Swampfest parking costs $10 a car at Heritage Park, and the organizers say every dollar goes to Land O' Lakes High School sports teams and clubs. The biggest four days on the local fall calendar are a booster club fundraiser. Look at the rest of October and November and the same thing keeps showing up. Sunlake High School's Key Club is running a Halloween event, the Lake Padgett Estates civic association has its own trunk or treat, and the county recreation complex on Collier Parkway has a fall fest. Most of the season runs on volunteers who live here.
That changes how you plan a weekend. A family going to Swampfest, the Gator Stomp and Trick or Treat Around the Track is paying for local teams, clubs and scholarships. Below is what's scheduled, in order, with times and addresses.
The Biggest Weekend of the Fall Is a Booster Club Fundraiser
Land O' Lakes Swampfest runs November 12 through 15, 2026 at Heritage Park, 5401 Land O' Lakes Boulevard. The park was formerly called the Land O' Lakes Community Center. The LOLHS Boosters host it. Walking onto the midway is free, and you pay for rides, food and games as you go.
The festival has a long history for a booster event. Laker/Lutz News reported in 2015 that it started in 2009. A 2019 story in the same paper called it the 11th annual Swampfest and noted the festival had skipped a year during park renovations. Who gets the money has narrowed over the years. That earlier coverage described proceeds going to several schools, nonprofits and community groups. The 2026 festival page says 100% goes to LOLHS sports teams and clubs.
Some of the details tie back to the booster club too. The Kim Fish Beer Garden serves beer and wine courtesy of Pepin Distributing, and the festival site describes it as a memorial to a Booster Club member. Entry is limited to guests 21 and older with valid ID. Arnold Amusements, Inc. runs the midway rides.
| Day | Hours | On stage |
|---|---|---|
| Thursday, Nov. 12 | 5–10 p.m. | Preview night, free parking |
| Friday, Nov. 13 | 5–11 p.m. | DJ Baby Blue, 5–7 p.m.; FYT, 8–11 p.m. |
| Saturday, Nov. 14 | Noon–11 p.m. | DJ Baby Blue, 9 a.m.–noon; act TBD, noon–7 p.m.; Lakeside Rockers, 7:30–10 p.m. |
| Sunday, Nov. 15 | Noon–6 p.m. | Act TBD, 12:30–2 p.m.; Kip Kelly, 3–5 p.m. |
If you're deciding which night to go, Thursday is the only one with free parking. The $10 a car is charged the other three days. The festival page still has an old line about tickets for "Swampfest 2025" sitting next to the 2026 dates, so check wristband and pre-sale details on the official Swampfest site before you buy.
This Year the Boosters Added a Race
The new event in 2026 is the Swampfest Gator Stomp. The boosters call it the inaugural race, and it starts at 9 a.m. on Saturday, November 14, at Heritage Park, hours before the midway opens at noon.
Registration is on RunSignup. The 5K costs $40 and a 1-mile fun run costs $20. The mile starts at 9:10 a.m., and registration closes November 13 at 11:59 p.m. Eastern.
The race money goes somewhere different from the festival money. The Gator Stomp description says race proceeds fund scholarships for graduating LOLHS student-athletes. The festival's revenue supports teams and clubs. So a family that runs Saturday morning and stays for the rides that afternoon is supporting both the current teams and the seniors who are leaving. Neither public race page includes a course map yet, so runners who want to know the route will need to ask the organizers.
October Saturdays Stack Up the Same Way
The Swampfest pattern of school groups and neighbors running the events also fits the two busiest Saturdays in October. On both days the events are spaced out enough that you can go to more than one.
Saturday, October 10
- Noon to 2 p.m.: Rec-Tober Fall Fest on the football fields at the Land O' Lakes Recreation Complex, 3032 Collier Parkway. The listing mentions candy, games and fall activities.
- 3 p.m.: Fantastic Hispanic Heritage Festival Celebration at Heritage Park. Admission is free, and the Land O' Lakes-Lutz Courier lists live Latin music, food trucks, local vendors, games and bounce houses.
Heritage Park has hosted Hispanic heritage festivals before, in September 2022 and again in 2023. The Courier notes that this year's event has a different name and no publicly identified organizer, so it isn't clear whether it continues that earlier series.
Saturday, October 24
- 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.: Trick or Treat Around the Track at Sunlake High School, 3023 Sunlake Blvd. The school's Key Club is hosting a free family event with trick-or-treating, games and food trucks on the track.
- 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.: Bexley Market on the Lawn, Tent or Treat Edition at the Bexley Clubhouse, 16950 Vibrant Way. Market entry is free, and a kids' play zone costs extra.
- 2 to 3:30 p.m.: LPECA Trunk or Treat at Lake Saxon Park. It's open to Lake Padgett Estates residents and their guests.
The two morning events overlap almost completely, so a family can start at the Sunlake track and get to Bexley before the market closes. Lake Padgett Estates households have a third stop that afternoon.
One quieter date fits the same week. Pumpkin Play is at the Land O' Lakes Branch Library, 2818 Collier Parkway, on Friday, October 30, from 10:15 to 11:15 a.m., with stories and sensory play for young children.
The Fridays and the Food Fill In Around Them
The community-run events land on certain Saturdays. The recurring weeknight event is in Bexley. The Friday Moonlight Market at The Hub at Bexley, 16954 Focus Loop, runs from 5 to 9 p.m. on the second and fourth Fridays, with live music, food and vendors. Kids and pets are welcome. The remaining fall dates are October 9 and 23 and November 6 and 20. Two of them fall the night before a big Saturday. The October 9 market comes before Rec-Tober and the Heritage Park festival, and the October 23 market comes before the Halloween morning at Sunlake and Bexley.
A few newer places to eat sit along the routes between events:
- Mr.Bear, a Hokkaido-style Japanese cheesecake and coffee shop, opened in September at 16970 Focus Loop, on the same road as the Moonlight Market. It also serves tea, pastries and other desserts.
- Einstein Bros. Bagels had opened by early August at 22427 State Road 54, Suite A, near Catfish Lane. That works for breakfast before the 9 a.m. Gator Stomp.
- Chipotle Mexican Grill opened September 29 at 22820 State Road 54, just over the line in Lutz. It has a Chipotlane for advance orders and is open daily from 10:45 a.m. to 10 p.m.
What Isn't on the Calendar Yet
After Swampfest weekend, the only confirmed date is the November 20 Moonlight Market at The Hub at Bexley. As of early October, we found no confirmed date for a Land O' Lakes holiday parade or tree lighting. The county's public events calendar hasn't listed one either. A third-party festival calendar shows a Bexley Holiday Market on the Lawn on November 28, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at 16950 Vibrant Way. That same listing says events may be canceled or postponed, so wait for the organizer to confirm it before you plan around it.
The last school-run event on the confirmed calendar is Swampfest, which closes Sunday, November 15, at 6 p.m.
At The Lewkowicz Group, we keep track of what's happening in Land O' Lakes week to week, because it's part of knowing the neighborhood well. If you hear about a holiday event or new opening we haven't covered here, tell us. Let's Connect.
