewing Co. 190 S. Florida Ave. | Free | Learn from the Bartow Police Department how to best protect your business from crime.
Wednesday
Thursday
- Lakeland Food Truck Rally | Thurs., Oct. 14 | 6-9 p.m. | Munn Park | Free | Head to downtown and sample a variety of delicious dishes from 20+ vendors across Central Florida. 🍴
- Halloween Charcuterie Class | Thurs., Oct. 14 | 7 p.m. | Keel and Curley Winery | $65 | Learn how to build a Halloween themed charcuterie board — class includes a cutting board to take home, goodies needed to assemble + a glass of wine. 🧀
Friday
- Swan Derby | Fri., Oct. 15 | 5:30-9:30 p.m. | Lake Mirror | Free | Come out for swan boat races, performances, ticket drawings + food trucks — proceeds support Lakeland Volunteers in Medicine. 🦢
- Steampunk Shenanigans | Fri., Oct. 15 | 7:30 p.m. | The Stage Room, 310 E. Lemon St. | $10 | Sci-fi fans can enjoy this eccentric act about machines, sea monsters, and time travel featuring work by local writers.
We have a monthly guide filled with events + activities you can plan for in advance. Click the button below to bookmark ideas for upcoming date nights, family outings, and time with friends.
Lessons are based on real-life situations and can be completed in just 10 minutes a day, so you can squeeze them in anytime, anywhere | Photo provided by Babbel
Ever wonder what your favorite players do in their downtime? Well, New York Mets players Edwin Diaz and Jeff McNeil have been learning new languages. Thanks to Babbel, the No. 1 language learning app, they’ve made a lot of progress in 3 weeks.
Babbel’s 10-minute, interactive lessons include videos, games, podcasts + more and are designed to help users start speaking quickly. Sign up for Babbel and get an exclusive deal for Babbel’s Fall Classic sale (60% off a subscription). Ⓟ
Weather
- 87º | Thunderstorms | 60% chance of rain
Civic
- Mayoral candidates Bill Mutz and Saga Stevin met on Tuesday to discuss their policies for Lakeland. The candidates were asked 4 questions, including their plans for developing the Northwest part of Lakeland, which is detailed here. (Lkld Now)
Award
- The Polk County Clerk of the Circuit Court Comptroller Stacy Butterfield + the Polk County Board of County Commissioners earned the Triple Crown Medallion. The honor recognizes communities that have also won 3 preceding awards in the same year, which award counties following best practices in governmental accounting and financial reporting. 🏆
Ranked
Open
- Dissent Brewing opened yesterday for its “soft opening” ahead of its grand opening this Sat., Oct. 15. The new brewery is located at 125 S. Kentucky Ave., between Pita Pit and Urban Appeal. Stop by through the weekend to try their new line of pours, “Outspoken Ales.” 🍺
Number
- 262. That’s how many standards the Polk County Sheriff’s Department of Detention had to be in compliance with in order to be designated as an excelsior agency + receive accreditation from the Florida Corrections Accreditation Commission (FCAC). The department has now been designated as an excelsior agency 3 times.
Biz
- Lakeland’s Aerospace Center For Excellence appointed Daryl Price as the center’s new executive director. Daryl will be in charge of leadership within innovative programs, flight training opportunities and resources + the new Skylab facility and its resources.
Listen
- Local podcast “Florida Men on Florida Man” is now available in Spanish. Alyna-Francine Keim has joined the existing team to bring the show’s episodes to Spanish-speaking listeners across all platforms starting Mon., Oct. 11.
Eat
- Move over, peanut butter. Pumpkin butter toast is back at both of Black and Brew’s locations. What Florida lacks in fall temperatures, it makes up for in fall-flavored food + drink. 🎃
Plan Ahead
- SUN ‘n FUN is hosting the Holiday Flying Festival and Car Show this December. The festival will be on Sat., Dec. 4 and 5, and will include aircraft displays, airplane and car shows, food vendors + live music. 🚗
Answered
- We asked how walkable you’d like Lakeland to be, and roughly 70% of you said you’d love our city to be “very walkable” or at least “somewhat walkable.” We’re inspired by your passion for an active lifestyle, Lakeland. If you need us, we’ll be walking Lake Hollingsworth.
Try This
- Mum’s the word… mum flowers, that is. Get your fall decor on point with a chrysanthemum plant from Publix GreenWise Market. They’re on sale for $9 til next Wednesday. 🌼 Ⓟ
Coming Soon
Frescos has conjured up frighteningly good drinks this month. Try “A Little Hocus Pocus” made with Empress gin, violet liqueur, rosemary, lemon and lime + prosecco, or the “Vanilla Spice Spice Baby” made with Lakeland’s Libertalia spiced rum, coconut water + vanilla and orange bitters.
Whichever drink you try, we’re sure it will lift your (and maybe other) spirits.
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Yesterday, we asked you if you had any ideas on how Lakeland could address noise pollution from car radios + engines. Here’s what a few of you said:
- “Just like littering signs mentioning a fine for littering or handicap/disabled parking signs mention a statue and a fine for violators, do the same thing with excessive loud noise. People will learn and catch on. Some neighborhoods suffer because of excessive noise, it brings the area down.” — Reader Robyn F.
- “Fine them, and hold vehicle until its sound reasonable (or deliver car to the shop of owners choice for such repair, and charge them for that.) May need to put legislation in place for produce and fines.” — Reader Charlene B.
- “Increase the volume of music in your own car.” — Reader Terryl W.
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