A flashing yellow buoy sits offshore of the Cabrillo Pavilion. On the evening of Sunday, December 13, about 30 lit boats will run east along the coast from Leadbetter Beach and make their turn at that buoy, using the Pavilion's lighted facade as a landmark. Then they will head back west toward Stearns Wharf. The City of Santa Barbara's route notes for skippers describe that turning mark in one plain phrase. It is the buoy "off the Cabrillo Pavilion (which has white lights on the building)."
The 40th annual Parade of Lights is mostly described as a harbor and wharf event. Most of the afternoon's activity happens at that end, and so do the fireworks. The boat route itself, though, is built around East Beach. The eastern end of the waterfront is where the parade turns, and it is the stretch of shore the boats follow on their way back. This year there is one more East Beach detail to plan around. The freeway exit that used to lead straight to that end of Cabrillo Boulevard is closed, and by the current estimate it will stay closed through this holiday season and the next.
How the boats reach the Pavilion
The 2026 theme is Hawaiian Holiday. Skippers stage offshore of the Breakwater and the Santa Barbara Yacht Club from 4:30 to 5 p.m., circling counterclockwise until Harbor Patrol leads them out at 5:30. After that, the City's route reads like a set of directions along the length of the waterfront:
- Leave the staging circle and head for the flashing white "SB" channel buoy, keeping it to port.
- Pass the southwest "Outfall" buoy and continue east to the flashing yellow buoy at the east end of the Mooring Area.
- Turn to port toward East Beach and run north to the buoy off the Cabrillo Pavilion.
- Turn west and follow a line of buoys about half a mile, then a quarter mile, from Stearns Wharf, ending off the Stearns Wharf Wye.
- Round the end of the wharf and pass the judges' stand on the Moby Dick restaurant patio, where the route ends.
The boats come closest to East Beach in the third step, the one the route sets aside for the Pavilion. The fourth step brings them back along the shoreline toward the wharf. Boats keep about 200 feet apart at an average of 3 to 5 knots, so the line moves slowly and stays strung out along the water. Five surprise judges score each entry from the Moby Dick patio on its lights, how well its decorations fit the theme, and what the City calls "wow factor." By the time a boat reaches the judges, it has already passed the full length of East Beach.
An afternoon that starts at the other end
The earlier hours of the day are centered on the harbor. Here is the City's 2026 schedule, with notes on where each part takes place:
| Time | Event | Where it happens |
|---|---|---|
| 2:00 to 3:30 p.m. | Human-powered parade of paddlers and kayakers | Launches inside the Harbor and loops Stearns Wharf |
| 3:00 to 5:00 p.m. | Winter Wonderland with Santa and Mrs. Claus, elves and 10 tons of snow | City Pier in the Harbor |
| 3:30 p.m. | Stearns Wharf closes to vehicles | Stearns Wharf |
| 5:30 p.m. | Illuminated boat parade | Leadbetter Beach east to the Cabrillo Pavilion, then back to the wharf |
| About 7:00 p.m. | Fireworks | Launched from West Beach |
| About 7:30 p.m. | Wharf reopens to exiting vehicles; no-host awards party | Wharf; party location TBD |
The paddle parade never reaches East Beach. Its paddlers enter the water at the Fish Float North and the launch ramp, keep to the eastern side of the Harbor's main channel, go counterclockwise around the wharf, loop the Wharf Wye where the Christmas tree stands, and return to the Harbor. The fireworks start at the far end as well. They are launched from West Beach, between Santa Barbara Landing and Stearns Wharf, and last about five minutes. The City still lists East Beach among its best viewing spots for both the boats and the fireworks, along with Stearns Wharf, the breakwater and West Beach.
All of this means the East Beach end of the evening starts late. Nothing official happens near the Pavilion until about 30 boats come around the Mooring Area and head for that buoy. Before then, the shoreline east of the wharf is simply the waterfront on a December Sunday, and the Cabrillo Boulevard Arts & Crafts Show runs there every Sunday of the year from 10 a.m. until dusk.
