How many Doral venues can one family get to in a single Saturday this fall? On Oct. 24 the count is three. The afternoon starts at CityPlace Doral at 2 p.m. and the evening wraps up at Doral Central Park at 9 p.m. The free outdoor movie at the park comes from a third organizer, Downtown Doral.
That day is the clearest example of how Doral's fall calendar works this year. The city and the two private districts, CityPlace on NW 36th Street and Downtown Doral along NW 53rd Street, seldom schedule their large events against each other. Most weekends from mid-October to Thanksgiving have one main event at one of them. The few overlaps come in a way that lets one family go from one event to the next.
Oct. 24 is the handoff
The Super Hero Bash 2026 runs 2 to 5 p.m. at CityPlace Doral. It's free, and it includes superhero activities and a touch-a-truck lineup of vehicles from local first-responder and public agencies. CityPlace's event page doesn't give a street address. The center sits at 8300 NW 36th Street.
The City of Doral's Fall Festival opens at 5 p.m., right when the Super Hero Bash ends, at Doral Central Park, 3005 NW 92nd Avenue. It goes until 9 p.m. Admission is free, and the program includes:
- A pumpkin patch, with photo prints at $10 each
- Trunk-or-Treat
- A pumpkin-carving contest
- A 7:30 p.m. screening of Minions & Monsters, presented by Downtown Doral
So the afternoon belongs to CityPlace, the evening to the city park, and the movie to the 53rd Street district. One Saturday covers all three of Doral's fall venues.
The weekends on either side follow the same pattern
Look at the full calendar and the handoff shows up again and again. Here's the stretch from this Friday to Thanksgiving, by date and venue:
- Fri., Oct. 16, CityPlace. Food Truck Friday, 6 to 10 p.m., free admission, food and drinks for purchase.
- Sun., Oct. 18, Doral Central Park. Central Card Fest, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on the Community Center basketball court. It's free, with 90 vendors of trading cards and collectibles.
- Sat., Oct. 24, CityPlace, then Central Park. The double-header above.
- Sun., Nov. 1, CityPlace. The 5th annual Day of the Dead Celebration, 4 to 7 p.m. at Fountain Plaza.
- Sat. and Sun., Nov. 14 and 15, Downtown Doral. The Downtown Doral Arts Festival along 53rd Street.
- Fri., Nov. 20, CityPlace. Food Truck Friday again.
- Sat., Nov. 21, The Yard in Downtown Doral. The Dominoes Tournament.
- Thu., Nov. 26. The Doral Turkey Trot on Thanksgiving morning.
The card fest is a good example of how the hours fit together. It ends at 5 p.m. on a Sunday, while CityPlace's Sunday Market runs from 2 to 8 p.m. That gives you three hours at the market after the last card deal at the park.
November moves to CityPlace's plaza and then 53rd Street
The Day of the Dead Celebration on Nov. 1 is free. CityPlace lists folkloric dancers, mariachi, family activities, food sampling and an "El Mercado" vendor market. It falls on a Sunday, so the Sunday Market is running at the same center from 2 to 8 p.m. The two programs share the property, so this is the one time on the list when CityPlace hosts both at once.
Two weekends later, the action moves north to 53rd Street. The Downtown Doral Arts Festival is back for its second year on Nov. 14 and 15, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. each day. Admission is free, Baptist Health is the presenting sponsor, and the lineup includes more than 60 artists, live art, food and drink, and children's activities. The festival page doesn't give a street number for the footprint, only that it runs along 53rd Street.
The next Saturday is a smaller event a few doors down. The Dominoes Tournament at The Yard starts at 1 p.m. on Nov. 21 at 8455 NW 53rd Street, Suite 106. It's for ages 18 and up, entry is $20 per team, and the grand prize is listed at $1,000. It's the only adults-only event on the fall calendar, and the only one with an entry fee besides the Turkey Trot.
The Turkey Trot date, and a deadline coming up sooner
The two listings for the Doral Turkey Trot 2026 don't agree on the date. CityPlace Doral's event page says Nov. 27. The Haku registration page says Thursday, Nov. 26, with 5K and 10K starts at 7:30 a.m. Thanksgiving 2026 is Thursday, Nov. 26, so the Haku date matches the holiday.
The deadline that matters sooner is the price. Haku lists the 5K at $40 and the 10K at $55, and both go up by $5, to $45 and $60, on Oct. 27. As of today, Oct. 12, that's 15 days away. Neither event page gives the race venue's address, so check with the organizer before race morning.
Two CityPlace events keep running through December
Most of the events above happen once. Two recurring CityPlace events run through the whole season and carry the calendar past Thanksgiving.
Food Truck Friday is on the third Friday of each month, 6 to 10 p.m. Its remaining 2026 dates are Oct. 16, Nov. 20 and Dec. 18. Admission is free, and food and drinks are for purchase.
The Sunday Market came back on Sept. 20, according to the Doral Chamber's events calendar, and runs every Sunday from 2 to 8 p.m. through Dec. 27. The listing doesn't mention an admission price.
These two matter because, as of mid-October, Dec. 18 and the late-December Sundays are the only December dates any Doral venue has published.
What's new on the map this fall
Not much new food has opened between the festival weekends. Shake Shack at 10800 NW 41st Street is open, according to the company's Doral location page. Florida Today reported in August that it would open Aug. 26. The Doral Chamber listed a grand opening and ribbon-cutting for Aug. 31. Whichever date was first, it's serving now.
Miam Café is the next one to watch. What Now Miami reported on Oct. 7 that the café is getting ready to open at One Park Square, 3470 NW 82nd Avenue, and said no exact opening date had been announced.
December's city dates haven't been posted yet
The City of Doral's events directory doesn't list its 2026 Veterans Day ceremony, tree lighting or December holiday celebration yet. Last year's dates give a rough idea of when they usually happen, but none of these is confirmed for 2026:
- Veterans Day Ceremony, 2025: Tuesday, Nov. 11, 9 to 10 a.m., at Veterans Park, 10190 NW 33rd Street. Free.
- Park & Tree Lighting Ceremony, 2025: Friday, Nov. 21, 6 to 9 p.m., at Downtown Doral Park, 8395 NW 53rd Street. Free admission and parking, with $5 Santa photo prints.
- Holiday Celebration at the Park, 2025: Saturday, Dec. 6, 4 to 8 p.m., at Doral Central Park. Free general admission, with $5 Santa photos, $10 ride wristbands and $15 on-site parking.
CityPlace followed the same pattern last December. Community Newspapers reported that its 2025 Holiday of Miracles Winter Carnival and Toy Drive was on Dec. 11, and its Holiday Markets ran Dec. 13, 14, 20 and 21. No 2026 dates have been announced for any of those. Until the city and CityPlace post them, the published December calendar in Doral is one Food Truck Friday on Dec. 18 and the Sunday Markets through Dec. 27.
If you live in Doral, you probably already plan your weekends around these venues, and we do too. At Gilman Group, we keep track of how the neighborhood changes from season to season, from new tenants at One Park Square to which corners of 53rd Street get busy on festival weekends. If you're wondering how this year's changes affect your home's value, ask for a free home valuation. We'll give you a straight answer based on what's actually happening in Doral.
