Riverside's 34th Festival of Lights Switches On November 21 at the Mission Inn, Free on Main Street Through December 31
The City of Riverside, in Riverside County, California, opens its annual Festival of Lights with the switch-on ceremony for the Historic Mission Inn Hotel & Spa's 34th annual festival on Saturday, November 21, 2026. The Main Street light display is free to view and runs through December 31, making it one of the largest holiday-season attractions in the Inland Empire, presented by the City of Riverside together with the Mission Inn.
The switch-on ceremony takes place promptly at 5:00 PM on November 21, 2026 at Orange St. and Mission Inn Ave.; the city advises attendees to arrive no later than 4:30 PM, and a fireworks show follows the ceremony. Venue: The Historic Mission Inn Hotel & Spa, 3649 Mission Inn Avenue, Riverside, CA 92501. The festival itself runs from November 22 to December 31, 2026, closed on Thanksgiving and Christmas Day. Cost: the Main Street light display is free.
New this year, Candy Land at Albert S. White Park (3936 Chestnut St., Riverside) is a separately ticketed experience running Thursdays through Sundays from November 27 to December 27, 2026: general admission is $15 on Thursdays, Fridays and Sundays and $20 on Saturdays and from December 18-27; Riverside residents pay $13 on Thursdays, Fridays and Sundays with proof of residency at the door; a Family 4-Pack costs $50 on Thursdays, Fridays and Sundays and $70 on Saturdays and December 18-27; children aged two and under enter free, and discounts cannot be combined.
Throughout the festival, community entertainment is staged on Main Street on Thursdays through Sundays, and the Merry Artswalk takes place on December 3 and December 17. The city recommends arriving early on switch-on night, when downtown streets are at their busiest.
Source: GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：河滨市Mission Inn酒店西班牙翼庭院（Wikimedia Commons，公共领域） / Photo: The Spanish Wing courtyard of the Mission Inn in Riverside (Wikimedia Commons, public domain)
