How can you see the Nights of Lights? Let us count the ways:
You can ride, join a sing-along, and wave at the general public from the Old Town Trolleys or Red Train Tours. For a cozier tour, ride à deux, with friends or family, or with just a few others in an electric vehicle. Gold Tours and several other companies offer such rides. Enjoy the view from the water aboard any of several vessels. Or, meander along the streets, taking photos and stopping for a bite to eat, a frozen treat, or an adult beverage.
Heck, try all the ways. There's time.
A friendly reminder: All tour companies continue their daytime schedule during the Nights of Lights season.
Nights of Lights is a great time to Visit St. Augustine. You can enjoy the beaches, shop, and take in a museum or two during the day, and then spend time downtown with all the lights and holiday cheer in the evenings.
Our articles will help you plan everything where to stay, where to park, favorite breakfast spots, and Nights of Lights must-see locations.
Light Up Night on November 23rd is the first event of the season. After that, somewhere in town, by land or sea, there are Nights of Lights Tour every day through January 26th.
In addition to those tours, we have the Christmas Parade in Historic Downtown at 9:00 a.m. on December 7th, and Surf Illumination that evening on St. Augustine Beach from 4:00 to 7:00 p.m.The rest of December is like that, full of tours, dance, lights, music, and theater.
In January, the lights remain bright, and many tours continue. However, the events aren't focused on Christmas. Instead, January events include a Film Festival, A Blues Festival, and a Pirate Festival.
Festive Nights of Lights tours by land, sea, and sky.
During the holiday season, the City of St. Augustine becomes a festival of twinkling white lights as it hosts the annual Nights of Lights display. The festivities start at Light Up Night on Saturday, November 23, 2024, and continue through January 26, 2025.
Celebrate the holiday season at St. Augustine's annual parade featuring Santa.
St. Augustine's 67th Annual Christmas Parade ushers in the holiday season with floats, festive decorations, and a Santa sack full of fun. Local organizations and neighborhoods join with cars, dogs, floats, and costumed, holiday-themed marchers — making it one of the largest parades in Northeast Florida.
St. Augustine Beach's lighting festival kicks off the holiday season.
Surf Illumination, on St. Augustine Beach, provides a colorful addition to St. Augustine's world-famous Nights of Lights holiday display. St. Augustine Beach kicks off the holiday season with a ceremonial lighting beachside at St. Johns Pier Park on A1A Beach Boulevard from 4:00 to 7:00 p.m. Saturday, December 7, 2024.
The local yacht club hosts the Nights of Lights boat parade.
The Regatta of Lights takes St. Augustine's world-famous Nights of Lights on the water from 6:00 to 7:30 p.m. on Saturday, December 14, 2024. Organized by the St. Augustine Yacht Club, sail, power, and paddle vessels of all sizes are decorated with colorful lights to create a dazzling sight for spectators along the bayfront.
An opportunity to see historic private homes decorated for the holidays.
The 54th Annual Holiday Tour of Homes, presented by the Garden Club of St. Augustine, takes visitors inside six homes in the nation's oldest city on Sunday, December 14, 2025, between 12:00 and 5:00 p.m. The information below is from the 2024 tour.This information, including ticket prices, will be updated as we learn more.
Ring in the new year with St. Augustine Beach fireworks.
St. Augustine Beach's New Year's Eve fireworks display begins at 8:30 p.m. Tuesday, December 31, 2024, at the St. Johns County Ocean Pier. The Light Up the Beach New Year's Eve Fireworks Show can be viewed at three designated spots along A1A Beach Boulevard: The St. Johns County Ocean Pier, on A Street, and on 10th Street.
The gamut runs from at least from A to W — from visiting the Alligator Farm to hosting your wedding, there's so much more to do in St. Augustine.