CORTEZ – The 2022 Cortez Commercial Fishing Festival the weekend of Feb. 19-20 has something for everyone, even folks who don’t know how to bait a hook.
The first festival in 1981 drew 500 people to the small fishing village. Forty years later, an average of 20,000 people come to enjoy live music, food, drinks, arts and crafts and a celebration of the history and future of commercial fishing and its impact on the community. 
The fishing village of Cortez is sometimes overlooked as visitors to the area drive by not knowing its history and the way of life enjoyed by the residents of this small community on Sarasota Bay. For this reason, the festival is more than just an excuse to have a party, it’s also meant to educate those who attend about just how important commercial fishing is to life in Florida. The University of Florida and Florida Sea Grant have partnered with this event for 40 years to put on “Dock Talks” that educate the public on local marine life and the value of commercial fisheries.
This year’s theme is “gearing up,” a term fishermen use in reference to getting their equipment ready to head out to sea. It’s also a fitting term since the festival was canceled in 2021 due to COVID-19. This event is organized by volunteers with the Florida Institute for Saltwater Heritage (FISH), who are thrilled to see the return of this much-anticipated event and have been gearing up themselves, with monthly planning meetings to make sure every detail, large or small, is addressed.
If the best food in Florida, cold drinks, original artwork and live music aren’t reason enough to attend the 2022 Cortez Commercial Fishing Festival, just grab a raffle ticket and you could go home with one of the beautiful, refurbished custom boats restored by the FISH Boatworks. Admission is only $5 for adults, while kids under 12 are free. The entrance to the festival is at the Florida Maritime Museum, 4415 119th St. W., with plenty of parking for a small donation of $5 to the local Boy Scouts.
