The Harbor's 50th Parade of Lights Has Room for a Kayak
October 15, 2026
October 15, 2026
How big a boat does it take to enter the Ventura Harbor Parade of Lights, when the first award class on this year's entry list is Human Powered and the official listing introduces the awards with "glowing kayaks" alongside "decked-out sailboats"?
The rest of the fall at Ventura Harbor Village follows the same pattern. Between now and the 50th Annual Parade of Lights & Fireworks on December 18 and 19, the calendar at the Village keeps asking people to pick up something: a paddle, a paintbrush, a handmade bowl. For anyone in Pierpont or the Keys who has spent years watching the parade from the promenade, the next ten weeks work like a set of steps onto the water.
| Date | Event | Where |
|---|---|---|
| Wed., Oct. 14 | Parade of Lights boater applications open | Ventura Harbor Village |
| Sat., Oct. 17 | Buenaventura Art Center & Gallery grand opening, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. | Suite 101B |
| Fri., Oct. 30 | Witches & Warlocks Paddle, 4 p.m.; Seaside Trick or Treat, 4 to 6 p.m.; Witches Night Market, 3 to 8 p.m. | The water and the main lawn |
| Nov. 7 and 8 | Ventura Potter's Guild Bowl of Thanks & Pottery Market | Near Ventura Pottery Gallery, 1567 Spinnaker Drive |
| Sun., Dec. 13 | Santa Paddle, 11 a.m. to noon | Ventura Boat Rentals, C Dock |
| Dec. 18 and 19 | 50th Annual Parade of Lights & Fireworks; festivities at 4 p.m., parade at 6:30 p.m. | Harbor-wide |
The first date on that list is the one that matters most for local boat owners, and it comes up this Wednesday.
According to the Village's parade listing, boater applications open Wednesday, October 14, and the first 25 boats to sign up get "extra, exclusive incentives" for the anniversary year. The listing doesn't say yet what those incentives are.
The 2026 awards cover far more than the larger vessels.
Showstopper prizes go to smaller boats, and Human Powered and Dinghy/Duffy are separate classes, so a paddler or a Duffy owner isn't judged against a 40-foot sloop. The Friday People's Choice vote also favors whoever builds a following, whatever the boat's size.
The Witches & Warlocks Paddle reaches its eighth year this Halloween. It starts at 4 p.m. on October 30, participants have to RSVP, and the Village notes that rentals are available from Ventura Boat Rentals.
Anyone curious about the Human Powered class can use it as a low-stakes trial. It gives you the same harbor and the same crowd along the edge, in a costume instead of string lights, two months before parade night. And you don't need to own anything to join.
Things are just as busy on land. Seaside Trick or Treat runs from 4 to 6 p.m., and an October 10 update added a Witches Night Market on the lawn from 3 to 8 p.m. That update replaced earlier wording that only called the market a possibility.
Two weeks before the paddle, on Saturday, October 17, the Buenaventura Art Center & Gallery holds a free grand opening in Suite 101B from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. The plan includes live art demonstrations, music, performances, interactive experiences and giveaways, with artists working from the promenade into the gallery. The Village's event page calls it "the new home of the Buenaventura Art Association."
The association has been heading this way for two decades. Its own history traces it to April 1954, when it was founded as the Ventura Arts and Crafts Association after Olivia Hathaway, then president of the San Buenaventura Women's Club, approached city officials about starting one. Here's how it got from there to the harbor:
The association's program listing now gives the Art Center and Gallery's address as 1559 Spinnaker Drive, #101B. Neither source explains why it moved into this suite in 2026. What the dates do show is that a 72-year-old organization that teaches people to make things now has its main room steps from the water where, two months later, people will be judged on what they built out of lights.
The Ventura Potter's Guild brings its Bowl of Thanks & Pottery Market to the area near Ventura Pottery Gallery at 1567 Spinnaker Drive on November 7 and 8. According to the event page, a $25 donation gets you a handmade bowl and a restaurant tasting card, and proceeds benefit Food Share.
When the page went up, the 2026 lineup of restaurants offering tastings hadn't been announced. The page also lists two sets of hours, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. in its header and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. in its FAQ, so check with the organizers before you plan around opening time.
The Village has other recent maker-run tenants too. Golden Hour Goods at 1591 Spinnaker Drive, #113, marked its first year in the Village over the July 4 weekend.
The Santa Paddle on Sunday, December 13, from 11 a.m. to noon, starts at Ventura Boat Rentals' C Dock. It's the last organized paddle before the parade, five days ahead of the first parade night. For anyone who entered the Human Powered class on October 14, it's the final daylight chance to try a decorated craft on the water before doing it in the dark.
The parade's numbering has a gap in it. Coverage in the Simi Valley Acorn called the 2013 parade the 37th, and by then it already ran two nights with fireworks after each. The Ventura County Star reported that the 2020 parade was canceled during the pandemic. KCLU described last December's parade as the 49th.
Recent years have had themes. The Port District's 2023 release promoted "Hula Holiday," and its 2024 announcement used "Candy Land" and described boats making two laps through the harbor. The 2026 listing hasn't named a theme. It frames the anniversary as a milestone and adds a carnival on the main lawn, a seaside DJ and faux snowfall.
In the same KCLU piece, Ventura Harbor's Jennifer Talt Lundin talked about families coming back year after year with children and grandchildren, and said organizers were already gearing up for the 50th. The Ventura Breeze credited the parade's appeal to the effort and imagination boaters put in. Both accounts come back to the people decorating the boats.
Admission is free on both nights. The 2026 listing gives these parking and arrival options:
The listing suggests watching from the promenade or a waterfront restaurant. The Port District's 2024 guidance pointed to the harbor perimeter and promenade, with the best views facing northwest. That advice is two years old but still matches the layout of the harbor. Festivities start at 4 p.m., the boats start at 6:30, and fireworks follow each night.
At Palmieri Stein Group, we love seeing neighbors from the Keys and Pierpont out on the harbor in December, whether they're on the promenade or in a lit-up kayak in the Human Powered class. If you have a boat on Ventura Harbor and want to talk through how parade season fits with life on the water, we're glad to start your coastal home journey from the dock you already know.
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