The Ultimate Hollywood Florida Arts & Culture Guide

A Soulful Creative Escape

Let’s drift away from the glitter of high-rises and dive into a city where the art is real, the stages are open-air, and the creative community runs deep. In Hollywood, Florida, culture isn’t hidden behind velvet ropes or museum walls—it’s lived on murals, whispered through indie film reels, and echoed in neighborhood amphitheaters.

This Hollywood, Florida City Guide explores the artists, spaces, and experiences that make the local scene exciting.

This is a city that doesn’t need to shout. It invites. With its historic downtown arts corridor, beachside music traditions, and radically accessible public galleries, Hollywood's arts scene is where artists shape the rhythm of the city—not the other way around. You’ll find creativity blooming on city blocks, public stages tucked beneath oak trees, and galleries welcoming you with the quiet thrill of discovery. Public art in Hollywood isn’t just decoration—it’s a conversation, unfolding in real time across walls, sidewalks, and stages.

We’re stepping into a city that’s doing something rare—making the arts feel personal again.

A Brief History of Hollywood’s Creative Roots

Hollywood was the vision of Joseph W. Young, a California developer who arrived in Florida during the 1920s land boom with a bold idea: to build a “Dream City by the Sea.” He named it Hollywood after its West Coast counterpart, hoping to capture the glamour, elegance, and modern appeal of Hollywood, California—but in a tropical, oceanfront setting. Young imagined broad boulevards, grand hotels, golf courses, and even a budding film industry. While the studios never came, the city did grow into a vibrant, culturally layered community shaped by waves of immigration, civic pride, and the arts. Today, its creative spirit feels less manufactured and more lived-in—fueled by people, history, and the belief that beauty belongs in public life. That legacy continues in the modern-day Hollywood arts scene, where history and self-expression walk hand in hand.

Downtown & the ArtsPark: The Beating Heart of the City

Hollywood’s cultural core is anchored by the Downtown Hollywood Mural Project and the ArtsPark at Young Circle—a ten-acre green space that feels like an open-air cultural campus. By day, you’ll find glassblowers at work in the Visual Arts Pavilion or kids spinning in the splash pad while food trucks circle nearby. At night, the circle becomes electric with film screenings, concerts, and dance showcases—all steps from cafés, bookstores, and galleries. This isn’t just one of the top things to do in Hollywood, Florida —it’s a living, breathing example of how art and everyday life blur together. It’s not an “arts district” by name—but by spirit, it’s the creative nucleus of the city. The Hollywood art scene radiates outward from this spot, constantly evolving through performance, community, and public space.

Local Monthly Events That Keep the Scene Moving

Hollywood doesn’t wait for a season to celebrate creativity. The Downtown Hollywood ArtWalk, held on the third Saturday of every month, is a local favorite. Streets fill with live mural painting, gallery receptions, artisan vendors, and open studios. As part of the ArtWalk, Harrison Street transforms into a pop-up artisan market, with handmade goods, vintage treasures, and boutique pop-ups all set to a backdrop of live music. Meanwhile, Friday Night Live concerts at ArtsPark draw out a crowd with everything from Latin jazz to reggae—paired with food trucks and open-air dance floors.

Early Sunday morning, Hollywood Boulevard shifts from quiet storefronts to polished chrome and engine revs. On the first Sunday of each month, classic car lovers gather for the Dream Car Classic, where vintage rides line the street between restaurants and galleries. Just blocks away, Gallery 2014 quietly mounts contemporary shows that make space for experimental work and emerging voices.

Down by the ocean, the Full Moon Drum Circle turns Hollywood Beach into a moonlit rhythm ritual, and the Hollywood Beach Theatre hosts open-air concerts with steel drums, rock bands, and salsa ensembles—all within earshot of the waves. Around the Broadwalk, live music drifts from bar patios while solo street musicians set up with nothing more than a stool, a mic, and a view of the sea.

Annual Cultural Events Worth Planning Around

Hollywood ArtsPark Experience

A seasonal concert and performance series at ArtsPark at Young Circle, featuring big-name acts and immersive dance events in the city’s most iconic green space. It’s one of the most anticipated free concert series in Hollywood FL, drawing fans from across Broward County.

Global Arts Project at Hollywood Beach Theatre

A spring-to-fall open-air concert series pairing local favorites with international sounds—all free and oceanfront. This is a go-to for anyone searching for live music on Hollywood Beach during the warmer months.

Día de los Muertos Celebration

Co-produced by the city’s cultural department and grassroots artists, this fall festival in Hollywood Florida transforms downtown with altars, performances, and processions in celebration of memory and heritage. It’s one of the most vibrant cultural events in South Florida each October.

Hollywood Florida Film Festival

A community-rooted celebration of independent film, screenwriting, and storytelling. With screenings and panels often held in the city’s historic venues, the festival is an important platform for emerging filmmakers and an important local platform for emerging filmmakers and storytellers in Florida.

Seminole Tribal Fair & Pow Wow

Held annually at the Seminole Hard Rock, this winter celebration brings together Native American communities from across the region. Expect competitive pow wow dancing, traditional arts and crafts, food vendors, and drum groups—all grounded in cultural preservation and intertribal connection.

