By Yours Truly and Jan Engoren
With the days getting shorter and the weather (hopefully) getting cooler, the Magic City is gearing up for season and fall activities. We’ve put together a list of fun things to do in Miami in September – from food and beverage events, perfume making and beading, to bird watching, entertainment and the international auto show – to help you kick start the season. Plus, big news for you pickleball lovers.
The 52nd Annual Miami International Auto Show
Rev up your engines. Some of the latest model cars will be on display and available for test drives at the Miami Beach Convention Center, now to September 10. Enjoy test drives and rides across all areas of the Convention Center, and experience dozens of different makes and models. One of the largest auto shows in the world, the event draws hundreds of thousands of people every year.
Stop by and see Miami artist Romero Britto and his collab with Metro Wrapz to create a one-of-a-kind design for the Bentley Continental GTC. Admission: $15 for adults (12 and up), $6 for children 6-12 and free for children 5 and under. Tickets are only available online or with a mobile device with a QR code at the Convention Center. Discounts for seniors, first responders and Miami Beach residents.
The Miami Beach Convention Center is located at 1901 Convention Center Drive, Miami Beach, FL 33139.
Visit miamiautoshows.com
Dessert Wars
Cupcakes and cookies and donuts – oh, my! If you have a sweet tooth, prepare to enter Valhalla when Dessert Wars takes over the Miami-Dade County Fair & Exposition on Saturday, September 9. Watch as top dessert creators vie for the title of Dessert Champion. This all-ages event features a wide array of desserts ranging from cupcakes to cookies, ice cream and donuts. Come hungry!
Miami-Dade County Fair & Exposition, Inc., is located at 10901 Southwest 24th Street Miami, FL 33165.
From 3:00 pm – 7:00 pm. Tickets $45 for general admission – $65 for VIP entry.
Word to the wise: This event sells out every year, so buy your tickets early.
VIP tickets include 50 sample tickets, a “go-box” and entry beginning at 3 pm.
General admission tickets include 30 sample tickets, a “go-box” and entry beginning at 4 pm.
Visit eventbrite.com/e/dessert-wars
FilmGate Festival: Music Videos
If it’s Wednesday, it must be FilmGate! Catch the talent of local filmmakers and actors on display at Miami’s FilmGate Festival. See a screening of innovative and stylish music video shorts on September 27 at this month’s edition of the Festival, a monthly series that highlights Florida’s community of actors, filmmakers, and video and audio production studios with themed screenings every last Wednesday of the month.
Silverspot Cinema is located in Downtown Miami, 300 Southeast 3rd Street, #100 Miami, FL 33131. September 27, from 6:30 pm – 10:00 pm. Tickets $15.
Visit https://www.filmgate.miami/
Birding with the Audubon Society
The original snowbirds – the two-winged variety – are headed south toward Miami this month. More and more songbirds seek stopover habitat in our fair city to rest and refuel during their perilous journey south for the winter. A combination of overnight rains and westerly winds can sometimes create “fallout” conditions, whereby dozens — or even hundreds — of migrating birds can suddenly alight in every available tree and shrub. Join with the Audubon Society to learn more and witness this natural wonder right in our backyard. Bring your binoculars and visit the Everglades agricultural area, the Hammocks in Homestead, Greynolds Park in north Miami Beach, the Fairchild Tropical Botanic Gardens or the A.D. Barnes Park to spot migrating warblers in their natural pine forest and hardwood hammock habitats.
Upcoming events include:
Lucky Hammock Birding in Homestead
Sept. 9, 7:30-11am
Greynolds Park & Highland Oaks Park Birding
Sept. 16, 7:30am-3pm
Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden Birding
Sept. 23, 7:30-11am
A.D. Barnes Park Birding
Sept. 30, 7:30-11am
Sign up for a free, guided field trip. Registration is required for all field trips. Visit their website Bird Board and Facebook Bird Board to see what other birders are posting.
Visit tropicalaudubon.org
More Things to Do in Miami in September
Miami/Coconut Grove 6th Annual Craft Beer Festival
Enjoy over 100 craft beers, 75 exhibitors, fine wine and spirits, food, games, DJ & live music.
Sat., Sept. 23 is devoted to an all-day Jimmy Buffett Celebration, in memory of the singer who passed away earlier this month. The event runs from Noon to 11 p.m.
There are two sessions – an afternoon and an evening session: Event is indoor/outdoor.
Free admission if you pre register for the daytime, from 12 – 5 pm, or if you wear a Hawaiian shirt or Parrothead attire in honor of Jimmy Buffett (To clarify, If you come dressed to celebrate Jimmy Buffet, there is no need to register on-line – you will still be admitted free of charge). Food and drinks are available for purchase a la carte. If not in a Hawaiian shirt or Parrothead attire or pre-registered, tickets are $15 at the door.
