PARKING UPDATE 🚗
North Beach Parking Plaza: 80 Spaces
490 Poinsettia Ave, $3 per hour, $30 maximum

Hyatt Regency Parking Garage: 100 spaces, $38
301 S Gulfview Blvd

The Sugar Sand Walk Exhibit at the Pier 60 Sugar Sand Festival will re-open at 5 p.m. today, April 19. The exhibit will be open, but outdoor activities will remain open on a case-by-case basis.

CLEARWATER, Fla. – Take a trip around the world in 17 days. Do that and more when you make a visit to the 2019 Pier 60 Sugar Sand Festival presented by Visit St. Pete/Clearwater on Clearwater Beach April 12-28. Celebrating some of the greatest landmarks across different countries, the theme for this year’s festival will be ‘Sea the World, A Journey Around the Globe.” Clearwater Beach’s famous sugar sand will be transformed into immaculate sculptures of renowned destinations and prominent landmarks from around the world.

Tickets for the 2019 Sugar Sand Walk Exhibit and Baystar VIP Lounge are available online now at SugarSandFestival.com. Purchasing tickets online allows you to skip the line when visiting the exhibit. General admission to the sculpture exhibit will be $10 for adults, $8 for children 4-10 years old and free for children under 3 years of age. Tickets will also be $8 for those 60 and older, military personnel, police officers, firefighters and teachers. These discounted tickets will only be available at the gate with proper identification.

Due to the overwhelming success and popularity of the Sugar Sand Festival, the event will now stretch across 17 days instead of 10. This will give people more time to visit and also allow those visiting for the Easter holiday a chance to see this unique and affordable event.

New to the Sugar Sand Festival this year:

• Pro-Am Sand Sculpting Tournament | April 20 | 9 a.m to 5 p.m. | Registration required
• Family Sand Sculpting Competition | Easter Sunday, April 21 | 2 p.m. | Free
• 3 Daughters Brewery, a local brewery based in St. Petersburg, Florida will be the official craft beer of the festival and cider sponsor at the Shephard’s Sand Bar

Each year, the Pier 60 Sugar Sand Festival continues to grow in popularity and garner national attention. Last year’s event drew more than 120,000 visitors throughout its 10-day run. The festival has also received numerous awards and continues to attract visitors from around the world.

1. Lightning Watch Party

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$6,000 Raised for Sandy Lane Elementary

Tribute to Barbara Bush

Sugar Sand Surprises

Attendance Growth

Planning a visit on Saturday 4/21? After the popularity of ferry last weekend, the Clearwater Ferry has added a another larger vessel and the ability to reserve your seat on the ferry. Reservations are required and are first come, first serve basis for the 10:30AM, 11:30AM, and 12:30PM. The price for the ferry is $4 one way. Be prepared to provide names for everyone in your party and an email address and pay for the reservation in advance. You will receive an e-mail confirmation that you will show in order to board the ferry.

Reserve your seats now by calling 727-755-0297 to guarantee early arrival at Clearwater Beach to experience the Pier 60 Sugar Sand Festival!

Tampa Bay Lightning fans brought the only kind of lightning we like to see on Clearwater Beach Monday night! 2,000 people came out to watch the playoffs on a giant LED jumbo screen and to cheer on the Tampa Bay Lightning.

Unfortunately, Mother Nature is not on our side today and we have to temporarily close the Sugar Sand Festival Exhibit and activities for the day (Sun., Apr. 15) due to windy conditions and safety concerns.

Tomorrow’s forecast calls for a bright and beautiful day with zero percent chance of rain! Come out to see the only kind of Lightning we love play against the New Jersey Devils at the OFFICIAL Tampa Bay Lightning watch party with now newly-added fireworks!

Don’t like sitting in traffic? Can’t stand searching for parking? Ride the Jolley Trolley and Clearwater PSTA bus system for FREE! From now til April 29th, all riders boarding at Clearwater City Hall or the Harborview Center will receive a FREE DAY PASS for all day travel on the entire PSTA bus and trolley system. Parking at Clearwater City Hall and the Harborview Center is free. Trolley Park & Ride service every 15 minutes from 9:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. Sunday through Thursday, and until midnight on Friday and Saturday. Return service to the downtown parking lots boards at the Clearwater Beach Marina.

It’s almost that time of year again when the white, sugar sand of Clearwater Beach comes to life visually as carefully crafted, immaculate sand sculptures. The Pier 60 Sugar Sand Festival presented by Visit St. Petersburg/Clearwater will mold Clearwater Beach into an artistic paradise.

April 13-22. The theme for this year’s festival is
Sea America: A Celebration of America’s Treasures.

