"The night after Thanksgiving, South Barrett Square fills for the moment the tree lights up." That line comes from Rosemary Beach's event page for its Tree Lighting Ceremony and Merchant Open House. It starts at 6 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 27, and the Rosemary Beach Merchants Association keeps the shops open into the evening.
For a Watersound household, that tree lighting is a better guide to the holidays than anything on Watersound's own calendar. Between now and Dec. 31, the Watersound community events calendar lists four entries. Two are Tuesday family nights, one is a Friday concert, and the fourth takes place in another county. The season is still full. Most of it just happens at the edges of the community: The Big Chill on Watersound Beach, the squares in Rosemary Beach, Seaside's holiday market and Pier Park.
What Watersound's own calendar holds
These are all four entries on the community calendar, in date order:
- Kids' Night Out at The Pavilion, Tuesday, Nov. 17, 6 to 8 p.m., at The Pavilion at Watersound Town Center, 85 Origins Main Street.
- First Friday Concert, Friday, Dec. 4, starting at 6 p.m. at Watersound Town Center, with Michelle Malone & The Hot Toddies.
- Kids' Night Out at The Pavilion, Tuesday, Dec. 15, 6 to 8 p.m., same location.
- NYE Beach Ball Drop, Thursday, Dec. 31, listed with Watersound Town Center as the venue.
For that last one, the listing's own description mentions Pier Park, and Visit Panama City Beach places the Beach Ball Drop at Pier Park, 600 Pier Park Drive, in Panama City Beach. Plan New Year's Eve around that address.
So Watersound has three holiday-season events of its own. The other dates come from nearby.
The Big Chill is Watersound's own Thanksgiving weekend stop
The Big Chill sits at 7000 E County Hwy 30A on Watersound Beach. It reopened on Oct. 12 after Hurricane Isaias, and by an Oct. 22 recovery update, shops and restaurants along 30A had reopened, though some beach accesses were still closed for storm damage.
On Saturday, Nov. 28, its own events calendar lists Pictures with Santa from 9 a.m. to noon. The 30A event listing calls it a way to "kick off the Christmas season" after Thanksgiving. The Big Chill also has a DJ Dance Party on Friday, Nov. 20, from 6 to 9 p.m., plus football watch parties on its calendar into early December.
That Santa morning overlaps with Rosemary Beach. Breakfast with Santa runs from 8 to 10 a.m. the same Saturday at Rosemary Beach Town Hall, 48 S. Barrett Square. Tickets are $20, and the Rosemary Beach Merchants Association organizes it. The two events share the hour between 9 and 10. A family can do breakfast in Rosemary and then a photo at The Big Chill, or go straight to The Big Chill and finish well before noon. Either way, Thanksgiving weekend has three Santa-and-tree events packed into about 18 hours:
| When | What | Where | Organizer |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fri., Nov. 27, 6 p.m. | Tree Lighting Ceremony and Merchant Open House | South Barrett Square, Rosemary Beach | Rosemary Beach Merchants Association |
| Sat., Nov. 28, 8 to 10 a.m. | Breakfast with Santa, $20 | Rosemary Beach Town Hall | Rosemary Beach Merchants Association |
| Sat., Nov. 28, 9 a.m. to noon | Pictures with Santa | The Big Chill, Watersound Beach | The Big Chill |
The weekend before Thanksgiving is quieter. Rosemary Beach advertises Rosemary Beach Uncorked for Saturday, Nov. 14, from 1 to 4 p.m., with wine, food and live music. Check details with the organizer before you go.
Tuesdays at The Pavilion fill the weeknight gap
Town Center's own contribution is on weeknights. Watersound describes Kids' Night Out as a Tuesday-night program at The Pavilion with face painting, balloon art, games and music. The listing's pitch is that kids stay busy "while parents relax and enjoy the evening."
The series page lists two dates for the rest of the year, Nov. 17 and Dec. 15, both from 6 to 8 p.m. One falls in the week before Thanksgiving and the other in the week before Christmas, when school is still in session and out-of-town guests usually haven't arrived. That puts both on weeks when the Rosemary and Seaside events are still weekend-only.
The first weekend of December stacks four events in three days
Thanksgiving weekend is the first busy stretch. The second starts on Friday, Dec. 4, and it's the one Watersound households can mostly reach close to home.
- Friday, Dec. 4, from 6 p.m. The First Friday Concert at Watersound Town Center features Michelle Malone & The Hot Toddies. Watersound Town Center describes the series as free and family-friendly, supported by the St. Joe Community Foundation and the Cultural Arts Alliance of Walton County.
- Saturday, Dec. 5, from 8 a.m. The SEASIDE Holiday Market opens at 2236 E County Hwy 30A and continues Sunday.
- Saturday, Dec. 5, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. The Rosemary Beach Foundation's Holiday Tour of Homes checks in at North Barrett Square. Anyone 5 and older needs an advance ticket, so this one can't be a last-minute decision.
- Sunday, Dec. 6, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. The 30A Farmers Market runs year-round on Sundays at 28 N. Barrett Square in Rosemary Beach. Sunday also brings the second day of the Seaside market.
That Sunday market also covers every other weekend of the season. It runs on Nov. 15, 22 and 29 and on Dec. 13, 20 and 27, so a household can have a standing Sunday morning in Rosemary until the year ends.
Mid-December looks back to last year
After Dec. 15, Watersound's calendar has nothing listed until the New Year's entry. Last December, Watersound Town Center held Winter Wonder Watersound on Thursday, Dec. 18, from 5 to 8 p.m. The page called it free. Watersound's page for the event describes Santa, carolers, cookie decorating and children's theater. That's the closest thing Town Center has had to a neighborhood holiday night, and it was held a week before Christmas.
New Year's Eve, at the address where it actually happens
The New Year's entry on Watersound's calendar sends you west. The Visit Panama City Beach New Year's Eve schedule breaks the night down like this:
- 4 p.m. Festivities start at Aaron Bessant Park and along Pier Park Drive.
- 8 p.m. The children's ball drop and fireworks happen at both sites, which suits families with small children.
- 11:57 p.m. The countdown begins on Pier Park Drive.
At midnight, the beach ball drops from Celebration Tower, followed by fireworks from Russell-Fields Pier.
If you're hosting family at your Watersound home this season, or wondering how the holiday calendar affects a rental you own nearby, the team at Resort Real Estate Group is a short drive away in Miramar Beach. Stop by or call, and we'll help you plan around these dates.