Dinner near the turning buoy
The building the skippers steer by also has a restaurant inside. Reunion Kitchen + Drink operates in the Cabrillo Pavilion at 1118 E. Cabrillo Blvd., taking over the space that was once home to the East Beach Grill, as Noozhawk reported when the change was announced. Its website lists two different sets of hours. One says 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily. A more detailed schedule shows Sunday closing at 8:30 p.m. On a parade Sunday that half hour could matter, so call the restaurant before you plan dinner around it.
Across the boulevard, Costa Kitchen & Bar at the Mar Monte Hotel, 1111 E. Cabrillo Blvd., serves dinner every day and runs a daily happy hour. Farther along East Cabrillo, Convivo at the Santa Barbara Inn offers oceanfront dining, indoors and out, every day. All three are near the Pavilion and its buoy rather than the harbor, which is where the afternoon's official activity takes place.
The exit that no longer leads there
Until recently, the quickest way to the east end of East Beach from Highway 101 was to take the Cabrillo Boulevard exit. Both Cabrillo off-ramps are now closed, and SBRoads estimates they will stay closed until summer 2028. Northbound drivers are sent to the Hermosillo Road off-ramp, and southbound drivers to Spring/Olive Mill Road. Under the freeway, work on the foundations, the bridge and the retaining walls is ongoing at the Cabrillo Boulevard undercrossing. Edhat has reported intermittent one-way traffic beneath Highway 101 there while daytime deliveries are made.
The off-ramp closures last longer than any single event. If the SBRoads estimate holds, drivers heading to the Pavilion end by freeway will take a detour exit for both this December's parade and the one in December 2027. When the parade crowd heads home, Stearns Wharf will hold any cars still parked there until about 7:30 p.m. and warns of delays from foot traffic. The City says the Waterfront Parking Lots stay open as usual during the event.
SBRoads' description of the finished project shows what the eastern end will get in exchange for these seasons of detours:
- The Cabrillo Boulevard interchange will be rebuilt with two new bridges and right-hand freeway ramps, including a new southbound on-ramp.
- A teardrop roundabout will handle traffic where Cabrillo Boulevard meets the northbound ramps.
- The Los Patos Way southbound off-ramp will close permanently because of low clearance under the railroad.
- A peak-period carpool lane will be added in each direction between Hermosillo Road and Salinas Street.
SBRoads says the related underpass work is meant to improve circulation for cars, bicycles and pedestrians and to strengthen the Coastal Trail connection. When it is finished, the East Beach end of the waterfront will have different access from the one this year's parade audience has. A separate City project to replace the East Cabrillo Boulevard bridge over the Union Pacific tracks is expected to begin construction in 2027.
A neighborhood tradition, with entries still open
The parade has long been rooted in the waterfront's own businesses. The Montecito Journal has credited Captain Don Hedden, a former president of the Stearns Wharf Business Association, with founding it. This year it is organized by the 2026 Parade of Lights Committee. Its sponsors are the City Waterfront Department, the Santa Barbara Harbor Merchants Association, the Stearns Wharf Business Association and the Santa Barbara Yacht Club.
Entering costs nothing. Registration opened in October in five categories: human-powered, power, sail, commercial fishing and commercial other. Forms are available at the Harbor Market, the Harbor Fuel Dock, the Paddle Sports Center and the Waterfront Department Administration Office, and the City also takes entries through its online entry form. Anyone thinking of entering with a kayak or paddleboard should know the human-powered route stays inside the Harbor and around the wharf. Only the powered and sailing entries make the run to the Pavilion.
After the boats, the refuge
The next scheduled event at the eastern end of the waterfront takes place in early January. Santa Barbara Audubon Society's 127th Christmas Bird Count is set for Saturday, January 2, 2027. Its 7.5-mile count circle takes in the Andrée Clark Bird Refuge, at the far end of East Beach. Before that, the society's fall schedule includes a December 4 walk covering West Beach, the Mission Creek outfall and Chase Palm Park.
If you own on the eastern waterfront and want to talk about how the Cabrillo interchange work through 2028 might affect the timing of a future sale, Grubb Campbell Real Estate would be glad to discuss it with you privately. Schedule a Confidential Consultation.
