Behind Cutler Bay's Golf Cart Parades Is a Law the Town Went to Tallahassee to Change

What does it take to get a decorated golf cart into the lineup at Cutler Ridge Park on Saturday, October 24? You need a costume theme and some lights. You also need a decal on the rear fender, and that decal comes from a permit system the Town of Cutler Bay spent years building. In 2015 the town asked the state legislature to change the law, and the parade route depends on the result.

The Halloween Spooktacular is 20 days away. The Holiday Golf Cart Parade, Toy Drive & Winter Celebration follows on Saturday, December 12. Both events start from the same field, and both run on the same permit. Here's how the whole system works, from the Town Hall counter to the 6 p.m. start.

Lineup Opens at 5, Closes at 5:50

The Halloween Spooktacular runs 5 to 9 p.m. at Cutler Ridge Park, 10100 SW 200 Street. The program includes a trunk-or-treat, a costume contest, inflatables, food trucks, a live DJ and the Halloween Golf Cart Parade. Your cart has to be decorated to join. The town asks entrants to read its Parade Participation Rules before they show up.

The parade night schedule is short:

• 5:00 p.m. Lineup opens at the west soccer field
• 5:50 p.m. Lineup closes
• 6:00 p.m. Parade begins

The costume contest has its own deadline. Entry is capped at the first 25 registrants in each age group, and sign-up closes at 6:45 p.m. The categories run from infants through adults 18 and up, and there's a separate category for pets. A family with carts in the parade and kids in the contest should plan to be in line before 5:50 and back near the sign-up table before 6:45.

The 2026 route is a 4-mile loop that starts and ends at the west soccer field:

1. Left out of the park onto SW 200th Street/Cutler Ridge Drive
2. Right onto Bel Aire Drive, which bends into SW 195th Street
3. Left onto SW 98th Avenue, right onto SW 194th Terrace
4. Left onto SW 97th Avenue/Gulfstream Road, right onto SW 191st Terrace
5. Left onto SW 96th Avenue, continuing onto Tiffany Drive for about two-thirds of a mile
6. Right onto SW 89th Court, then SW 89th Road and SW 89th Avenue
7. Left onto SW 192nd Drive, straight onto SW 88th Court, which curves into SW 196th Drive
8. Left onto SW 89th Avenue, then right onto SW 200th Street for the final 0.874 miles back to the park

If you live along Tiffany Drive or SW 196th Drive, the parade comes to you. The 2024 loop returned from SW 196th Drive by way of Martinique Drive, so this year's route sends the carts back along a different street.

The Permit Came Before the Parade

Every cart on that route is driving on public streets, which is why the parade depends on the town's permit. According to the town, Cutler Bay has allowed golf carts on town-maintained roads since 2010. Its 2014 Transportation Master Plan recommended widening that access to all roads in town, describing carts as a cleaner alternative to cars for short trips.

One obstacle was out of the town's hands. Some roads inside Cutler Bay are owned by the county, and state law limited cart use on them. During the 2015 legislative session, the mayor and town council worked with state representatives to change Florida Statutes Chapter 316. They wanted carts allowed on designated county roads located inside a municipality. The town says that effort led to an update of Section 316.212(1). On November 18, 2015, the council adopted Ordinance 15-08 and rewrote Town Code Section 30-422 to match.

That change explains why the October loop can run from Bel Aire Drive to Tiffany Drive to SW 200th Street without hitting a road carts can't use. It also explains why the holiday parade has grown large enough to need a cap.

Where a Permitted Cart Can and Can't Go

The town's default rule is that permitted carts may use every street within municipal limits. The exceptions are listed by name:

Two details aren't in the table. First, a Cutler Bay permit is also good on the local roads of the Village of Palmetto Bay. The town sends questions about cart use there to Palmetto Bay's village staff. Second, the town code bars carts from town parks, bicycle paths, sidewalks and swales. A permit also doesn't cover private or semi-private roads and property. So a decal covers the public street grid and nothing beyond it.

What the Permit Counter Asks For

Getting a permit takes a single visit to Town Hall at 10720 Caribbean Boulevard, Suite 105. The counter is open Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Bring:

• A completed Golf Cart Registration Form
• A notarized Golf Cart Registration Affidavit stating the cart meets all state law requirements
• Proof of insurance; the town doesn't set the coverage amount
• A valid driver's license
• The $60 one-time permit fee; cash is not accepted

The decal goes on the cart's rear fender. The permit doesn't expire, and driving without one carries a $150 fine.

The timing matters this month. The counter is open weekdays only, so Friday, October 23 is the last business day before the Halloween parade. The affidavit has to be notarized before you go in. For December, the last weekday before the December 12 parade is Friday, December 11. Since the permit never expires, a cart registered for Halloween is already set for December and every parade after that.

The Rules That Apply on Parade Night

The town's Parade Participation Rules were last updated in October 2025. They require licensed drivers and decorations that fit the event's theme and stay family-appropriate. Specialty vehicles need approval in advance, and off-road and recreational vehicles aren't allowed. Impaired driving is prohibited, and so is throwing items from carts. Town staff and the sheriff's office can disqualify any entry they consider unsafe.

State law changed in 2023 as well. HB 949 took effect on October 1, 2023. It requires cart operators under 18 to hold a learner's license or driver's license, and operators 18 or older to carry government-issued photo ID. The town's permit page and parade rules still ask for a valid driver's license. If a household's planned driver has a photo ID but no license, confirm with Town Hall before parade day.

December Has a Cap

The October parade sets you up for the bigger one in December. Here's how the town described its holiday event before the 2025 parade:

"Every year this event attracts over 300 decorated golf carts and residents of all ages get to enjoy music, face painting, photos with Santa Claus and much more for free."

That's Town Manager Rafael G. Casals, quoted by Community Newspapers in November 2025. The 2025 schedule used the same 5:50 p.m. lineup close as Halloween, with one addition. The lineup could close earlier once 300 golf carts had assembled.

Past turnout shows how the event reached that ceiling. The 2019 holiday parade was billed as the ninth annual and drew more than 250 decorated carts. The toy drive that year collected more than 200 toys for Holtz Children's Hospital at Jackson Medical Center. In 2023, Community Newspapers counted about 300 carts and roughly 2,000 attendees. By 2025, the toy drive's recipient was Community Health of South Florida Inc., and residents were asked to bring new, unwrapped toys.

The town's page for this year's event confirms Saturday, December 12, 2026, from 5 to 9 p.m. at Cutler Ridge Park. It says more information is coming. The 2026 route, toy drive recipient and lineup details haven't been published yet.

Summer has its own cart tradition, too. The Cutler Bay/Whispering Pines July 4 celebration was billed as the 54th annual in 2022. In 2019 its parade wound through the neighborhoods around Whispering Pines Lake with more than 300 carts and 700 residents and neighbors. Its rules put golf carts behind the floats and require a patriotic theme.

Several other civic dates fall between the two fall parades. The 2026 State of the Town is Wednesday, October 28, 6 to 9 p.m. at Mercedes-Benz of Cutler Bay, 10701 SW 211 Street; RSVP by October 21. The Veterans Day Breakfast is Wednesday, November 11 at 9 a.m. at Town Hall. If you're already at Town Hall for the breakfast, the permit counter is in the same building, and the holiday lineup is a month away.

At Melva Garcia, we keep up with the town details that never show up on a listing sheet, like which streets carts can use and when the lineup closes. If you're thinking about a home in Cutler Bay or Palmetto Bay, we can go over what everyday life looks like on specific streets, cart routes included. Request a Concierge Consultation, en inglés o en español.