Visit Central Florida

All the events you could possibly want

The most local events
Skyline over Lake Mirror at night

Check out our curated events calendar for something to do in Lakeland every single day.

Photo by @crescent_luuna

You asked, we’re answering. A new and improved LALtoday events calendar is here.

Or maybe you didn’t realize we even had an events calendar — consider this your ticket to the most fun and relevant events in Lakeland, including:
  • Summertime Wine Dinner | Sat., Aug. 27 | 6:30 p.m. | $60 | Publix Aprons Cooking School, 4730 Florida Ave. S. | $60 | Enjoy a summer-inspired meal paired with a selection of fine wines in this demonstration-style cooking class.
  • Public Skate at Lakeland Ice Arena | Sat., Aug. 27 | 2:30-7:30 p.m. | Lakeland Ice Arena, 3395 W. Memorial Blvd. | $12+ | Bring or rent your skates + bundle up for a fun time in Lakeland’s only real ice arena — book a time from 2:30-4 p.m. or 6-7:30 p.m.
  • Art Night | Tue., Aug. 30 | 8-11 p.m. | Quinteassence Kava Bar, 839 N. Massachusetts Ave. | Free | Relax during this group art session and paint a new prompt every week — bring your own art supplies.
  • Access Art: Special Needs | Thurs., Sept. 1 | 2-3:30 p.m. | Polk Museum of Art | Free | Create + discuss art during this guided program for individuals with special needs and varying exceptionalities.
  • Munch & Learn: What’s Bugging Your Garden? | Wed., Sept. 7 | 12-1 p.m. | Lakeland Electric, 501 E. Lemon St. | Free | Learn to correctly identify pests to keep your landscape healthy and thriving.
As Lakelanders ourselves, we love making sure that LAL has access to the most robust, relevant, and hyperlocal events calendar possible. In part, we rely on readers like you to keep us in the loop — start submitting your events now. (Just like before, you can add your event to our calendar for free, but we’ve also added a few new paid promotional opportunities to take advantage of as well, starting at just $15.)

In addition to the hundreds of events that you can discover each month on our website, each issue of our newsletter features a dedicated events section, with our curated editorial picks for the upcoming week, organized by day. Keep scrolling just a little bit and you’ll see what we mean. Pro tip: Click the link to see our full calendar if you want to start planning ahead.

Want to know which events we’re most excited about? Your friendly neighborhood City Editors (👋 that’s us, Connor + Rilee) can often be found out and about at the newest restaurant openings, baseball games, festivals, and fairs — see what we’re up to in The Wrap section at the bottom of each newsletter or by following us on Instagram @theLALtoday. Click the button below to bookmark your best events for September. ⤵️
KEEP READING
Forward this to the friend who has the most FOMO.

Click here to have your event featured.

Today
  • Bartow Summer Music Series: Kimberly Milton, mezzo-soprano | Thu., Aug. 25 | 6:30 p.m. | Bartow Public Library, 2150 S. Broadway Ave. | Free | Attend this live performance and Q+A with Harrison School for the Arts and Florida Southern College graduate-turned professional opera singer, Kimberly Milton.
  • Ciro’s Sweet Tooth Dessert Tour | Thu., Aug. 25 | 10:30 a.m. | 220 Ave. A NW, Winter Haven | $45+ | Taste muffins, cupcakes, pies, and more desserts showcased at Downtown Winter Haven’s restaurants and stores. 🧁
Friday
  • Justin Grimes at Keel Farms | Fri., Aug. 26 | 5-9 p.m. | Keel & Curley Winery at Keel Farms | Free | Order dinner + a glass of wine as you enjoy live music by Justin Grimes on the patio.
  • Fairy House Ladies | Fri., Aug. 26 | 10 a.m.-3 p.m. | Bok Tower Gardens, Olmsted House | $85+ | Create your own whimsical fairy house for your garden on the first day of this two-part workshop. 🧚
Saturday
Sunday
We have a monthly guide filled with events + activities you can plan for in advance. Click the events button below to bookmark ideas for upcoming date nights, family outings, and time with friends.

Plus, for tickets to local and regional events, check out our 6AM Tickets resale marketplace.*
MORE LAKELAND EVENTS

Stay healthy and do more of what you love in Lakeland

Stay healthy + do more of what you love in Lakeland

Woman doing advanced yoga pose outdoors.

InsideTracker is a proprietary, A.I.-driven platform that analyzes how your body is aging. | Photo via Pexels


Fact: Your body changes as you get older — which isn’t a bad thing, but can impact your ability to do what you love (read: hiking, biking + all the other outdoor things).

What if there was a way to know what your body needs to stay healthier for longer? Enter: InsideTracker’s customized health analysis that can help users:
  • Improve their mind-body connection
  • Create deeper understanding of how their body works
  • Grow their whole-person wellness with customized nutrition + lifestyle recommendations*
INVEST IN DEEPER HEALTH KNOWLEDGE
Weather
  • 92º | Scattered thunderstorms | 60% chance of rain
Coming Soon
  • The grand opening of Bonnet Springs Park will be here before we know it. Keep an eye out for big announcements coming soon about the food, music, and fun in store for the opening weekend festivities on Sat., Oct. 22-Sun., Oct. 23.
Development
  • New affordable housing is heading to Griffin Road after years of funding delays. Construction is expected to begin soon on Swan Landing, a $25.7 million complex that will have two three-story apartment buildings with 88 units open to income-qualified renters. 🏗 (LkldNow)

