End of Year Events for the Emerald Coast: 2023

Fall on the Emerald Coast is just pure magic. It’s like the whole place lights up with fun and festivities! We’ve got everything from music weekends to delicious food festivals in November. It’s a busy and joyful time where both locals and visitors get to enjoy all the exciting and tasty events around town. So, whether you live here or are just checking out homes in our vibrant area, come join in on the excitement, and who knows, you might just find your dream home in the process! Let's dive into the month and discover some hidden gems together.

🔥 30A BBQ Festival

• Date: November 3, 2023, 5:30-9:00 pm
• Location: North Lawn, Grand Boulevard at Sandestin
• Details: Feast on the coast's best BBQ while enjoying live tunes from Certainly So.

🚚 Destin Food Truck Fest

• Date: November 4, 2023, 11:00 am-7:00 pm
• Location: Mattie Kelly Cultural Arts Village
• Details: the family-friendly event will feature several of the city’s finest food trucks, live entertainment, and vendors exhibiting and selling gifts, crafts, jewelry, personal care products, and much more.

🎣 27th Annual Take a Kid Fishing Day

• Date: November 4, 2023, 7 am-1 pm
• Location: Harbor Docks
• Take A Kid Fishing Day is a free event for children 7 to 13 years old. Every year, on the first Sunday of November, some 300 children will be treated to a day of fishing on the Gulf of Mexico or Choctawhatchee Bay.

🚒Touch-a-Truck  

• Date: November 4, 2023, 10 am- 2 pm
• Location: Destin Commons
• There will be a horn-free hour from 1 pm-2 pm for children with special needs and sensitive ears. Come see, touch, and learn about a wide variety of vehicles and how they serve our community.

🍷 11th Annual Wine Walkabout & Seeing Red Wine Festival

• Walkabout: November 9, 2023, 5:30-7:30 pm
• Festival: November 9-12, 2023
• Join us in Seaside, Florida, for a wine experience celebrating the makers behind the bottle. As one of the most highly anticipated wine festivals for wine connoisseurs and novices alike, will you be there?

✨Glitz & Glamour Fashion Show and Luncheon

• When: November 9, 2023, 10:30 am
• Where: Marina Cafe, Destin
• This year’s event will benefit Food for Thought Outreach, which provides food for school-aged children identified as food insecure, and the DWC Family Assistance Fund, which assists struggling families in our area.

🐎 Emerald Coast PCA Rodeo

• Dates: November 10-11, 2023, 6:30 pm
• Location: Northwest Florida State College, Niceville, FL
• Hold your horses! The rodeo is coming to town! Introducing the inaugural Emerald Coast PCA Rodeo, hosted by Northwest Florida State College.

🏃 Destin Vets Day 5K

• Date: November 11, 2023, 8:00 am
• Location: Destin Legion at 311 Main Street
• This is a great way to show your appreciation for our Veterans.  There will be a new course this year! Leashed dogs are welcome.

🐚 Half Shells on the Harbor

• Date: November 12, 2023, 1:00-4:00 pm
• Location: HarborWalk Village
• This Tide to Table event features fresh oyster tastings as local chefs come together to showcase their own unique spins on this coastal classic.

🦋 Flutterby Arts Festival

• Date: November 12, 2023, 10 am-4 pm
• Location: The Pavilion at Watersound Town Center
• The Flutterby Arts Festival is an arts, crafts, and science festival for the entire family that celebrates the migration of the Monarch Butterfly through our area with art activities, live music, theatre and dance performances, art exhibits, and a butterfly parade!

🥃 11th Annual Bourbon at the Bay

• Date: November 16, 2023, 5:30-8:00 pm
• Location: Regatta Bay Golf & Yacht Club
• Sample bourbon, scotch, and champagne on our tasting tables; bid on your choice of gifts, trips, and more in the silent auction; try your luck in the wine pull; enjoy decadent treats on the food and dessert tables; sample delicious bourbon-infused fudge; and enjoy the Beach Liquors VIP Room!

🎭 The Nutcracker

• Dates: November 17-19, 2023
• Location: Mattie Kelly Arts Center
• As the only full-length version of this classic holiday fairytale in the area, NFB’s The Nutcracker features a cast of more than 140 performers, including international guest artists and over 100 local children. The Northwest Florida Symphony Orchestra, led by NFB Music Director and Conductor David Ott, will provide musical accompaniment for all public performances.

🍾 Sparkling Wine & Holiday Lights

• Date: November 18, 2023, 4-6 pm
• Location: Village of Baytowne Wharf
• Sparkling Wine and Holiday Lights will take place on the beautifully decorated streets of Baytowne Wharf and feature more than 30 champagnes and delicious appetizers at featured Village restaurants. The event will end with the first tree lighting of the season and Baytowne Wharf's choreographed light show, 12 Nights of Lights.

🎅 Here Comes Santa Claus

• Date: November 25, 2023, 6-9 p.m
• Location: Village of Baytowne Wharf
• Cheer Santa on as he makes his way to Baytowne and watch as he lights our Village tree! Enjoy face-painting, kids crafts, and a beautiful fireworks display!

🚂 Polar Express Outdoor Movie Night

• Date: November 26, 2023, 6-8 pm
• Location: Village of Baytowne Wharf, Events Plaza lawn
• Watch a holiday favorite under the stars! 

