Where in Pompano Beach does the holiday season actually happen? Between now and mid-December, the Pompano Beach Cultural Center at 50 W. Atlantic Blvd. hosts more holiday-season dates than anywhere else in the city. The tree lighting happens in Old Town, and the first ceremonial lighting of the season happens on Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard. East Atlantic Boulevard gets one evening, and it's a Thursday.
The day of the week matters. The city's free Fishing Village Shuttle runs Friday through Sunday and on holidays, so the Yuletide parade lands on the one night of the season's busiest stretch when you'll need your own ride. The rest of the calendar fits the shuttle's schedule almost perfectly.
The calendar, in order
Here's the full run from Pompano Beach Arts' holiday schedule, published November 5, plus the city and Chamber event pages:
- Friday, November 20: Hot Brass: A Tribute to Earth, Wind & Fire and Chicago, Pompano Beach Cultural Center
- Sunday, November 22: The Spaghetti & Matzo Ball Show, Pompano Beach Cultural Center
- Friday, November 27 through Sunday, November 29: Black Nativity, Pompano Beach Cultural Center
- Saturday, November 28: Light Up MLK, 5 to 8 p.m., Annie Adderly Gillis Park
- Thursday, December 3: Yuletide on Atlantic parade, 6 to 9:30 p.m., East Atlantic Boulevard
- Friday, December 4: Old Town Untapped holiday edition and tree lighting, 6 to 10 p.m.
- Friday, December 11: 64th Greater Pompano Beach Chamber of Commerce Holiday Boat Parade, 6 p.m., Intracoastal Waterway
- Saturday, December 12: Green Market Holiday Edition, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., Pompano Beach Cultural Center campus
Every date on that list is free except the Cultural Center performances.
50 W. Atlantic carries the most dates
The Cultural Center's next two shows are this weekend. Hot Brass plays Friday, November 20, and The Spaghetti & Matzo Ball Show follows on Sunday, November 22.
Black Nativity takes over Thanksgiving weekend, November 27 to 29, with four performances. Pompano Beach Arts describes the production as based on the work of poet and playwright Langston Hughes. It tells the story of Mary and Joseph's journey to Bethlehem through an African American cultural perspective, with gospel music, spirituals and African-inspired costumes.
The same campus is also home to Green Market Pompano Beach, which runs free on the second and fourth Saturdays from November through April. Normal market mornings bring local produce, baked goods, artisan foods, honey, seafood, orchids, crafts and wellness items, plus yoga, children's crafts and music. The season opened November 14, and the next market dates are November 28 and December 12. The December 26 market is closed, so the Holiday Edition is the last chance to shop local this year.
City Hall at 100 W. Atlantic Blvd. sits on the same stretch of the boulevard, and it's one of the two park-and-ride pickup points for the Fishing Village Shuttle. The shuttle's west-end stops and the busiest holiday campus share a block of Atlantic Boulevard.
November 28 covers the whole west side in one day
The Saturday after Thanksgiving is the densest single day on the calendar.
The morning is a regular Green Market Saturday at 50 W. Atlantic. Black Nativity is mid-run at the Cultural Center that weekend. At 5 p.m., Light Up MLK starts at Annie Adderly Gillis Park, 601 Dr. M.L.K. Jr. Blvd.
Pompano Beach Arts presents Light Up MLK as a free, family event with live entertainment, food, games and giveaways. The night builds to a ceremonial lighting that the organizers say officially opens the holiday season along the MLK corridor. Free tickets are on the Eventbrite listing linked from the city's arts schedule.
The first lighting of Pompano's season comes nearly a week before the Old Town tree lighting, and it's on MLK Boulevard.
East Atlantic gets its night on a Thursday
Yuletide on Atlantic is the season's one event on East Atlantic Boulevard. The parade starts at 6 p.m. at Riverside Drive and heads west on Atlantic Boulevard to SE 24th Avenue. The judges' stand is at Harbor Drive and Atlantic Boulevard, where MCs announce each parade unit and the performances happen. The city lists floats, music and a visit from Santa, and it's free.
December 3 is a Thursday. The Pompano Circuit Fishing Village Shuttle is listed for Friday through Sunday and holidays, 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. On parade night, the park-and-ride from City Hall that works for the rest of the season isn't on the schedule.
For drivers, the city-run Pier Parking Garage is at 3460 NE 3rd St. Self-parking is on levels 2 through 4. You take a ticket at entry and pay by card, Apple Pay or Google Pay at a kiosk or at the exit. The city's parking locations page puts the garage in Zone 2 and lists three hourly rates:
- Weekdays: $1.80 an hour
- Weekends: $2.50 an hour
- Holidays and events: $3.25 an hour
For dinner before or after the parade, the Pompano Beach CRA lists Beach House Pompano, Oceanic, Lucky Fish, Baresco and How You Brewin Coffee Company among the Fishing Village's operators. The city's own advice for the parade is to arrive early for a good seat.
The Fridays are when the shuttle matches the calendar
The night after the Yuletide parade, the season moves back downtown, and the transit picture changes.
Old Town Untapped is the city's free first-Friday block party, normally 6 to 10 p.m., centered on Bailey Contemporary Arts at 41 NE 1st Street near NE 1st Street and N. Flagler Avenue. Most months it brings live bands, gallery openings, local artists and food trucks. On December 4, the holiday edition adds the tree lighting and Waist to Chest: A Christmas Spectacular. Pompano Beach Arts describes the act as an offshoot of Girlfriend Material that plays Christmas songs as surf music. BaCA's exhibitions are open, and local artists sell their work along the block.
December 4 is a Friday, so the shuttle is on the schedule. The Old Town shuttle lot at NE 2nd Street and NE 2nd Avenue is a city park-and-ride pickup point. You can request a ride in the free Ride Circuit app or wave down a nearby fleet driver. The shuttle runs trips to and from the beach and the Fishing Village, not hops between stops at the beach. Service is listed until 10 p.m., the same time Untapped ends.
The city introduced the shuttle this fall. Open the Ride Circuit app before you leave home to confirm it's running that night.
December 11 and 12 end the season back where it started
The Chamber's 64th Holiday Boat Parade runs Friday, December 11, starting at 6 p.m. The Chamber expects more than 50 boats, and this year's theme is "A Party in the U.S.A." For paid seats, the Chamber's VIP viewing is at The Cove Waterfront & Tiki Bar, 1754 SE 3rd Ct. in Deerfield Beach, at $100 a person. The Chamber Boat Experience puts you on the water for $200 a person.
The next morning, the Green Market Holiday Edition brings the season back to 50 W. Atlantic from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. The Pompano Beach Historical Society and the City of Pompano Beach present it. Expect fresh produce, handmade gifts, artisan crafts and baked goods, along with donation-based indoor yoga from 9 to 10 a.m., children's crafts from 10 a.m. to noon, and music by DJ Trish. The calendar started at the Cultural Center with Hot Brass on November 20, and the Holiday Edition closes it out on the same campus.
Our office is here in Pompano Beach, and these are our neighbors' events too. If watching the parades or walking Old Town on December 4 gets you thinking about where in town you'd like to live next, or what your own place is worth this season, Red Pin Realty can help. Schedule a Free Market Consultation, and we'll talk through it with you over coffee between holiday plans.
