Illuminated Holiday Parade & Tree Lighting

Important Deadlines

• Wednesday, November 13 Application deadline for floats, flatbed trailers and towed trailers 
• Wednesday, November 13 Application deadline for High School Marching Bands 
• Monday, November 25 at 12:00pm Deadline for other entries. 
  • A $25 late fee must accompany ALL applications following this deadline.
• See Parade Rules, Regulations & Application

• 12 - 9 pm Shop & Stroll, a partnership with The Chamber Collaborative of Greater Portsmouth
• 1:30 - 4 pm Vintage Trolley running
• 3:00 pm parking ban goes into effect. See below for affected streets
• 4:00 pm street closures begin starting at Jewell Court on Islington Street (that is CVS). The Street closures continue down Islington to the downtown area of Market Square.
• 4:00 - 6:00 pm parade units arrive and line up on Islington Street and all the side streets (both sides) up to Goodwin Park
• Street closures along the Islington corridor will be lifted as parade exits the area which is approximately 6:30 pm
• Street closures around Market Square (as listed in the press release) will remain in effect until 9:00 pm
• 4:45 pm Vintage Trolley takes council to the tree lighting and top of parade. It returns for them after the parade at 7:30pm (or they stay in town but trolley is available as an option from Market Square back to their car at Lower City Hall)
• Junkins and Parrott Avenues will resume traffic flow following the parade approximately 8:00 pm
• Pleasant Street to Porter will remain closed until 9:00pm while the other half of Pleasant will open up following the parade
• 9 - 10:30 pm Vintage Trolley resumes 

• Police personnel, sawhorses, metal barricades, and vehicle barricades will stay in place surround Market Square until 9:00pm.
• DJ will be on site playing music until 9:00pm.

For parking information, locations, and rates, visit: ParkPortsmouth.

Vintage Christmas Trolley – The free Vintage Christmas Trolley will be operating from 1:30 to 4 pm and 9 to 10:30 pm. Service will be suspended during the Illuminated Holiday Parade and Shop & Stroll events. For more information about Vintage Christmas, and the free trolley, visit: Vintage Christmas. 

COAST Bus – Bus service in and around Market Square will be suspended during the designated road closures. Visit the COAST website for complete route information and travel assistance. 

Accessible Viewing Area – The City is working with Access Navigators to provide a wheelchair-accessible seated viewing area for the parade on the sidewalk along Islington Street between Maplewood and Bridge Streets. This area is reserved for people who have difficulty standing, along with their companions. Space and seating are limited and available on a first-come basis. Nearby public parking includes additional parade-day accessible parking in the Bridge Street Lot, and accessible spaces in the Worth Lot and Foundry Garage. Access Navigators will provide assistance and holiday cheer. For more information, visit the Access Navigators site. 

Parking Bans – On-street parking bans and road closures will be in effect on parade day. No parking is allowed on the parade route, including all of Congress Street, all of Market Square, all of Pleasant Street and Islington Street from Plaza 800 to the intersection with Congress Street. Cars found parked on these streets after 3:00pm on parade day will be towed at the vehicle owner’s expense to the National Wrecker Service lot at 295 West Road in Portsmouth. Residents, business owners and employees located inside the parade route are advised that vehicles will not be permitted to cross the parade route. Other areas in and around the event will be restricted. Police officers, event volunteers, signs and/or barricades will be in place for these areas. 
 
Road Closures – The following streets will be closed or restricted to local traffic from 3:00 to 7:00pm on parade day (streets marked with an *asterisk will be closed until 9:00 pm). Police officers, signs and/or barricades will be in place for these streets. 

