Halloween in Tampa: Costume Crawls, Ybor City Takeovers and a $2,500 Costume Contest on October 31
Tampa's 10th annual Halloween Bar Crawl runs 5 p.m. to midnight across Downtown, South Tampa and Ybor City, while the Italian Club hosts Cocktails and Costumes with $2,500 in contest prizes.
Halloween falls on a Saturday this year, and Tampa's nightlife districts are splitting the night three ways. The city's 10th annual Halloween Bar Crawl runs from 5 p.m. to midnight on Saturday, October 31, across Downtown Tampa, South Tampa and Ybor City, with mandatory check-in between 5 p.m. and 8 p.m. at American Social on Harbour Island Boulevard for Downtown, Good Luck Chuck's on South Howard Avenue for South Tampa, and Showbar on East 7th Avenue for Ybor City, according to the Eventbrite listings. Tickets were listed at $24.84 to $29.43.
In Ybor City, Cocktails and Costumes takes over the Italian Club of Tampa, at 1731 East 7th Avenue, from 8 p.m. to midnight, with three DJs and a costume competition advertising $2,500 in cash prizes across categories including TV and movie look-alikes, comic and anime costumes, couples, groups and most creative, according to the event listing.
However residents spend the night, the city's safety frame is already in place. Tampa police began enhanced DUI patrols overnight leading into Halloween weekend, including an underage drinking operation in Downtown Tampa, and the department said the expanded patrols continue through neighborhoods and entertainment districts across the weekend; the non-emergency line is 813-231-6130. The station's live weather feed keeps Saturday warm for costumes, with a high near 86.
