Know Before You Go: New Plans, New App, and a Smoother Season Planned for Nights of Lights
This year’s Nights of Lights will bring significant changes designed to help everything run more smoothly for residents, visitors, and the business community. The City of St. Augustine has introduced a comprehensive plan to improve safety, traffic flow, parking, and sanitation. A new mobile app will also keep visitors and employees informed with real-time updates, shuttle schedules, and parking information throughout the season.
The updates were presented by St. Augustine City Manager David Birchim and Susan Phillips, President & CEO of the St. Johns County Visitors and Convention Bureau, during a joint meeting of the Chamber’s Tourism & Hospitality Council and the Historic St. Augustine Area Council.
The 2025–2026 Nights of Lights runs from Saturday, Nov. 15, 2025, through Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026.
Growing Pains for a Beloved Tradition
Last year’s Nights of Lights drew record crowds—larger even than the Fourth of July—and revealed new challenges for the city. “We anticipated Nights of Lights to be similar to the events we’d had over the past 30 years,” said Birchim. “And it wasn’t. What we saw was a much higher level of visitation than we’d ever seen before.”
Birchim said the event’s size quickly exposed a need for stronger planning and coordination. “It was clear that we were not in control,” he said. “Before the event was over with, we already were preparing for this season."
Managing Crowds, Traffic, and Safety
To better protect pedestrians and manage the flow of vehicles, the City has added new layers of security and infrastructure.
Meridian barricades will block vehicle access to key pedestrian zones.
A mutual aid agreement with the St. Johns County Sheriff’s Office adds more deputies and public service officers throughout downtown.
Neighborhood access will be restricted, and residential streets will feature “residents only” parking to protect local traffic flow.
The City is expanding shuttle service to improve mobility throughout the season. Shuttles will run Fridays through Sundays during the entire event and daily between Christmas and New Year’s, when visitation is at its peak.
To support downtown businesses, several parking lots will be reserved exclusively for employees:
St. George & Hypolita lot (behind Florida Cracker Cafe)
Granada Street lot (behind City Hall)
Flagler College garage on Malaga Street, adding 250 workforce spaces in December
“We’re trying to accommodate the people who work downtown to keep this economic engine alive,” Birchim said. “You’re not making any money if your workers can’t get into town.”
Cleaner Facilities and Better Operations
Restroom and sanitation improvements are also a major focus. “When you have 50,000 people in town, 66 bathrooms is an afterthought,” Birchim said. The City is adding 77 portable restrooms downtown to help meet visitor demand during peak weekends and events.
Birchim noted a small but memorable lesson learned from last season: “We saw pictures of the Christmas tree—and in the picture was a trash can overflowing with trash,” he said. “So we learned two lessons: one, you don’t put a trash can next to the Christmas tree; and two, you have to have a better way to move that solid waste.”
“Know Before You Go” Campaign and App
This year’s communication strategy centers around education and preparation. In partnership with the Visitors and Convention Bureau and Visit St. Augustine, the City is launching the “Know Before You Go” campaign to help visitors plan ahead.
Susan Phillips, President & CEO of the VCB, said the app is a first step in giving visitors clear, real-time information during the busy holiday season.
“Some of the cool things on the app are that you can park and ride, find the closest lot to you, and see estimated shuttle times,” Phillips explained. “It’s about educating the public—helping them know when it’s best to come downtown, where to park, and what to expect once they’re here.”
She said the app will also highlight live music, restaurants, and things to do, with more even more features planned.
“Next year, we’re hoping to have this connected to OpenTable so that we can automatically send out information to you,” she said. “But again, we’re trying to be very thoughtful about this and also very practical—what could we do this first year?”
The Nights of Lights: St. Augustine app is available for download at http://bit.ly/3KTkCu2