Edu
  • Greg Littleton, CEO of Citizens Bank & Trust, has been elected as the chair of Polk State College’s District Board of Trustees. Teresa V. Martinez will serve alongside Greg as vice chair, and both are Polk State graduates + Polk State Distinguished Alumni. Go Eagles. 🦅 (The Ledger)
Arts
  • Next time you’re driving around Lakeland, just look up to see new art by Bump Galletta. Bump’s artwork — featuring Bigfoot beating the heat — can be seen on the latest billboard from The Lakeland AC Company. Spot the steamy Sasquatch off of Shepherd Road near McDonald’s.
Shop
  • Update your wardrobe at The Copper Fox & Wooden Button boutique (1835 E. Edgewood Dr.). Visit Sat., Sep. 17 from 11 a.m.-5 p.m. for a fall sale featuring gift cards for the first fifteen shoppers, 10% off your purchase, and free drinks. 🦊
Eat
  • Hold the scone. Head to Born and Bread Bakehouse to try the That’s My Jam scone. This month, the cornmeal-based scone is made with lemon curd + topped with lavender blueberry jam. Order yours when the bakery opens every Wednesday and Saturday, or try another one of our favorite treats. 🥐
  • Columbia Restaurant in Ybor City was featured on a list of the 12 most iconic restaurants in Florida for its historic charm and authentic Spanish food. Visit for dinner when you hit the road on your own day trip to Ybor City — we recommend the classic Cuban sandwich. (Trips to Discover)
Drink
  • Keel and Curley is the new official sangria partner of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The winery’s Tampa Two strawberry + blueberry sangrias will be available by the glass at Bucs games this fall. Get a taste at the release party at Keel Farms on Sat., Aug. 27 at 3 p.m. 🍷 (WFTS)
Try This
  • Lakelanders know that this list of drive-in movie theaters around Florida wouldn’t be complete without the Silvermoon Drive-In (4100 New Tampa Hwy.). Cruise in this weekend for a double feature of “Back to the Future” and “Back to the Future 2” for the ultimate nostalgia trip. 🎥 (The Ledger)
Deal
  • Pack a picnic lunch (or hoagie) and spend a day at Bok Tower Gardens for free with the final Wawa Summer Fun Days of the year. Register now for free admission on Thurs., Sep. 1 or Fri., Sep. 2 for up to four visitors.
Sports
  • The Lakeland High School Dreadnaughts have their sights set on winning an eighth state football championship this season. With highly rated players, the nation’s top cornerback, and a head coach with over four decades of experience, the team may win its first championship since 2018. 🏈 (Bay News 9)
Lakelander
  • Lifelong LAL resident + real estate agent Cassie Miller holds a distinguished CRS designation (hint: it’s held by fewer than 3% of all real estate agents nationally) and has extensive knowledge of the various neighborhoods in Swan City. Learn more about Cassie and get in touch.*
Community
  • By becoming a LALtoday member, you’ll directly support our mission of offering our newsletter, social content, and website access for free to all Lakelanders (read: no pesky paywalls). Learn more + sign up.
Content marked with an * is brought to you by our advertising partners and helps make this newsletter free.

Local primary elections results

Results of the 2022 Florida primary elections in Lakeland, FL
Copy of LAL-Lead Story Image Crop.png

Lakelanders, make your voice heard by voting.

Photo by LALtoday


Results are in from Tuesday’s primary elections. Here’s who won spots in local offices, plus who’s headed for a run-off in November’s general elections.

State
Charlie Crist won over opponent Nikki Fried for a spot as the Democratic candidate for governor. He will run against Gov. Ron DeSantis in general elections.

Jennifer Canady won a seat in the Florida House of Representatives, beating Phillip Walker for the District 50 seat.

Josie Tomkow will continue representing Florida House District 51, winning over Bill Olson.

With no candidates winning a majority in the race for Polk County Judge, Group 8, John Flynn and Ruth Moracen Knight will compete in a run-off.

School Board
Rick Nolte won the District 3 seat over incumbent Sara Fortney.

Kay Fields secured her spot in District 5, beating Terry Clark.

Justin Sharpless won over Sara Jones to represent District 6.

Lisa Miller + Jill Sessions will head to a run-off in November since no candidate in District 7 won more than 50% of votes.

See more state winners + upcoming run-offs from The Ledger and LkldNow.
THE WRAP
Today’s issue was written by City Editor Connor.

Editor’s pick: Did you do your civic duty this week? Be prepared for November’s midterm elections by registering to vote if you haven’t already, and staying up to date on all things civic in Lakeland.

Missed yesterday’s newsletter? Meet us on the pickleball courts, here.

Editorial: Connor Keith, Rilee Delgado, Jessalin Heins-Nagamoto, Kaylee Holland, Ashlea Hearn, Emily Shea | Send us a scoop, question, or feedback.

Sales: Kailey Burke | Advertise with us.
Read More
Content marked with an * was created in partnership with 6AM City’s advertising partners. Paid content helps keep this newsletter free. 6AM City may also receive a commission on purchases made through affiliate links in this newsletter.

ADVERTISE | SHOP | CAREERS | ETHICS

Did a friend forward this free newsletter to you?
SUBSCRIBE

Content marked with an * is paid advertising. Content marked with an ^ is created by our content studio. The company may also generate commission from affiliate links in the newsletter.

Change your preferences or unsubscribe here.

Copyright © 2023 6AM City Inc, All rights reserved.

P.O. Box 2505, Greenville, SC 29602

ADVERTISE | CAREERS | ETHICS | PRIVACY | THE BUY