The best October 2022 events in Miami

The Arsht Center welcomes arts lovers to a series of outdoor performances on the Parker and Vann Thomson Plaza for the Arts. Enjoy hip-hop and more with Los Wizzards on October 6, then masterful jazz with the Brandon Goldberg Trio on October 16.

See the world’s leading brands of electric vehicles, including Porsche, Lucid, BMW, Volkswagen, Polestar, Kia, Volvo, Harley Davidson, Specialized Bikes and more. Ride, drive and demo nearly everything electric imaginable, including electric cars, e-motorcycles, e-bikes, e-scooters, e-skateboards, e-surfboards and electric watercraft. With multiple demo courses and one million square feet of space, this event is fun for all ages.

The annual Craft Spirits Fest returns to Coconut Grove to celebrate Miami’s thriving cocktail scene and the industry folk who make it all possible. The massive spirits tasting showcases more than 30 spirit producers from around the world. Sip your favorites, sample new varieties and spend the evening swilling to live jazz tunes. Local vendors will have bites on hand but a hearty lunch and a stern talking to your liver pre-event are recommended.

Afrobeaets superstar Burna Boy headlines the inaugural Tipsy Music Festival at Bayfront Park, a spinoff of the lit summer festival Tipsy Barbados. Providing a platform for a diverse array of Afrobeats, dancehall and soca artists, Tipsy Music Festical Miami also features performances from Skinny Fabulous, Teejay, Voice, Hypasounds and others, plus DJ sets by DJ Puffy, Tony Mix, Travis World and Jus Jay.

Fairchild Garden hosts its first-ever Bacon & BBQ Classic. The all-day meatfest brings together some of Miami’s finest pitmasters and meat purveyors, including La Traila, Pig Floyd and Meat N’ Bone X The Barrel. There will be flights of bourbon and a variety of beer pairings to go with all that meat. Plus, expect live music from Yacht Rock, DJ-spun tunes and lawn games for the kids to play.

Floydoids unite—the Arsht Center brings Pink Floyd tribute band Floyd Nation to Miami for one night of epic nostalgia. The touring group performs all of the iconic hits from the seminal rock band’s vast catalog, including “Wish You Were Here,” “Another Brick in the Wall,” and “Comfortably Numb.” As with any worthy Pink Floyd experience, this one features lasers, lights and a killer sound system.

Smashing Pumpkins recently revealed the title of their long-awaited new double album: ATUM: A Rock Opera in Three Acts, which will be released in parts beginning in November. Expect to hear some of those tracks plus hits from the band’s extensive alt-rock catalog as part of their fall tour with Jane’s Addiction.

Boozy Sunday brunches are fun, but what do you do with all of that newfound liquid courage once it’s over? You dance, of course. Every second Sunday of the month, Sweet Liberty welcomes Salsaton Trio for live music and the opportunity to show off your salsa moves post-meal. Brunch runs from noon to 5pm, featuring bottomless rosé for $35, while Salsaton takes the stage from 3pm to 6pm. Reservations are strongly encouraged. 

Electric cars are all the rage, and now there’s a Miami car festival where enthusiasts can nerd out. Electrify Festival, North America’s largest electric vehicle festival, rolls into Regatta Park, where folks will get to see and test the latest in electric cars, e-bikes, e-motorcycles, e-skateboards and e-scooters, as well as several electric-powered, personal watercrafts. There’s also a kids zone should your little ones not be into cars just yet. 

The 38th-annual Miami Carnival concludes with a massive Parade of Bands & SoCa Concert taking over the Miami-Dade County Fair & Expo Grounds. Celebrating all the diverse flavors of the Caribbean, Sunday’s parade features food, crafts and the colorful display of costumes of over 30,000 masqueraders and revelers, plus a mega-concert showcasing the infectious vibes of more than 20 international artists from Trinidad & Tobago, Antigua, Haiti, St. Lucia and South Africa.