Santa's first confirmed Destin-area arrival this year is a week before Thanksgiving. On November 20 he arrives at Destin Commons, where the center lights its tree the same night. Eight days later he's on Baytowne Lane at Sandestin with a brass band and fireworks. Last year he reached HarborWalk Village the Saturday after Thanksgiving in a red T-Bird. In between, the City of Destin lights its own tree at the Community Center.
The season runs in a set order. The private centers and the resort next door go first, the city takes early December, and Destin Harbor closes things out in mid-December. Once you know that order, planning December gets much easier.
The Shopping Centers Start Before the Holidays Do
Destin Commons begins its season in early November with regular weekend events. Movies on the Lawn is on November 6 at 6:30 p.m. Live Music Sundays x Sinfonia plays November 8 and December 6 from 4 to 6 p.m. The Destin Commons Market runs on November 7 and 21 and on December 5 and 19, so it falls on a Saturday before almost every big date this season.
The first big date is Santa's Arrival & Holiday Tree Lighting on Friday, November 20, from 5 to 9 p.m. That makes Destin Commons the first of the three tree lightings, almost two weeks ahead of the city's. If you have young children and a Thanksgiving trip coming up, this is the lighting you can count on making before you leave.
The same weekend has one of the city's own smaller events. The City of Destin's 20th Annual Holiday Craft Show is November 13 and 14, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., at the Destin Community Center. The week before, on Saturday, November 7, the 28th Annual Pinfish Classic runs from 7 to 9 a.m. It's a small, early-morning event a week after the Rodeo's October run. If you followed the Destin Fishing Rodeo board in October, the Pinfish Classic is how the fishing season winds down.
The Resort Next Door Runs a Show Every Night in December
The Village of Baytowne Wharf is inside Sandestin Golf and Beach Resort in Miramar Beach, just over the county line in Walton County. It's close enough to Destin that its calendar works as part of the same season, and in late November and December it has more on its calendar than anyone else.
It starts with a free weekend before the holidays. Tribute Weekend runs November 6 and 7 from 7 to 9 p.m. on the Events Plaza lawn. Pandora's Box plays Aerosmith on Friday, and The 77 Experience does the music of 1977 on Saturday. The holiday events follow quickly:
- 14th Annual Sparkling Wine & Holiday Lights, Saturday, November 21, 4 to 6 p.m. It's ticketed and features more than 30 champagnes, appetizers at Village restaurants and carolers, and it ends with the Nights of Lights show. Tickets were listed as "on sale SOON."
- The Polar Express, Friday, November 27, at 6 p.m. on the Events Plaza Lawn. Free.
- Here Comes Santa Claus, Saturday, November 28, 6 to 9 p.m. Free. Santa comes down Baytowne Lane to light the Village Christmas Tree, with face painting, balloon making, a brass band and fireworks.
After Thanksgiving, Baytowne shifts to a routine more than a lineup. Nights of Lights runs every night from December 1 through December 31, with shows at 6, 7 and 8 p.m. on the Events Plaza lawn, all free. Free Visits with Santa are scheduled for December 2, 9 and 16 from 6 to 8 p.m., and Grinch photo visits are December 11 and 18 from 5 to 7 p.m. Because the light show repeats every hour, it works for a weeknight visit, or for any evening when out-of-town guests are looking for something to do.
December Belongs to the City
The city's events are more spread out than Baytowne's, and they come later. The City of Destin's 40th Annual Christmas Tree Lighting is Thursday, December 3, from 6 to 8 p.m. at the Destin Community Center. That's the third tree lighting of the season and the only one run by the city. It comes 13 days after Destin Commons and five days after Baytowne.
The next evening, Friday, December 4, Grand Boulevard's Festival of Trees runs from 4 to 7:30 p.m. Sixteen trees decorated by local nonprofits are on display, and visitors vote from 4 to 6:30 p.m. Winners are announced at 7:30. A Holiday Sip & Shop runs from 4 to 6 p.m., and a Candlelight Christmas Concert from 5 to 7:30 p.m. So the first Thursday and Friday of December give you two nearby evenings out on back-to-back nights.
