Boat Show

#1 Sports Event
The iconic college football game takes place New Year’s Day at Sun Life Stadium. This year, it will host one of two semifinal games of the College Football Playoff series. Next: December 31, 2015

#2 Sports Event
Bringing in a new sponsor for its 30th year, the Miami Open presented by Itaú—formerly the Sony Open—is the city’s biggest tennis tournament. This year, it added an expo including a swimwear fashion show, exhibition volleyball game, and food by celebrity chefs like Tom Colicchio and Scott Conant. Next: March 21-April 3, 2016

#3 Sports Event
The three-day racing event draws around 150,000 Nascar fans to the Homestead-Miami Speedway to watch drivers race to win the Camping World Truck Series, Xfinity Series, and Sprint Cup Series. Next: November 20-22, 2016

#4 Sports Event
Top golf pros competed for a $9 million purse on the famed TPC Blue Monster course at the Trump National Doral. As part of the weekend of events, singer Carlos Santana headlined the Cadillac Miami Nights Live concert. Next: March 3-6, 2016

#5 Sports Event (new to the list)
The weeklong P.G.A. tour event has called Palm Beach Gardens home for 44 years, initially under the name Jackie Gleason’s Inverrary Classic. Honda has been the title sponsor since 1982. Some 193,000 spectators are expected to watch 144 players compete for a $6.1 million purse at the PGA National Resort & Spa next year. Next: February 22-28, 2016

#6 Sports Event
Nearly 20,000 runners participated in the 2015 race, which also included a full and a half marathon, with a 5K the day before. Next: January 24, 2016

#7 Sports Event
Held since 1904, the tournament caps off the 16-week winter polo season and draws participants from more than 20 countries to the International Polo Club Palm Beach. Next: March 27-April 17, 2016

#8 Sports Event
More than 100 boats fill Biscayne Bay to participate in the holiday weekend race. Going strong for more than 60 years, the race includes two new courses this year. Next: October 10-11, 2015

#9 Sports Event
Since its inception in 2010, the ride has raised more than $11.5 million for the Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center at the University of Miami. Next: February 19-21, 2016

#10 Sports Event
In 2015, the N.B.A. team’s 18th annual day of family-centric events and activities included live music, a food court, and a silent auction. Next: Winter 2016

#11 Sports Event
This year, the annual stadium jumping event partnered with the Global Champions Tour and expanded to three days. Next: April 8-10, 2016

#1 Fashion Industry Event
Fashion Week Swim has historically been one of the industry’s premier events, so owner IMG Fashion’s announcement to suspend the event for 2015 just a few months prior to its expected opening caught many by surprise. Other fashion swim shows, trade events, and parties are still on the calendar for July, and IMG has promised the debut of a new, retooled event for 2016. Next: Summer 2016

#2 Fashion Industry Event
This year, the fashion shows will tap into Miami Beach’s big centennial celebration and are expected to draw 8,000 participants each, up from 6,000 last year. Next: July 15-20 and October 14-19, 2015

#3 Fashion Industry Event
Going strong in its 33rd year, the exhibition will allow 10,000 attendees to view 3,000 swimwear lines at the newly renovated Miami Beach Convention Center. Next: July 18-21, 2015

#4 Fashion Industry Event
Organizers say the springtime show, previously named Miami Beach International Fashion Week, is being rescheduled and will debut a “new direction and plans” in 2015. Next: Fall 2015

#1 Food & Restaurant Industry Event
Going strong in its 14th year, the festival drew 60,000 foodies to more than 75 events, including tastings and demos, many featuring celebrity chefs. Next: February 25-28, 2016

#2 Food & Restaurant Industry Event
Some 40,000 garlic lovers crowd the event each year, which has to date raised nearly $550,000 for local organizations. Next: January 29-31, 2016

#3 Food & Restaurant Industry Event
The event at the Loews Miami Beach Hotel raised nearly $100,000 for antihunger charity Share Our Strength last year. Next: July 16, 2015

#4 Food & Restaurant Industry Event
This year marked the 31st anniversary of the festival, which featured 140 arts and crafts booths and two days of live music in addition to the seafood. Next: April 22-24, 2016

#5 Food & Restaurant Industry Event
Nearly 10,000 people—a record number—turned out to nosh on seafood, listen to music, and raise more than $156,000 in support of the Deering Estate Foundation. Next: March 20, 2016

#6 Food & Restaurant Industry Event
The event’s live auction raised more than $12.3 million this year. Since the festival’s inception in 2001, it has raised more than $135 million to help support local children’s causes. Next: January 29-31, 2016

#7 Food & Restaurant Industry Event
The 20th anniversary of the event had an all-female chef lineup at its Interactive Dinner, which raises money to benefit United Way of Miami-Dade. Next: April 2016

