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Event Hub · Orlando, Florida

Tiki a Go-Go

Mid-mod tiki & retro roadside Florida — the East Coast's largest tiki convention
Fri Apr 2 → Sun Apr 4, 2027
Official site & tickets ↗Add dates to calendarPlot a suggested run ↓

Vitals

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DatesApril 2–4, 2027 (Fri–Sun)
Main VenueCaribe Royale Orlando (all-suite resort)
Ticketstikiagogoevent.com
Founded2024 — by two Florida tiki couples
Scale33 seminars + 14 classes across three days (2026)
MarketplaceRetro Tiki Marketplace — carvers, mug artists, vintage
FocusFlorida tiki history · exotica/surf/rockabilly · roadside Americana
AirportMCO — about 20 minutes east
Hotel intel: The Caribe Royale is the whole show — seminars, marketplace, pop-up bars, and room parties all live on property, and every room is a suite, which makes it one of the friendliest host hotels in tiki for splitting with crew. The 2027 room block opened Aug 1, 2026 (from $199/night, with a reduced resort fee and parking rate), and the organizers warn it has sold out quickly in past years. Book through tikiagogoevent.com; if the block is gone, watch the event's socials for overflow options. It's a resort-corridor address, not a walkable neighborhood — there's a 24-hour 7-Eleven directly across World Center Drive, and everything else is a short drive or rideshare.

The Chart

28°23′N · 81°28′W
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Layers
Orlando · The Landlocked Lagoon
Soundings in rum · Not for navigation

Suggested Runs

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Operating · evening4–6 hrs

The Resort Lagoon Run

Theme-park-corridor tiki at full volume: rum flights at Strong Water Tavern, dinner-hour cocktails at Roka Hula, then the double-header at the Polynesian — Trader Sam's chaos downstairs, Tambu Lounge fireworks upstairs. Rideshare between all stops; nobody drives this one.
Strong Water Tavern→Roka Hula→Trader Sam's Grog Grotto→Tambu Lounge
Tap to plot on the chart Google Maps ↗
Mixed · half day3–4 hrs

The Downtown Sounding

From the con to the city: pay respects at the Adventurers Club footprint in Disney Springs, then head downtown to Lake Eola for Aku Aku's happy hour and a two-block walk to the ghost of Waitiki on Wall Street. One lost world per living bar — the correct ratio.
The Adventurers Club→Aku Aku Tiki Bar→Waitiki
Tap to plot on the chart Google Maps ↗
Dead Reckoning · lost sites6–8 hrs

The Dead Reckoning Run

Central Florida's vanished Polynesia, near to far: the Adventurers Club at Disney Springs, the silent Luau Terrace on SeaWorld's lagoon, Waitiki's shell downtown — then the long haul west to Indian Shores, where a county parking lot still answers to the name Tiki Gardens. End on the Gulf at sunset.
The Adventurers Club→Makahiki Luau→Waitiki→Tiki Gardens
Tap to plot on the chart Google Maps ↗

Know Before You Go

First-timer intel
It's a symposium, not just a party
The 2026 edition crammed 33 seminars and 14 classes into three days — Florida tiki history, carving, cocktail craft. Sessions overlap constantly; pick your must-sees before Friday or you'll lose them to the marketplace.
Every room is a suite — use that
The Caribe Royale is all-suite, which makes it the rare host hotel where splitting with three friends is comfortable rather than a war crime. The block fills fast once tickets open; book the moment the 2027 room link goes live.
You'll want wheels (or a rideshare budget)
World Center Drive is resort-corridor sprawl — nothing but the 7-Eleven is walkable. Every bar on the chart is a 10–35 minute drive. Rideshare the crawls; save the rental car for the Tiki Gardens pilgrimage west.
Trader Sam's punishes the unprepared
No reservations, tiny room, and a waitlist that can run hours by evening. Go at opening, put your name in, and drink upstairs at Tambu Lounge while you wait. Check Disney resort-parking rules before driving in.
Do the Florida homework
This event leans hard into Florida's own tiki story — Mai-Kai, Tiki Gardens, the lost luaus. The Atomic Grog blog and the Encyclopedia of Florida Tiki are the pregame reading; you'll get triple the value out of the seminars and the Dead Reckoning stops.

Survival Guide

Provisions & resupply
Liquor
ABC Fine Wine & Spirits (Apopka Vineland) — Nearest full liquor store to the venue (~10 min north on 535). Florida's homegrown chain — solid rum wall for room-party provisioning. Note the early Sunday close.
9am–9pm · Fri–Sat till 10pm · Sun 11am–7pmMap ↗
Ice
7-Eleven (World Center Dr) — Directly across World Center Drive from the Caribe Royale — bagged ice, mixers, and 3am desperation snacks without getting in a car.
24 hoursMap ↗
Late-Night Food
Denny's (International Drive South) — Closest sit-down late-night option to the venue, at the south end of I-Drive near World Center Drive.
Typically 24 hours (verify)Map ↗
Late-Night Food
IHOP (International Drive) — The classic post-room-party pancake landing, about 10–15 minutes up I-Drive. Orlando locations trimmed hours post-2020 — confirm before your 4am run.
24 hours (verify)Map ↗