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Activities during the holiday season in Destin and South Walton include the following:
Santa at HarborWalk
Santa arrives by helicopter around noon Nov. 25 at HarborWalk Village in Destin. he will be flown to Norriego Point and then boated over to HarborWalk Village for a coastal entrance. Kids will delight in facepainting and crafts, and can visit with Santa Claus from 12-4 p.m. The event is free and open to the public.
Holiday Lights in Concert
The Holiday Lights in Concert spectacular is back at Silver Sands from 5-9 p.m. through Jan. 1. This visual presentation features a display of colorful lights synchronized to all-time favorite Christmas songs.
Festival of Trees
More than a dozen decorated Christmas trees will be on public display as area non-profit organizations vie to win cash prizes for best of show and People’s Choice awards during the Festival of Trees from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily through Christmas in Grand Park in Grand Boulevard at Sandestin. Contest winners will be announced at 2 p.m. Dec. 17 in Grand Park with music, cookies and hot chocolate. Events are free.
Holiday movie night
Delight in a holiday movie under the stars, “how The Grinch Stole Christmas,” at 7 p.m. Nov. 25 at the Seaside Amphitheater.
Christmas in Rosemary Beach
“Turn on the town” and welcome in the holidays during the tree lighting at 6 p.m. Nov. 25 in South Barrett Square. Delight in caroling, Santa’s big arrival and carriage rides. Immediately following the Tree Lighting, visit town center merchants for a special evening of holiday shopping and refreshments!
Breakfast with Santa from 8-10 a.m. Nov. 26 in Town Hall. Children can delight in a magical morning at Santa’s Workshop with a continental, bagged breakfast, professional color photo with Santa and a goodie bag from Gigi’s. Tickets are $10 and available at the door.
Do your holiday shopping as you browse through booths filled with handcrafted gifts of pottery, jewelry, paintings and more at the Holiday Market from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Nov. 26 on the Town Center lawns.
The Rep Theatre presents highlights of Christmas stories and traditions in a quick, physical and fun show, “Every Christmas Tale Ever Told”, at 1 p.m. Dec. 30 in North Barrett Square. The event is free and all are invited.
Holidays at Baytowne Wharf
The Holiday Celebrations begin at The Village of Baytowne Wharf from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Nov. 25 with a day of fun including races through the obstacle course or jumping in a bounce house. The evening ends with the movie, “Miracle on 34th Street” at 7 p.m.
The fun continues Nov. 26 with a Christmas Parade, Tree Lighting and the arrival of Santa. there will be a preview of the new choreographed light show, 12 Nights of Lights, followed by a fireworks show over the lagoon. Admission is free. Open to public.
A special holiday edition of the Wednesday Night Concert Series presents free music from 6-8 p.m. in the Events Plaza.
The 12 Nights of Lights features a festive light show at 6, 7 and 8 p.m. Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays in December in the Events Plaza.
In celebration of the holiday season, The Village of Baytowne Wharf and Abrakadoodle present the holiday paper lantern parade at 6 p.m. Dec. 17. This community event will feature commissioned paper lanterns in the shapes of iconic symbols of the holiday season. We invite all individuals and groups to participate by making their own paper lanterns.
The evening begins with a Christmas Parade with the Sandestin homeowners and their lighted, golf carts at 6 p.m.
Turn on the Town
Kick off the holiday season beginning with a parade at 4 p.m. Nov. 26 from Seagrove Beach west to Seaside. Once Santa arrives on the back of the vintage fire truck, it’s party time in the amphitheater with holiday festivities and pictures with the jolly-bearded one. after a few versus of Jingle Bells, the count down begins to “Turn on the Town.”
Lighting of the Tree
Start the holiday season from 2-7 p.m. Nov. 26 at Rock Hard Designs at Monet Monet Garden in Grayton Beach. Delight in refreshments, arts and crafts while children make an ornament to take home. The Lighting of the Tree is at dusk. Call 534-4534.
Vintage Vegas
Ron Adams brings a classic Vegas style show, complete with showgirls, lights and costumes, to the harbor during the Vintage Vegas Holiday show at 6:30 p.m. Nov. 26 at HarborWalk Village in Destin. The Yat Pat will also perform music reminiscent of the Rat Pack era. Call 424-0600.
