APRIL 9-11, 2026 ST. AUGUSTINE POETFEST
“A three-day celebration of creative writing and reciting
in the Nation’s Oldest City.”
All events are open to all and are held free of charge, thanks to the support of Flagler College, St. Johns Cultural Council, and Ancient City Poets.
Thursday, April 9, 2026
Day One of Three
6 pm to 9:00 pm
The Waterworks
184 San Marco Avenue, St. Augustine, FL 32084
Beat Poet Summit followed by community open mic hour
The festival kicks off with a Beat Poet Summit on Thursday night featuring ten minutes of podium time awarded to any past or present Beat Poet Laureate who gets “On the Road ” like Kerouac, and travels to the Sunshine State. A community open mic will follow. The sign-up sheet for the open mic portion is available at 6 p.m. and open to the first 10 people. Please limit your time at the podium to five minutes.
Free open to the public event at the Waterworks.
Door open 6:00 pm | Showtime 6:30 pm
more info about the National Beat Poetry Foundation
https://nationalbeatpoetryfoundation.org/
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Friday, April 10, 2026
Day Two of Three
9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Flagler College campus
Virginia Room, Second Floor, Ringhaver Student Center
50 Sevilla Street, St. Augustine, FL 32084
The festival continues during the day on Friday with a Book Bazaar, author discussions, author talks, and a keynote presentation at the historic downtown campus of Flagler College. In the evening, the English Department will host an off-campus open mic.
4:00 p.m. to 4:50 p.m. Virginia Room
St. Augustine PoetFest Keynote Presentation
6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.
Open Mic Event
Hosted by the English Department of Flagler College at Relampago Coffee Lab,
located at 74 Spanish Street. The signup sheet is out at 6:00 PM.
Join us for an evening under the stars.
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Saturday, April 11, 2026
Day Three of Three
9:00 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Flagler College campus
Virginia Room, Second Floor, Ringhaver Student Center
50 Sevilla Street, St. Augustine, FL 32084
The festival continues today with student showcases as well as displays by FLARE: The Flagler Review (Flagler College), St. John County Library display, a Book Bazaar, a live staged play reading, author talks and panels, and featured poets, and concludes in the afternoon with an awards ceremony for the winners of the St. Johns Cultural Council Haiku Contest, followed by a reception.
3:00 pm to 4:30 pm Virginia Room
Closing Event
Words from Norma Sherry
Past City of St. Augustine Poet Laureate
Presentation by Ann Browning Masters,
Present City of St. Augustine Poet Laureate
3:30 pm to 4:30 pm
Presentation by St. Johns Cultural Council
“Winners of 6th Annual Haiku Contest”.
Followed by Celebratory Reception on the Tinlin Landing
2nd Floor Lobby, Ringhaver Student Center
50 Sevilla Street, St. Augustine, FL 32084
Confirmed traveling 2026 presenters include Confirmed traveling poets include: Ray McNiece (Ohio), Su Zi (Florida), PW Covington (New Mexico), Lenny DellaRocca (Florida), Kevin Pilkington (New York), Lola Haskins (Florida).
You can also contact the Festival Chair if your organization would like to be a sponsor.
Also check out other Arts events in Augustine, Literary Art events in Augustine, Festivals in Augustine.