#8 Food & Restaurant Industry Event
For the festival’s 20th anniversary, a beer garden joined the offerings, which also included a lounge hosted by sponsor Bombay Sapphire gin. Next: May 2016

#9 Food & Restaurant Industry Event
The 1,500 guests who gathered at the 20th anniversary of the event, sponsored by Bank of America, raised $200,000 for the museum's education, outreach programs, and other offerings. Next: April 8, 2016

#10 Food & Restaurant Industry Event
Serving as the official kickoff for Miami Spice for the third year in a row, the eight-year-old competition attracts a cadre of top chefs and local foodies. Next: July 30, 2015

#11 Food & Restaurant Industry Event
Last year, the event attracted more than 2,500 attendees, who came to taste the creations of nearly three dozen chefs, plus a 40-restaurant Grand Tasting. Next: December 10-13, 2015

#12 Food & Restaurant Industry Event
Nearly 7,000 people come to Peacock Park to celebrate Coconut Grove’s take on Oktoberfest. Next: October 17, 2015

#1 Film & Media Event
More than 2,000 films have been shown at the festival since it began in 1984, with both new and veteran filmmakers debuting 124 new works in 2015. Next: March 4-13, 2016

#2 Film & Media Event
Around 15,000 people attended films and events at the festival, which formerly was known as the Miami Gay & Lesbian Film Festival. For the first time, the fest added a second closing film along with a featured documentary. Next: April 22-May 2, 2016

#3 Film & Media Event
With the theme “Forging the Future,” the event honors the year’s top journalists in print, broadcast, and online media at the Koubek Center, in partnership with the National Association of Hispanic Journalists. Next: August 15, 2015

#4 Film & Media Event
More than two dozen short and feature-length films will be presented at the weeklong festival, which honors actress Regina Duarte this year. Next: September 12-19, 2015

#6 Film & Media Event
Organizers of what was formerly named the Fort Lauderdale Gay & Lesbian Film Festival expect roughly a 15 percent jump in audience numbers, up to about 10,000. Next: October 9-11 and October 15-18, 2015

#7 Film & Media Event
As the gathering of roughly 150 marketing executives in Naples enters its second decade, topics range from data integration to global strategies. Next: November 3-5, 2015

#8 Film & Media Event
With the theme “Content Without Borders,” the event counted red-carpet regulars like Russell Simmons, Eva Longoria, and Donald Sutherland among its 5,000 attendees. Next: January 19-21, 2016

#9 Film & Media Event
Some 3,000 film buffs are expected to attend the 14th annual festival, held in Coconut Grove’s Cinepolis. Next: November 5-12, 2015

#1 Benefit
Last year, the sold-out gala drew more than 850 of South Florida’s A-list, including former baseball player Sammy Sosa and photographer Bruce Weber, and raised $2.5 million for Best Buddies International. Next: November 20, 2015

#2 Benefit
In its 20th anniversary last year, the 1,000-guest event at the InterContinental Miami raised a record $2.5 million for Make-A-Wish Southern Florida. Next: November 7, 2015

#3 Benefit
Organizers expect more than 400 people to attend the esteemed black-tie gala, now in its 59th year. Last year’s bash raised nearly $200,000. Next: November 21, 2015

#4 Benefit
The 800-guest gala, featuring appearances by Bryant Gumbel and Steven Tyler, raised more than $2.5 million for Everglades restoration in 2015. Next: February 13, 2016

#6 Benefit
This year’s signature gala for the Miami Children’s Health Foundation will celebrate the Miami Children’s Hospital’s name change to Nicklaus Children’s Hospital. The 2014 ball raised $6 million, including announced gifts. Next: October 10, 2015

#7 Benefit (up from #9)
The 800-plus guests who attended the National YoungArts Foundation’s annual gala raised $1.7 million to support young artists. Next: January 9, 2016

#8 Benefit
Around 400 guests were serenaded by singer-songwriter Jon Secada at this year’s benefit for the University of Miami’s Diabetes Research Institute. The ball and its Preview Party, which is held a few months prior, raised a combined $700,000. Next: February 2016

#9 Benefit (up from #10)
This January, 600 people attended the Art of the Party presented by Louis Vuitton. Next year’s event moves from January to March, and Lee Brian Schrager is returning to produce it. Next: March 5, 2016

#10 Benefit (up from #11)
Some 500 guests raised $215,000 for Big Brothers Big Sisters of Broward County at the ball, which was held at the Hard Rock Live at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino last year. Next: October 31, 2015

#11 Benefit (up from #12)
The gala celebrated the 70th birthday of co-founder and artistic director Michael Tilson Thomas with a dinner that took place at four different locations within the New World Center. Patrons raised more than $1 million. Next: March 12, 2016