Evening Session:
7pm – 11 pm admission $39, allows for unlimited samples of craft beer, wine & sprits
$99, comes with food, samples of drinks, (not full-size drinks)
$150 all included – Comes with food and unlimited full-size beer, wine and spirits (including champagne) and a reserved seating section.
Women’s Club of Coconut Grove is located at 2985 S. Bayshore Dr. Miami, Fl. 33131.
Visit festivalandevent.com or call 305-812-7626.
Coconut Grove Tequila Festival at Regatta Grove
Get there early!
Regatta Grove is located at 3415 Pan American Drive Miami, FL 33133.
www.eventbrite.com/e/coconut-grove-tequila-festival-tickets-704764237807
Perfumer for a Day Workshop with Patrizio Santocchi
Design and blend your own custom fragrance.
Join with master perfumer Patrizio Santocchi in a fun one-day workshop at the Miami Beach Botanical Garden where you’ll get to know some of the main ingredients used in perfumery arts, discover how to use the most exotic aromas, and have fun designing and blending your own custom-made perfume. The class is divided into three parts:
- Introduction: Fundamental information, brief theory on perfumery and safety.
- Build up olfactive memories: Learn about the raw materials of perfumery by smelling various aromatic ingredients. Participants are encouraged to write down descriptive remarks, using whatever associations come to mind, to help them remember the scents.
- Be your own perfumer: Using the techniques learned in the previous steps and using the materials provided, each guest will design a formula, blend ingredients, and make a custom perfume or cologne to take home.
All materials will be provided (EOs, natural isolates, carrier oils, glass vials, pipettes, gloves, etc).
September 10 – 1pm–3pm. Cost: Non-members $50, Members $45 (call for promo code) • Register here.
Beauty & the Beads with ZsuZsa Kiraly
Rounding out the things to do in Miami in September — Want to express your creative side? Join jewelry maker ZsuZsa Kiraly in the Miami Beach Botanical Garden to relax and create your own personalized jewelry using beautiful glass beads. Tell your story and express your creativity. Come and enjoy selecting and combining vibrant color glass beads to create your own custom bracelets and necklaces.
This 2-hour workshop is designed for beginners and will teach you simple bead sewing and crocheting techniques (no prior experience required). All materials will be provided, but you are welcome to bring your own special beads to incorporate them into your creations.
Small class size (only 10 students) • All supplies are included.
Sunday • September 24 • 11am–1pm
Cost: Non-members $30, Members $27 (call for promo code) • Register here.
Retro Films for $5!
The Landmark Theater in the Village of Merrick Park has a cool new offering called Filmmaker Focus. They’re highlighting iconic films, contemporary classics. Seats are just $5. If you haven’t been to that theater, it’s a multiplex, with very comfortable seats, a bar and restaurant. Here are the offerings for September and October which feature films of filmmaker Martin Scorcese and actor Leonardo Di Caprio. They lead up to Scorsese’s new release KILLERS OF THE FLOWER MOON, opening in Landmark Theatres on October 20! Based on David Grann’s lauded best-selling book, the film is set in 1920s Oklahoma and depicts the serial murder of members of the oil-wealthy Osage Nation, a string of brutal crimes that came to be known as the Reign of Terror.For more information, click here.
September 23, 24 & 27: GANGS OF NEW YORK (2002)
September 30, October 1 & 4: SHUTTER ISLAND (2010)
October 7, 8 & 11: THE DEPARTED (2006)
October 14, 15 & 18: THE WOLF OF WALL STREET (2013) 10th Anniversary!
Note that O Cinema, Gables Cinema and Silverspot also feature retro films so check their websites when you’re in the mood for nostalgia!
Get your racquets ready! The largest pickleball tournament and festival in the world, will debut January 13-14, 2024 bringing together everyone from lovers of pickleball to first-time picklers from across the country for a weekend of tournament competition across 100 pickleball courts, as well as activations for all, including VIP fan experiences, specialty vendors, music performances, curated food experiences and more at the Miami Marine Stadium overlooking Biscayne Bay and Downtown Miami.
Early bird registration is available now through the official festival website at $400 per team, which includes registration for two days of pickleball, commemorative merchandise, as well as access to an athlete village.
Visit thepicklegames.com
And finally, in the category of things to do in Miami in September, want to get your cooking skills up a notch in time for the season? Check out my earlier blogpost on cooking schools in Miami (click here).
One Response
Wow, a nice variety of Things to do, thank you for compiling!