• Islington Street – from Plaza 800 to Maplewood Avenue and all adjacent side streets;  
• The intersection of Middle Street, Congress Street, Maplewood Avenue and Islington Street; 
• Congress Street from Market Square to Maplewood Avenue;* 
• Daniel Street – from Penhallow Street to Market Square;* 
• Market Street – from Bow Street to Market Square;* 
• Pleasant Street – from Junkins Avenue to Market Square (*Pleasant Street from Porter Street to Market Square will be closed until 9 pm); 
• Fleet Street – from Hanover Street to Congress Street and State Street to Congress Street; 
• State Street – from Fleet Street to Pleasant Street; 
• Court Street – from Middle Street to Pleasant Street and Washington Street to Pleasant Street; 
• Porter Street – from Fleet Street to Pleasant Street; 
• Junkins Avenue – from Parrott Avenue to Pleasant Street; and 
• Parrott Avenue – from Rogers Street to Junkins Avenue. 

People wishing to travel between Maplewood Avenue and Middle Street are directed to use I-95 or Borthwick Avenue. There will be significant traffic delays in the parade route area and motorists are strongly urged to seek alternate routes away from affected streets.

1. Parade participants will line up in the designated staging area
2. Spectators can watch the parade from Goodwin Park, Summer Street and along Islington Street to Market Square and down Pleasant Street
3. The parade ends at the Pleasant Street entrance to the Parrott Avenue Parking Lot

Each year the City selects a Grand Marshal who “best exemplifies the spirit of generosity and commitment to the community.” This year, Mayor Deaglan McEachern is pleased to announce that Eli George, a Portsmouth High School senior and the Founder and Operations Director of B3 Basketball, is the 2024 Portsmouth Illuminated Holiday Parade Grand Marshal.

B3 Basketball is an initiative led by three high school students designed to foster a strong community by encouraging kids to build their confidence and passion through basketball. The B3 Youth Clinic has worked with Mayor McEachern, Portsmouth elementary schools, Portsmouth High School, and local organizations. This past spring at the Portsmouth Youth Wellness Coalition conference, Governor Sununu congratulated Eli on his presentation to the group on the B3 program. The B3 Youth Clinic has successfully lobbied for a basketball court renovation in Gosling Meadows where the program takes place and is now partnering with local business Limited Hype on the Sneakers For All project designed to raise $20,000 to donate new sneakers to kids at Gosling Meadows.

B3 Founder and Operations Director Eli George said, “I began playing basketball in elementary school as it was an environment where people from all backgrounds and places in life could come together. As I continued to play basketball in middle school I started working at a local elementary school aftercare program, leading sports clubs where kids can play games and have a good time. While coaching a fifth grade basketball team with B3, I learned lifelong skills from my players that I will never forget.”

In making the announcement, Mayor McEachern said, “Eli George is an inspiring young leader showing all of us how to open doors to members of our community who might otherwise not get the spotlight. As the theme of this year’s parade is ‘Let it Glow!’ I can think of no one better to exemplify lighting the way for kids to build their confidence and friendships through the teamwork of sports. Eli is one of those champions for our City of the Open Door. He makes sure we hold that door open and let the lights shine brightly, whenever and wherever we can.”

Eli George will be escorted through the parade by a school bus courtesy of Student Transportation. He will be joined by many of his co-volunteers and B3 participants and once he arrives in Market Square he will watch floats, marching bands, fire trucks, thriller dancers and of course, Santa Claus riding atop Portsmouth Fire Department’s ladder truck to kick off the holiday season in Portsmouth.

A tree is donated every year for display in Market Square. This year, the City’s Department of Public Works installed the 30-foot tall white fir tree in Market Square on Thursday, November 14th and has decorated the tree with 30 individual strands (44'/strand) of lights, totaling 1,320' and 4,500 LED bulbs (300 LED/strand) and 155 ornaments. AA Property Holdings donated this year’s holiday tree. Crews from DPW will decorate the lamp posts downtown with 170 wreaths and strings of lights. The decorating took a crew of 6 two full work days. 

Next spring, the City of Portsmouth Parks and Greenery Division will replant a 10-foot evergreen at the donated tree’s original location.

The Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony begins at 5:00 pm with music from the Portsmouth Holiday Ensemble. At 5:25 pm the Portsmouth Mayor begins remarks, and at 5:29:50 pm the Tree Lighting Countdown begins.