#12 Benefit (up from #13)
In 2015, nearly 800 guests at the fourth anniversary of the Doctors Hospital Foundation's gala experienced a performance by Sheena Easton as well as live and silent auctions. Next: Spring 2016

#13 Benefit (up from #14)
This April marked the gala’s final year before the museum moves to its new home in Miami’s Museum Park. The museum says it will hold a signature fund-raiser next year—the 2015 gala brought in more than $1 million for the science institution—but may switch up formats. Next: Fall 2016

#14 Benefit (up from #15)
Around 500 guests attended this year’s black-tie fund-raiser for the center's educational programming at which singer Barry Manilow performed. Next: April 2016

#15 Benefit (up from #16)
Last year’s New York City-theme gala raised $330,000 for Deliver the Dream’s family retreat program. In 2015, the 12th annual gala will host around 400 guests at an Arabian Nights-theme fete. Next: November 7, 2015

#16 Benefit (up from #17)
The Bass Museum of Art hosted 450 revelers at its sixth annual gala, which raised $128,000, and next year’s event will be renamed the Bass Ball and held on site at the museum. Next: March 5, 2016

#18 Benefit
The fund-raiser hosted by Real Housewives of Miami star Lea Black and her philanthropist husband, Roy Black, has undergone some changes, switching from spring to fall last year. Organizers say more changes are on the way; they hope to do "something different" with the star-studded bash in 2015, but haven’t determined a date or entertainment.

#19 Benefit
This year, some 700 guests gathered for the 13th iteration of the St. Jude Children's Research Hospital's gala, which took place May 16. Organizers say next year they might shift the date to November. Next: 2016

#1 Trade Event, Expo & Convention
At the 56th annual boat show this year, a crowd of 100,000 will take in some 1,500 boats spread over three million square feet of space. Next: November 5-9, 2015

#4 Trade Event, Expo & Convention
Held four times a year—twice in Miami and twice in Fort Lauderdale—the shows draw around 65,000 visitors. This year, organizers debuted a new spotlight on Miami's art districts, which it will bring back for the fall show. Next: September 4-8, 2015

#5 Trade Event, Expo & Convention (up from #6)
Organizers expect more than 50,000 comic fans to fill the Miami Beach Convention Center, a jump of more than 7,000 in just a year. Next: June 25-28, 2015

#6 Trade Event, Expo & Convention
The show at Ronald Reagan Equestrian Center at Tropical Park draws around 40,000 visitors who come for food, rides, horse, and cattle shows (and a real-life Farmville). Proceeds go to South Florida Autism Charter School. Next: Spring 2016

#7 Trade Event, Expo & Convention (up from #9)
The free event moves this year from the Broward County Convention Center to Marlins Park in Miami, with themed activities for families as well as health screenings. Organizers expect thousands more participants in the new venue. Next: October 31-November 1, 2015

#8 Trade Event, Expo & Convention
Nearly 1,000 dealers and 20,000 attendees came to the show this year, and participation in the three-year-old Jewelry History Series doubled from 30 to 60 participants. Next: January 28-February 1, 2016

#9 Trade Event, Expo & Convention (up from #11)
About 11,000 people came to the Greater Fort Lauderdale/Broward County Convention Center to see what nearly 900 exhibitors had to offer at the newly renamed show, formerly known as Cruise Shipping Miami. Next: March 14-17, 2016

#10 Trade Event, Expo & Convention (up from #12)
In 2014, the show, which attracted 420 companies and more than 10,000 attendees, included 11 national pavilions, pavilions for healthy foods, and women-owned businesses. Next: October 26-27, 2015

#1 Parade & Festival
The monthlong festival of art, music, and food culminates with the Calle Ocho street festival, billed as the biggest Latino festival in the country. Next: March 2016

#2 Parade & Festival
About 5,000 revelers gathered at a week’s worth of parties on Miami Beach to raise awareness and money for H.I.V. and AIDS research. Next: November 26-December 1, 2015

#3 Parade & Festival
Starting with just two dozen vendors 53 years ago, the festival now has more than 700 vendors and attracts 300,000 visitors who come to experience arts and crafts, music, food, and cars along Atlantic Avenue. Next: April 8-10, 2016

#4 Parade & Festival
Billed as the 20th biggest parade in the world, with one million spectators over a 12-mile parade route, Winterfest will see around 100 boats participate in this year’s theme, “Fairy Tales Afloat.” Next: December 12, 2015

#5 Parade & Festival
More than 250,000 are expected to attend the 32nd year of the eight-day event—the largest of its kind in the country. Next: November 15-22, 2015

#6 Parade & Festival (up from #7)
Organizers estimated more than 100,000 visitors attended the springtime event for the second consecutive year. The festival’s big celebrations were spread out over both weekend days that capped off the weeklong festival. Next: April 2016

