Fort Lauderdale Beach has two holiday lighting nights this year. The north end goes first. On Thursday, Nov. 12, the Galt Ocean Mile lights its tree on NE 33rd Street. Exactly one week later, the city switches on more than 50,000 holiday lights at Las Olas Oceanside Park and brings back Olas, the 20-foot beach snowman at A1A and Las Olas Boulevard. After that, the island's calendar keeps moving south. By December, almost every dated event on the barrier island sits close to that one corner.
For anyone living between Commercial Boulevard and the 17th Street Causeway, that order matters. The north end gets one evening that belongs only to it. The south end gets the rest of the season.
Downtown Lights Up First, on the Mainland
The city's holiday series doesn't start on the beach. Light Up Lauderdale opens this evening, Thursday, Nov. 5, at Esplanade Park on the Riverwalk. It begins a 10-week run of lights along the New River, with a lighting ceremony at 6:30 p.m. The same city series later goes to Sistrunk Boulevard on Dec. 4 and Carter Park on Dec. 11. Only two of its lightings are on the barrier island, and they come a week apart.
Nov. 12: The Galt Lights Its Own Tree
Light Up the Galt is presented by the North Beach Restaurants and Shoppes and the City of Fort Lauderdale. It runs from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. at NE 33rd Avenue and NE 33rd Street. The Light Up Lauderdale program described above is mostly a city stage. The Galt's program is built around the street and its businesses:
- Live music on 33rd Street all evening, with holiday music from 7 p.m.
- A holiday pop-up gift market and local business activities, 5:30 to 8:30 p.m.
- A Letters to Santa station, make-and-take crafts, and gingerbread photos
- Strolling characters from 6 p.m.: the Grinch and Cindy Lou, plus Elf and Jovie, along with a stilt-walking Nutcracker and balloon artists
- The tree lighting at 6:30 p.m.
The same merchant group worked with the city on this year's Labor Day festival. The city listed local boutiques, restaurants and bars, sidewalk sales, and live entertainment for that event. Twice Removed, the cocktail bar and kitchen at 3301 NE 33rd Street, is on the street where the Galt event takes place.
For north-end residents, Nov. 12 is the main event of the season close to home. Everything on the island's calendar after it happens farther south.
The Week Between Fills Up at the South End
Before the Galt even lights its tree, the south end already has a full week of events.
Las Olas Oceanside Park, known as the LOOP, hosts The MKT every Saturday and Sunday. The beach event calendar lists November dates on Nov. 7, 8, 14, 15, 21, 22, 28 and 29. It shows Saturday hours of 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday hours of 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. The LOOP's own market page has listed an earlier Saturday close in the past, so check it before you plan a late visit.
On Sunday, Nov. 8, the 20th Annual Liquid Youth Fort Lauderdale Running Festival starts at the LOOP. It includes a half marathon, a relay, a 10K and a 5K, with routes along Las Olas and A1A. That's the same morning as a MKT Sunday. If you need A1A to get somewhere that morning, expect runners on it.
The city's recreation listings include a Thanksgiving Feast at the Beach Community Center on Nov. 13, the day after the Galt lighting, from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. It costs $17, or $9 for Club 55+ members, and registration closes Nov. 8. That same day, the pool at the Fort Lauderdale Aquatic Center closes for three days, Nov. 13 through 15.
The sand has its own schedule in November. The city's sea turtle page sets nesting season from March 1 to October 31. It also says nests take about two months to incubate, and the city maps nests and puts protective barriers around them where needed. A nest laid in late October can still be incubating in December, so you may still see marked nests during holiday beach walks.
Nov. 19: Everything Meets at A1A and Las Olas
Light Up the Beach takes over Las Olas Oceanside Park, 3000 E. Las Olas Blvd., on Thursday, Nov. 19, from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. The lighting ceremony is at 6:30 p.m. The evening also includes the Fort Lauderdale Symphonic Winds and a kids zone with Santa, inflatables and slides. The Galt's evening is spread along a shopping street. This one is focused on the intersection where Olas stands.
That intersection is also where the island's biggest new restaurant is opening. Motek By The Sea is taking over the oceanfront El Vez space at the W Fort Lauderdale, 401 N. Fort Lauderdale Beach Blvd., a short walk north of the snowman. Motek's June announcement set the debut for November 2026. It describes about 12,000 square feet with seating for 315 guests indoors and outdoors, developed by Happy Corner Hospitality with Marriott and Blackstone. It will be Motek's first location in Broward County and its 10th in South Florida. For now, the Motek Fort Lauderdale page lists the location as open only for takeout and delivery, still marked "Coming Soon," with no date for dine-in service.
The LOOP may get one more date. The city postponed its Oct. 25 Diwali Celebration at the park because of weather and said it would announce a new date. If that date is set, it will also be at the south end.
December Fits Into a Few Blocks
After Thanksgiving, the island's calendar narrows further. The Aquatic Center closes on Nov. 26 and has holiday hours on Nov. 27. On Sunday, Nov. 29, the LOOP hosts the Second Annual World AIDS Day Concert. Then the first eight days of December happen within a short walk of the snowman:
- Dec. 5 and 6: The MKT's December weekend at the LOOP.
- Sunday, Dec. 6, 6 p.m.: The city's Menorah Lighting Celebration at Las Olas Oceanside Park, on the third night of Hanukkah, with music and traditional treats.
- Tuesday, Dec. 8: Santa's candy-cane giveaway, heading north along the beach from Fort Lauderdale Beach Park. No start time has been posted.
- Wednesday, Dec. 9: A ribbon-cutting and groundbreaking event at the Aquatic Center at 501 Seabreeze Blvd., with no lap swim from 6:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.
The Santa giveaway is the only December event that heads back toward the Galt, and it starts at the south end.
What Dec. 9 Is Next To
The Dec. 9 event takes place on the peninsula one block west of A1A and south of Las Olas Boulevard. The city's pools, its 27-meter dive tower and the International Swimming Hall of Fame are all there. The city's notice says construction resumed in May 2025 and the site is in phase 1 of the Hall of Fame project. It warns of possible changes to schedules, parking and traffic during the work.
The South Florida Sun Sentinel reported in March that the city commission unanimously approved a six-story west building. That building was cut down from the equivalent of 13 stories to protect views of the dive tower. Its plans include an aquarium, a museum and a rooftop restaurant, with opening expected by December 2028 at an estimated cost of $220 million. In an April announcement, the development partners named the project The Water District, set to open in 2028. The city's calendar doesn't say which building or phase the Dec. 9 ceremony is for, so watch the Aquatic Center page for details.
If you live at the Galt, Nov. 12 is the date to keep. If you live near Las Olas, the season runs from Nov. 19 through the ceremony on Seabreeze.
If you would like to talk through how these changes around A1A and Las Olas affect the building or block you're considering on the island, Roman Tschannen is glad to help. Request a private consultation.
