The famed “Festival of Lights” will return to downtown Riverside next week, featuring millions of lights, holiday displays, carnival rides, caroling, Santa Claus and other entertainment on the pedestrian mall — available until the last day of the year.
Like last year, this year’s fest will begin the weekend prior to Thanksgiving. The switch-on ceremony is scheduled for 4:30 p.m. Nov. 22, presided over by representatives from the Mission Inn Hotel & Spa, members of the Riverside City Council and other guests.
This year’s switch-on will bear a bit of moroseness due to the absence of fest founder and longtime Mission Inn owner Duane Roberts, who passed away on Nov. 1 at 88. It’s likely his widow, Kelly Roberts, who has served as the Mission Inn’s chief operating officer for many years, will be at the main podium. It’s unknown whether a formal remembrance ceremony will be held ahead of the celebration.
Prior to 2023, the ceremonies were traditionally held the day after Thanksgiving, but according to organizers, there’s now an emphasis on getting a head start on the season’s activities.
Last year’s switch-on drew thousands of spectators. This will be the fest’s 33rd anniversary.
Roberts inaugurated the tradition in 1992 and noted in 2023 that the festival consistently draws up to 500,000 visitors over a one-month span, “all thrilled to watch the display come to life through the Holidays.”
Switch-on events, which always include pyrotechnics spectaculars, were rescinded in November 2020 and November 2021. The 2020 event was prohibited because of the COVID lockdowns, and the council decided to forgo the 2021 switch-on as a precautionary measure. The ceremony got back on track in 2022.
The nightly fest will feature the century-old inn bathed in multi-colored hues, with hundreds of animated characters, including elves, toy soldiers, nutcrackers and angels visible on banisters, balconies and ledges.
Towering Christmas trees and wooden soldiers traditionally line the way outside and into the hotel, where visitors also encounter a mistletoe measuring 12 by 8 feet.
Ice skating is slated to be available on the Main Street pedestrian mall. A Ferris wheel is routinely set up at the corner of Mission Inn Avenue and Lime Street. Carolers sometimes make appearances around the hotel.
There will be live musical entertainment weekly, photos with Santa Claus, as well as artisan booths and food vendors up and down the mall. The city festoons light standards and other municipal property with displays and lights.
The council generally allocates between $1 million and $1.5 million in municipal funds for decorations, entertainment and other accoutrements.
Although festivities will formally end on Dec. 31, the lights are set to stay on through the first week of 2026.