Key West New Year’s Eve 2026: the midnight drops

New Year’s Eve 2026 in Key West falls on Thursday, Dec. 31, and three venues have posted their midnight drops: Sloppy Joe’s lowers a conch shell for the 33rd time, Bourbon St. Pub holds its 29th high heel shoe drop on Duval Street, and Schooner Wharf lowers its pirate wench at the Seaport. A fourth, a Key Lime wedge dropped into a giant margarita, is listed by one website but not by the venue. No one has published New Year’s Eve fireworks for 2026. All checked Oct. 21, 2026. Christmas in Key West is an independent planner published by LPE Realty LLC. We are not the City of Key West, Schooner Wharf, the Historic Seaport, the Lodging Association or any venue, and we sell no tickets.

• The Holiday Fest calendar lists "Key West New Year's Eve Celebrations, including the Red High Heel Drop at Bourbon St. Pub, the Conch Shell Drop at Sloppy Joe's Bar, and the Lowering of the Pirate Wench at Midnight at Schooner Wharf Bar and Galley." Key West Inns (Lodging Association of the Florida Keys and Key West): Holiday Fest Calendar

All the drops in one table

Drop	Venue and address	What the venue lists	2026 status
Conch shell	Sloppy Joe’s, 201 Duval Street (Duval and Greene)	From 10 PM; drop at midnight	Confirmed by Sloppy Joe’s
Red high heel shoe	Bourbon St. Pub, 724 Duval Street; the Shoe hangs at New Orleans House	Three-hour stage show on Duval; descent at midnight	Confirmed by Bourbon St. Pub and a City closure notice
Pirate wench	Schooner Wharf Bar, 202 William Street	Party from early in the day; lowering at midnight	On Schooner Wharf’s 2026 events page; flyer “Coming Soon”
Key Lime wedge	Sunset Pier, Ocean Key Resort	Not on the venue’s page	Not confirmed

Prices and tickets for any of these were not posted by the venues when we checked.

Sloppy Joe’s conch shell drop

Sloppy Joe’s lists “Thursday, December 31, 2026”, 10 PM, its 33rd Annual Dropping of the Conch Shell at midnight to ring in 2027, at the corner of Duval and Greene streets. People inside the bar can watch the drop on the Sloppy-Tron screen. The bar says the idea came from local artist Tobias McGregor, who took it to management in 1993, and that he redesigned the shell in 2005. Sloppy Joe’s has been at Duval and Greene since 1937.

• Sloppy Joe's events page: "Thursday, December 31, 2026", "10:00 pm Sloppy Joe's 33rd Annual Dropping of the Conch Shell at midnight to ring in 2027!" "This year, the conch shell will drop for the 33rd time at the corner of Duval and Greene Street." "Customers inside the bar will be able to see the conch shell drop on Sloppy-Tron." Sloppy Joe's Bar: Events
• Sloppy Joe's: "The idea and implementation of the conch shell is by local artist Tobias McGregor. In 1993, McGregor approached Sloppy Joe's Management about the New Year's Eve plan." "The conch shell redesign was done by Toby in 2005." The bar is at "201 Duval Street" and has "been located at the corner of Duval and Greene since 1937." Sloppy Joe's Bar: Events and home page

Bourbon St. Pub high heel shoe drop

Bourbon St. Pub at 724 Duval Street calls it the 29th Annual Key West New Year’s Eve High Heel Shoe Drop. The winner of its “If the Shoe Fits” competition stars in a three-hour stage show on Duval Street and comes down in the red high heel during the countdown. The Shoe hangs at New Orleans House, home of the VIP balcony party. Past queens include Sushi, who, the pub says, reigned for 25 years.

