Through December 15, almost every one of Boca Raton's city holiday events is free and open to anyone who shows up. After that, the city's holiday programs cost a few dollars, most need a reservation, and they take place a long way from Mizner Park.
The city's 2026 lineup is branded "Boca Jolly Days." It starts this Saturday, November 21, and runs into January. Laid out on a calendar, it splits into two phases. The first is a run of large, mostly free evenings packed into a few blocks of Downtown Boca. The second is a set of small daytime and early-evening programs at Sugar Sand Park Community Center and Gumbo Limbo Nature Center. Those cost a few dollars, often need a reservation, and charge city residents less. Planning December well comes down to knowing which phase a given week belongs to.
The Downtown Phase Runs on Chair Rules and Road Closures
From November 21 through December 15, the city schedules seven holiday events at Mizner Park, along Federal Highway and in Sanborn Square. Only one of them sells tickets.
| Date | Event | Where | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sat., Nov. 21, 6–10 p.m. | Holiday Tree Lighting | Mizner Park Amphitheater | Free |
| Wed., Dec. 2, 7:30–9 p.m. | 54th Annual Holiday Street Parade | Federal Highway, Downtown Boca | Free |
| Sat., Dec. 5, doors 6 p.m., show 7 p.m. | Holiday POPS Concert & POPS Pop-Up | Mizner Park Amphitheater | $25–$60 |
| Tue., Dec. 8, 6–8 p.m. | Merry in Mizner Meet & Greet with Surfs Up Santa | Downtown Boca Adirondack Chair | Free |
| Thu., Dec. 10, 6–9 p.m. | City of Boca Raton Night Market | Sanborn Square | Free |
| Sun., Dec. 13, 5–6 p.m. | FAU Tuba Christmas | Mizner Park Amphitheater | Free |
| Tue., Dec. 15, 6–8 p.m. | Merry in Mizner Stuff-A-Plush | Mizner Park South Gazebo | Free, first 200 |
When most events are free and open to everyone, the practical questions are about logistics. The Holiday Tree Lighting shows how much those details matter. Plaza Real East and West, the interior roads inside Mizner Park, close to cars at 5 p.m., an hour before the event begins. Outside chairs are not allowed, rental chairs are available on site, and each person may bring one unopened bottle of water. Mayor Andy Thomson leads the ceremonial lighting at 7:30 p.m. The city's tree lights at the same moment as Mizner Park's display of 50,000 LED lights on 75 palm trees. Santa selfie photos run from 6 to 10 p.m. at the Boca Raton Art Museum, and stage sets are scheduled for 6:20, 7:40 and 8:40 p.m.
Three weeks later, the same amphitheater has a different chair rule. For FAU Tuba Christmas on December 13, you may bring your own chair or blanket, and on-site chair rental is $5 cash, according to the city's Tuba Christmas listing. If you plan to attend both, the folding chair works for the second event and not the first.
The Holiday Street Parade on December 2 brings decorated floats, dancing, lighting and music to Federal Highway under the theme "Boca by the Beach." The city's event listing says barricades will line the route, spectators stay behind them, designated crosswalks will be available, and pedestrians should keep off the street afterward so it can be swept. The listing also advertises a one-mile Boca Holiday Mile Run before the parade.
The one ticketed downtown event is the third annual Holiday POPS Concert on December 5. It brings The Symphonia Boca Raton, led by conductor John Devlin, together with the FAU Chamber Singers and Schola Cantorum of Florida for holiday classics at Mizner Park Amphitheater, 590 Plaza Real. New this year is a pre-show for kids called the POPS Pop-Up, which is free with a concert ticket. Tickets are sold through The Symphonia.
The Merry in Mizner Stuff-A-Plush on December 15 is free but limited to the first 200 attendees, first come, first served. It is also the last downtown city event on the 2026 holiday schedule. For families, arriving early to that one is the closest the downtown phase gets to needing a reservation.
December 4 Through 6 Is When the Two Phases Overlap
During the first weekend of December, both kinds of event share the calendar. The free downtown series keeps going, and the city adds the first of its smaller programs, which have age limits, capacity caps and a price split between residents and nonresidents.
- Winter Make & Take, Friday, December 4, 3–4 p.m., Boca Raton Public Library Downtown. Free, with crafts and a screening of Abominable. Drop-ins are welcome, and children 8 and younger must be with an adult.
- Ornaments Naturally, Saturday, December 5 and Sunday, December 6, 10 a.m. to noon, Gumbo Limbo Nature Center. For ages 7 and up, with advance registration. $20 for residents, $24 for nonresidents.
- Holiday POPS, Saturday evening, December 5, at Mizner Park Amphitheater.
- Holiday Round Robin, Sunday, December 6, 9 a.m., The Racquet Center. Ages 18 and up, registration required. $30 for residents, $37.50 for nonresidents.