Photos with Santa
Free kids’ photos, courtesy of Grand Boulevard, will be made from 2-4 p.m. Saturdays Nov. 26-Dec. 24 at Grand Park in Grand Boulevard at Sandestin. Call 65-5929.
Christmas tree lighting
The 25th Annual Christmas Tree Lighting, hosted by the City of Destin, will be held at 6 p.m. Dec. 1 at the Destin Community Center. there will be entertainment from local choruses, musical groups and dancers with refreshments being served after the lighting of the tree. Donations of toys and canned food will be collected for families in need. Call 654-5184.
Sounds of the Season
The Mattie Kelly Arts Foundation presents its annual Christmas concert, Sounds of the Season, at 7 p.m. Dec. 2 at Village Baptist Church. This holiday concert is a collaboration of four Destin churches and will feature special guest artist Michael J Thomas, vocalist and saxophone musician, and the new River Quartet. Admission is a donation of an unwrapped child’s toy to be distributed among the participating church’s outreach ministry to families in need. a like offering at intermission will benefit the Mattie Kelly Arts Foundation’s all Kinds of Art, a youth educational outreach program for the visual and performing arts serving Okaloosa and Walton counties. Call 650-2226.
Support Fisher House
Place on your most festive camouflage Christmas attire and join Howl at the Moon in support of Fisher House of the Emerald Coast Dec. 2. for a $10 donation, delight in the entertaining Howl at the Moon dueling piano show, receive two free drinks and a chance to win some great prizes. all donations from ticket sales made prior to Dec. 2 go directly to the Fisher House. Help by calling the Fisher House at 259-4956 to get your tickets. Cash, check or credit cards are accepted.
Choral Society
The Choral Society of Pensacola presents the holiday classic Handel’s Messiah at 7:30 p.m. Dec. 3 at St. Paul Catholic Church, 3131 Hyde Park Road. Tickets are $18/reserved section seating, $15/general admission, and $5/students. Tickets can be purchased at 484-1847 and will be available at the door one hour prior to performance time.
Santa’s arrival
Don’t miss the arrival of Santa at Silver Sands on Sacred Heart’s AIRHeart Helicopter at noon Dec. 3. Children are invited to dress up in festive holiday costumes and join Santa for a fun parade to the Courtyard for refreshments and complimentary photos. a donation will be made to Sacred Heart Hospital on the Emerald Coast in the name of the holiday costume contest winners for each age category.
Holiday craft show
The fourth annual Holiday Craft show will be held from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Dec. 3 at the Destin Community Center. Vendors will have artwork, handmade crafts, scrapbooking, silk florals, food products, jewelry and more. Admission is free. Call 654-5184.
Breakfast with Santa
The Fort Walton Beach Medical Center Auxiliary will host its 28th annual Breakfast with Santa from 8-10 a.m. Dec. 3 in the hospital cafeteria. Tickets are $3/adults and $2/children and are available in advance at the Gift Shop or at the door. Volunteer elves will help children purchase gifts, including wrapping, for $1-$5 in Santa’s workshop. Call 243-5860.
Breakfast with Santa
Bring the lil’ rockers to Hard Rock Cafe Destin for Breakfast with Santa at 8 a.m. Dec. 3, 4, 10 and 11. Cost is $9.95 and children 2 and younger are free with paid adult. Includes reserved seating and a buffet style breakfast plus a visit with Santa and photos and a party bag with goodies. make reservations at 654-3310.
Destin Boat Parade
The Destin History and Fishing Museum will host the 25th Holiday on the Harbor Destin Boat Parade at 6 p.m. Dec. 4. Boats will start lining up in the Harbor between 5 and 5:30 p.m. Festivities will be held that afternoon all along the harbor and the judging will start at 6 p.m. upstairs at Harry T’s Restaurant. Fireworks in the East Pass will light up the sky after the parade.
The parade can be viewed from docks and restaurants west of Grand Harbor Condominiums. in case of bad weather, the event will be held Dec. 11.
