The Boats in Sausalito's Lighted Parade Belong to the Neighbors

In 2024, first place in the Charter class went to boat number 20, Hotel California, entered by Michael Sullivan. Second place went to Tamalpais from the Angel Island Ferry. In the Power class, Peter Hanneforth's Alchemy V finished ahead of a Guardian fireboat entered by Melissa Vincent. In Sail, Jib Martins' Freedom finished ahead of Kanaloa, a Modern Sailing boat. The list reads like a waterfront directory because it nearly is one. The boats that light up Richardson Bay each December belong to local owners, clubs and working crews who string their own lights, sign their own waivers and steer their own course past the crowd.

The 39th Sausalito Lighted Boat Parade runs Saturday, December 12, 2026, from 6 to 7:15 p.m. off the Sausalito waterfront at Gabrielson Park. Fireworks are planned for about 7:15. It costs nothing to watch from the public waterfront. Each year's show is only as big as the number of people who decide to put a boat in it, and registration for 2026 is open now.

The 2024 Roster, Boat by Boat

The 2024 results are the latest winners list the organizers have posted, and they show the mix of entries.

Hotel California won both its division and the People's Choice vote. Alchemy V won the Power class and the Sausalito Cruising Club's Club Cup, which the organizers said would be presented separately at the Cruising Club. The rest of the list shows how many kinds of boats take part: a ferry that carries day-trippers to Angel Island, a fireboat, a sailing school's boat and a good number of privately owned vessels. A decorated boat on Richardson Bay could belong to almost anyone with a slip in town.

Clubs and schools field more than one boat. For the 2025 parade, Modern Sailing advertised two decorated entries: Firefly, skippered by Geoff Love, and Attitude Adjustment, skippered by Jett Angeles. Two of its other boats, Auriah and Survivor, went out as spectator boats.

A Parade Sized by Its Sign-Ups

Because the boats come from volunteers, the parade has never been a set size. Merv Regan is president of the Sausalito-On-the-Waterfront Foundation, the 501(c)(3) that organizes the event. In the foundation's history, he writes that the parade grew out of a lunch at the Sausalito Yacht Club with Robert Squires and Barbara Ross. Regan asked why Sausalito had no lighted yacht parade, and they told him nobody had ever organized one.

"I asked if they wanted to come and play. They did and we have."

Regan writes that the first parade was the largest, with nearly 70 boats, and that the parade has averaged 25 to 40 boats over the years. In 2022, organizer Lisa Scopazzi told Bay City News, in a preview published by KRON4, that about 65 boats had signed up and that about 30 human-powered boats, including kayaks, paddleboards and rowboats, were also expected. That year came close to the first parade's turnout, and the paddlers added a whole second group of entries.

The money works much the same way. Watching is free, and the foundation's donation page lists the Winterfest fireworks among the things donations pay for, alongside waterfront education programs with scholarships for disadvantaged youth. The fireworks are not guaranteed. In 2025 the parade went ahead, but according to Bay City News coverage on Local News Matters, the fireworks were canceled because of alleged mechanical failures. The same report said children groaned and some parents were happy to head back somewhere warm.

What the 2026 Entry Form Asks For

Entering takes paperwork more than money. The 2026 application asks for:

• The boat's name, make and year
• A category: Charter, Sail, Power, Kayak/SUP or Other
• The boat's length
• Any yacht-club affiliation
• The marina or anchorage where the boat is kept
• A description of the owner and a photo of the boat

Entrants also accept a liability waiver, agree to follow Coast Guard navigation rules and the parade route, and acknowledge that boats that don't comply can be disqualified or removed. The organizers say route instructions will go to entrants electronically and on paper.

The Kayak/SUP category matters most to people without a yacht. Paddlers have their own place in the lineup, which puts the parade within reach of anyone who keeps a kayak or paddleboard nearby and is willing to string up some lights.

What People Have Brought to the Water

The foundation's history shows how far some entrants have gone. Its stories span decades and describe how the parade used to run, but they show the same thing the 2024 roster does: the parade depends on the effort of the people in it.

Regan writes that one year the Business Women's Committee of the Sausalito Chamber of Commerce, roughly 30 people, decorated a 125-foot recovery vessel moored at Schoonmaker Marina so thoroughly that it was unrecognizable at night. Another year, regulars at a local restaurant lent their boat, and the restaurant's staff decorated and crewed it. Rodger March, Dieter Rapp and Walt Wester won in 1991 with their boat Lola. After selling it, they rented it back the next year so they could enter one more time. One regular entrant and his son built a model of the family sailboat and towed it behind them, and the son got a special award. Annie Sutter won three times and then stepped back to give others a chance.

According to the same history, weather has rained out the parade only twice. The first time, Bill Evans and a friend saw a break in the storm and motored Lono past the yacht club anyway. The second time, five boats came out: Amici, Grizzly, Lono, Mystic and Tambadil. The current event site says the parade runs rain or shine.

The crowd on shore has its own history. After the first parade, Regan writes, a CHP officer came to the yacht club to find out who was responsible, because drivers had stopped on the Waldo Grade to watch. The CHP has been on the organizers' notification list ever since.

Saturday, December 12, by the Clock

In 2025, according to Bay City News on Local News Matters, the crowd filled Gabrielson Park and the downtown boardwalk. The lit boats looped back toward the end of the boardwalk with the San Francisco skyline behind them, and waterfront restaurants were full of people watching over dinner. Bay City News reported that the boats were visible from anywhere along the waterfront. Here is the 2026 schedule:

1. 5:00 p.m. Reserved seating opens at Gabrielson Park, and VIP ticket holders start arriving at the Captain's After Party at The Spinnaker, 100 Spinnaker Drive.
2. 6:00 p.m. The parade starts.
3. About 7:15 p.m. Fireworks.
4. 8:00 p.m. General admission opens for the Captain's After Party. Dinner is not included.
5. 10:30 p.m. The after party ends.

Premium seating and after-party tickets are sold through the Winterfest Eventbrite page. The parade itself is free to watch. In 2024, winners received their awards at the after party, and awards for winners who weren't there were mailed.

On Sunday morning, December 13, the weekend moves onto land. Bib pickup for the Jingle Bell 5K starts at 7:30 a.m. on Humboldt Avenue, and the race starts at 8:30. The kids' run follows at 9:15, and Jingle Paws is part of the same morning. Winterfest brunch at The Spinnaker starts at 9 a.m. by reservation. Bay City News reported that the 2025 race raised money for the Dipsea Kidz program, which pays race entry fees and buys uniforms for young runners who don't have a traditional track team.

The Rest of Sausalito's December

The parade weekend falls in the middle of Holiday by the Bay, which runs December 1 through 31 downtown and along the waterfront. The City, local businesses, the Chamber of Commerce and community volunteers put it on together. The key dates:

• Thursday, December 3, 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. The 5th annual tree lighting at the newly renovated Tracy Way Plaza, with a welcome from Mayor Woodside, sing-alongs, performances by The Frosties and the Marin Girls Chorus, and a visit from Santa. The tree lights up at 6:15.
• Saturday, December 5. Breakfast with Santa.
• December 8 through 31. The Gingerbread House Tour.
• December 12 and 13. Artist Open Studios and Holiday Markets, on the same weekend as Winterfest.

With the open studios, markets, parade, after party and 5K all on December 12 and 13, that weekend holds most of the month's events. Every boat on the water that Saturday night has a local name beside it on the entry form.

If you're planning a December evening on the waterfront or thinking about entering your own boat, I'd be glad to share what I know about getting around Sausalito on parade weekend. Everything I do with Deborah Cole comes from caring about this community, so let's connect.