Mid November brings one of the fullest weeks of the fall to St. Pete, with something happening on the downtown waterfront and along Central Avenue almost every day. The brand new Booker Creek Arts Festival fills the EDGE District from Thursday, November 12 through Sunday, November 15. Fin Fest St. Petersburg brings music and ocean science to Spa Beach at the St. Pete Pier from November 13 to 15. Second Saturday ArtWalk opens galleries and studios across the city on November 14, and the Museum of Fine Arts hosts a preview party for its reimagined collection on Thursday, November 19. Between November 12 and November 20, here are four picks for St. Petersburg.
Booker Creek Arts Festival
Why It Stands Out
Thursday, November 12 through Sunday, November 15, the EDGE Business District Association presents the first Booker Creek Arts Festival along Central Avenue between 9th Street (MLK) and 16th Street. Juried work by hundreds of Florida artists is displayed in hotels, shops, restaurants and offices across the district, turning the EDGE into what the festival calls a walkable living gallery. Expect live mural painting, glass blowing, plein air painting, dance, music and children's activities. Artists compete for jury prizes, visitors vote for the People's Choice Awards, and the work is for sale directly from the artists. Festival hours are from ten in the morning until six in the evening Thursday through Saturday, and from ten in the morning until four in the afternoon on Sunday.
Best For
Art lovers, families who want to spend a day on foot, and anyone curious about the shops, cafes and restaurants along this stretch of Central Avenue.
Timing and Planning
Plan around a few set times. An Evening Illuminated, an outdoor illuminated visual display, starts at seven in the evening on Friday and Saturday. Glass blowing demonstrations run from noon until four on Saturday in the lot next to 1201 Central Avenue. People's Choice and plein air winners are announced at noon on Sunday, and the Sunday Festival Jazz set, from three until six in the afternoon, is by reservation only. No admission price is listed on the festival site, and individual venue hours may vary. The EDGE District's Getting Here page covers trolleys, the SunRunner, parking and bike routes.
Fin Fest St. Petersburg
Why It Stands Out
Friday, November 13 through Sunday, November 15, Fin Fest St. Petersburg sets up at Spa Beach on the St. Pete Pier as an ocean conservation, education and music festival. Gates open at noon each day and close at ten in the evening on Friday and Saturday and at 8:30 in the evening on Sunday. The Education Village includes an immersive underwater virtual reality experience, touch tanks, hands-on learning and talks from guest speakers and science experts, and the festival says this year's music lineup mixes local and national talent.
Best For
Families with kids who love the water, especially on Sunday, which the festival calls a free to enter family fun day. Music fans can make a full afternoon and evening of it on Friday or Saturday.
What to Expect
Friday and Saturday require tickets, sold through the festival's ticket link, and Sunday is free to enter. The festival is open to all ages. Blankets and towels are welcome, but chairs, tents, umbrellas and outside food or drinks are not allowed, and all bags are searched at the gate. Downtown parking is limited, so organizers suggest rideshare, biking or walking.
Second Saturday ArtWalk
Why It Stands Out
Saturday, November 14, from five until nine in the evening, the St. Petersburg Arts Alliance hosts Second Saturday ArtWalk, when galleries and studios open their doors across seven arts districts: the Central Arts District, Grand Central District, Warehouse Arts District, Uptown Arts District, Deuces Live District, Edge District and Waterfront Arts District. It is one of the easiest ways to see how much art is made right here in St. Pete, one gallery at a time.
Best For
Couples looking for a relaxed date night, new residents getting to know the city's arts districts, and anyone who likes to wander from gallery to gallery.
Insider Tip
The WADA ArtWalk Trolley loops through the Warehouse Arts District from six until ten in the evening, coming by about every thirty to thirty five minutes. A Central Avenue trolley also serves ArtWalk stops, though no schedule is posted. No price is listed. With the Booker Creek Arts Festival running in the EDGE District the same day, you can start with the festival's seven o'clock illuminated display and keep walking.
Art Unbound After Dark: Preview Party
Why It Stands Out
Thursday, November 19, from five until eight in the evening, the Museum of Fine Arts, St. Petersburg at 255 Beach Drive NE opens its reimagined MFA Collection for an evening preview, two days before it opens to the public on November 21. DJ Nilla Green plays in the Mary Alice McClendon Conservatory, and the museum's Café Clementine serves a house made spritz for adult guests, along with organic wines and local beer during its L'Apéro hours.
Best For
A Beach Drive date night, art lovers who want a first look at the new galleries, and members who like to see the collection before the public opening.
Timing and Planning
Tickets are fifteen dollars for MFA members, twenty five dollars for non-members and free for children 12 and under, sold through the museum's ticket link. Food and drinks are available for purchase. The museum encourages high school students to attend its separate Teen Night instead. Call 727-896-2667 with questions.
Event Q&A
Which event is best for families?
Fin Fest St. Petersburg on Sunday, November 15, from noon until 8:30 in the evening. The festival calls Sunday a free to enter family fun day, and the Education Village has touch tanks and hands-on learning. The Booker Creek Arts Festival also lists children's activities all weekend.
Which event feels most on-brand for a date night?
Art Unbound After Dark: Preview Party at the Museum of Fine Arts on Thursday, November 19. A DJ in the conservatory, a spritz and a first look at the reimagined collection on Beach Drive make for an easy evening out.
Which event is worth planning ahead for?
The Booker Creek Arts Festival. Festival Jazz on Sunday from three until six is by reservation only, and the illuminated display on Friday and Saturday at seven is worth timing your visit around. Fin Fest tickets for Friday and Saturday and Art Unbound tickets are also sold ahead.
Which event gives the best sense of local community?
The Booker Creek Arts Festival. The art hangs inside the EDGE District's own hotels, shops, restaurants and offices, and visitors help pick the People's Choice winners, so the whole neighborhood becomes part of the show.
What else is happening in St. Petersburg?
Poetry at The Dalí returns Thursday, November 12, from six until 7:30 in the evening in the museum's Will Raymund Theater, with poets Donald Morrill and Ange Mlinko. It is free and open to the public, though gallery access is not included. On Thursday, November 19, at 7:30 in the evening, The Florida Orchestra presents Inside Strauss' Der Rosenkavalier at the Mahaffey Theater, an interactive talk with live musical demonstrations followed by the full work, with pay what you can general admission at the door.
What is coming right after the window?
The reimagined MFA Collection opens to the public at the Museum of Fine Arts on Saturday, November 21, and The Florida Orchestra brings its Blue Danube and Beyond program to the Mahaffey Theater that same day.