The biggest of the city's events is the 42nd Annual Christmas Parade on Saturday, December 12, at 10 a.m. The City of Destin's parade listing gives this year's theme as "Merry Christmas America," for the country's 250th birthday, and covers the logistics:
- Floats start at Destin Methodist Church, 200 Beach Drive.
- The route goes down Beach Drive, then west on Harbor Boulevard, which is Highway 98, to Stahlman Avenue.
- The city asks spectators to stand on the north side of Harbor Boulevard.
- Floats don't pay an entry fee. Each entry donates new toys, personal products such as cologne or perfume, or money instead.
- Float applications and donations are due at the Destin Community Center by Friday, December 4.
A morning parade on Highway 98 affects your whole Saturday, so plan for traffic on Harbor Boulevard. If you want to enter a float with your street, club or business, the December 4 deadline falls the same day as the Festival of Trees.
That evening, Baytowne Wharf holds Tuba Christmas from 5 to 7 p.m., free, with another Santa visit during the concert. That gives you a parade in the morning and tubas at night on the same Saturday.
The Running Order, Date by Date
Here's the season in order, using dates the hosts have posted themselves:
- Nov. 6: Movies on the Lawn at Destin Commons, 6:30 p.m., and the first night of Tribute Weekend at Baytowne Wharf, 7 p.m.
- Nov. 7: Pinfish Classic, 7 a.m.; Destin Commons Market; Tribute Weekend, night two.
- Nov. 8: Live Music Sundays x Sinfonia at Destin Commons, 4 p.m.
- Nov. 13–14: City of Destin Holiday Craft Show at the Destin Community Center.
- Nov. 20: Santa's Arrival & Holiday Tree Lighting at Destin Commons, 5 p.m. This is tree number one.
- Nov. 21: Destin Commons Market; Sparkling Wine & Holiday Lights at Baytowne Wharf.
- Nov. 27: The Polar Express at Baytowne Wharf, 6 p.m.
- Nov. 28: Here Comes Santa Claus at Baytowne Wharf, 6 p.m. This is tree number two.
- Dec. 1–31: Nights of Lights at Baytowne Wharf, nightly at 6, 7 and 8 p.m.
- Dec. 3: City of Destin Christmas Tree Lighting, 6 p.m. This is tree number three.
- Dec. 4: Festival of Trees at Grand Boulevard, 4 p.m.; float applications due to the city.
- Dec. 5: Destin Commons Market.
- Dec. 6: Sinfonia at Destin Commons, 4 p.m.
- Dec. 12: Christmas Parade on Harbor Boulevard, 10 a.m.; Tuba Christmas at Baytowne Wharf, 5 p.m.
- Dec. 19: Destin Commons Market.
The Harbor Closes the Season
The two events most closely tied to Destin Harbor aren't on that list. As of late October, the HarborWalk Village events page still shows October, and the 2026 dates for Santa's harbor arrival and the Lighted Christmas Boat Parade haven't been posted. Last year's pattern is the best guide until they are.
In 2025, The Destin Log reported that Santa's Arrival Parade at HarborWalk Village was Saturday, November 29, from 12:30 to 1 p.m. He arrived in a red T-Bird with the Village Brass Band and elves. The same report put the Holiday Boat Parade on December 14 at 6 p.m. It was sponsored by the Destin History & Fishing Museum, judged at SkyBar at The Edge, and could be watched from the docks and restaurants between Harbor Docks and HarborWalk Village. In 2024, Get the Coast reported a December 15 boat parade tied to Destin's 40th anniversary, with fireworks sponsored by HarborWalk.
Both of those boat parades were on a Sunday evening in mid-December. If the pattern holds, the harbor's night would come after the city's parade on Harbor Boulevard and close out the season. Santa's harbor arrival has been the Saturday after Thanksgiving, which is the same day as Baytowne's tree lighting. Use those 2025 dates for planning only, and check the HarborWalk and Destin History & Fishing Museum calendars once November starts.
If you have family coming in this December and want ideas for a parade-morning breakfast spot or a dock with a good view of the boats, Destin Sells Destin brings more than 25 years on the Emerald Coast to questions like these and is happy to help. Get in touch through our community events page or contact us directly.
