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- 🌴 Fort Myers Brief: April 27 - May 3
🌴 Fort Myers Brief: April 27 - May 3
Major Events & Celebrations in Fort Myers
This is the week Fort Myers leans into its two favorite things: Kentucky Derby hats and live music. Penn & Teller bring their 50th anniversary tour to Barbara B. Mann, the Planetarium drops Pink Floyd inside a dome, Bay Street Yard runs a different live act practically every night, and Saturday is one big Derby Day from Swamp Cat to Chips. First Friday Art Walk lights up downtown to close out the week. Here's what's worth getting off the couch for.
We recommend confirming with event hosts for complete details and current schedules.
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🍽️ Food & Drink Events
🌹 Derby Party at Swamp Cat Brew Co
📅 Date: Saturday, May 2, 2026
⏰ Time: 4:00 PM
📍 Location: 1943 Fowler St, Fort Myers, FL
🐎 Details: The biggest brewery Derby party in town. Big hat contest, mint juleps on tap, and the race up on every screen. 51 interested with a real local crowd.
🌮 Cantina's Cinco Rita Run
📅 Date: Saturday, May 2, 2026
⏰ Time: 8:00 AM
📍 Location: Cantina Laredo, Fort Myers
🥑 Details: Pre-Cinco run with a margarita waiting at the finish. 107 interested and the field always shows up loud, costumed, and ready to brunch immediately after.
🥃 Kentucky Derby Specials at Chips Sports Pub
📅 Date: Saturday, May 2, 2026
⏰ Time: 12:00 PM
📍 Location: 2200 Edwards Drive, Fort Myers, FL
🐎 Details: Riverside view, race on every TV, and the kind of pub Derby crowd that's been coming back for years. Easy walk in, no ticket needed.
🌺 Pour & Sip: Bloom + Grow Workshop
📅 Date: Saturday, May 2, 2026
⏰ Time: 6:00 PM
📍 Location: 2666 Lime St, Fort Myers, FL
🌿 Details: Drink, plant, take it home. The kind of Saturday night activity that's quietly become a regular date-night option in town.
🌶️ Pantalones Tequila Tasting & Taco Truck
📅 Date: Thursday, April 30, 2026
⏰ Time: 2:00 PM
📍 Location: ABC Lehigh Acres, 11280 State Road 82
🥃 Details: Tequila tasting with the actual taco truck parked outside. Rolls into Cinco week perfectly.
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🎵 Music & Entertainment
🪄 Penn & Teller 50th Anniversary Tour
📅 Date: Wednesday, April 29, 2026
⏰ Time: 7:00 PM
📍 Location: Barbara B. Mann Performing Arts Hall, Fort Myers
🎩 Details: Five decades of the most famous double act in magic, on the same stage they always wished they had locally. Sharp, weird, occasionally horrifying, and the kind of show you'll quote for years. Easily the marquee night of the week.
🎵 Memphis 56 at Art Walk for May 2026
📅 Date: Friday, May 1, 2026
⏰ Time: 7:30 PM
📍 Location: Patio de Leon, Fort Myers
🎷 Details: First Friday Art Walk and a live band at Patio de Leon is the most reliable downtown move of the month. Galleries open late, food spilling onto the sidewalk, and the band carries the whole patio.
🎶 2026 Playmakers Tailgate Party
📅 Date: Thursday, April 30, 2026
⏰ Time: 6:00 PM
📍 Location: The Ranch Concert Hall & Saloon
🍻 Details: The Playmakers' season tailgate at one of the best music rooms in town. Already 25 going, 20 interested, and the Ranch crowd shows up loud.
🕯️ Fort Myers Concerts by Candlelight
📅 Date: Saturday, May 2, 2026
⏰ Time: 7:00 PM
📍 Location: Fort Myers, FL
🎻 Details: Classical and pop favorites played by candlelight in a small room. Slow, quiet, and easily the most romantic thing on the calendar this week.
🎤 Madison Morris LIVE at Bay Street Yard
📅 Date: Thursday, April 30, 2026
⏰ Time: 6:00 PM
📍 Location: Bay Street Yard, Fort Myers
🎸 Details: Local favorite at the outdoor yard that always pulls a Thursday crowd. She also runs Saturday at Southern Fresh Farms if you miss this one.
🪕 Charlie Pace Band at Bay Street Yard
📅 Date: Saturday, May 2, 2026
⏰ Time: 3:00 PM
📍 Location: Bay Street Yard, Fort Myers
🎶 Details: Saturday afternoon outdoors, classic-rock-leaning set, the patio in full Derby Day mode. Easy hang.
🎧 The Pitt Trivia Night
📅 Date: Tuesday, April 28, 2026
⏰ Time: 7:00 PM
📍 Location: 10 Twenty Five, Downtown Fort Myers
🧠 Details: Tuesday night trivia downtown with one of the more competitive regular crowds in town. 104 interested already, so grab a team and arrive early.
