Heading north on US 1 from the flea market grounds at 30250 Overseas Highway, you reach the National Key Deer Refuge Nature Center at 30587 and then the Lower Keys Chamber of Commerce at 31020, which sits right at MM31. It's a short drive. This month, those three addresses host the flea market's opening day, three Florida Keys Wildlife Society evenings and the Island Art Festival.
Keys Weekly's events guide calls Big Pine and the Lower Keys "the quietest of any region," with "no resort strip, no nightly music circuit." November is the exception. The schedule below comes almost entirely from local nonprofits, the Chamber and a privately owned weekend market, plus one county-sponsored celebration.
November at a glance
| Date | What | Where | Before you go |
|---|---|---|---|
| Thu., Nov. 5, 6:30–8:30 p.m. | FKWS Photo Club | Refuge Nature Center, 30587 Overseas Hwy | Free monthly meeting |
| Thu., Nov. 12, 7 p.m. | FKWS lecture: Million Orchid Project | Refuge Nature Center, 30587 Overseas Hwy | Doors 6:30, 52 seats, RSVP |
| Sat., Nov. 14 | Flea market opening day | 30250 Overseas Hwy | Seasonal vendors through April 25, 2027 |
| Tue., Nov. 17, 5–7 p.m. | Together For Wildlife / 30th Year Kickoff | Lower Keys Chamber, 31020 Overseas Hwy | Free, RSVP required |
| Fri., Nov. 20, 5–8 p.m. | America 250 celebration | Big Pine Key Community Park | Exhibit also open 2–5:30 p.m. |
| Sat., Nov. 21 | 9/11 exhibit, Tunnel to Towers Run | Big Pine Key Community Park | Exhibit 9 a.m.–5:30 p.m. |
| Sat., Nov. 28, 9 a.m.–3 p.m. | Lower Keys Island Art Festival | Chamber grounds, 31020 Overseas Hwy | Holiday handmade market |
Five of the seven entries are on that stretch of Overseas Highway. The market's weekends anchor the month, and the evening and Saturday events fill in around them.
The market comes back on the 14th, with new canopies
The Big Pine Key Flea Market lists opening day as Saturday, November 14, 2026. Its homepage describes off-season work: "a complete renovation of the bathrooms, new tents/canopies for all seasonal vendors, and improved grounds." The Keys Weekly guide names October as flea market month, so if you went looking for it last month, it opens a few weeks into November this season.
According to the market's vendor page, the seasonal vendor run lasts from November 14, 2026, through April 25, 2027. That gives the island a weekend market for more than five months. A 2026 Keys market guide places it at MM 30.5 and lists hours of 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturdays and 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Sundays. Hours can change at the start of a season, so check the market's own site before you go.
The food vendor page names six stands:
- Big Pine Key Famous Fish Fry
- Johnny Coconuts
- Mini Donuts
- Homemade French Pastries
- Farmer's Market, Fresh Produce
- Amy's Ice Cream
The fish fry and the donuts have been there a while. When the market opened its 2019 season under owner Joe Marrama, Keys Weekly reported that both were returning. In that same story, Marrama said he expected about 150 vendors once the market was in full swing. The new canopies this year are for those seasonal vendors, the stalls that set up week after week until late April.
The Refuge Nature Center has 52 seats
Two days before the market opens, the Florida Keys Wildlife Society holds a lecture at the National Key Deer Refuge Nature Center. Dr. Jason Downing, an orchid biologist at Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden in Miami, will talk about Fairchild's Million Orchid Project and its connection to conservation in the Keys. The event is Thursday, Nov. 12. Doors open at 6:30 p.m. and the lecture starts at 7.
The detail that matters for planning is room size. The Society's events calendar says "seating capacity is limited to 52 attendees" and asks for an RSVP. The lecture is free and open to the public, with complimentary refreshments, and the Society presents it in partnership with the refuge.
The same room hosts the Society's free monthly Photo Club tonight, Thursday, Nov. 5, from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m.
The Society's other November event moves up the road to the Chamber. "Together For Wildlife," the kickoff for the Society's 30th anniversary year, runs Tuesday, Nov. 17, from 5 to 7 p.m. at the Lower Keys Chamber of Commerce, 31020 Overseas Highway. The calendar promises food, drinks, door prizes, and updates on the refuge and the Society's work. It's free, but "space is limited and your RSVP is required."
Both Wildlife Society evenings need an RSVP, and both are at small venues. Their dates are set well ahead, so the sensible order is to RSVP for the 12th and the 17th now and fit the flea market weekends around them.
For one weekend, the county comes to Big Pine
On Nov. 20 and 21, the America 250 celebration brings Monroe County's November program to Big Pine. Its date has already shifted once. When the county first announced America 250 Florida Keys on April 20, it was still planning a 9/11 memorial exhibit and a drone show for Big Pine Key on Nov. 21. The schedule KONK Life published on Oct. 19 puts the evening celebration on Friday, Nov. 20, from 5 to 8 p.m. at Big Pine Key Community Park.
The main attraction is the Tunnel to Towers Foundation's 9/11 NEVER FORGET Mobile Exhibit. It's an 83-foot tractor-trailer that opens into a 1,100-square-foot museum. Inside are artifacts recovered from Ground Zero, including World Trade Center steel, pieces of the marble lobby floor and sections of the aluminum facade. Retired New York City firefighters and first responders who served at Ground Zero lead the tours. The evening also includes an 18-person demonstration by the U.S. Army Golden Knights Parachute Team, and a patriotic drone show closes it out.
KONK Life quoted Monroe County Mayor Michelle Lincoln:
"These events bring our community together to celebrate our country, honor our military and first responders, and help younger generations understand why we must never forget the events of Sept. 11."
The exhibit is open to the public Friday, Nov. 20, from 2 to 5:30 p.m., and Saturday, Nov. 21, from 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Saturday's daytime hours fall on a flea market weekend, so you can see the exhibit and get to the fish fry on the same morning. The Monroe County Tourist Development Council is the sponsor.
If you're running, two published sources give different start times. The KONK Life schedule lists the Tunnel to Towers Run at 8 a.m. on Nov. 21. Monroe County's own America250 in the Florida Keys page lists a Tunnel to Towers 5K at Big Pine Key Community Park that morning at 9 a.m., with a registration link. The county updates that page as plans change, so check it for the race start and for the drone show time, which none of the published schedules gives.
The month ends on the Chamber field
The month wraps up at 31020 Overseas Highway, the same address as the Nov. 17 kickoff. The Lower Keys Island Art Festival fills the Chamber grounds on Saturday, Nov. 28, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. According to The Craft Map's listing, the festival has crafts, fine art, four food booths and a stage for local talent, with 60 vendor spots and an expected attendance of 1,500.
The Chamber's 2026 exhibitor page describes the festival as handcrafted work by "talented artisans from near and far all coming together to celebrate the holiday season." The page also gives a sense of the morning-of logistics. Vendor setup starts at 7 a.m., all vehicles must be off the field by 8, and exhibitors bring their own tables, chairs and shade. Booths are open to arts and crafts makers, food vendors and nonprofit organizations.
Nov. 28 is the Saturday after Thanksgiving and the third Saturday of the flea market season. Holiday shopping that day can run from the fish fry at 30250 to the art festival at 31020 without going any farther. For festival questions, call the Chamber at (305) 872-2411.
I spent years in Keys tourism and concierge work and put together the Florida Keys Keepsake guide, so calendars like this one are close to my heart. If you'd like to compare notes on the Lower Keys calendar, or on anything else about life between the mile markers, Joyce Craul is always glad to hear from neighbors. Let's Connect.
