Christmas in Palm Springs: Parade, Lights & Holiday Guide

The Festival of Lights Parade

The valley's marquee holiday event: a nighttime parade down Palm Canyon Drive in downtown Palm Springs, held the first Saturday of December (typically starting around 5:45pm). Floats, marching bands, classic cars, and a genuinely local crowd — it's been running for three decades and still feels like a small-town tradition. Streets close by mid-afternoon; arrive by 4pm for a curb spot, or book a patio table at a restaurant on the route and watch with dinner.

Where to see holiday lights

• **Downtown Palm Springs:** the palm trees along Palm Canyon Drive are wrapped in white lights all season — the classic stroll
• **WildLights at the Living Desert Zoo (Palm Desert):** the zoo transforms after dark with millions of lights, animal-themed displays, and s'mores stations on select nights from late November through December. Tickets are separate from daytime admission and sell out on weekends
• **Candy Cane Lane (Cathedral City):** the valley's beloved residential light street — Minerva Road turns into a drive-through display most of December
• **A note on Robolights:** the famous (and famously strange) Robolights installation closed permanently in 2022. Anything still advertising it is out of date

What December weather is actually like

Daytime highs run 65–75°F with nearly guaranteed sun — lunch by the pool is realistic most afternoons. Nights drop into the 40s, so pack layers: shorts and a t-shirt at 2pm, a jacket by 6pm. Rain is rare but possible; December is technically one of the valley's wetter months, which still means only a day or two. Up at the Aerial Tramway, it's a different season entirely — snow is common at the 8,516-foot Mountain Station, making a tram ride the easiest "white Christmas" you'll ever find 20 minutes from the pool.

What's open on Christmas Day

More than you'd expect. Most hotel restaurants serve special Christmas brunch and dinner seatings (book weeks ahead — these sell out), many downtown restaurants open with regular or holiday menus, and the Aerial Tramway runs its normal schedule. The Living Desert Zoo and most museums close on Christmas Day itself. Movie theaters at The River and the casino resorts are reliably open and busy.

Holiday dining

Christmas Eve and Christmas Day prix-fixe dinners are a valley tradition — the big resort restaurants (and most El Paseo spots) run special menus. Book by early December at the latest. For something more casual, downtown Palm Springs restaurants mostly stay open and the bar scene is lively all week between Christmas and New Year's.

Booking strategy

The week between Christmas and New Year's is one of the valley's busiest — hotel rates spike to spring-festival levels and minimum stays appear. The first three weeks of December are the value play: festive atmosphere, decorated hotels, parade weekend energy, and rates closer to normal high season. If you're coming for Christmas week specifically, book by October.

New Year's Eve

Downtown Palm Springs does a free street party with live music, and the bigger hotels and casino resorts host ticketed dinners and parties. It's a festive but manageable scene — no Times Square chaos, just desert patio parties under heaters.