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🎭 Arts & Theater
🌌 Planetarium Premiere: Pink Floyd – The Dark Side of the Moon
📅 Date: Thursday, April 30, 2026
⏰ Time: 7:00 PM
📍 Location: 3450 Ortiz Ave, Fort Myers, FL
🌑 Details: The full album under the dome at the Calusa Nature Center planetarium. Lasers, the whole record, and the kind of premiere you'll be glad you caught on opening night. 89 interested already.
💐 Denise Fennell's The Bride: Or Does This Dress Make Me Look Married?
📅 Date: Tuesday, April 28 through Sunday, May 3, 2026
⏰ Time: Multiple matinee and evening times
📍 Location: 2268 Bay Street, Fort Myers, FL
🎭 Details: The one-woman wedding-comedy show is back for a full run. Sharp, quick, and funnier than the title lets on. Check the listing for the time that fits your week.
🎨 Holy Satire at Arts for ACT Gallery
📅 Date: Friday, May 1, 2026
⏰ Time: 5:00 PM
📍 Location: Arts for ACT Gallery, Fort Myers
✨ Details: First Friday opening at one of the more interesting downtown galleries. Pairs well with Art Walk and a slow walk down First Street after.
🫖 Spring Tea Party with Local Author Artis Henderson
📅 Date: Saturday, May 2, 2026
⏰ Time: 2:00 PM
📍 Location: First Presbyterian Church, 2438 Second Street
📚 Details: Tea, finger sandwiches, and a conversation with the local author who keeps writing the books people actually finish. Quiet alternative to a derby party.
🎪 Murder at the KO Corral Mystery Show
📅 Date: Saturday, May 2, 2026
⏰ Time: 6:30 PM
📍 Location: Fort Myers, FL
🔍 Details: Audience-solved whodunit with dinner. The crowd does most of the work and the night runs on whoever's loudest at the table.
🎨 Beginner Mosaic Class at Swamp Cat Brew Co
📅 Date: Thursday, April 30, 2026
⏰ Time: 6:00 PM
📍 Location: Swamp Cat Brew Co, Fort Myers
🧩 Details: Beer in one hand, tile glue in the other. No experience needed and you walk out with something you actually made.
👨👩👧 Family-Friendly Activities
🐐 Goat Yoga with Marsala the Highland Calf
📅 Date: Saturday, May 2, 2026
⏰ Time: 9:00 AM
📍 Location: 13151 Pinto Lane, Fort Myers, FL
🧘 Details: Yoga mats, goats climbing on you mid-pose, and the unreasonably cute Highland calf named Marsala along for the class. Worth it for the photos alone.
🥬 Downtown Fort Myers Farmers Market
📅 Date: Saturday, May 2, 2026
⏰ Time: 9:00 AM
📍 Location: Downtown Fort Myers
🍓 Details: Local produce, baked goods, coffee, and the easy Saturday morning walk that pairs naturally with whatever you've got planned for the rest of the day.
⚔️ Star Wars Day Celebration
📅 Date: Friday, May 1, 2026
⏰ Time: 4:00 PM
📍 Location: 1811 Royal Palm Ave, Fort Myers, FL
🪐 Details: May the 1st (close enough). Costumes encouraged, themed drinks, and the kind of crowd that takes the lightsaber bit very seriously. 68 interested already.
🎻 Creative Arts Academy Spring Recital
📅 Date: Saturday, May 2, 2026
⏰ Time: 2:00 PM
📍 Location: 4701 Summerlin Rd, Fort Myers, FL
🎼 Details: The kids' end-of-year recital. If you have one in the program, you're already going. If you don't, it's still a sweet hour.
🐐 Goat Snuggling with the Highland Calf
📅 Date: Monday, April 27, 2026
⏰ Time: 10:00 AM
📍 Location: 13151 Pinto Lane, Fort Myers, FL
🤍 Details: Less workout, more therapy. Pull up a seat, hold a baby goat, leave a calmer person.
🌿 Outdoor & Community
👒 Brims & Bubbles Hat Bar at Burroughs Home
📅 Date: Thursday, April 30, 2026
⏰ Time: 5:30 PM
📍 Location: Burroughs Home & Gardens, Fort Myers
🥂 Details: Build your own derby hat for Saturday, sip something cold, walk the gardens. The setting alone is worth the night and the timing with Derby Day couldn't be better.
🌅 Riverside Social at Burroughs Home
📅 Date: Thursday, April 30, 2026
⏰ Time: 5:30 PM
📍 Location: Burroughs Home and Gardens
🥃 Details: Same evening, same gardens, the longer-running monthly social hour with the local crowd that actually shows up to these things. Pair with the hat bar above.
🌹 Zonta Run for the Roses Fundraiser
📅 Date: Saturday, May 2, 2026
⏰ Time: 4:00 PM
📍 Location: 2650 Lemon St, Fort Myers, FL
🥂 Details: Auction, Derby viewing, and a fundraiser the local Zonta chapter has dialed in over the years. Dressy in the best way.
