Seaside becomes your Holiday Destination as the town lights up for the winter holiday season with over 100,000 lights in dazzling displays everywhere. With over 50 trees decorated and lit up across town - and 25 alone in this year's new Christmas Village in the popup district - Seaside is brilliantly ablaze for the holidays!
Check out the center tree at the Amphitheater, bursting into a light show every time you turn round (actually every half hour). And stay tuned for the live music here as Christmas approaches. Seaside this year is painted in holiday murals, Coleman Pavilion alone has over 4,000 lights, Santa's coming for those photo ops we all want at this time of year, and the streets will host carolers during these times too, singing the holiday favorites and ringing out the holiday cheer.
Shopping is not neglected as a special Holiday Market offers unique gifts and merchandise. Local venues burst into seasonal fun also, as the Day Trader hosts its popup Miracle Holiday Bar, Pickles restaurant offers a Breakfast With Santa event, and a new Elf-Stravaganza event happens on selected days for a magical time the kids will love, topped off with a cookie competition designed to test out anybody's sweet tooth.
And don't worry about parking in Seaside because once again our FREE shuttle is running, every day from early to late, from the spacious lot outside of town, all the way into the heart of the Seaside holiday fun, taking us from Thanksgiving into Christmas and right along to New Year's Eve.
Details, Details
The multiple free shuttles are running from 6 am until midnight, seven days a week. Pickup and drop-off point in town is at the Lyceum gateway in Central Square, and the parking lot is off of Hwy 331 on the south side of Choctawhatchee Bay. It's scenic, free and easy to come to Seaside!
The dazzle begins with Seaside's annual Turn On The Town festivity and Holiday Parade on Saturday, November 30, as the lights go on to usher in a full month of Christmas cheer. Santa will be showing up too on this occasion - the big man loves to hand out photo ops for parents - and this time it's in our new Christmas Village, with 25 sparkling trees that will keep their lights on all the way through New Year's Eve.
Santa will be around again on December 13-19 at 4-6 pm in the Village, following his guest appearance at Pickle's for Breakfast with Santa on December 12. By the way, the beachside Pickle's Burgers & Shakes has also now added Pickle's Sandbar if you're thirsty for a cocktail, beer or frozen drink with all the excitement going on.
And the Miracle Popup Bar actually opened on November 25, in time for Thanksgiving, and will roar on through the month to carry us through NYE too. It's a festive and fun place to check out when you're in town for the holidays, a winter wonderland with drinkware, decorations and holiday drinks, as the Day Trader's famous Tiki vibe combines joyously with the Christmas vibe.
The Seaside Holiday Market happens on December 7-8, a curated event featuring holiday gifts and seasonal merchandise from Seaside merchants and regional vendors. The tents appear in Central Square surrounding the Amphitheater and wares are available from 10 am until 4 pm each day. There will be handmade crafts, bespoke gifts and festive décor, accompanied by hot cocoa and holiday melodies.
Onstage at the Amphitheater, the Sounds of Seaside Music Series continues on December 4, 11 and 18 at 4-6 pm. And on December 21-22, the Sinfonia Gulf Coast string quartet offers its dynamic and genre-defying music at 4:30-6 pm.
And during the month on December 1, 6, 7, 8 13, 14, 15, 18, 20, 21, 22 and 23, our local REP Theatre company performs its very own Every Christmas Story Ever Told in front of the Seaside Post Office at 11 am - be sure to catch one or all of these free shows!
Get the kids ready for the Elf-Stravaganza Fun Fest happening on December 6-7 and 20-22 at the Christmas Village from 2:30 pm until 4:30 pm. This free event offers holiday characters, storytelling from the elves, festive music and lots of laughs. At 4 pm, our local It's Heavenly Shortcakes & Ice Cream vendor presents a true sweet tooth challenge with a cookie-eating contest, to win the title of Sugar Rush Superstar - only for the brave.
New Year's Eve
And then before you know it, it's New Year's Eve on December 31, and Seaside hosts its countdown starting at 4 pm with Arts & Crafts and Facepainting until 5 pm, when once again the Monsters of Yacht band take the stage at the Amphitheater and give us a rock concert for all ages. At 9 pm it's our breathtaking Fireworks over the Gulf of Mexico, and the countdown continues for those who stay up, as we all make our way into 2025 and get started all over again on a new year.