For many people, Florida just doesn’t suggest “Christmas.” We’re the Sunshine State, where kids can run right out on Christmas morning in shorts to play with their new scooters and water guns.
People decorate, but there are no quaint, snow-covered villages. We have fir trees, but very few reindeer. Not many of our homes come with fireplaces, unless you count barbecue grills or those patio fire displays. Our Christmas postcards invariably include a Santa in swim trunks, possibly near an alligator. The latest forecast for Christmas Day is for temps in the 70s.
But a Florida city made the list this year for Condé Nast Traveler’s “25 US Cities That Go All Out for Christmas,” and other locations in the state have been singled out by other travel sites as some of the most Christmassy in the nation.
Here are the places to go in Florida to get into the Christmas mood.
St. Augustine lights up the town
“Christmas in St. Augustine is truly something to behold,” Condé Nast Traveler said.
Now in its 32nd year, the amazing spectacle of the “Nights of Lights,” draped across the Spanish Colonial architecture of the nation’s oldest city, sets the skyline aglow.
More than 3 million bulbs adorn the city’s downtown sidewalks to the rooftops, over the Bridge of Lions, along historic buildings, public spaces, hotels, restaurants, and inns throughout approximately 20 blocks of the historic district.
Last year, Southern Living dubbed St. Augustine as the “Ultimate Southern Christmas Town.” When HGTV released its list of the best small “Christmas towns” in every state it chose St. Augustine to represent Florida, saying, “No American city has done Christmas longer than St. Augustine.” The USA TODAY’s 10Best Reader Choice poll this year included St. Augustine in the “Best Public Holiday Light Display” list.
-
When: From Nov. 15, 2025 through Jan. 11, 2026.
-
Where: All over the downtown area and across the Bridge of Lions, you can’t miss it.
-
How much: Free. Just look up.
Christmas, Florida. There you go.
Christmas, Florida, halfway between Orlando and Titusville, isn’t really the most Christmassy place in the state. The quiet, tiny census-designated place had just 2,439 people in the 2020 census, many of whom work in a different town, and there’s not much in the way of big celebrations.
But visitors are greeted by a giant decorated tree all year long and there are a lot of visitors around this time of year as they line up to get their holiday mail postmarked from the suddenly-very-busy Christmas Post Office and maybe get their cards and parcels stamped with festive commemorative images by Santa himself.
-
When: If you want mail shipped by Christmas in the contiguous U.S. with the Christmas, Florida postmark, get it there before Dec. 17. (More shipping deadlines)
-
Where: Along Highway 50 just east of Bithlo.
-
How much: Free to visit, normal postage costs for shipping.
Clearwater has an electric light boat parade
Clearwater, like most cities and towns in the state, has its Christmas celebrations and events. But they also have the Clearwater Yacht Club’s annual “Holiday Boat Parade,” a seemingly endless line of decorated and lit-up watercraft cruising by in the Intracoastal Waterway, a nice change to the traditional holiday parades.
If you can’t make it, there are lots of amazing decorated holiday boat parades in Florida in just about every city near a body of water, including nearby St. Pete Beach, Downtown St. Pete Beach, Indian Rocks Beach, Madeira Beach and Treasure island and Tarpon Springs. Check your local events listings.
-
When: Saturday, Dec. 13, starting at 6:30 p.m.
-
Where: The parade launches just north of the Mandalay Channel bridge and cruises through Island Estates, past Coachman Park (a prime viewing area) and near Memorial Causeway, all the way to the Clearwater Yacht Club.
-
How much: Participation and just watching are both free, registration is required to join the parade and be eligible for awards.
Mount Dora, lit up and picture-perfect
If you’ve ever wanted the feeling of walking through a Hallmark Channel Christmas movie picture-perfect small town, just come to Mount Dora and enjoy the many antique shops, art galleries and annual festivals as you stroll around the downtown area or head out by Lake Dora to enjoy the beautiful vista and occasional seaplane landing.
And every year, they give St. Augustine a run for its money with the Light Up Mount Dora event. During this decades-old annual event, thousands of people come to see more than two million lights strung around the downtown area. The lighting event, which happened in November, adds musical performances, an aerial display, fireworks, a 40-foot Christmas tree and an appearance from Santa.
This year, NBC’s “Today” show will be in town Friday, Dec. 5 to feature Mount Dora in its “Merriest Main Street Series.”
-
When: The lights went on Nov. 22 and will stay lit every night through Jan. 1, 2026, and then every weekend evening until Feb. 1.
-
Where: Downtown Mount Dora and Sunset Park.
Orlando: This Mouse is stirring
The big thing in Orlando for Christmas is Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party at Disney World with special treats, complimentary seasonal sweets and beverages, character meet-and-greets you won’t get any other time of the year, big holiday show extravaganzas, and “snow” falling from the sky.
Tickets for the evening events are also sold out already, according to the website. But there is plenty more festive cheer in O-town.
Check out the lights at Lake Eola, the Dazzling Nights display at the 50-acre Harry P. Leu Gardens and the Dinos in Lights exhibit at the Orlando Science Center.
West Palm Beach invokes the sandy clause
You think your city has a big Christmas tree? The one in West Palm Beach weighs 700 tons. Its name is Sandi, and it will be lit up for the first time this year on Thursday, Dec. 4.
Every year a new 35-foot sculpted holiday sand tree arises by the waterfront with thousands of lights synchronized to music, because that’s how we do things in Florida. Along with other sand sculptures, in December Sandi becomes a centerpiece of a month of nightly music and light shows, with faux snow falling at The Square.
While you’re in the area, drive around and check out Delray Beach’s 100-foot Christmas tree, or go to Palm Beach to check out the annual surfboard tree at The Royal Poinciana Plaza, created every year by different artists and designers. This year, the tree will be a whimsical multi-colored creation by the artist Loewe, inspired by British artist Louis Wain, widely known as “The Man Who Drew Cats.” The tree will be revealed at a Dec. 4 event from 6 to 8 p.m.
Key West’s Christmas party lasts a month, because Key West
If you’re going to have a Florida Christmas, you might as well go full Florida and hit Key West. It’s not a winter wonderland but it’s a town that knows how to party with the month-long celebration of the tropical holiday, Key West Holiday Fest.
Take the Walk of Lights from Lazy Way Lane to the Ferry Terminal at Grinnell Street to see “light-bedecked palm trees, Christmas trees, ships, shops, restaurants and watering holes,” according to KeyWestInns.com. Take a trolley tour, see the spectacular parades on land and sea, get out for the 5K Rudolph Nose Run, visit the ice skating rink at Key West Waterfront Winter Wonderland, and enjoy the many musical performances all month.
Surfing Santas? Cocoa Beach has Surfing Santas
Every year, hundreds of people turn up in Cocoa Beach to surf in Santa Claus costumes (or reasonable facsimiles thereof) while thousands of onlookers watch and cheer. The Surfing Santas event has grown into a red-suited powerhouse.
It started simply in 2009 when George Trosset, in a Santa suit and beard made from a blanket, and his son George Jr., in an elf costume, went surfing on Christmas Eve for fun. And it caught on.
Last year, more than 800 Surfing Santas and nearly 10,000 spectators showed up to benefit the Florida Surf Museum and Grind for Life, a local charity benefiting people suffering from cancer. Prizes are awarded for the surfer with the best costumes, as judged by audience reaction.
This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: 8 Florida cities to visit to get into the Christmas mood