The following Thursday, December 10, two free events fall on the same evening. Winter Family Movie Night shows Frozen at the Boca Raton Public Library Spanish River branch from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m., and the Night Market fills Sanborn Square from 6 to 9 p.m. The Night Market has local artisans, live music, food vendors and a mobile bar, which makes it the downtown phase's best evening for holiday shopping.
After Mid-December, the Calendar Moves West to Sugar Sand Park and East to the Beach
Gumbo Limbo Aglow opens on December 12, while the downtown series is still finishing up. Once Stuff-A-Plush wraps on December 15, every remaining city holiday program takes place away from downtown. In the second half of the season, every program on the schedule costs money, and most require or recommend booking ahead. In order:
- Gumbo Limbo Aglow, Saturdays December 12, 19 and 26 and January 2, 6–8 p.m., at Gumbo Limbo Nature Center, 1801 North Ocean Blvd. An evening visit to the glowing outdoor aquariums, with holiday refreshments, crafts, yard games and a photo op with Luna, the center's sea turtle mascot. Each night has its own theme.
- Winter Wonderland at the Chickee, Tuesday, December 22, sessions at 3:30 and 5 p.m., at the Children's Science Explorium. For ages 5 to 12, with preregistration required. $10 for residents, $12.50 for nonresidents, covering one child and one adult.
- Make It, Take It, Gift It, Tuesday, December 22, 11 a.m.–2 p.m., at Sugar Sand Park Community Center. For ages 5 and up. $12 for residents, $15 for nonresidents. Last seating is 1:30 p.m.
- Intracoastal Adventures – Cocoa and Canoes, Saturday, December 26, 9–10:30 a.m., at Gumbo Limbo. For ages 13 and up, and moderate canoe experience is required. $24 for residents, $30 for nonresidents.
- Jolly Jamboree, Saturday, December 26, 11 a.m.–2 p.m., at Sugar Sand Park Community Center. $10 per person, sold at the front desk on the day. Activity lines close before the event ends.
- Do You Want to Paint a Snowman?, Tuesday, December 29, 11 a.m.–2 p.m., at Sugar Sand Park. Finished snowpeople hang in the community center's hallway "gallery" through January 3, 2027. $10 for residents, $12.50 for nonresidents.
- Noon Year's Eve Party, Thursday, December 31, 11 a.m.–1 p.m., at Sugar Sand Park. For ages 4 to 9, with a DJ, games, crafts and a ball drop at noon. Preregistration is required by December 30. $12 for residents, $15 for nonresidents.
These events run at a different scale from the downtown nights. The tree lighting fills an amphitheater for four hours. The Sugar Sand programs set last-seating times, cap attendance and close activity lines early, and the Noon Year's Eve page states plainly that space is limited. The parade has barricades, while these programs control the crowd through registration on WebTrac, the city's booking system. Gumbo Limbo's Aglow listing says advance registration is required and accepts walk-ins only when a night has not sold out.
Registration for most of these programs opened between August and November 1. By the time this post goes up, sign-ups for the late-December events have been open for weeks.
Living in Boca Pays Off in the Second Phase
The downtown phase costs the same for everyone. The second phase has two prices, and the city defines who qualifies for the lower one. On the Gumbo Limbo Aglow listing, the city writes:
"A Resident (R) is someone who lives within the boundaries of the City of Boca Raton or the Greater Boca Raton Beach and Park District. All others are non-residents (NR)."
Across the holiday programs, nonresidents pay roughly 20 to 30 percent more. Ornaments Naturally is $20 versus $24, Cocoa and Canoes is $24 versus $30, and Noon Year's Eve is $12 versus $15. Some of the Sugar Sand programs also gave residents a one-week head start on registration, opening August 4 for residents and August 11 for nonresidents.
Booking ahead matters even more than residency. At Aglow, a resident who registers for the December 19, 26 or January 2 night pays $10. A walk-in on the same night pays $20 if space remains, double the registered resident price. The December 12 "Pre-Season Special" is $8 for residents and $10 for nonresidents, with walk-ins at $15. Kids under 2 are free.
The Sugar Sand programs also include adults in the price. Make It, Take It, Gift It and Noon Year's Eve admit one adult free with each paid child and charge $5 for each additional adult. Paint a Snowman and Winter Wonderland charge $3 for each extra adult. The hub notes that programs, hours and prices are subject to change, so check the Boca Jolly Days 2026 page before you go.
In practice, the season runs on two schedules. Through December 15, plan around closing times on Plaza Real, the chair rules and parade barricades. From Aglow's opening night on December 12 through January 2, plan around WebTrac logins and registration deadlines. If you want a full picture of what downtown offers the rest of the year, our summer guide to Boca Raton covers the Friday-night calendar, and our Boca Raton neighborhood page maps how the city fits together.
Whether you live a short walk from Mizner Park or a quick drive from Sugar Sand Park changes how December goes. It also shows up in what a home is worth. If this season has you curious what your Boca Raton address is worth, the Aron Team at Premiere Realty is glad to talk it through. Request a Free Home Valuation and we'll give you a clear, local read on your home.