A Season of Song
The Niceville High School Chorus ushers in the holidays with a medley of winter and holiday selections featuring a candlelight processional at 7 p.m. Dec. 5 at the Mattie Kelly Fine Arts Auditorium on the Northwest Florida State College campus in Niceville. Tickets are $15 and all seats are reserved. purchase tickets at 729-6000 or visit mattiekellyartscenter.org.
Holiday Toast on the Coast
The Northwest Florida Coast Chapter of the Florida Public Relations Association will host its annual holiday reception and fundraiser from 5:30-7:30 p.m. Dec. 8 at Fleming’s Prime Steakhouse & Wine Bar in Grand Boulevard at Sandestin. Proceeds will go toward promoting and enhancing the public relations profession along the Gulf Coast and Christmas gifts will be collected and donated to Emerald Coast Toys for Tots, an organization that distributes toys to needy children in Okaloosa and Walton Counties.
The event will include a silent auction and non-raffle drawing for prizes such as gift certificates, room stays, vacation packages, event tickets, gift baskets, advertising and much more. Local businesses and individuals are invited to donate items for the drawing to help raise money.
Drawing tickets can be purchased at the door or prior to the event at Silver Sands Factory Stores’ Shopper Services and Grand Boulevard’s Guest Services for $10 per ticket or three for $25.
To attend, email jessica@proffitpr.com by Dec. 2. Admission is $25, $20/FPRA members, and includes a cocktail and heavy hors d’oeuvres.
Mistletoe Market
The Junior League of the Emerald Coast will host its fourth annual Mistletoe Market fundraiser Dec. 8-11 at the Linkside Center at the Sandestin Golf and Beach Resort. Specialty merchants from across the country will offer gift items including clothing, jewelry and handbags to food, art and children’s items. Hours are 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Dec. 9 and 10 and 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Dec. 11. Admission is $5.
The event will kick-off with the Mistletoe Market Preview Party, a VIP shopping party, from 7-10 p.m. Dec. 8 with five local restaurants and catering companies serving and live entertainment. Tickets are $40/person.
Breakfast with Santa for children will be held from 10 a.m. to noon Dec. 10 and includes a magic show. Cost is $20/child. Tickets for the Preview Party and Breakfast with Santa are available at jlec.org or at the door.
DMS concert
The Destin Middle School Winter Concert and silent Auction will be held Dec. 9 at Village Baptist Church, 101 Matthew Blvd. in Destin. The auction bidding begins at 6 p.m. with the free concert to follow at 6:30 p.m. Browse the bidding tables for unique gift baskets and items, donated from the generous business community.
The Magic of Christmas
The Fort Walton Beach Community Chorus presents the concert, “The Magic of Christmas,” at 7:30 p.m. Dec. 9; 3 and 7:30 p.m. Dec. 10; and 3 p.m. Dec. 11 at the the Fort Walton Beach Municipal Auditorium. Tickets are $15/adults, $12/children under 12 years of age, and $12/seniors 60 and older. Tickets can be purchased at Alphy’s Catfish House in Navarre, Bayou Books in Niceville, Blooms and Bon Bons in Crestview, Connect with Flowers in Shalimar, P.S. Gifts in Fort Walton Beach, The Cat Clinic in Destin, and Diamond Works in Mary Esther.
Tee Off for Toys
People are questioned to donate new, unwrapped toys or gift cards with a value of $15 or more Dec. 10-11 at Sandestin Golf and Beach Resort. in exchange guests can play Sandestin’s golf courses for just the green and golf cart fee of $20. all toys and donations will be given to Harvest House for their Hope for Holidays program benefiting children and families in need this holiday season.
Local residents, guests and visitors are welcome to participate. Tee times are available all day and can be made at 850-267-8155.
Destin Christmas Parade
The 26th Annual Destin Christmas Parade will be held at 10 a.m. Dec. 10. The theme this year is “Christmas around the World.” Parade will assemble at 8 a.m. at the Downtown Destin Shopping Center and then travel down U.S. 98 to Nightown. Applications may be picked up at the Destin Community Center or downloaded at cityofdestin.com. They must be returned by Dec. 2. Call 654-5184.
