Boynton Beach's Holiday Parade Is Leaving Federal Highway This Year. Here's Where the Season Gathers Instead

On the first Saturday of last December, Federal Highway closed from noon to 9 p.m. Floats and marching groups ran along Federal Highway from SE 5th Avenue to East Ocean Avenue, and bleachers stood at the corner of Ocean and Federal. That was the 54th Annual Holiday Parade, held December 6, 2025, from 4 to 6 p.m.

This December, the parade comes off the road. The City of Boynton Beach has merged the holiday parade into its Holiday Tree Lighting. Parade groups that used to march down Federal Highway will each get up to 10 minutes on a stage at 120 E. Ocean Ave., and that includes load-in and load-out. With that change, nearly every civic event of the season sits on the same short stretch of East Ocean Avenue. City Hall is at 100, the tree lighting at 120, and the Good Day Market at 129.

Last December Took Two Nights and Two Locations

Under the old setup, the season opened over two nights in two different places. Here is how 2025 compares with the city's posted plans for 2026.

The city's listing calls the 2026 event a "newly redesigned Holiday Tree Lighting/ Whoville Spectacular." It describes "one special night featuring a children's performance stage and the annual tree lighting ceremony with Santa and the Grinch." The new window runs six hours on a Saturday, starting an hour earlier and ending an hour later than last year's Friday tree lighting.

The Market That Moved In First

The holiday events are not the first to move to this block. The Good Day Market opened its first Boynton Beach season in fall 2025, with its first Boynton date on October 19, 2025. That season's Boynton schedule placed it at 801 N. Congress Ave.

Season 2 opened downtown in September. According to Palm Beach Illustrated's listing, the market now sets up at 129 E. Ocean Ave., next to the Schoolhouse Children's Museum and across from Centennial Park & Amphitheater. Each market day brings more than 50 local vendors, plus yoga and new mat Pilates classes in the shade of the Kapok tree. Vendor-led workshops and community walks round out the schedule. Admission and parking are free, and the market is family- and dog-friendly.

The fall season has two Sundays left, both from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.:

1. Sunday, November 8. The theme is Sweet Corn & Fall Harvest.
2. Sunday, November 22. The theme is Autumn Brunch.

For parking, the organizer's listing points drivers to free spaces on Boynton Beach Boulevard and says to follow the A-frame sign to the market lot. No downtown market is listed for December. The organizer's next listed event is a separate Holiday Collective Market at Tanger Outlets on December 12. That puts November 22 about two weeks before the tree lighting fills the same block.

December 5 on Ocean Avenue

The 2026 tree lighting has a Grinch and Whoville theme. The city's event listing promises music from local performers, treats, children's activities and a holiday gift market. The stage performances will come from the kinds of groups that used to march on Federal Highway. The city's description names dancers, bands, costumed characters and community groups, with a visit from Santa Claus.

The listing gives these logistics:

• Free parking at the corner of Boynton Beach Boulevard and Seacrest Boulevard, entering from Boynton Beach Boulevard.
• Accessible parking on Ocean Avenue east of Seacrest Boulevard.
• Rideshare drop-off and pickup at the roundabout in front of City Hall, 100 E. Ocean Ave. The city encourages rideshare.

The vendor side is still filling up. The city lists separate applications for 501(c)(3) nonprofits, craft and retail vendors, and food trucks, plus one for stage performers. Every application closes November 22, the same day as the last fall Good Day Market. The listing directs for-profit service businesses to the city's sponsorship application. Its Public Affairs department follows up with those applicants. Any scout troop, school band, dance studio or church choir that marched last year applies through the stage performance form.

The Parade Still on the Move Is on the Water

The Holiday Boat Parade still follows a route. On Friday, December 11, 2026, the city's listing has boats leaving the Ocean Avenue Bridge in Lantana at 6:30 p.m. and heading south to the C-15 Canal in Delray Beach. The listed event window runs from 6 to 9 p.m. The City of Boynton Beach hosts, with Delray Beach, Hypoluxo and Lantana as partners. The listing ties the event to Boynton Harbor Marina at 735 Casa Loma Blvd.

Discover The Palm Beaches' event page names Boynton Harbor Marina as the official viewing location. It lists Intracoastal Park, Jaycee Park and Harvey E. Oyer Jr. Park as other places to watch. That page gives a 6 p.m. start, so plan around the city's 6:30 p.m. time and check its listing again that week.

Boynton Beach Insider reported that last year's boat parade ran on Friday, December 12, six days after the 2025 land parade. This year it falls six days after the tree lighting. Boynton Beach now has two major holiday nights: one on the water, and one on Ocean Avenue that has absorbed the old Federal Highway parade.

The Season by Date

These dates and times come from the organizers' and the city's own listings, which can change as each event gets closer. Check each listing the week of the event, especially for the boat parade start time and the tree lighting parking.

Varsha Chandra has worked Boynton Beach transactions for more than two decades and follows changes like this one, from where the parade runs to which downtown blocks fill up on a Saturday night. If a December move or listing is on your calendar, Varsha Chandra can help you time it around the season. Schedule a free consultation to talk through your plans.