Portsmouth, NH at Christmas: Parade and Candlelight
A day-trip plan for Portsmouth's Dec. 5 holiday parade and Strawbery Banke's Candlelight Stroll: dates, tickets, getting there from Boston, and parking.
- Portsmouth
Saturday, December 5 is the night Portsmouth stacks two events on top of each other: the city’s free tree lighting and parade in Market Square, and a Candlelight Stroll at Strawbery Banke Museum. Portsmouth is about an hour north of Boston and walkable once you park, so the real question is which one you want. The dates, tickets and parking below come from the city and the museum.
The two main events
Illuminated Holiday Parade and tree lighting: Saturday, December 5
The city says the parade is free and open to all. The evening runs like this:
- 5:00 to 5:30 pm: the Tree Lighting Ceremony in Market Square, hosted by the mayor and city council.
- 6:00 pm: the parade steps off from Islington Street (Goodwin Park) and marches down Islington Street, arriving in Market Square about 20 to 30 minutes later.
The city has added online registration for parade participants in 2026; the deadline for applications is Monday, November 23. If you are watching rather than marching, that does not affect you.
Candlelight Stroll at Strawbery Banke Museum
The museum’s 2026 stroll runs December 4 to 6, 11 to 13 and 18 to 20, and its theme this year is “Welcome, Neighbor.” You pick a timed arrival window:
| Day | Arrival windows | Event ends |
|---|---|---|
| Friday | 5:30 to 5:59 pm or 6 to 6:30 pm | 8:30 pm |
| Saturday | 4:30 to 5:29 pm or 5:30 to 6:29 pm | 8:30 pm |
| Sunday | 2 to 2:59 pm or 3 to 3:59 pm | 6:30 pm |
Tickets: adults are $35 on Friday and Sunday and $38 on Saturday. Children 3 to 17 are $17.50 on Friday and Sunday and $19 on Saturday, and children under 3 are free. The museum recommends buying in advance and warns that popular dates and arrival windows can sell out.
What the museum says you will find: furnished historic houses spanning the late 18th century to the 1950s decorated with greens and dried flowers from the museum’s heirloom gardens; costumed role players; music and carolers; warm cider; “Victorian skaters” performing ice-dance shows; and a Grove of Sponsored Holiday Trees you can vote on. Horse-drawn carriage rides are returning in 2026 through Lakeside Carriages. They are included with admission, first come, first served, last about five minutes each, and depend on weather.
One evening or two?
Saturday, December 5 is the only night that has both events. They overlap: the parade starts at 6 pm and the earliest Saturday stroll window is 4:30 pm. You have two reasonable ways to handle it.
Option A: Parade night, Saturday, December 5. Arrive in the afternoon, park, walk to Market Square before the 5 pm tree lighting, and stay for the 6 pm parade. Skip the stroll that night.
Option B: Stroll on a different date. If you want the museum, choose Sunday: arrival windows at 2 or 3 pm, the event ends at 6:30 pm. Sunday tickets are priced the same as Friday, below Saturday, and the free trolley runs on Sundays.
The museum says most regular visitors spend two to four hours on its grounds, so trying to fit the stroll and the 6 pm parade into one Saturday evening is a stretch.
Getting to Portsmouth from Boston
By car: take I-95 north to Portsmouth. The Chamber Collaborative of Greater Portsmouth Visitor Center is at 500 Market Street, just off I-95 Exit 7, and it is staffed Tuesday through Friday, 10 am to 4 pm, with the foyer open around the clock for information.
By bus: C&J runs between Boston and Portsmouth and requires reservations. C&J says buses leave Portsmouth for Logan every 30 minutes. The Portsmouth terminal is at 185 Grafton Drive, off I-95 at Exit 3A from the north or Exit 3 from the south, with $4.50 per day parking and a free parking shuttle. The terminal is outside downtown; for the ride into town, see Go Portsmouth’s getting-around page and the city’s parking page.
By train: Amtrak’s Downeaster serves Boston North Station and stops in Exeter, Durham and Dover, New Hampshire. It does not stop in Portsmouth, so a train trip means getting a taxi or ride from one of those stations.
Where to park
Strawbery Banke lists three common nearby options for events: Pierce Island (outdoor public parking within walking distance), the Hanover Parking Garage and the Foundry Place Garage. Its own lot at 14 Hancock Street is for the regular season and is not available for the Candlelight Stroll.
The City of Portsmouth’s current rates page lists:
- Hanover Garage: $3.00 per hour, with a daily maximum listed at $60.
- Foundry Place Garage: $2.00 per hour, with a daily maximum listed at $40.
- Enforcement hours for pay-by-plate parking: Monday to Saturday 9 am to 8 pm, Sunday noon to 8 pm. Christmas Day, December 25, is listed as a parking enforcement holiday.
Rates change, so look at the city’s rates page the week of your trip. For parade-night road closures, check the city’s parade page closer to December 5.
Strawbery Banke’s Candlelight Stroll and the illuminated parade are both in Holiday Lights Around Boston, 2026, with the other light shows worth a longer drive.
Get day-trip ideas by email
Train-friendly escapes and coastal towns, with what to do and how to get there.
Free bonus when you join: the printable December plan. Unsubscribe in one click.
Sources
- City of Portsmouth: 2026 Illuminated Holiday Paradeportsmouthnh.gov
- Strawbery Banke Museum: Candlelight Strollstrawberybanke.org
- Strawbery Banke Museum: Parkingstrawberybanke.org
- City of Portsmouth: Parking Rates & Locationsportsmouthnh.gov
- Go Portsmouth NH: Getting here and aroundgoportsmouthnh.com
- C&J: Portsmouth terminalridecj.com
Details such as dates, hours and prices come from the sources above and can change. Check with the organizer before you go.
How we report: every date, price and address comes from a linked source.
