BOCA RATON, FL (Boca Post) (Copyright © 2026) — Anyone heading through the Boca Raton Innovation Campus area early Sunday may want to plan a few extra minutes.
Cars & Coffee Palm Beach is hosting its 2026 kick-off event Sunday, January 4, at the Boca Raton Innovation Campus — BRIC — and organizers are expecting a busy morning with a heavy flow of vehicles heading in and out of the property.
The event runs from 8 a.m. to noon, but the gates open at 7 a.m., which is when the early arrivals start rolling in. That’s typically when nearby roads and turns into the campus begin to stack up a bit, especially with drivers trying to get into the show area and park together.
The event site is the Boca Raton Innovation Campus at 4850 T-Rex Avenue, Boca Raton, according to event information published by Cars & Coffee Palm Beach.
If you’re not going to the show, the best advice is simple: expect more cars than usual in the BRIC area Sunday morning, and don’t be surprised if you see a steady stream of exotic cars, classics, and custom builds moving slowly in lines. A lot of those drivers are arriving early to secure a spot and to park with friends or clubs.
Cars & Coffee Palm Beach bills the show as open to all makes, models, and vintages, and the group describes it as one of the world’s largest and most prestigious monthly auto events. The event typically pulls hundreds of display vehicles and thousands of spectators, based on the organization’s own description of the turnout.
For people attending, there are a few key logistics to know.
Spectators and passengers are free, according to the event’s venue information. Display vehicles pay an entry fee of $15 cash or $20 via Zelle per vehicle, per spot to park in the show area. Organizers say there is no pre-registration — drivers pay at the gate upon arrival — and parking is generally first come, first served outside of pre-designated areas for sponsors, vendors, or showcase vehicles.
The show is also set up as a full morning outing. Organizers are advertising food trucks, vendors and displays, and complimentary hot coffee from Finish Line Cafe. They also note the event is family- and pet-friendly.
Another reason the campus could feel especially busy: a large farmer’s market is scheduled on site in the northwest lot with more than 100 local vendors, according to the event promotion. That means multiple traffic patterns at once — drivers entering for the car show, spectators looking for parking, and shoppers heading toward the market area.
Cars & Coffee Palm Beach also lists prizes, swag, charity elements and demos as part of the show experience, along with sponsors and vendor participation.
The event is part of a scheduled series for 2026. Cars & Coffee Palm Beach lists upcoming dates as Sunday, February 1; Sunday, March 22; Sunday, April 26; and Sunday, May 24, followed by a summer break, then events returning Sunday, October 11; Sunday, November 1; and Sunday, December 6.
The show has been operating for more than a decade. Cars & Coffee Palm Beach says the event started 11 years ago when founder John Zeilinga organized a small car meet in Boynton Beach. The group says the event quickly outgrew its original location and eventually moved into a monthly schedule at the Boca Raton Innovation Campus, where it now draws large crowds.
For residents nearby, the takeaway is mainly about timing. If you’re commuting through the BRIC area Sunday morning, or running errands around that side of town, you may see congestion near the campus entrance points and slower-than-normal traffic between 7 a.m. and late morning.
And if you’re just passing through, don’t be alarmed by the sight of high-end cars in clusters, idling in lines, or moving through the area at a crawl. It’s not a movie shoot. It’s Cars & Coffee.