December Magic: 

🎄Merry Main Street

• Date: November 25- December 23, 2023, 5 pm Fridays, 3 pm Saturdays 
• Where: Downtown Defuniak Springs 
• On Friday nights we host Festive Food Truck Friday with live music and Saturday events kick off at 2 p.m. with Mistletoe Market, Santa, train rides, snow machines, and more!

🎄 12 Nights of Illumination

• Date: December 1st - 23rd, 2023, 6pm, 7pm, & 8pm
• Location: Events Lawn, Village of Baytowne Wharf
• Enjoy a festive light show every Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday leading up to Christmas!

🎉 Café Thirty-A Christmas Charity Ball

• Date: December 2, 2023, 6 pm - 10 pm
• Location: Café Thirty-A, 3899 East County Hwy 30A
• All proceeds benefit Sharing of South Walton’s efforts to provide food and financial assistance to local area families and individuals in need.

🎵 Holiday Pops with Brian Stokes Mitchell

• Date: December 8, 2023, 7:30 pm
• Location: Destin-Fort Walton Beach Convention Center
• Get into the spirit as this A-list star performs holiday classics, Broadway tunes, and classic favorites with the Sinfonia Gulf Coast Orchestra.

⛸️Ice Skating Extravaganza

• Date: December 8, 2023, 6-8 pm
• Where: Baytowne Wharf
• Baytowne on Ice is hosting its annual Ice-Skating Extravaganza featuring two performances by professional ice skaters on Friday, December 8th at 6:00 pm & 7:30 pm. Both shows are free. Before and in between shows, lace up those skates and skate around the ice with The Pros! 

🎺 Tuba Christmas 

• Date: December 9, 2023, 5:00 pm - 7:00 pm
• Location: The Village of Baytowne Wharf
• Enjoy your favorite holiday classics with Tuba Christmas and Visits with Santa!

📽️ The MEAN One

• Date: Friday, December 15, 2023, 5 pm to 9 pm
• Location: The Village of Baytowne Wharf
• Meet the maven of mischief himself for a photo opportunity from 5-7 pm, then enjoy a movie showing of Dr. Seuss's How the Grinch Stole Christmas starting at 7 pm. Don't miss out on this Who-liday spectacular!

🦁 Wild Christmas at the Zoo

• Date: December 16 - 23, 2023
• Location: Emerald Coast Zoo, Crestview
• Watch the animals open presents throughout the day, take a picture with Santa from 11 AM-2 PM, give Elsa a hug, and enjoy hot chocolate in a souvenir mug.

🐎🛷Horse Drawn Carriage Rides, Carolers, & Photos with Santa

• Date: December 21, 2023, 4-7 pm 
• Where: Grand Boulevard of Sandestin 
• Enjoy free horse-drawn carriage rides around the Town Center while taking in the Coastal White Christmas lights and the Festival of the Trees display. To add to the festivities, get a professional photo with Santa while listening to the seasonal sounds of the Emerald Coast Theatre Company's Dickensian Carolers singing popular holiday carols

Candlelight: Holiday Special Featuring “The Nutcracker” & More

• Date: December 21, 2023, 9 pm 
• Where: Destin- FWB Convention Center 

• Concerts bring the magic of a live, multi-sensory musical experience to awe-inspiring locations like never seen before in Destin. Get your tickets now to discover Holiday-inspired music at Destin Fort-Walton Beach Convention Center under the gentle glow of candlelight.

🎆 Baytowne Countdown NYE

• Date: Sunday, December 31, 2023, 6 pm to 1 am
• Location: The Village of Baytowne Wharf
• Ring in 2024 with a night to remember featuring live music and two breathtaking fireworks displays at 8:00 pm & midnight. Enjoy a family-friendly evening from 6:00-8:00 pm with face painting, kid’s activities, and LIVE music on the Baytowne LIVE stage. 

🎇Harbor Walk Village New Year's Eve 

• Date: December 31, 2023, 7 pm
• Where: Harbor Walk Village
• Ring in the New Year with all the enchantment of a Harbor Celebration! Dance into 2023 with LIVE entertainment happening on the main stage, beginning at 7:00 pm with Shenanigans, followed by The New Royals at 9:30 pm. Turn your eyes to the skies for a dazzling firework display over the Harbor and shout along as we countdown the Ball Drop, welcoming a New Year!

Ron Adams | New Year's Eve Celebration!

• Date: December 31, 2023, 7:30 pm
• Lucilies Music Hall- 60 Seascape Dr, Destin
• Ron Adam's is bringing in The New Year with all of the Las Vegas Legends - Join us on December 31st and celebrate 2023!

🏃‍♂️ Blinging in the New Year Family Fun Run

• Date: December 31, 2023
• Where: Fort Walton Beach 

New Year's Eve Pier Park 

• Date: December 31, 2023, 5:30 pm
• Where: Panama City Beach Pier Park 
• Celebrate New Year's Eve on the beach! A family-friendly countdown at 8 pm culminates with fireworks, live music, and 10,000 beach balls being dropped over the crowd. As the seconds tick down to midnight, thousands watch the Celebration Tower as a glowing beach ball descends to signify the start of a New Year and kicks off a second round of fireworks! 

Get ready for some fun times coming up in November and December along the beautiful Emerald Coast! We've got lights, action, and lots of cool events happening at the Village of Baytowne Wharf Harborwalk, and other great local spots. Let's all enjoy the holiday cheer together and make some awesome memories. And hey, 2024 is just around the corner - let’s make it the best year yet! Cheers to fun, friends, and a fabulous New Year!