Deering Estate has a packed calendar for Saturday, November 14, and Sunday, November 15, and almost every ticketed program on it is sold online, in limited numbers, through Park Link or the festival's own site. For anyone who lives a few minutes from the gate on SW 72nd Avenue, that makes Friday night the real deadline. At 11:59 p.m. Friday, November 13, car-show tickets go up in price, and by then the smaller Saturday programs may already be full.
The weekend runs on two different models. Saturday is a chain of small programs, and most of them are booked separately. Sunday is one big outdoor event where a single ticket covers most of what's happening on the grounds. You can plan a good weekend around either day, but only if the tickets are already in hand.
Thursday and Friday are for Park Link
Most of the weekend sells through Park Link, Miami-Dade County Parks' ticketing system. On the Vintage Auto Show page, Deering explains that the county moved to Park Link to avoid the extra fees charged by outside ticket platforms. The catch is that you need an account before you can buy anything. Setting one up tonight takes care of most of the list below:
- Vintage Auto Show, Sunday. $14 for adults 15 and older and $7 for ages 4 to 14 through 11:59 p.m. Friday. Starting Saturday, prices go to $18 and $10. Children under 4 don't need a ticket, and Deering Estate Foundation members can RSVP for free.
- Bird Walk, Saturday. $20 a person, booked through Park Link, with limited spaces.
- Community Action Day, Saturday. Free, but registration goes through Park Link, and the listing caps it at 20 volunteers.
- Lighthouse Cruise, Saturday. $90 plus tax and processing fees. You have to reserve ahead, and capacity is limited.
- MIAMI short FILM FESTIVAL, both nights. Tickets are sold online only.
The car show page says gate tickets may be sold on Sunday, but only if there's capacity left. Tickets are limited, so buying ahead locks in the lower price and a guaranteed spot.
Saturday is a relay of small groups
Saturday's programs start one after another from 7:30 a.m., and several of them overlap, so most people will pick one or two rather than all of them.
- 7:30 a.m., Bird Walk. Deering sits inside the Biscayne Bay Important Bird Area. The walk crosses several of the estate's ecosystems looking for some of its estimated 200 resident and migratory species, including warblers, herons and sandpipers. Meet at the Visitor Center 15 minutes early. Late arrivals aren't admitted and don't get a refund, transfer or credit. The event page covers adults 18 and up, plus youth 6 to 17 with a registered parent or guardian.
- 9 a.m. to noon, Community Action Day. Volunteers 15 and older may pull invasive plants, put in native species, spread mulch or pick up litter. Wear closed-toe shoes, long sleeves and long pants.
- 10:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., Lighthouse Cruise. A Biscayne National Park ranger guides this four-hour catamaran trip from the estate. It passes the Cape Florida, Fowey Rocks and Boca Chita lighthouses and Stiltsville, and guests may get to climb Boca Chita Lighthouse. The ticket also covers Estate general admission for the day, and the boat is ADA accessible. Weather or water conditions can cancel or reschedule the trip. The Biscayne National Park Institute listing asks guests to check in at the Main Gate at least 30 minutes before departure. Minors need an adult with them, and you must be at least 42 inches tall to go inside Boca Chita Lighthouse.
- 11:30 a.m., Guided Museum Tour. The daily tour visits the outside of the Stone House and the inside of Richmond Cottage, and it's on the calendar for Saturday as usual. That matters because Saturday is the only day of the weekend when the historic houses are open.
If you aren't booked into anything, the estate keeps its regular hours of 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. The last entry is at 4 p.m. Adult general admission is $18 plus tax. Deering's discounts page lists $2 off for Miami-Dade County employees with a county ID and for holders of a Miami-Dade Transit pass.
Saturday night splits between a theater and a community house
The 25th edition of the MIAMI short FILM FESTIVAL is holding two of its special screening nights at Deering, WLRN reported on October 26. Saturday's program, "States of Becoming," opens with a cocktail reception at 7 p.m. Films start around 8 p.m. with four shorts: "The Oracle," "La luna que amamos como a un hermano," "Papillon" and "First Summer." Screenings are indoors in the Visitor Center Theater. Tickets are $20, or $16 for students, seniors and military. Parking is free in the Visitor Center lot on SW 168th Street, west of 72nd Avenue.
The same evening, the Village of Palmetto Bay calendar lists the Art South exhibit featuring the Dade Art Educators Association from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. at Perrine Community House, 900 E. Perrine Avenue. The times overlap with the film reception, so you'll likely have to pick one. Sunday has a second screening night for anyone who wants both.
Sunday trades the houses for the lawn
Sunday flips Saturday's setup. One car-show ticket covers most of the day, but the historic house museums are closed during the show.
The 14th Annual Vintage Auto Show runs from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. with the Antique Automotive Club of America, South Florida Region. It's limited to vehicles from 1965 or earlier, plus International Harvester models from any year. The estate's own entry has a family connection. It's a 1950 International Harvester truck that Charles Deering's daughter, Marion Deering McCormick, bought new in Chicago. The McCormick family maintained it before donating it to the Deering Estate Foundation. Charles Deering was the first chairman of the International Harvester Company.
The same ticket covers a lot beyond the cars:
- A vintage car scavenger hunt with photo clues, a children's craft while supplies last, and lawn games.
- Nature Preserve Tours at 11 a.m., 12:30 p.m. and 2 p.m. Sign-up is on the day only, first come, first served.
- The self-guided nature trails and the Mangrove Boardwalk, plus a screening of "On This Land: The Charles Deering Estate."
- Meet the Artists-in-Residence, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., with workshops, lectures, tours, presentations, portfolio reviews and meet-and-greets. Deering asks guests to RSVP online, and the Eventbrite RSVP page says this session is included with a car-show ticket.
Blankets, lawn chairs and small picnic baskets are welcome. Coolers can be no larger than 20 by 20. Pets, tents, in-ground umbrellas, balls and balloons aren't allowed.
That evening, the film festival's second Deering program, "Wild at Heart," follows the same pattern, with a 7 p.m. cocktail reception and films starting around 8 p.m. It has five shorts: "Big Bad Yucky Monster," "A Wolf in the Suburbs," "Asphalt," "¡Que Suene La Banda!" and "MA – MA."
SW 72nd Avenue becomes the parking lot on Sunday
The car show's parking plan reaches well past the estate. Free parking will be in a grass lot at SW 164th Street and SW 72nd Avenue, and along SW 72nd Avenue from SW 168th Street up to SW 156th Street. Deering asks visitors not to park in front of neighbors' homes or on side streets.
If you live along that stretch, expect cars lining 72nd Avenue between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. on Sunday. Errands that use 72nd Avenue go more smoothly before the show opens or after it closes. If you're going to the show yourself and live close by, the grass lot at 164th Street is right on the route.
The night ends on South Dixie Highway
After either film night, there's a late-night stop that's new to the Village. The Original Rainbow Cone opened in Palmetto Bay at King's Bay Shopping Center, 14475 S. Dixie Highway, the Miami Herald reported in September. It's open from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. daily, so it's still serving after a screening wraps around 9 p.m. The signature cone stacks five slices: chocolate, strawberry, Palmer House, pistachio and orange sherbet. Owners Sara and Jason DePalma moved to South Florida from Chicago 20 years ago, and the Herald reports their shop also runs an ice cream truck for community events.
Living a short drive from the Deering gate means a weekend like this one is close to home. If you're curious what that location is worth for your own home, Rebecca Sundel can walk you through what nearby homes are selling for. Request Your Home Valuation, and enjoy the car show.
