Feb 28, 2023 6 min read nude

Fantasy Fest: Overview || Key West, FL

This is a short overview of Fantasy Fest (FF) for anyone new to this multi-day extravaganza. We’ll also have deep dives into specific events coming soon. To orient ourselves I’ll quote the official event website: “Fantasy Fest is an annual 10-day party in paradise for grown-ups” located in Key West, Florida every October. To quote a couple we met at FF, “this is our 15th year; it’s our annual trip to ourselves away from the kids. We’ve been to Mardi Gras in New Orleans, and Fantasy Fest is so much better because it’s the same thing but less well known so it can be more wild”.

As of this post, Dax and I have been twice in 2021 and 2022. Once by ourselves and the other with another couple. It’s truly a magical and debaucherous experience if you love laid back tropical islands, public nudity, costumes, and partying. The most unique draw about FF is body painting. Professional body painters descend on the city and the rest of us are their canvases. Every day of the festival you’ll see both men and women walking the streets topless or almost fully nude (with a thong) in body paint. Some are truly mind blowing gorgeous art, others are fun characters, simple designs, glitter, etc. You can book some artists ahead of time, but many set up booths and take walk-ups.

FF is always the ten days leading up to the Sunday before Halloween -or- the last day of FF is always the Sunday before Halloween and then work backwards ten days. The unofficial understanding is that the first few days are “family friendly” and the second week favors adults. Public toplessness, pasties, and questionable costumes are visible the entire ten days so parents need to decide their own comfort levels. It’s quieter the first week and gets noticeably more busy and debaucherous leading up to the second weekend.

There are two main ways to get to Key West (unless you live on a boat). There’s a small airport (EYW), and for most of us flying from around the country (or world) you’ll need to get a connection in Miami or other metro cities. You can also drive from mainland Florida through the keys. It’s a beautiful view but be mindful that it’s just a two lane highway most of the way, and as many as 75,000 revelers attend FF annually. So what’s normally a 3.5 hour drive from Key West to Miami can turn into an 8 hour creep. Our friends incorporated FF into a two week north to south Florida vacation, and specifically drove out of Key West the Monday after FF to avoid the Sunday traffic back to the mainland.

There are lots of hotels and Airbnbs. We’ve done both and the choice depends on what type of experience you’re looking for. The hotel was closer to the action and nice to have the extra amenities and daily cleaning, but the Airbnb was still within walking distance (a little further) and we had our own space and patio which was nice for relaxing and saving money on eating out. Be mindful that all accommodations hike up their prices during this week for obvious reasons, so there is some sticker-shock when planning this trip. Dax is fortunate enough to work remotely, and we got a month-long Airbnb for the same price as a week’s hotel during FF and he just worked there for a month and I popped in for the week. There are options.

The main drag in Key West and Fantasy Fest is Duval Street. It’s a small version of Bourbon St. lined with restaurants and bars. There are a lot of private parties during FF and a majority of them are at bars on Duval or close by. Even though it’s more expensive, it’s nicer to stay within walking distance of Duval because traffic can be hectic down there and they close it off the last few nights of the festival. FF is also an all-day-every-day type experience, so we’ve found it advantageous to be able to walk back and forth to change costumes/outfits, drop stuff off, run and grab something we forgot, take a nap, etc.

Additionally, one of their marquee events is the famous parade at the end of the week. You can find the route on their website, and if parades are your thing, you can book a hotel on the parade route and pay extra for a room overlooking the street. We randomly got invited to someone’s room with this hotel situation and it was an awesome experience to throw beads off their balcony to onlookers below.

One thing about Key West is that there’s not much of a lounging-type beach (at least not near Duval street). There’s beautiful views of sunsets, marinas, and public walkways along the water, but it’s not ‘beachy’ like you’d expect in Miami. It’s best to set your expectations on water sports, parties, bars, excellent seafood, and history.

Yes, those are real police officers behind me

The first year we went to FF was very overwhelming. I would suggest checking out their schedule of events and making a list of your top priorities. For many events you have to buy tickets in person the week-of, but some you can buy ahead of time. Almost every event and even every day of FF has a theme, so if you’re unsure of what to wear, the themes will guide your costume decisions. There are also plenty of local costume shops that would love for you to pop in if you get there and feel under (or over) dressed. But at the end of the day, literally any costume will fit in and if you’re more comfortable being an observer in shorts and a t-shirt, you’ll also be invited into the beautiful chaos. There’s no judgment, only enjoyment at Fantasy Fest.

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