My Hollywood Pride

Every January, Downtown Hollywood transforms into a vibrant hub of LGBTQ+ celebration, with live music, drag performances, art installations, and community-centered programming. More than a party, it’s a statement of inclusion and creative visibility.

Hollywood Salsa Festival

A high-energy spring tradition that floods downtown with dance, food, and rhythm. Local and international salsa bands take the stage as dancers—professionals and first-timers alike—turn the streets into an open dance floor. It's one of the city’s most joyful celebrations of Latin culture and live music.

Each is rooted in place and people—designed not just to entertain, but to build cultural connection.

Museums, Galleries & Public Art Installations

Art in Hollywood lives on the walls, the sidewalks, and in the city’s most communal spaces. The Downtown Hollywood Mural Project is a living outdoor museum—over 25 large-scale murals by international and local artists transform alleyways and façades into a walkable gallery. It’s one of South Florida’s most immersive public art experiences, blending international flair with neighborhood energy.

At ArtsPark at Young Circle, the Visual Arts Pavilion offers glassblowing demos, hands-on classes, and rotating exhibitions that feel more communal than curated. Just a few blocks east, the Art and Culture Center/Hollywood serves as a multidisciplinary hub for contemporary art shows, live performances, and creative education—often pushing boundaries while staying rooted in the community.

Newer additions to the cultural landscape include the Wiener Museum of Decorative Arts, home to a stunning collection of glass and ceramics, and the Hollywood Historical Society, which offers exhibitions on local history and the preserved Hammerstein House, a rare 1930s gem open for tours.

Hollywood doesn’t fence off creativity—it lets it live in the open.

Where to Eat: Restaurants That Feed the Creative Energy

Hollywood’s dining scene reflects its creative spirit—unpretentious and with a local vibe.

In Downtown Hollywood, Carmela’s offers elegant Italian fare in a warm, modern setting—think handmade pastas and rich, slow-braised meats. Around the corner, The Tipsy Boar serves elevated pub food with a lively patio and craft cocktails perfect for post-ArtWalk nights. For something classic, Giuseppe’s Restaurant is a longtime local favorite, serving hearty Italian comfort food without the fuss. Just steps away, Ginger Bay Cafe offers Caribbean fusion by day and reggae-tinged nightlife after dark—part eatery, part jam session.

Over on Hollywood Beach, meals come with a view. Le Tub Saloon is an iconic burger shack known for its quirky décor and flame-grilled patties—no frills, all flavor. Nearby, GG’s Waterfront offers fresh seafood and polished service with golden-hour Intracoastal views—one of the most loved waterfront restaurants in Hollywood. For a more casual start to the day, Giorgio’s Bakery & Bistro is a beachside gem, loved for its Greek pastries, strong coffee, and peaceful marina-side mornings.

Whether tucked into a breezy patio or facing the shoreline, many of Hollywood’s best restaurants double as live music venues or showcase rotating local art—turning a simple meal into a multi-sensory cultural experience.

Nightlife in Hollywood: Laid-Back, Local, and Always Alive

Hollywood’s nightlife feels like a mix between a street festival and a local jam session. On weekends, the ArtsPark amphitheater lights up with live performances, while the Broadwalk becomes a soundtrack of Caribbean drums, acoustic sets, and casual dance sessions. Walk far enough and you’ll catch a steel drum solo fading into Latin guitar or a local DJ setting up just outside a beach bar.

Downtown offers an artsier vibe—rooftop lounges, gallery openings that turn into after-hours parties, and spots like The Greek Joint, Social Room, or Sidecar Speakeasy, where DJs spin for a crowd that mixes artists, neighbors, and creative tourists alike. You’ll find live bands spilling out onto patios, barfronts doubling as pop-up dance floors, and an energy that feels homegrown, not overproduced.

It’s not nightlife engineered for headlines—it’s what things to do in Hollywood FL at night should feel like: spontaneous, local, and alive.

Local Arts Organizations Making It All Happen

The organizations below form the scaffolding of Hollywood’s creative growth and serve as key pillars of the arts ecosystem in South Florida:

• Art and Culture Center/Hollywood – Contemporary exhibitions, multidisciplinary performances, and accessible youth arts education anchored in one of the city’s historic buildings.

• City of Hollywood Public Art Program – Manages the Downtown Mural Project and integrates public art into civic development and city planning.

• Downtown Hollywood Mural Project – A long-standing collaboration between city officials and curators, bringing world-class murals to everyday walls.

• ArtsPark at Young Circle – A civic and cultural anchor offering glassblowing studios, free concerts, visual art programming, and community events year-round.

Together, these organizations create a year-round infrastructure for arts and culture in Hollywood Florida, where the spotlight isn’t on spectacle—it’s on community participation, artistic freedom, and joy.

Hollywood’s Creative Pulse: Final Thoughts

Hollywood doesn’t chase trends—it builds its cultural life from the ground up, through connection, community, and color. It’s a city where the arts are never out of reach, because they’re baked into public space, local tradition, and everyday life. You don’t need tickets or credentials—just time and curiosity.

Whether you're strolling through a mural alley, dancing barefoot at a beach concert, or watching a local actor take the stage downtown, the creative pulse here is constant. It’s not a scene that fades after the festival ends—it’s one that stays with you, alive in sidewalks, voices, and paint.