When the sun goes down during the holidays a number of nearby cities and parks light up, sometimes in quite spectacular displays.
St. Augustine, the nation’s oldest city, celebrates with Nights of Lights. It begins in mid-November and continues every night until January 31, 2008.
“This is our fourteenth year,” said Jay Humphreys, communications director for St. Johns County Visitor and Convention Bureau. “We have two million lights. People hear that and say ‘oh, that’s overwhelming’ but then they come and everyone agrees it is very tastefully done.”
The lights, all two million of them, are tiny white electric lights. The tiny lights have a historical refection.
“During the First Spanish Colonial Period (1565-1764) the Spanish settlers in St. Augustine would put a single white candle in their windows,” said Humphreys.
While Nights of Lights is a free event, the effort of parking in historic downtown St. Augustine used to be an iffy issue. Those days are gone.
“There is no parking issue. We have just opened a 2,000-space parking facility behinds the Visitor’s Center. It is well done, the style is Spanish architecture,” Humphreys said.
The address is 1 Cordova Street, St. Augustine. Parking is $1.25 per hour with a maximum daily rate of $7.50. The facility is open 24-hours a day and personnel are always on duty.
Mayor Rick Baker of St. Petersburg threw the magic switch on November 23 to light up on twelve different holiday displays in Straub Park. The park is located on Bayshore Drive between Second and Fifth Avenues. The waterfront holiday display lights up every night until January 1, 2008.
Florida Botanical Gardens in Largo puts their plants in a whole different light with Illuminated Gardens. This free holiday experience started November 22 and continues nightly from 6 to 10 p.m. through January 3, 2008.
Family-themed nights called Friday Nights and Garden Lights take place on Friday, Dec. 7, Friday, Dec. 14 and Friday, Dec. 21. These nights have free music, refreshments and children’s activities from 6 to 9 p.m.
At Silver Springs Attraction in Ocala the Festival of Lights started on selected days in November and continues December 7-8 then December 14-30 from dusk to 8:30 p.m. Admission after 4:30 p.m. is $12.99 for adults and $8.99 for children ages three to ten.
“It is a wonderful time for families to come visit the park together,” said Steve Specht, Silver Springs Marketing Director. “The natural attraction during the day is transformed at night into a winder wonderland.”
In addition to lights and neon scenes, there is a Lighted Boat Parade nightly along with carolers, community choirs and musical stage shows.
Train buffs will want to stop at the Pavilion Gift Shop and see the holiday display of a 38-foot-long HO gauge model train set with two trains running through miniature scenes of a 1950’s Florida town.
Rainbow Springs State Park in Dunnellon welcomes Santa and Mrs. Claus who arrive by pontoon boat nightly on Dec. 7-9. Thousands of lights decorate the headwaters of the Rainbow River. Santa Over the Rainbow run from 6 to 8:30 p.m. on Dec. 7-9. Santa and Mrs. Claus will also be at the park on Dec. 14-16. December 21, 22, 26 and 27 the park is open from 6-8:30 p.m. for lights only event. Entrance fee is $1. Children ages five and younger are admitted free.
‘Tis the season to be illuminated. Go forth and enjoy.
This article first appeared in the Observer, December, 2007.Lucy Beebe Tobias is a freelance writer and artist living in Ocala. Her book 50 Great Walks in Florida can be pre-ordered from www.upf.com. The publication date is February 17,2008.
CONTACTS FOR LIGHTS
• St. Augustine. Web site: www.getaway4florida.com, phone: 1-800-OLD-CITY
• St. Petersburg. Web site: www.stpete.org, phone Parks Department (727) 893-7335
• Florida Botanical Gardens, Largo. Web site: www.pinellascounty.org/events, phone (727) 582-2247
• Silver Springs Attraction, Ocala. Web site: www.silversprings.com, phone (352) 236-2121
Rainbow Springs State Park, Dunnellon. Web site: www.floridastateparks.org, phone (352) 465-8555