Light Up Ocala returns for 40th year

Kaehla Lopez, 18 months, gets lifted up by her father, Jose Lopez, as the look at Christmas lights after they were turned on during Light Up Ocala on the Ocala Downtown Square in Ocala, Fla. on Saturday, Nov. 18, 2023. [Bruce Ackerman/Ocala Gazette] 2023.

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Posted November 12, 2024 | By Susan Smiley-Height, susan@magnoliamediaco.com

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If you want to see some magic happen, then plan to be on the Ocala downtown square on Nov. 23. That is when the city of Ocala will again host the Light Up Ocala celebration, for the 40th time. This is the night when, with the flip of a large switch, thousands of glittering holiday lights will illuminate the square and the surrounding blocks.

This year’s theme is “Home for the Holidays.” The event will run from 3 to 8 p.m. The Junior Sunshine Parade will kick off the celebration at 3 p.m., beginning at the corner of South Magnolia Avenue and East Fort King Street. It will offer performances from local dance studios, Girl Scout troops, the Marion County Sheriff’s Office Pipes and Drums Unit and Santa Claus. The lighting ceremony will begin at 7 p.m.

The celebration includes a wide range of entertainment, more than 100 vendors and activities for all ages. Stages will be set up on the square, at One SW Broadway St., which is where the lighting ceremony will take place; at Citizens’ Circle, at 151 SE Osceola Ave., which will include visits with Santa and Mrs. Claus; and at midtown, between Northeast First Street and Northeast First Avenue, with a street party, DJ, acrobatic variety show and jump rope performances.

There also will be a Punch and Judy Puppet Show on the corner of Fort King Street and Magnolia Avenue, The Living Angels at Citizens’ Circle and a Kids’ Zone at the parking lot in the intersection of Silver Springs Boulevard and Northeast Osceola Avenue.

Free shuttles will run from 2 to 9 p.m. from the Marion Technical Institute at 1614 SE Fort King St., the E.D. Croskey Recreation Center at 1510 NW Fourth St., the Ocala Skate Park at 517 NE Ninth St. and the Discovery Center at 701 NE Sanchez Ave.

The event is free to attend.

For more information, visit ocalafl.gov/lightup or call the city’s Recreation and Parks Department at (352) 368-5517.