On Saturday, November 21, UNA kicks off its final home game of the season at 3 p.m. When it ends, the band Get Sideways takes the stage at Mobile Plaza for the last free Shoals After Dark show of the fall. The next evening at 5 p.m., a few blocks up, the Florence Beautification Board lights the trees on North Court Street.
So downtown Florence's fall season and its holiday season meet over one weekend, less than a day apart. Fall downtown ran on Fridays and Saturdays. Once the trees are lit, most of the holiday calendar moves to a Sunday evening, a Tuesday and a Thursday night. Plan December around that and you'll be busy on weeknights much more than on weekends.
The Fall Calendar Closes Out in Three Steps
Tomorrow, Friday, November 6, is the last First Friday of 2026. The Downtown Florence Alliance's season ran May through November. This one runs 5:30 to 8:30 p.m., admission is free, and Court Street and the access roads around it close at 4:30. The First Fridays page points drivers to the public parking garage at Pine and Tombigbee streets or to spots away from Court Street. It also says the event goes on rain or shine and is called off only for severe weather or lightning. There's no December First Friday on the schedule, so tomorrow is the last one until May.
The next night, Saturday, November 7, UNA plays at home at 6 p.m. When the game ends, The Brooklines play a free show at Mobile Plaza. We wrote about how this concert series gave downtown Saturdays a second half back in September. These last two dates finish what it started.
Two weeks later comes the earlier kickoff, 3 p.m. on November 21, with Get Sideways playing after the game. The Courier Journal's community calendar says the free game-day shuttle starts at noon, picking up outside the parking deck and dropping off at the Buford Science & Technology Building. After the game it runs back downtown. With a 3 p.m. kickoff, the last concert of the year probably starts around dinnertime, well before the late nights of the earlier games.
Sunday, November 22, Is When the Lights Come On
The North Court Street Tree Lighting is at 5 p.m. on Sunday, November 22. The Beautification Board is promising Christmas carols and UNA Culinary.
It falls on almost the same date as last year. Visit Florence listed the 2025 lighting for Sunday, November 23, from 5 to 6:30 p.m. It was free, with the Shoals Symphony, UNA Culinary and community carolers. So the tradition sits on the Sunday before Thanksgiving week, and this year that Sunday is the day after the last home game.
The timing changes what downtown looks like that weekend. On Saturday night Mobile Plaza is a post-game party. By Sunday at dusk, North Court has its holiday lights.
The Season on One Page
Every date below has a day of the week next to it. Notice how few December events land on a weekend.
| Date | Day | Event | Where | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nov. 6 | Friday | Final 2026 First Friday, 5:30–8:30 p.m. | Court Street | Free |
| Nov. 7 | Saturday | Shoals After Dark: The Brooklines, after the 6 p.m. game | Mobile Plaza | Free |
| Nov. 11 | Wednesday | Florence-Lauderdale Veterans Day Ceremony, 11 a.m. | Veterans Memorial Park | Open to the community |
| Nov. 21 | Saturday | Shoals After Dark: Get Sideways, after the 3 p.m. game | Mobile Plaza | Free |
| Nov. 22 | Sunday | North Court Street Tree Lighting, 5 p.m. | North Court Street | Open to everyone |
| Nov. 27 | Friday | Santa visits begin, by reservation | Florence Mall | Not listed |
| Dec. 5 | Saturday | Shoals Symphony, "Hollydays on the Silver Screen: The Sequel," 7 p.m. | Norton Auditorium | $25–$40; $15 for ages 17 and under |
| Dec. 8 | Tuesday | Florence Camerata holiday concert | First Presbyterian Church | Not listed |
| Dec. 10 | Thursday | Florence Christmas Parade, 7 p.m. | Court St. to Wilson Park | Not listed |
The Veterans Day ceremony at Veterans Memorial Park, 301 Veterans Park Drive, is the one non-holiday date on the list. It's included because it's a Wednesday morning in the gap between the two concert Saturdays, and it's open to veterans, their families and anyone else who wants to attend.
December Downtown Moves to Weeknights
The Shoals Symphony concert is the one big December event on a Saturday night. The orchestra calls last year's holiday concert the most successful in its history, and this year's program is billed as the sequel. On the program are John Williams' "Somewhere in My Memory" from Home Alone, music from The Polar Express, Rossini's Barber of Seville Overture and Sibelius' Finlandia, which was used in Die Hard 2. There will also be recreated movie scenes and appearances by Shoals performers. Tickets on the symphony's ticketing page run $25 to $40 before fees, and youth seats for ages 17 and under are $15. The ticket page and season page say 7 p.m., but the orchestra's UNA-hosted page says 3 p.m., so check the time printed on your ticket.
Three days later, on Tuesday, December 8, the Florence Camerata gives its annual holiday concert at First Presbyterian Church. It's a volunteer chorus directed by Rebecca Rockhill, with pianist Karen Cantrell. The calendar listing doesn't give a start time, so the group's Facebook page or 256-810-9512 is the best place to ask.
Then comes Thursday.
The Storybook Parade, Step by Step
The 2026 Florence Christmas Parade is presented by Bank Independent, and its theme is "A Storybook Christmas." It steps off at 7 p.m. on Thursday, December 10, and follows this route through historic downtown:
- Down Court Street
- Over to Tennessee Street
- Up Seminary Street
- Ending at Wilson Park
The route matches last year's. The schedule shifted a little. Visit Florence's 2025 listing had the parade on Thursday, December 11, at 7 p.m., with lineup at 5 p.m. This year it's one day earlier on the calendar, and lineup on Pine Street starts half an hour later, at 5:30.
Some details from the Alliance's rules matter to people watching from the curb. There's no rain date, so the parade happens December 10 or not at all. Santa rides his own float, and no other entry can bring a Santa or Mrs. Claus. That means the Santa coming down Court Street is the only one in the parade. Every entry has to be decorated to match the storybook theme.
If you belong to a church group, a business or a club that wants a float, entries close Thursday, December 3, at 11:59 p.m., and payment holds your spot. Semi trailers and similar long pull-behind trailers aren't allowed. The Alliance says that rule came out of safety talks with the Florence Police Department and its insurance requirements.
The Week Before, on the Other Side of the River
Florence isn't the only Shoals parade on a Thursday night. The City of Muscle Shoals holds its 24th Annual Christmas Parade one week earlier, on Thursday, December 3, at 6:30 p.m. Families who like both parades can go to two Thursday-night parades in a row without missing a weekend. Our Muscle Shoals neighborhood page covers that side of the river.
Saturday, December 5, is also the one weekend day with plans in both towns. Muscle Shoals Parks & Recreation hosts Santa's Workshop: Holiday Market at its gym from 2 to 6 p.m., with more than 40 vendors expected selling handmade goods and gifts. If the 7 p.m. time on your symphony ticket holds, you can shop that afternoon and still make it to Norton Auditorium for the evening concert.
For families who want a Santa photo before the parade, Florence Mall starts taking reservations for visits on Friday, November 27. Through December 17, hours are 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. on weekdays, 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Saturdays and noon to 6 p.m. on Sundays. Hours run longer December 18 through 23, and the last visits are Christmas Eve from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
That makes Thursday, December 10, the last big downtown night on this calendar. If you've followed downtown this year, through the Pine Street detours and the crowded October Saturdays, this is the first stretch since summer when the biggest downtown nights don't fall on a Friday or Saturday.
We live here too, and some of these Thursday nights will find us on Court Street. If a holiday move, a family house or a new address is on your list for the coming year, I Love Shoals Homes would be glad to talk it over on a less busy evening. Just reach out to Pamela and Russell and we'll find a time that works around the parade.
