The 32nd Annual Palm Beach Holiday Boat Parade begins at 6 p.m. on Saturday, December 5, in North Palm Beach. A Zambelli traveling fireworks display leads it north on the Intracoastal Waterway, and it reaches the Jupiter Inlet Lighthouse at about 8 p.m. That is the plan published by the Marine Industries Association of Palm Beach County, which runs the event. The grand finale is at the Lighthouse. North Palm Beach and Juno Beach get the parade during its first hour, and the bridge openings along the route tell you when it will pass each stretch of water.
The parade is a month away, and the deadline for boaters comes much sooner. Below are the timing, the viewing spots on the southern end, and the dates around it in North Palm Beach and Juno Beach.
Five bridge openings across the parade's first two hours
MIAPBC publishes estimated opening times for each bridge on the route. Its permits allow each bridge to open for one hour. Read in order, those estimates work as a rough timetable for the parade's front edge.
| Bridge | Estimated opening | Public viewing sites on that stretch |
|---|---|---|
| Parker Bridge | About 6:00 p.m. | North Palm Beach Country Club, near the start |
| PGA Bridge | About 6:15 p.m. | Waterway Cafe |
| Donald Ross Bridge | About 7:00 p.m. | Juno Park and Bert Winters Park, before this opening |
| Indiantown Road Bridge | Around 7:30 p.m. | Sawfish Bay Park, Waterway Park, Riverwalk, Harbourside Place |
| Jupiter Federal Bridge | About 7:45 p.m. | Lighthouse Park and the finale |
The right-hand column pairs each bridge with the nearby sites from MIAPBC's public viewing list. The organizers do not publish pass times for individual parks, so treat these as estimated windows. MIAPBC puts the uncertainty plainly on its parade page:
"Due to weather, winds, tides and currents we cannot predict the EXACT time bridges along the parade route will be opening and closing. Here are our best estimates based on past parades."
On the southern end, arriving early costs little. The Lighthouse crowd waits until about 8 p.m. A viewer at the edge of the North Palm Beach Country Club golf course should see the lead boats near the start of the evening. Viewers at the Juno parks can expect the fleet sometime between the PGA and Donald Ross openings, roughly between 6:15 and 7 p.m. by the estimates.
The Country Club sits at the kickoff
The Village-owned North Palm Beach Country Club is the first public viewing site on MIAPBC's list. Before last year's parade, WPTV called the club a place to watch the parade start. Palm Beach Illustrated reported in November 2025 that The Clubhouse restaurant served drinks and dinner on parade night and that people could find spots along the edge of the golf course. That was the 2025 arrangement. The Clubhouse can tell you its plans for December 5 this year.
The Village's October 2026 newsletter announced a new menu at The Clubhouse for October. That fall the club also marked swim coach Richard Cavanah's 50 years there and named the road through the club after him. On parade night, that road leads to the first stretch of water the fleet passes.
A short distance away, MIAPBC held its 2025 VIP viewing party at North Palm Beach Marina, 1037 Marina Drive. The ticketed evening included a catered dinner, a cash bar, valet, a DJ and photos with Santa. MIAPBC's invitation promised "the best views of the Boat Parade and traveling fireworks show" from that North Palm Beach marina.
Juno's two county parks cover the middle stretch
North of PGA Boulevard, two waterfront parks on the viewing list sit on the stretch before the Donald Ross Bridge opening.
- Juno Park, 2003 Juno Road, is a Palm Beach County park on the Intracoastal with regular parking and boat and trailer parking. Trailer parking requires a permit, and overnight parking is not allowed.
- Bert Winters Park has 805 feet of Intracoastal frontage, restrooms, regular parking, and boat and trailer parking that requires a permit. Palm Beach County operates it.
Bert Winters has restrooms and more than 800 feet of shoreline. That matters on a night when people may wait an hour or more for the lead boats. The bridge estimates also put both parks well ahead of the Jupiter crowds, so families with young children can see the fleet and the fireworks and still be home before the finale ends at the Lighthouse.
If you can't be at the water, WPBF streams the parade live on its app and Facebook page. MIAPBC also links a real-time tracker on its parade page.
The toy count shows how much the parade has grown
The parade doubles as a toy drive for Toys for Tots and Little Smiles. MIAPBC asks spectators at the finale to bring a new, unwrapped toy, and a toy-collection fleet takes donations dockside. The association's 2025 performance report puts last year's total at 16,000 toys, up from 14,000 in 2024. That 2,000-toy increase in one year is the clearest measure in the report of how much the parade grew.
The boats have their regulars too. The same report says Nauti Kitty, a 53-foot catamaran decorated as a circus with a striped Big Top tent and inflatable elephants and giraffes, won Best of Parade for the third year running. Its owners donated their cash prizes to the two charities. Two newcomers also won in 2025. Pink Pony Pontoon took Fan Favorite. Whiz Whit, a 53-foot yacht with a snowy rooftop and a smoking chimney, won the new Rookie of the Year award and first place in the Over 35 Feet class. Nailed It won the 25 to 35 Feet class, Palm Beach Peter Boat won Under 25 Feet, and Party Up took the corporate award.
Safe Harbor presents the parade this year. Lessing's Hospitality Group presented it in 2025.
For boat owners, November 19 comes first
Entry is free, and the parade awards more than $10,000 in cash and prizes. The deadline that matters this month falls two weeks after this post publishes. MIAPBC's terms for entries:
- Boats registered by November 19 have the refundable $50 deposit waived and are entered to win $500 plus PBIBS Winward VIP passes.
- Every registered boat is entered in a $250 cash drawing.
- First-year boats compete for Rookie of the Year, which pays $250 plus other prizes.
- Judges score lights, enthusiasm and themed decor, and award prizes to the top three boats in each category.
- Best of Parade wins $500. A boat owned by an MIAPBC Boater Member wins another $500, and Fan Favorite wins $500.
The 2026 boat entry application is linked from MIAPBC's page, along with a list of preferred vendors for decorating. Every boat in the fleet passes North Palm Beach first.
Four December evenings within a few miles
The parade lands in the middle of a busy stretch of the local calendar. Each of these is a short drive from the Intracoastal.
- Wednesday, December 2, 7 to 8 p.m. North Palm Beach's annual tree lighting at Veterans Memorial Park, 303 Anchorage Drive, with the North Palm Youth Symphony and the mayor.
- Friday, December 4, 5 to 7 p.m. Juno Beach's Christmas by the Lake in the Town Center Backyard Area.
- Saturday, December 5, from 6 p.m. The boat parade, rain or shine, leaving North Palm Beach and heading for the Jupiter Inlet Lighthouse.
- Thursday, December 10, 5 to 7 p.m. Juno Beach's Hanukkah Celebration in the Town Center Courtyard.
One local construction note for anyone heading to Anchorage Park. Seacoast Utility Authority began force-main work in the park on October 12 and expected to finish there by the end of October. During that work the west-side fishing pier and the large pavilion were closed, while the boat ramp, the tennis courts and the east-side pier stayed open. The wider utility replacement along Ibis Way, Westward Way and Prosperity Farms Road is projected to run through June 2027.
MIAPBC's viewing guide starts with private viewing parties hosted by family and friends who live on the water, before it lists the public sites. If your home faces the stretch the parade passes in its first hour, from the Parker Bridge north past PGA Boulevard to Juno, The Hyland Group can show you how Intracoastal frontage on the southern end is valued this season. Request a Confidential Home Valuation and we will walk you through it.