• Bourbon St. Pub: "the 29th Annual Key West New Year's Eve High Heel Shoe Drop". "The winner will star in the three hour New Year's Eve stage show on Duval Street and descend in the iconic red high heel during the countdown to midnight." New Orleans House is "home of the famous VIP New Year's Eve balcony party where the Shoe hangs each year." Bourbon St. Pub's address: "724 Duval Street, Key West, Florida 33040". Bourbon St. Pub: If The Shoe Fits
• Bourbon St. Pub names past "Queens of New Year's Eve" including "Sushi, who reigned for 25 years", and says the 2026 queen is chosen through the "If the Shoe Fits" national competition, with finals on October 10. Bourbon St. Pub: If The Shoe Fits

The City closes the 700 block of Duval

The City of Key West posted a New Year’s Eve Shoe Drop street-closure notice for Dec. 31, 2026 to Jan. 1, 2027, 9 PM to 2 AM, and says the 700 block of Duval Street closes from 2 PM. If you are driving across Old Town that afternoon, plan around it; see our parking page.

• The City of Key West calendar lists "New Year's Eve Shoe Drop – Street Closure Notice", "December 31, 2026 – January 1, 2027", "9:00 PM – 2:00 AM", Duval Street: "The 700 bock of Duval Street will be closed beginning at 2:00 pm." (sic) City of Key West: Calendar event notice

Schooner Wharf pirate wench

Schooner Wharf Bar, 202 William Street, lists its New Year’s Eve Celebration for Dec. 31: the “Lowering of the Pirate Wench at Midnight”, with a party that starts early in the day, three local and national acts, party favours and champagne. Its flyer line still read “2025 Flyer – 2026 Coming Soon”. Schooner Wharf sits on the Harbor Walk of Lights, which is lit for its last night of the season.

• Schooner Wharf's 2026 Events page: "Dec. 31 New Year's Eve Celebration The Unique Schooner Wharf Bar's Seaport Tradition – Lowering of the Pirate Wench at Midnight. Party starts early in the day with 3 Local and National Acts – Party Favors – Champagne & Fun". Flyer line: "2025 Flyer – 2026 Coming Soon". Address: "202 William Street". Schooner Wharf Bar: Special Events (2026 Events)

The Key Lime wedge drop: not confirmed

keywestchristmas.org lists a Key Lime wedge dropped into a giant margarita at the Ocean Key Resort Sunset Pier on Dec. 31, 2026. The resort’s own Sunset Pier page did not mention New Year’s Eve or a drop when we read it on Oct. 21, 2026. Until the venue posts it, treat it as unconfirmed.

• keywestchristmas.org lists, for "Dec. 31, 2026", "Key Lime Wedge drop into giant Margarita" at "the Ocean Key Resort Sunset Pier". Ocean Key Resort's own Sunset Pier page did not mention New Year's Eve or a drop when read on 2026-10-21. Key West "Bight" Before Christmas: keywestchristmas.org (Harbor Walk of Lights); Ocean Key Resort & Spa: Sunset Pier

Fireworks

No City of Key West notice or venue page we read publishes New Year’s Eve fireworks for 2026. We will not promise any. If a venue or the City posts them, they will appear on our date checker.

Before midnight

Sunset on Dec. 31, 2026 is at 5:50 PM, according to the U.S. Naval Observatory. The Sunset Celebration at Mallory Square is nightly; the operator says people gather about an hour before sunset, while mallorysquare.com says it begins two hours before. The three drops are at 201 Duval Street, 724 Duval Street and 202 William Street, so you can pick one midnight and spend the evening near it.

• U.S. Naval Observatory sunset times for Key West (EST): Dec. 1, 2026 5:38 pm; Dec. 12 5:40 pm; Dec. 21 5:44 pm; Dec. 25 5:46 pm; Dec. 31 5:50 pm. Civil twilight ends about 25 minutes later (Dec. 12: 6:05 pm). U.S. Naval Observatory: Sun and Moon Data for One Day (computed for 24.5551 N, 81.7800 W, Eastern Standard Time)
• mallorysquare.com says the nightly Sunset Celebration begins "two hours before sunset"; the operator, sunsetcelebration.org, says people gather "around one hour before sunset". Say "from about an hour or two before sunset" and cite both. Mallory Square: Sunset Celebration; Sunset Celebration (Cultural Preservation Society)

The days before are busy too: the Old Island Restoration Foundation’s Key West Home Tours run Dec. 29 and 30 (see our inn and home tours page), and the full season is on Key West Christmas events.