Peter White Christmas
The annual holiday production, Peter White Christmas presented by WSBZ-FM The Seabreeze 106.3 FM, blends cool contemporary jazz with traditional holiday music at 7:309 p.m. Dec. 15 at the Mattie Kelly Arts Center at NFSC in Niceville. eight time Grammy Award nominee saxophonist, Kirk Whalum, will join Mindi Abair and Peter White for what will be a “jazzy Christmas.”
All seats are reserved. General admission seating is $40 eac with special Front Section seating available for $80 each. To order tickets by phone call The Arts Center at 729-6000 or visit WSBZ-FM website at seabreeze.fm. Front Section tickets are only available by phone or at the Arts Center Box Office in person.
General admission tickets are also available at Playground Music Center in Fort Walton Beach and Kitchenique at City Market in Destin.
The Greatest Gift Camp
Immanuel Anglican Church will host “The Greatest Gift Camp” to celebrate the birth of Jesus from 9:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. Dec. 17 inside Noah’s Ark Preschool. Children ages 4-10 will make gifts for their family members. Cost is $30, siblings are $25. Call 837-6324 to register. Space is limited.
The Nutcracker
Ballet Conservatory and Destin School of Music and Dance present their annual holiday classic, “The Nutcracker”, at 7 p.m. Dec. 17 and 1:30 p.m. Dec. 18 in the South Walton Beach High School auditorium. More than 80 local dancers will participate in the production. Early Bird pricing is $15 before Dec. 12 and general admission available at the door for $20 cash each day. Call 837-1133.
Luces Navideñas
The Seventh Annual Luces Navideñas Children’s Party will be held from 2-6 p.m. Dec. 18 at the Boys and Girls Club’s Teen Center in Fort Walton Beach. The “Latin-Flavored” party is open to all children/families regardless of race, nationality or ethnicity. Everything is free, to include new toys for all that attend. there will be food, games, DJs, singers, church choirs, clowns, magicians, plus Santa and his elves.
The organization needs donations of toys, gifts, clothing as well as monetary contributions to defray the costs of the event. We are also looking for volunteers and business sponsors. Call 305-3686 or 368-3505 or email estela.elias@embarqmail.com or dt4alexis@gmail.com.
Baking class
Chef Jim Shirah will hold baking classes from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Dec. 20 and 21 at the Destin Community Center for children ages 8-14. The fee is $25/residents and $30/non-residents. each student will learn how to bake and take home holiday cookies and treats. Register at 654-5184.
Sacred Heart Holiday Sale
The spirit of the holidays will come alive in the main hallway of Sacred Heart Hospital on the Emerald Coast as the hospital’s Volunteer Guild hosts its annual Holiday Sale Extravaganza from 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday-Friday through Dec. 21.
Shoppers will receive a 10 percent discount on most gift shop items and a 20 percent discount on varying holiday items each week of the sale. Items include unique holiday decorations, tree ornaments, manger scenes, angels, music boxes, jewelry, baby clothing, holiday games, festive toys and table décor.
Proceeds generated support current and future services at Sacred Heart, in addition to providing healthcare-based scholarships to local students and prescription drug assistance to underserved families in our community. Call 278-3032.
Bass Pro Shops
The fourth annual “Santa’s Wonderland — a Classic Christmas” at Bass Pro Shops in Destin Commons is a 3,500-square foot Christmas village full of games, activities and crafts for the whole family through Dec. 24.
Comprised of both animated and live elves, nutcrackers, reindeer and more, the village offers an ancient-time model train area, remote control trucks, a Red Ryder laser arcade, a soft gun range and slot car racing. Kids can also play the hottest new video games of the season, write a letter to Santa, color and do fun crafts every day of the week — all free. Also new this year, a Santa Bandz bracelet will be offered to the first 150 kids who visit Santa’s Wonderland from 5-7 p.m. Monday through Friday.
Customers can get a free 4 x 6 photo with Santa from 3-8 p.m. Monday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Saturdays and 12-5 p.m. Sundays.
Kids can take part in the traditions of making crafts and holiday ornaments from 5-7 p.m. Mondays through Fridays through Dec. 23 and from 12-5 p.m. through Dec. 24.
