On Saturday, January 25, at 11:30am, the world’s only fully-rigged pirate ship, the Jose Gasparilla, will set sail from the south end of Hillsborough Bay.
Hundreds of pirates aboard the vessel and an accompanying flotilla travel north across the Bay and into Seddon Channel before taking the Gasparilla Invasion on land, claiming Tampa as their own.
Upon docking the Jose Gasparilla at the Tampa Convention Center (at 1 p.m.), the Mayor has no other choice but to surrender the Key to the City of Tampa into the hands of Ye Mystic Krewe of Gasparilla’s Captain Drew Pittman.
This will mark the beginning of the Parade of Pirates that will start at Bay to Bay and head north on Bayshore Blvd and wrap through downtown off of Ashley St. The parade runs from 2 - 5pm.
For more information, visit GasparillaPirateFest.com.