Getting home, and New Year’s Day

The City’s Key West Rides on-demand buses run 6 AM to 8 PM, so there is no City on-demand ride after the drops. There is no Key West Rides service on New Year’s Day, and the City lists all City facilities closed on Friday, Jan. 1, 2027. A note on the Duval Loop: the City’s bus fares page still lists a Duval Loop fare, but the Key West Citizen reported on Dec. 31, 2025 that the route would be suspended from Jan. 2 and replaced by Key West Rides. Do not plan around it.

• City of Key West: "Key West Rides On-Demand is an innovative form of transportation that will replace the North and South Lines". "This is a bus stop-to-bus stop service". Hours "Monday" to "Sunday 6 AM" to "8 PM", "(No service on Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day, and New Year's Day)." Booking help: "305-809-3910". City of Key West: Key West Rides On-Demand Bus Service
• The City of Key West calendar lists City office closures for Thanksgiving Day (Nov. 26, 2026), the day after (Nov. 27), "Christmas Extension" (Thursday, Dec. 24, 2026), Christmas Day (Friday, Dec. 25, 2026) and New Year's Day (Friday, Jan. 1, 2027), "All city facilities". City of Key West: Calendar event notice
• The City's Bus Fares page still lists "Duval Loop – $1". The Key West Citizen reported on Dec. 31, 2025 that "the Duval Loop bus route will be suspended beginning Jan. 2, with service replaced by the Key West Rides on-demand transit program" and that "Fares were free until July of this year when they were increased to $1 per ride" (secondary source, news). Do not call the Duval Loop free or running. Key West Citizen (news, secondary); City of Key West: Bus Fares

Two places say they open every day of the year: the Hemingway Home and Museum (“open daily, 365 days a year”) and Fort Zachary Taylor Historic State Park (8 a.m. until sundown, 365 days a year, Florida State Parks). For other museums and restaurants we have no New Year’s Day hours to give; call ahead. A beach morning is covered on our beaches page.

• Hemingway Home and Museum: "Museum is open daily, 365 days a year", "9:00am-5:00pm for walk-in visits", "Tours start every 15 minutes with the first tour starting at 9:15am". Adult "General Admission – $19"; "Children 5 and younger are FREE". Ernest Hemingway Home and Museum: Rates & Info
• Florida State Parks: Fort Zachary Taylor Historic State Park, "Hours 8 a.m. until sundown 365 days a year", "$6 per vehicle". "the park is the southernmost state park in the continental United States" and "boasts Key West's favorite beach, located at the southern end of the park, providing opportunities for picnicking, swimming, snorkeling, paddling and fishing." Florida State Parks: Fort Zachary Taylor Historic State Park

Weather for a night outdoors

NOAA’s 1991 to 2020 normals for Key West International Airport give December an average low of 68.3 F and January an average low of 65.5 F. A midnight on Duval Street sits near those lows. More on our weather page, and travel options on getting here.

• NOAA 1991-2020 normals for Key West International Airport (USW00012836), December: average high 77.7 F, average low 68.3 F, mean 73.0 F, precipitation 2.16 inches. NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals 1991-2020, station USW00012836 (Key West International Airport)
• Same NOAA normals: November average high 81.0 F, low 72.2 F, precipitation 2.05 inches; January average high 75.8 F, low 65.5 F, precipitation 1.83 inches. NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals 1991-2020, station USW00012836 (Key West International Airport)

Questions people ask

Dates, rules and hours can change. The organisers have the final word: City of Key West: Visitors