The Super Bowl of souvenirs has returned.
Floridania Fest, an annual market dedicated to vintage memorabilia, kicked off Friday at the Potter Building on the Sarasota Fairgrounds. Thousands of Old Florida trinkets were on display, from pamphlets and postcards for long-lost tourist attractions to felt pennants and ceramic flamingos.
“This is our third space in three years,” said author Ken Breslauer, who used to host the event at the Gulfport Casino before it flooded during the 2024 hurricanes. “As soon as it is up and running again, we’ll be back.”
This is the fifth annual Floridania Fest — that’s Floridania pronounced as in Flori-mania, although it’s also gone by Floridiana Fest, depending on who you ask. Breslauer has used both over the years.
Breslauer’s table featured stacks of his books on vintage decals and pennants, as well as kitschy items like an $800 Cypress Gardens sign. He and more than a dozen other vendors will return from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. today. Admission costs $7; children 14 and under are free.
Brothers Alan and Curtis Boster flew down from Columbus, Ohio, to sling citrus bags and Florida orange juice cans, along with ceramic plates and felt pennants for places like Silver Springs and Miami’s Monkey Jungle. The pair have been traveling to Florida since they were children.
“He’s got a whole room devoted to Florida stuff,” Alan Boster said. “He’s got a can of rattlesnake meat.”
Jeff Francis has been collecting license plates for five decades and has a personal stockpile of roughly 35,000. He brought a few hundred plates, along with some vintage road signs and a Tampa Bay Times newspaper box, to Floridania Fest.
Here are photos of his treasures — plus some of our other favorite funky Florida finds:
