With the pier behind a construction fence, a Saturday morning on Third Street South fits between two cross streets this season, Broad Avenue South and 13th Avenue South. They mark the ends of the farmers market, and they are also where the City kept the beach open.
The Third Street South Farmers Market moves back onto the street on Saturday, Nov. 7. For Port Royal, at the south end of Gordon Drive, the market is the nearest weekly one. This year the route from the stalls to the sand runs along the market's own boundaries, because the beach end in the middle is the closed one.
The Market Leaves the Parking Lot
The Association's page puts the market on 3rd Street S. between Broad and 13th Avenues South from November through May, and in the parking lot behind Tommy Bahama from April through October. Those two ranges share April and May, so the exact spring switch date is worth checking with the Association. The City's event listing adds a portion of 12th Avenue South to the winter footprint.
| Summer setup | Winter setup | |
|---|---|---|
| Months listed by the Association | April through October | November through May |
| Location | Parking lot behind Tommy Bahama | 3rd Street S., Broad Ave S. to 13th Ave S., plus part of 12th Ave S. |
| Hours | Saturdays, 7:30 to 11:30 a.m. | Saturdays, 7:30 to 11:30 a.m. |
| First winter Saturday | Nov. 7, 2026 |
The Third Street South Association organizes the market, and its own page points out that this is not a City of Naples event. The market started in 1994. It now counts more than 60 independent vendors and admits no national chains or franchises. Gulfshore Life's summer 2026 guide described it as a year-round market of nearly 60 vendors, so moving back to the street changes where the market sets up, not whether it runs.
What the Stalls Have Been Carrying
The only roster the Association has posted is labeled "2026 Summer Market Vendors," and the winter lineup may differ once the stalls are on 3rd Street. Still, the summer list shows what the market is built around:
- Grown nearby: Inyoni Farms with certified-organic vegetables, greens, sprouts, fruit, herbs and flowers; Mondragon Farms with organic produce; Care2Grow with locally grown mushrooms; Gulfcoast Greens with microgreens and hydroponics; Friendly Burds with tropical and dried fruit and honey.
- Ready to eat: King of Conch Salads makes conch salad to order, Fire & Rice cooks paella, and Moonfire BBQ has ribs, brisket and pulled pork. Chef Sebastian Mazzotta sells crab cakes and prepared meals, and Twila Mae's Chicken Salad sells exactly what the name says.
- From the Gulf Coast to South America: Casa De Loro has Argentinian street food, and Coloumbian Bites and Colombia Taste of SWFL both sell arepas. Anita's Guacamole makes guacamole, salsa and chips, and King of Hummus brings hummus, baba ganoush, olives and dates.
- Coffee and bakery: Jimmy's Java, Tony's off Third, Bella's Cakes, Bella Maria Café, and Neapolitan Bake Shop with its Cronutz.
- For the pantry, the house and the dog: Stamper Cheese with Wisconsin cheeses, Scott's Nuts, Dominga's Flowers, Woven Wonders baskets, Marlene Cypress Wood, and dog treats from Top Dog Kitchen and Wholesome Hound.
The dog treats fit the winter rules. The Association's listing for the winter season invites shoppers to bring "friends, families, pet friends."
Why 12th Avenue Is the Odd One Out
Part of 12th Avenue South belongs to the market this winter. The west end of that same avenue is closed. The City's pier rebuild page says the closure covers the pier, its stairs, restrooms and showers, and 12th Avenue South west of Gulf Shore Boulevard South, for the roughly 18-month project.
To keep the beach open, the City built pedestrian bypasses at the Broad Avenue South and 13th Avenue South beach ends, with restrooms at both, and those stay open for the whole project. Those are the two avenues that mark the ends of the winter market. Someone at the Broad Avenue end of 3rd Street can head toward the Gulf on Broad. Someone at the 13th Avenue end can do the same on 13th. The middle avenue goes only as far as the construction zone.
Parking at the pier is tighter too. Only the western third of the pier lot at 12th Avenue South and Gulf Shore Boulevard South is open to the public, and the other two-thirds is set aside for construction. The lot is on the City's list of metered beach parking, and City beach meters run $5 an hour.
The work has moved quickly. The City reports that every new piling is in, more than half the concrete has been poured, and the contractor, Shoreline Foundation Inc., expects to finish structural work in early 2027. Ipe wood decking goes on after that. The pier is still scheduled to reopen in July 2027, after the winter street market has ended for the season. So the Broad-and-13th setup lasts the whole winter market season. When the pier opens, the mid-pier concession will be replaced by portable food and beverage carts at the mid-pavilion, because state and federal rules barred rebuilding the old concession area.
The Quieter Beach Is Closer to Home
The bypass beach ends get the people coming from downtown. Port Royal residents have another choice on the drive home. The City's beach access status table lists both 2100 Gordon Drive and 3590 Gordon Drive as open. So the morning can go market, then home, then a walk to a Gordon Drive access, without passing the pier fencing. The same table lists 21st Avenue South as open but marked for future reconstruction.
November on the Block, Saturday to Saturday
The market brings people to Third Street South once a week. The Association's events calendar fills several weekdays between the first two winter Saturdays:
- Saturday, Nov. 7: The winter market season opens on 3rd Street, 7:30 to 11:30 a.m.
- Monday, Nov. 9: Books on Third hosts an evening with Adam Makos and his new book, Tidal Wave, about Operation Tidal Wave and what came after the bombers went down in Romania.
- Wednesday, Nov. 11: HopToi Mahjong takes over Antique Gallery Naples for an evening of tiles, wine, and antique and estate jewelry. Players bring their NMJL card.
- Friday, Nov. 13: Katherine Reay comes to a ticketed literary luncheon for The Undercover Bookshop, held off site at Ridgway Bar & Grill, 1300 3rd St S #101.
- Saturday, Nov. 14: Market Days on Third, the second winter Saturday.
After that, the City's calendar lists the market every Saturday, Nov. 21 and 28 and on through December and into January. It skips one date, Saturday, March 13, 2027, and gives no reason, so that Saturday is worth checking before heading out.
The first winter Saturday falls on Nov. 7. Enter on Broad or 13th, and walk to the Gulf from the end you finish at.
If your Saturday route has you thinking about which stretch of Gordon Drive, or which block near Third Street South, would make the market a walk, I know these streets well and am happy to talk them over. Nick Solimene is local, responsive, and ready when you are. Let's Connect.
