Palm Springs Festival of Lights Parade

Now what is there to say about a parade that goes through the main thoroughfare of Palm Springs during the holidays? Jamie W. and I had an honest-​to-​goodness Palm Springs weekend, and by the grace of Frank Sinatra’s karma and the suggestion of the manager at our hotel, we found ourselves in the middle of the festivities amid all the lawn chairs this past Saturday evening. This is nothing at the level of the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, although I was surprised how many floating snowmen and humongous ornaments there were passing by. There was a grand marshal at the back of an open convertible, one of the Real Housewives of whatever. That’s the level of celebrity we’re talking about here.
This is definitely the parade we never got to see go through Mayberry on «The Andy Griffith Show» due to network TV budget constraints. High school marching bands decked out in holiday lights playing their hearts out. In fact, everyone in the parade was wrapped in strings of lights since this event happens after dusk. We were surprised that it lasted for over two hours, certainly enough time for the entirety of Palm Springs population to walk through. Even after five minutes, it started to feel like rush hour traffic with people packed four deep in some spots, but we kept ourselves on the steps of the Rainmaker Fountain where our elevated position allowed us some clearance for a view. If you are in the area next year, you should definitely make a point of sticking around to see it. It amounts to quaint holiday charm among the palms.

After having watched the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade a week prior, I guess the PS Festival of Lights is just a little bit of a letdown.
Really though, when you consider PS really is a small town, the Festival of Lights Parade is quite the production. Sure, some of the «floats» are a little cheesy, but it’s all in good fun. Parade lasts about two hours or so. But the best part is that you can get right up on the action. As long as you’re willing to stand, it’s not too hard to find a spot to watch the parade. And if you’re willing to bike your way in, you don’t even need to worry about parking downtown.

First time trying this event out, I must admit, it was totally fun. Like all events it was crowed, with a bunch of annoying people, but what would a holiday event be without a bunch of bratty children, being unwatched by their parent. It was great to see «Come and Knock on Our Door» Suzanne Summers as the grand marshal. I only stayed for a hour, but the parade was very organized, save it starting 10 – 15 minutes later. I had so much fun, but one hour was enough for me.

Every year we enjoy the light parade. It’s always different and that’s good, although we miss the dancing tractor-​dancing to the music, lets do the twist. Oh how everyone would cheer! Miss miss the dancing tractor. The Santa float had gone through many changes over the years, with many little elves decorating or redesigning the different floats. People come from all over, usually around 50,000 watching with excitement to see the next band or float. Thank you to all the volunteers over the many years for a job well done and a big thank you to Karen Barnes that directed the parade for many years, she even received a star downtown on the sidewalk to say job well done.

We spent the entire day in downtown Palm Springs, and capped it off with the Festival of Lights parade. We had a great time. Plan to get there several hours early to save a spot. Bring foldup chairs too, so you can sit beforehand. The parade lasted one hour and 15 minutes, and never got boring. Several marching bands, and cool floats. We stayed at the Best Western Las Brisas, and it was excellent, and right around the corner.

This is a great event and this was the 1^st time for the wife and I. We got there about 1hr before and got a decent spot on a planter to stand on. Some folks were there (or at least their chairs) earlier in the day saving a spot. If you want a curb seat you have to go earlier that 2hrs before event.
Event has quite the participation from all kinds of community groups, (religious, clubs, various law enforcement and fire departments) from throughout the Palm Spring/​Cochella Valley. If your in there area around the first part of December, make it a plan to go.
Almost everything in the event, people, vehicles, animals have holiday lights on them to varoius degrees and there are awards for the best in different catagories. Muisc, marching bands. Great for kids.