River O’ Green festival: Hillsborough River to turn green ahead of Tampa’s St. Patrick’s Day celebration

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Updated  March 14, 2025 5:25pm EDT
FOX 13 News
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Hillsborough River to turn green ahead of Tampa’s St. Patrick’s Day celebration

FOX 13's Ariel Plasencia reports.

The Brief

    • The River O' Green festival is returning to downtown Tampa on Saturday as St. Patrick's Day celebrations get underway.
    • The Hillsborough River will turn green beginning at 11 a.m. using vegetable-based and non-toxic products.
    • The annual tradition began in 2012.

TAMPA, Fla. - Saturday marks a busy day of St. Patrick’s Day celebrations with the 2025 ‘River O’ Green’ festival in Tampa.

Timeline:

The annual process of dyeing the Hillsborough River green begins at 11 a.m. where crews will use a vegetable-based, non-toxic product, event organizers told FOX 13. This tradition began in 2012. 

READ: Best cities for St. Patrick's Day celebrations? Analysis ranks top US spots 

The route for the St. Patrick’s Day Parade, which is put on by the Tampa Rough Riders, is the same as last year: It starts downtown at Morgan Street and Madison Street, then turns onto Ashley Drive, and ends at Ashley Drive and Polk Street.

However, the parade itself starts earlier this year at 3 p.m. instead of 5 p.m. 

"I think that foot traffic is going to come through. We are planned and prepared," Ivy Lupco with Tampa Downtown Partnership, which organizes the River O’ Green festival, said. "We've divided our food lines. We have food options, beer options. It'll be easily accessible for everyone attending." 

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What to Expect:

There will be live music from local Irish bands and a "Leprechaun’s Hideout" tent at Curtis Hixon Waterfront Park, which is new this year, Lupco added.

"[It’s] going to provide a lot of shade to our patrons," Lupco said. "And we have a new local brewery that just opened in downtown popping up, giving a couple [beer] drafts away, as well as some green beer."

The city is also reminding boaters that the Hillsborough River will be closed off to traffic on Saturday between Cass Street and Kennedy Boulevard from 8:30 a.m. until noon.

Since finding a parking spot may be difficult, the city is encouraging people to ride the free TECO Streetcar, HART buses, rentable scooters or use the Dash Service or various rideshare options. 

The Source: The information in this story was gathered through information from event organizers. 

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