Fantasy Fest kicks off in Key West with 10 days of masquerades, parties and costume competitions

KEY WEST, Fla. (AP) — Key West’s Fantasy Fest has begun. The 10-day schedule includes masquerades, elaborate parties and costume competitions. It kicked off Friday. The masking and costuming festival is themed “Uniforms & Unicorns: 200 Years Of Sailing Into Fantasy.” It salutes the Florida Keys’ 2023 bicentennial and that of the U.S. Navy’s presence in Key West. The Fantasy Fest schedule features nearly 100 events including Sunday’s Zombie Bike Ride, the Pet Masquerade, the flamboyant Headdress Ball and the Masquerade March. Events will culminate next Saturday night. Some 60,000 spectators are expected to line Key West’s downtown streets for the Fantasy Fest Parade.