City of Fort Lauderdale police officers during a press conference held by city officials to talk about the city plans ahead of the spring break 2026.
Pedro Portal
pportal@miamiherald.com
Prepped with drug overdose-reversing medicine, public safety rules and cops on horses, Fort Lauderdale officials say they are ready — and optimistic — for spring break.
“We welcome every college kid who wants to come here,” Mayor Dean Trantalis said at a press conference Friday morning. “It’s really important that the college kids know that Fort Lauderdale is putting out the welcome mat for you to come here and enjoy.”
The spring break season begins next week and runs through March. In Fort Lauderdale, a hot spot for spring breakers looking for good weather, nightlife and nice beaches, city officials at the press conference said spring breaks in recent years have been pretty tame and smooth sailing.
Last year, when Fort Lauderdale Fire Rescue first distributed Narcan, a life-saving nasal spray that reverses an opioid overdose, to beach hotels, there were zero overdose fatalities on the barrier island during spring break, said Fire Chief Stephen Gollan. The fire department met with hotel security directors and management teams this week to discuss safety procedures and provide Narcan.
There will also be free Narcan dispensers placed in parts of the city where data shows there had been overdose-related calls, Gollan said.
During the 2024 spring break season, there were 21 overdose deaths in Fort Lauderdale and Wilton Manors, including one on the beach, though it is not clear if any of those deaths were spring breakers, said Fire Rescue Public Information Officer Frank Guzman. Last year, Fire Rescue received four overdose calls on the barrier island, and none were fatal. Fire Rescue’s Mobile Integrated Healthcare team handed out free Narcan on the beach last year, an effort the department is expanding this year.
City of Fort Lauderdale elected officials including Mayor Dean J. Trantalis and Chief of Police William C. Schultz, on the podium, took time speaking during a press conference to talk about the city plans ahead of the spring break 2026. Pedro Portal pportal@miamiherald.com
“Getting the right medication to the right patient in a critical period of time is invaluable,” Gollan said. ”Having our partners here at the hotels willing and able and trained now to administer the Narcan is critical in that life safety role.”
Similar spring break rules from last year will be in effect from Feb. 28 to March 31. That means no inflatable devices, no tents or tables, no amplified music and no alcohol on the beach. In downtown, there will be a curfew for minors who are not accompanied by a parent or guardian between Broward Boulevard, Andrews Avenue, the southernmost bank of the New River and Southwest 7th Avenue. Barricades on A1A will be installed in the coming days to prevent jaywalking during spring break, officials said.
Also in effect is the new ban on open alcohol containers on the street and on outdoor alcohol sales in the city’s entertainment districts, including on Himmarshee Street, year round.
The beach will be closed for cleaning every day starting at 5:30 p.m. for about an hour, said Police Chief William Schultz.
There will also be an increased police presence, including officers on horses, at the city’s entertainment districts and on the beach. The Fort Lauderdale Police Department also plans to be stationed on the beach, like last year, recruiting college students to join the force.
Though the city expects millions of spring breakers to descend on the beach, the vibes at Friday’s press conference were relaxed. In fact, “we expect good vibes,” said City Commissioner Steven Glassman.
A sign welcoming beach goers as a press conference held by city officials was talking place to talk about the city plans ahead of the spring break 2026. Pedro Portal pportal@miamiherald.com
Fort Lauderdale’s open arms approach to spring breakers has been markedly different from the messaging out of Miami Beach, a city that decided it had enough of the spring break drama and announced a very public break up a few years ago. Since then, spring break activity in Miami Beach has declined, and the city released a new PSA this year advertising Miami Beach’s health and wellness culture. (Think sunrise yoga and run clubs on the beach instead of late night drinking on Ocean Drive.)
Despite lingering questions if Miami Beach’s would-be partygoers would flock to Fort Lauderdale instead, Chief Schultz said there’s little evidence to suggest that has happened. He told the Herald that spring breakers he met last year told him they had planned to come to Fort Lauderdale.
“Most of them were from out of state, and they never mentioned Miami Beach as the option,” Schultz said. “And most of them are returning. They come once and then they come back.”
For more information on spring break rules in Fort Lauderdale, visit www.fortlauderdale.gov/springbreak.
This story was originally published February 20, 2026 at 2:26 PM.