🎆 JetBlue Park RV Show
📅 Date: Thursday, April 30 through Sunday, May 3, 2026
📍 Location: JetBlue Park at Fenway South
🚐 Details: Four days of RVs taking over the Red Sox spring complex. Bigger than you'd think, and a fun walk-through even if you're not buying.
🧘 Picnic Dinner and Sunset Yoga at Bunche Beach
📅 Date: Sunday, May 3, 2026
⏰ Time: 6:30 PM
📍 Location: Bunche Beach, Fort Myers
🌇 Details: Yoga on the sand at golden hour, then a picnic with whoever you brought. Closing the week the right way.
🔔 Golden Hour Sound Healing at Centennial Park
📅 Date: Wednesday, April 29, 2026
⏰ Time: 7:15 PM
📍 Location: Centennial Park, Fort Myers
🌊 Details: Singing bowls and breath work right on the river at sunset. Free and quietly one of the best Wednesday resets in town.
⚠️ Please verify all event details with the respective organizers before attending, as schedules and venues may change.
📰 What's Happening in Fort Myers
🔗 Fort Myers Signs Contract to Tear Down the Old City of Palms Stadium
City Council greenlit a nearly $1 million contract with HONC Destruction to demolish the old stadium and surrounding fields. The 14-acre site is the centerpiece of the Midtown redevelopment plan, with housing, small sports complexes, and businesses being floated as the next chapter.
🔗 City Council Approves 279-Unit East Fort Myers Apartment Project
Council voted 5-1 to rezone an 8.05-acre site in East Fort Myers for a five-story, 279-unit Planned Unit Development. Density jumped from 172 units allowed to 279, with reduced green-space and parking requirements drawing most of the pushback.
🔗 Allure Condo Project in Eastern Fort Myers Hits a Wall
City commissioners sitting as the CRA tied 3-3 on a motion that would have given Doral-based Jaxi Builders seven more years and $15.1 million in tax incentives to finish the second tower. The deadlock leaves the second phase of Allure in limbo.
🔗 Lee County Awards $11.7M Contract for Fort Myers Beach Pier Rebuild
Commissioners awarded the rebuild contract to Panama City-based RJ Gorman Contracting at $4.2 million below the next bid. The new pier will be 1,000 feet long and 12 feet wide, roughly 70% longer and 50% wider than the one it replaces.
🔗 Lee Health $824M Hospital Campus Hits Topping-Out Milestone
Skanska USA marked the topping out of Phase 1, a five-story 400,000-square-foot hospital with 168 patient rooms, 24 ICU beds, 44 emergency beds, and 18 operating rooms. Opening is scheduled for 2028 and the board has already approved another $150.5 million for an additional patient tower and onsite childcare.
🔗 SWFL International Airport Posts Busiest Month in Its History
March 2026 brought 1,521,149 passengers through the airport, the best single month in its 43-year history. Spring training and the Easter window did most of the lift, but every category was up year over year.
🔗 City of Fort Myers Now Accepting 2026 Arts and Culture Grant Applications
The city's arts and culture grant cycle is officially open. Local nonprofits, performing arts groups, and cultural programs serving Fort Myers residents can apply through the city's Public Art Committee.
🔗 City Council Weighs Massive Edison Marina Development Proposal
Mark McLaren of KLM Development pitched "River District West" at a city workshop, asking for a zoning bump from 18 to 23 stories on the Pinchers and church property. The proposal includes a 250-300 room hotel, luxury apartments, retail, and a marina expansion.
🔗 City of Palms Park Redevelopment Study Approved by Council
Same parcel, second vote: council approved a redevelopment study for the 14 acres around the soon-to-be-demolished stadium. The study will shape what gets built next, and the Midtown crowd is watching closely.
🔗 Wilson Pigott Bridge Reopens After Week-Plus Closure
The State Road 31 bridge between Cape Coral and Fort Myers reopened after a deck-replacement closure that pushed commutes onto I-75 for over a week. Traffic is back to normal as of this past weekend.
🔗 Six Mile Cypress and Daniels Parkway Intersection Project Underway
Work on the $2 million intersection upgrade started after spring training wrapped up. A northbound left-turn lane is being repurposed into a through lane and southbound left-turn lanes are being extended to ease the constant rush-hour back-up.
🔗 Free Interfaith Brunch for Adults 65+ Comes to Lakes Regional Library
The Jewish Federation of Lee and Charlotte Counties is hosting a free interfaith brunch for residents 65 and older. Open to anyone in that age range regardless of faith background, with no registration fee.
🔗 Charlotte and Lee County Commissioners Hold Joint Meeting in Fort Myers
The two counties meet at 9 a.m. Monday, April 27 at the Lee County Administration East Building downtown. Open to the public and typically covers shared infrastructure, water, and transportation issues.