Tickets for this beloved event are now available for purchase online. Visitors can pre-purchase tickets so they won’t have to stand in line. These ticket holders will have their own, separate, “fast entrance” to the event, and will receive a $5 discount on all festival merchandise. Purchase tickets online by clicking here.

New this year will be the Baystar VIP Lounge where visitors will be able to enjoy the Pier 60 Sugar Sand Festival in style with a swanky experience. VIP access gets you into the tented bar area with private air-conditioned restrooms, lounge seating, light snacks during the afternoon, tasty appetizers from 6 to 8 p.m., and the best view of the concert stage and Clearwater Beach’s famous sunsets.

Admission to the sculpture exhibit will be $10 for adults, $6 for students ages six to 17 years old, and $8 for those 55 and older, military personnel, police officers, firefighters and teachers (proper identification required). Children five and younger will be admitted free of charge with adult purchase. Adult and senior tickets include a complimentary souvenir photo.

For more information about the Pier 60 Sugar Sand Festival, call (727) 871-8060 or visit SugarSandFestival.com. Follow all the activities during the festival at Facebook.com/Pier60SugarSandFestival.

By Jason Biesel

Tobacco Rd Band

Like a little country music mixed with some Florida rock and roll? On Friday, April 14th, Tobacco Rd Band will rock the Gulf of Mexico at the Pier 60 Sugar Sand Festival! We talked to Eric Durrance, CMT artist, co-writer of Jake Owens Top 10 Single “Eight Second Ride”, and founder and songwriter for the Tobacco Rd Band, to get an idea of what we’ll see on Friday, April 14th on Clearwater Beach.

The name of your band is very catchy. How did you come up with it?

Tobacco Rd Band is the rode we grew up on, lived on, loved on, and realized real life stuff on.

How would you describe your music? Who are your major influences?

We love all music! But, anything from southern rock to country and anyone from The Eagles to  Leonard Skynyrd, Cash, and Haggard and Jones.

How long have you all known each other?

The band is been together for seven years.

Which songs do you perform most frequently? Do you ever play any covers? 

We love playing originals because people seem to like those the best. Although, we do like to play covers to classic country and any popular current songs that we feel fits the style of the band.

What are the main themes or topics for most of your songs?

The topics of our songs are real life situations, working class people songs and songs for military. Songs about survival and overcoming hard times as well as having fun on the weekends. We are currently writing for a new album at it it is almost complete.

So get out of your shell, come to Clearwater Beach, and visit the Pier 60 Sugar Sand Festival, a ten day beach-wide celebration! Listen to some of their songs now on Spotify to get ready!

Sponsored by:

 
Hop on over to Clearwater Beach for Easter weekend! There is no shortage of Easter-themed activities for the whole family to enjoy! Check out our basket of ideas on what you should do for Easter!

Easter Egg Hunts & Crafts

The Hyatt Regency Clearwater Beach offers a host of eggcellent Easter activities for its
guests. For your little peeps, there is an egg hunt by the pool, egg decorating, and easter crafts! For those wanting a special experience, the Easter bunny can actually deliver your Easter basket to your room!

Easter Brunch

Why spend all day in the kitchen when you can have a decadent gulf-side meal? Carambola at Hilton Clearwater Beach Resort & Spa offers a delicious Easter Sunday Brunch with variety of food for the whole family to enjoy! Dine on delectable entrees such as lamb osso buco, oysters, lobster bisque, cane syrup glazed ham, Israeli couscous, stone crab, key lime tarts, and more.

Another Easter brunch favorite is Shephard’s Beach Resort. Enjoy mouthwatering meals like their famous herb crusted prime rib and crab legs along with many more culinary delights like coconut mascarpone french toast, whiskey apples, pesto butter mussels, hand rolled sushi, homemade desserts, and much more!

Considering that Clearwater Beach is a great destination to spend your Easter weekend, we suggest you take your cotton tail and call ahead to make a reservation.

Easter Movie & Fireworks

Bring out all your peeps to see the movie HOP on Clearwater Beach! Sunset Cinema will be showing HOP, a movie following the Easter Bunny’s teenage son’s quest to save Easter. Movies start at dusk and are weather permitting. Bring a blanket or a low sitting chair and watch the movie on the big screen on the beach! Popcorn, soft drinks, and concessions will be available.

To close out the Easter festivities, the Sugar Sand Festival will blast off fireworks at 9PM! The best viewing spot for the fireworks will be near the Pier and the Pier 60 Park area.

Instead of staying at home, come create experiences and happy memories for Easter 2017 on Clearwater Beach with the Pier 60 Sugar Sand Festival! Check out our accommodations page for some sweet hotel deals and the latest tips on avoiding traffic for Easter weekend!