What better way to celebrate American inventor Thomas Edison, the man associated with the discovery of electricity, than with a large festival dedicated to lights in southwest Florida?

That's exactly what visitors to Fort Myers can expect in February of 2011 when the 73rd Edison Festival of Lights rolls into town with events all through the month.

Towards the end of his life, Edison was a fixture in the Fort Myers community after buying property in the city in 1885, which was called the Seminole Lodge. It was the inventor's winter retreat and eventually joined Fort Myer's Civitan Club, which Edison considered an "honor" to be a part of.

The festival includes a variety of events such as a 5K fun run, a classic car show and a light parade that goes through downtown.

The parade is probably the most popular event and those interested in attending should be aware that it is a ticketed event. It is scheduled for Saturday, February 19 at 7 p.m. and a "Street Seat" ticket is $10. Children under 6 are free if they are held in their parent's lap, according to the event's website.

Southwest Florida is known for its beautiful beaches and great year-round weather. In order to celebrate the beaches that made them famous, Fort Myers is showing off its shores.

According to WZVN, the Great Visit Florida Beach Walk has arrived in Southwest Florida recently in an effort to show the world how stunning the beaches are. In an effort to increase holiday tourism, the group is traveling the state's 825-mile stretch of sand and water with camerato broadcast to everyone via the internet.

The Fort Myers Beach Walk attracted more than 2,500 camera-wielding volunteers and visitors, who were instructed to take pictures and videos and upload them to any website, according to the news source.

"There's nothing that you see that would be a disparaging item that you would run across on the beach. Our beaches are beautiful," Frank Merchant, one of the volunteers, told the news source.

There is no better way to spend beautiful November day than in the sand at Fort Myers Beach, reliving some of the days of summer.

The 24th annual Sand Sculpture Competition starts on Thursday, but many artists were at the beach on Wednesday setting up their areas and beginning preparations for the big weekend coming up.

According to NBC, 17 sculptors will show off their talent by creating a work of art in eight cubic yards of white sand. The competition will span more than half a mile down the beach.

In order to attract the the top sculptors this year, the Fort Myers Beach Chamber of Commerce increased the prize money and appearance fee, according to the news source, and is also starting to charge to see work that is inside of the gallery.

"The event was actually in the red for a few years and we felt that if we were going to be charging, we had to up the quality to the best that we can do," chamber president John Albion, told the news source. "The winner of last year's event got an automatic bid to the world championships because we're a world championship qualifier, and two months ago he just became the world champion for the first time."

So come and watch the best of the best while enjoying your time in Fort Myers Beach. If you are looking for a place to stay to watch the competition, check out the GullWing Beach Resort.