Best Things to Do in Broward County in May

May in Broward is the hinge month — snowbirds clear out, the water warms up, and the calendar shifts from spring festivals into recurring local events you can actually plan a month around. Memorial Day weekend anchors everything, but the weekly stuff underneath it — free concerts on the beach, Saturday markets, monthly art walks — is what makes May worth paying attention to. Here's what's worth your time across Fort Lauderdale, Hollywood, Pompano Beach, and the rest of Broward County.

The unofficial start of summer in Fort Lauderdale. Held on the Saturday of Memorial Day weekend since 2010, the Great American Beach Party transforms a stretch of Fort Lauderdale Beach into a free, family-friendly day of music, sand castle contests, kids' activities, an art show, and a free movie screening on the sand after dark. It runs roughly 10am to 8:30pm along A1A near Las Olas Boulevard. Parking gets brutal — Water Taxi is the move, with discounted direct service from the Las Olas Garage running all day. Bring sunscreen, bring chairs, get there early.

The quieter side of the holiday weekend. The City of Fort Lauderdale hosts an annual Memorial Day ceremony at Lauderdale Memorial Park Cemetery on Memorial Day morning at 9am to honor those who died in service. It's brief, free, and worth the early start if you want a meaningful start to the day before the beach takes over.

The best-kept free music secret in Broward, full stop. The Hollywood Beach Theatre — also called the Bandshell, on the Broadwalk at Johnson Street — has been hosting outdoor concerts since 1924. Programming runs Wednesday through Sunday from 7 to 9pm, year-round, with rock, R&B, blues, reggae, and Latin acts rotating week to week. The Atlantic is the backdrop. Five hundred seats, first-come first-served, dancing is the default. Bring a blanket if the seats fill up. Park in the Margaritaville Garage a block away.

Every third Saturday of the month, downtown Hollywood opens up its galleries and Harrison Street for the Downtown Hollywood ArtWalk. Local artists set up along the strip, the bars and restaurants stay busy, and the walking is easy — a few flat blocks. Free to attend and a solid use of a Saturday evening if you live anywhere south of I-595. Runs year-round, May included.

The Fort Lauderdale answer, every last Saturday of the month from 6 to 10pm. The MASS District (Music & Arts South of Sunrise) sits along NE 4th Avenue between Sunrise and Federal, and the monthly ArtWalk pulls in galleries, food trucks, live music, and dozens of local vendors across the corridor. Free to attend, free parking, free trolleys. Park around NE 9th Street and 5th Avenue and walk in. One of the better excuses to be out late on the mainland.

Every Saturday from 9am to 5pm and Sunday from 10am to 5pm, Las Olas Oceanside Park hosts The MKT — an open-air market with local vendors, food, occasional yoga, and live music depending on the weekend. It's right across A1A from Fort Lauderdale Beach, free to attend, and the easiest way to make a Saturday morning feel like a real plan instead of a default. Hours can shift seasonally — verify on the MKT site if you're cutting it close.

Mother's Day always lands on the second Sunday in May, and brunch reservations book out fast across Las Olas, the Hollywood Broadwalk, and the waterfront spots in Pompano Beach. The Margaritaville Hollywood Beach Resort runs an annual Mother's Day brunch worth the splurge if you want ocean views without driving to Fort Lauderdale Beach. If you're more of a low-key crew, The MKT runs that morning and the Hollywood Beach Theatre has free music that night. Book your spot early — this is one of the two or three highest-volume restaurant days of the year in Broward.

Worth flagging what isn't happening in May: Tortuga Music Festival is in April, and Friday Night Sound Waves wraps its winter season at Las Olas Oceanside Park in early April too. Las Olas Wine & Food Festival is also a spring event. May is the month for recurring weekly stuff and the Memorial Day weekend traditions — the marquee spring festivals are already in the rearview by the time the calendar flips.

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