In fact, there will be a lot of “Papas” in Key West this summer as Hemingway Days returns for 2021. Here are the dates and details.
The 2022 dates are July 19-24. The look-alike contest, held at Sloppy Joe’s, is July 21-23 and the “Running of the Bulls” down Duval Street.
Those are the two main events, the fun party ones. The look-alike contest is comprised of 35 contenders each night. From that, 24 finalists “compete” on July 23. This is the 40th anniversary of it. The preliminary contests start at 6:30 p.m., on Thursday, Friday and Saturday.
A group photo is scheduled for Noon on Saturday with the Papas and the “bulls” on Green Street. The “Running of the Bulls” starts at 1 p.m. It involves the look-alikes and fake bulls.
These events are free and open to the public. There may be crowd limits for the look-alike contests at the determination of Sloppy Joe’s management.
Other Hemingway Days events include a marlin fishing tournament (Hemingway loved to fish), literary readings and something he could never have imagined, a paddleboard race.
If you are wondering why there is multi-day event in Key West for Ernest Hemingway the answer is simple. The Pulitzer Prize–winning author lived in Key West during the 1930s. His house – and its many cats – are a tourist attraction and his legacy lives on forever in the Conch Republic. The timing of the festival ties in with Hemingway’s birthday, which is is July 21. This year would be his 121st birthday.
Hemingway Days is not the only quirky event in Key West in July. It also has the Mermaid Festival July 4-5.
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