Key West’s Fantasy Fest to present ‘Bedtime Stories and Magical Monsters’ Oct. 17-26, 2025
Key West, Fla. (Sept. 17, 2025)– Unleash your inner dreamer, night creature or storybook star— Key West Fantasy Fest 2025 invites you to dress the part. The internationally renowned costuming and masking festival, themed “Bedtime Stories and Magical Monsters” this year is set for Friday, Oct. 17 through Sunday, Oct. 26. Fantasy Fest 2025 will feature masquerade parties, costume competitions, street fairs, performance art, glamorous galas, and an over-the-top grand parade.
The festival will kick off on Friday, Oct. 17 with The Bahama Village Goombay Festival, a two-day, family friendly celebration of island arts and crafts, culture, music and food held throughout Key West’s historic Bahama Village neighborhood. Also, on Friday, Oct. 17, The Royal Coronation event will be held to crown Fantasy Fest’s 2025 King and Queen at the Coffee Butler Amphitheater.
A ghoulish good time will take over at the annual Zombie Bike Ride on Sunday, Oct. 19. Zombies of all ages are invited to descend on Fort East Martello for fun and entertainment including body painting, refreshment vendors and a kids’ zone. In the evening, thousands of zombies on wheels take to the streets of Key West.
On Tutu Tuesday, Oct. 21, an annual epic dance party featuring dynamic DJs will get underway at night with multiple Caroline St. district area venues.
A round of “a paws” is sure to fill the Coffee Butler Amphitheater during the Pet Masquerade on Wednesday, Oct. 22. Costume up with your favorite critter friends at this over-the-top competition or cheer them on from the audience.
The 42nd Annual Key West Headdress Ball on Thursday, Oct. 23 at the Coffee Butler Amphitheater reveals a dreamscape of out-of-this-world headdresses modeled by their creators along with high energy entertainment by some of the island’s best talent.
The Captain Morgan Masquerade March, a lively walking parade, on Friday, Oct. 24 brings all creative hands-on deck as costumed revelers parade through Old Town Key West, stopping along the route for adult beverage samples provided by selected guest houses. That same day, the magnificent mile-long Fantasy Fest Street Fair returns to Duval Street this year for the first time since 2019, offering revelers an extravaganza of fabulous food, lively libations, arts, crafts and costumes.
On Saturday night, Oct. 25, spectators will line Whitehead and Duval streets for the spectacular Deep Eddy Vodka Fantasy Fest Parade. The event typically attracts more than 60,000 people. A dazzling procession of large-scale floats and costumed marching groups will bring this year’s “Bedtime Stories and Magical Monsters” theme to life. Key West’s famous red high-heeled shoe has been named 2025 Fantasy Fest Parade Grand Marshal. A decades-long fixture in local celebrations, the red shoe made its first appearance in 1997. Since then, it has become an enduring icon, particularly known for its role in the island’s New Year’s Eve “shoe drop.”
Complete information for events, times, locations, contest entry links, and a downloadable app can be found at www.fantasyfest.com.
High-resolution images, photo credits, and captions are available at this link.
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A group depicting an offbeat “Conch-tucky Derby” for unicorns performs on Duval Street during the Fantasy Fest Parade in Key West, Fla. The elaborate procession of floats and costumed marchers will return Saturday, Oct. 25, 2025, as the highlight of the 10-day Fantasy Fest celebration, themed “Bedtime Stories and Magical Monsters,” running Oct. 17-26. FOR EDITORIAL USE ONLY (Andy Newman/Florida Keys News Bureau)
Participants in elaborate neon-accented costumes light up Duval Street in Key West, Fla., during the Fantasy Fest Parade. The flamboyant procession of floats, marching groups, and costumed characters is set to return Saturday, Oct. 25, 2025, as the centerpiece of the 10-day Fantasy Fest celebration, themed “Bedtime Stories and Magical Monsters,” running Oct. 17-26. FOR EDITORIAL USE ONLY (Carol Tedesco/Florida Keys News Bureau)
Daniel Bitnar, center, leads a blue-winged group depicting the U.S. Navy’s elite Blue Angels Flight Demonstration Squadron Friday, Oct. 24, 2025, in the Captain Morgan Masquerade March in Key West, Fla. Thousands of Florida Keys residents and visitors are expected to participate in the procession, a highlight of the 10-day Fantasy Fest costuming and masking extravaganza that runs through Sunday, Oct. 26. The festival’s 2025 theme is “Bedtime Stories and Magical Monsters.” FOR EDITORIAL USE ONLY (Andy Newman/Florida Keys News Bureau)
Colorful extraterrestrial characters and other out-of-this-world costumes parade through Key West, Fla., during Fantasy Fest. The city’s signature celebration of costuming and creativity returns Oct. 17-26, 2025, with the theme “Bedtime Stories and Magical Monsters.” The 10-day festival culminates Saturday, Oct. 25, with the spectacular Deep Eddy Vodka Fantasy Fest Parade. FOR EDITORIAL USE ONLY (Carol Tedesco/Florida Keys News Bureau)
A costumed duo channels celebrity pals Martha Stewart and Snoop Dogg during the Fantasy Fest Pet Masquerade in Key West, Fla. The over-the-top competition featuring pets and their people in matching or themed costumes returns Wednesday, Oct. 22, 2025, at the Coffee Butler Amphitheater as part of the 10-day Fantasy Fest celebration, themed “Bedtime Stories and Magical Monsters,” running Oct. 17-26. FOR EDITORIAL USE ONLY (Carol Tedesco/Florida Keys News Bureau)
Thousands of costumed participants take over the streets of Key West, Fla., for the annual Fantasy Fest Zombie Bike Ride. The family-friendly event returns Sunday, Oct. 19, 2025, inviting “zombies” of all ages to pedal from Fort East Martello into Old Town as part of the island city’s 10-day Fantasy Fest celebration, themed “Bedtime Stories and Magical Monsters,” running Oct. 17-26. FOR EDITORIAL USE ONLY (Carol Tedesco/Florida Keys News Bureau)
Ryan Stachurski, left, and Tony Lopez, right, pedal their Tour de France-inspired “Tour de Mort” creation during the Fantasy Fest Zombie Bike Ride in Key West, Fla. The quirky, family-friendly event returns Sunday, Oct. 19, 2025, inviting several thousand “zombies” to cycle from Fort East Martello into Old Town as part of the 10-day Fantasy Fest celebration, themed “Bedtime Stories and Magical Monsters,” running Oct. 17-26.
FOR EDITORIAL USE ONLY (Carol Tedesco/Florida Keys News Bureau)
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