#8 Parade & Festival
The festival, which used to be held in two South Florida locations, outgrew its Miami site. The Deerfield Beach incarnation at Quiet Waters Park is still taking place and drew more than 100,000 attendees in 2015. Organizers plan to add another weekend next year, as well as look for a new site in Miami that’s able to accommodate the crowds. Next: February 13-March 20, 2016

#9 Parade & Festival (up from #10)
Organizers added three days to this year’s festival, bringing it to 21 days of everything from craft beer to pig races to entertainment by Kool & the Gang. Next year marks 65 years for the fair. Next: March 17-April 10, 2016

#10 Parade & Festival
The 10th year of the gathering of comic talent at the Fillmore Miami Beach Theater featured comedians including Dave Chappelle, Bill Burr, Hannibal Buress, and Patton Oswalt. Next: April 2016

#11 Parade & Festival
In 2015, the six-day festival broke the million-dollar fund-raising mark for the first time in its 22-year history, with 13,000 revelers turning out to participate. Next: March 2-7, 2016

#12 Parade & Festival
Held on the last Sunday of the year, as many as 12,000 spectators come to Coconut Grove to witness an event that’s one part parade, one part satirical political commentary. Next: December 27, 2015

#13 Parade & Festival
Around 25,000 spectators head to downtown Coral Gables to see the parade, which has been going for nearly seven decades. Next: November 29, 2016

#14 Parade & Festival
Every year, some 30,000 people turn out to attend the weeklong celebration of Caribbean culture. This year marks the event’s second time at its new home at Miami-Dade County Fair and Exposition. Next: October 4-11, 2015

#15 Parade & Festival
As many as 10,000 women were expected in Miami Beach for this year’s bash, which featured a superhero theme, in celebration and support of lesbian pride. Next: May 2016

#1 Music, Theatre & Dance Event
The 30th anniversary of the weeklong Miami Beach blowout attracted some 100,000 electronic and dance music fans along with industry bigwigs and top DJs. Next: March 2016

#2 Music, Theatre & Dance Event
The weekend-long festival that draws 165,000 electronic music fans has live-streamed its content for several years to reach a wider digital audience. Next: March 2016

#3 Music, Theatre & Dance Event
Billed as the state's largest music, art, and waterfront festival, the 32nd anniversary of the West Palm Beach event featured a diverse group of performers including Fall Out Boy, the Pixies, Kaskade, and Boston. Next: April 27-May 1, 2016

#4 Music, Theatre & Dance Event (new to the list)
After drawing 44,000 country music fans to Fort Lauderdale Beach Park last year, the 2015 two-day festival hosted a sold-out crowd of 75,000 who came to see performers like Kenny Chesney and Zac Brown Band. Next: April 2016

#6 Music, Theatre & Dance Event
This year’s Saturday lineup sold out for the first time in the festival’s 11-year history. Organizers plan to add an extra day to the festival next year, including a Friday-night concert and additional events over the weekend. Next: March 18-20, 2016

#7 Music, Theatre & Dance Event
The collaboration between the Adrienne Arsht Center and City Theatre reliably delivers a lineup of new 10-minute plays each year. This year marks the event's 20th anniversary. Next: June 4-28, 2015

#8 Music, Theatre & Dance Event
In its 14th year, the Latin dance festival is adding a new kids’ dance program and award ceremony and poolside performances. Next: July 29-August 2, 2015

#9 Music, Theatre & Dance Event
Title sponsor Heineken returned for the 14th annual festival, which added more space, more vendors, and eco-friendly initiatives. Next: April 10-11, 2016

#1 Art & Design Event
Organizers say a “surge” in new collectors joined galleries, museum representatives, and art lovers—some 73,000 in total—for the 13th iteration of the art world fixture. Next: December 3-6, 2015

#2 Art & Design Event
Organizers are partnering this year with the Harvard School of Graduate Design on a student pavilion design competition. The winner will have his or her work displayed at the event. Next: December 2-6, 2015

#3 Art & Design Event
A fixture of Miami Art Week, the international art fair celebrated its 25th anniversary in 2014 and was rated by ArtNews as the highest-attended art industry event in the United States. Next: December 1-6, 2015

#5 Art & Design Event
The outdoor arts festival partnered with the Miami New Times this year to provide outdoor entertainment for the three-day event. Next: February 13-15, 2016

#6 Art & Design Event
The fourth year of the President’s Day weekend contemporary art fair drew around 35,000 people to see works exhibited by 60 galleries from nine countries. Next: February 11-15, 2016

#8 Art & Design Event
Next year marks the 65th anniversary of the venerable fine-arts fair, which featured more than 220 exhibitors in 2015. Next: January 16-17, 2016

#9 Art & Design Event
In its seventh year, the event organized by the Miami New Times drew 1,500 people to the Coral Gables Museum. Next: February 2016