Things to Do in Elfers

When youngsters from a nearby school for disabled children visited his old Halloween store in Indianapolis, Don Surenkamp happily walked and wheeled them through the aisles and explained the holiday's traditions. After he relocated to Florida, Don remember those children and created a handicap-accessible haunted house whose proceeds support The Angelus, a group home for cerebral palsy, reports the Tampa Bay Times. What began with a dozen spooky rooms now lures intrepid guests with 25 rooms occupied by skeletons and demons. Spines continue tingling on a haunted hayride down a 1-mile haunted trail and through the outdoor pirated-themed haunt, which includes a spooky 40-foot pirate ship. Don lets the fainter hearted pass through until 8 p.m. with glow sticks in hand to keep away scary monsters, pirates, and photocopies of failed spelling quizzes.

Perched in wrought-iron chairs at a gleaming marble bar, students and artists sip coffee, sharing inspiration and plans for upcoming projects. Nearby, Tampa Bead Cafe's instructors preside over a range of jewelry-crafting materials, which provide the necessary hardware to follow up on the grand artistic plans under discussion. Beneath the terra cotta–hued walls, shelves brim with beads, metal chains, and wire, as well as less conventional media such as metal clay and polymers.

The staff guides visitors along racks of bracelet and necklace supplies, and exclamations of happiness drift from a classroom, where teachers introduce specific styles, such as kumihimo. Students to use real tools such as pliers, cutters, and magnifiers to intimidate their jewelry into making itself, and most courses end with the creation of piece for pupils to treasure. A roster of guest artists, who have included polymer-clay artist Christi Friesen and Maria Rypan, lead style and material-specific workshops.

Since opening its doors in 1988, Snappers Grill & Comedy Club has entertained guests with events including standup comedy shows, live music performances, karaoke nights, and poker tournaments. A variety of comedic performers, including Dustin Diamond, have paced across the showroom stage, telling jokes that stirred eruptions of laughter and applause. The club also hosts live music performances and offers seating for patrons looking to munch on the menu's burgers, wraps, and sandwiches.

Guests may also hang out on Snappers' patio, where a DJ spins live music every Friday and Saturday night and locals explore new ranges of their falsetto during Tuesday karaoke.

The Show Palace Dinner Theatre piles plates high with cuisine from an endless buffet and salad bar while also sating cravings for entertainment. Their productions range from musical revues such as Swing! and New York Nights to more traditional musicals like The Sound of Music. Prior to the show, audiences mingle at a brief cocktail reception before taking their seats at linen-draped tables. A spread of comfort food fills stomachs with the fuel necessary to give a standing ovation, shout for encores, and scream at pet falcons to get down from the rafters.

Whether by deck, pontoon, or console boat, Belle Harbour Boat Rentals gets people enjoying the water without the hassle of watercraft ownership. From the Belle Harbour Marina, travelers make their way along the Anclote River and inter-coastal waterways in search of sights, sun, and fish. Along the way, they find miniature islands and sandbars, perfect for picnics or building sand sculptures of feet for taunting merpeople. Fishing excursions yield bounties of seatrout, redfish, and snook or a chance to view early-morning glimpses of Anclote Key Lighthouse. Along the way, waterside eateries beckon groups for a quick bite with their burgers, seafood, and drinks before customers journey back out to share dining critiques with the manatees, dolphins, bald eagles, and osprey that inhabit the area.

Though West of the Moon Art Glass has been around for more than 35 years, its facilities are brand new. Because of a recent relocation, their artisans inhabit a fresh space, where they sculpt custom stained- and leaded-glass works of art for local homes, businesses, and even churches that recently decided to install windows. Their experienced hands masterfully tackle any task customers set before them, whether it be a window, a light fixture, or a wall sculpture. The same meticulous attention goes into leading classes, which grant pupils the tools to craft their own masterpieces from materials that range from fused glass to faux bone. For those who prefer to skip right to the finished product or lack the space in their garden to grow their own glass, the gift shop sells jewelry, sun catchers, and window panels.