Palmetto Bay's fall calendar runs mostly through its parks, and it picks back up on Sunday, October 4. That morning the Palmetto Bay Farmers' Market returns to Coral Reef Park after its last summer date on July 26. Four days later, the Thursday night Sunset Eats market sets up at Palmetto Bay Park. Down at Deering Estate, a free art project begins on Saturday, October 10, and its four parts are named for the tides.
Most of the season fits around those three places. The one notable new business on the calendar also opened with a truck built to bring its product to local events.
| Day | Where | Hours | What's on |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sunday | Coral Reef Park, 7895 SW 152 St | 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. regular; 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Oct 4 | Palmetto Bay Farmers' Market |
| Thursday | Palmetto Bay Park, 17535 SW 95th Ave | 5:30 to 9:30 p.m., weather permitting | Sunset Eats night market |
| Daily | King's Bay Shopping Center, 14475 S. Dixie Hwy | 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. | The Original Rainbow Cone |
| Select dates | Deering Estate, 16701 SW 72 Ave | Varies | High Tide Low Tide, the Vintage Auto Show, holiday programs |
Sunday Starts Back at Coral Reef Park
The October 4 reopening is billed as a Grand Re-Opening and runs 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. After that, the operator lists regular Sunday hours of 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the same park. That gives later arrivals an extra hour on most weeks.
The operator is MG Productions LLC, a family-owned company that manages farmers' markets in South Florida. Its vendor mix covers local farms and produce, specialty foods, baked goods and artisan crafts, plus BBQ, pizza, tacos, empanadas and ice cream. The company hasn't published a vendor list for the reopening or an end date for the fall season. The schedule you can count on today is simply every Sunday, starting this one.
Longtime visitors may remember an earlier version. The market first opened at Coral Reef Park in October 2024 as the Artisan and Farmers Market, run with Metro Promotions. It's in the same park and the same early-October slot, with a different operator name on the page.
The reopening also shares the park with the Wieners & Friends Bark Bash, which runs 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Dogs of any breed are welcome, not just dachshunds. The Village lists a lure course, a treat station, a hydration station and a costume contest. Miami-Dade County Animal Services will bring adoptable dogs, and Palmetto Bay residents who adopt can apply to have the adoption fee reimbursed. Sponsors include Woof Gang Bakery & Grooming, South Kendall Animal Hospital, VEG ER for Pets, Equipaws, Happy with Dogs, Pawty Time and Pet Spaw Miami. If you're bringing a dog, aim for the overlap between 11 a.m. and 2 p.m.
Thursday Is the Later Night, at Palmetto Bay Park
Sunset Eats is run by Central Makers Markets and sets up on Park Road near the ball fields and playground. The operator lists food vendors, artisan makers, sweets, music and entertainment. The market runs 5:30 to 9:30 p.m., and the park and playground stay open until 10 p.m. Families with young kids have half an hour after the vendors pack up before the gates close.
The Village calendar has Sunset Eats running through the fall, with October 8, November 5 and December 3 among the listed dates. Like the Sunday market, it has no published vendor list. The setting is the main draw: a weeknight dinner within walking distance of the swings.
The skate park at the same park is still behind its fence. The Village closed it for improvements in a notice dated July 30 and estimated about three months of work, weather permitting. South Dade Spotlight worked that out to a reopening around late October and warned that rain could push it back. No firm date has been announced. If your Thursday plan includes skating, check the Village's Parks and Recreation page before you leave the house.
A New Stop on Dixie Highway
The Original Rainbow Cone opened at King's Bay Shopping Center, 14475 S. Dixie Highway. It's open 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. daily, which makes it the latest-closing stop on this list. The Miami Herald reported the opening on September 28. It is the brand's first South Florida franchise.
The signature cone is five flavors sliced and stacked so each bite gets all of them: chocolate, strawberry, Palmer House, pistachio and orange sherbet. Palmer House is New York vanilla with cherries and walnuts. The Palmetto Bay menu also has scoops, milkshakes, sundaes, ice cream cakes and made-to-order mini donuts.
The owners are Sara and Jason DePalma, who moved from Chicago to South Florida 20 years ago. "We hope to build something that belongs to Palmetto Bay as much as it belongs to us," Sara DePalma told the Herald. They're also launching an ice cream truck with a battery-powered kitchen. It's planned for schools, youth programs, community and catered events, and private parties around Miami. That's a business built for the same gatherings that fill this fall's park calendar.
Deering Estate Is Running on the Tide
Deering's fall exhibition is High Tide Low Tide by artist Mette Tommerup, running September 12 through November 8. Tommerup describes it as a cycle of four public pieces that follow the movement of the tide. Most of the programming happens on three dates:
- Saturday, October 10, noon to 3 p.m. The official opening. Blue canvases hang in the trees, rocks are wrapped in canvas, and a blue shelter reimagines the Sea King's palace. Painted canvas paths turn the walkways into temporary "tidal channels," and a movement artist performs on the waterfront lawn.
- Saturday, October 24, 6 to 8 p.m. A performance in the Visitor Center Theater inspired by The Little Mermaid.
- Sunday, November 8, 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. The finale, called "King Tide." It opens with a sunset viewing on the Front Lawn and ends with an open mic in the theater. Curator Amaranta Mattie emcees, and participants can sign up to share short stories or poems.
All three are free, but you have to RSVP online through Eventbrite. The October 10 opening falls on a Saturday with no Village park event listed. If you can only make one, that's the easiest to fit in.
October 24 Has Two Events at Once
Two events in this fall's calendar happen at the same time. On Saturday, October 24, the Village holds Halloween Trick-or-Treat & Movie Night at Coral Reef Park from 6 to 9 p.m. Trick-or-treating starts at 6, the movie "Minions & Monsters!" starts at 7, and food vendors will be there. Deering's Little Mermaid performance runs 6 to 8 p.m. the same evening.
Coral Reef Park sits at SW 152nd Street and Deering is at SW 72nd Avenue near SW 167th Street, so both are in the village but you can't do both at once. For households with kids in costume, the Village event comes with built-in timing: trick-or-treat first, then the movie. Deering's performance is a ticketed theater seat, so reserve ahead if it's your pick.
How the Season Winds Down at Deering
After the tide project ends on November 8, Deering's calendar moves into the holidays:
- Sunday, November 15, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. The 14th Annual Vintage Auto Show, held with the Antique Automotive Club of America, South Florida Region.
- November 27 through January 6, daily 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. The "Tides & Tidings" holiday display, with admission listed at $10 to $18.
- Saturday, December 5, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. "Tides & Tidings: Holiday by the Bay," with Santa, local holiday vendors, stories, shopping and crafts, at the same listed admission.
The holiday display uses the same tide theme, so the estate keeps its season-long water motif going into the new year.
Two Things Still in Progress
The drainage work could change your route. The Village posted on October 1 that Sub-Basin 42 drainage work starts this month near SW 170th Street and SW 169th Street, west of SW 76th Avenue, with completion expected by April 2027. If you drive through that area to Deering or to Palmetto Bay Park on Thursdays, expect the work to last through the whole season. The skate park is the other open item. Its estimated reopening is the end of October, and the Village says it will post updates as the work moves along.
Fall weekends like these are often when neighbors start talking about what comes next for their own homes, whether that's staying put, moving up nearby or getting a sense of what their place is worth. If that conversation has started in your household, I'm happy to share what I'm seeing locally. Maria Penalver works with families across Palmetto Bay and South Miami-Dade, in English and Spanish, with no pressure on timing. Let's Connect.
