Hospitality Night 2026 ends on the Promenade on Forest. On Friday, December 4, the evening starts in the Peppertree Lot, where Santa lights the tree, and finishes a few blocks away on the Promenade on Forest, the stretch of lower Forest Avenue between Glenneyre Street and Coast Highway that the City made a permanent pedestrian space this fall.
That matters for anyone coming from Lower Bluebird. The last music of the night is now on the Coast Highway end of downtown. Coast Highway runs straight to Bluebird Canyon Drive, and the City's free trolley and Laguna Local rides keep running until 11 p.m. that night, two hours after the stage goes quiet.
The evening moves toward Forest as it goes
The City of Laguna Beach's Hospitality Night page describes the event as the year's best block party. The City and the Chamber of Commerce sponsor it together on the first Friday of every December. The 2026 schedule is marked tentative, and it runs roughly 5 to 9 p.m. Read in order, it moves from one end of downtown to the other:
- 3:00 p.m. Streets close in parts of Forest Avenue, Ocean Avenue, Beach Street and Glenneyre, and in the Peppertree Parking Lot.
- 5:00 to 5:30 p.m. The Thurston Middle School Band plays in the Peppertree Lot. Holiday crafts and activities run there until 7:30.
- 5:00 to 7:00 p.m. Laguna Beach Presbyterian hosts an art market, La Playa Tamales, homemade cookies and cider, caroling and an open sanctuary.
- 5:30 to 6:05 p.m. The Ukulele Academy plays in the Peppertree Lot.
- 6:10 p.m. Santa arrives and lights the tree.
- 6:15 to 7:30 p.m. The Laguna Community Concert and JaZz Band plays in the Peppertree Lot.
- 6:30 to 6:45 p.m. Anneliese School performs on the Main Stage on Forest Avenue.
- 6:30 to 9:00 p.m. Santa takes children's Christmas wishes at his Beach House.
- 7:00 to 9:00 p.m. Music on the Main Stage on the Promenade.
Business open houses run from 5 to 9 p.m. the whole time.
After about 7:30 the Peppertree Lot program is finished, and the rest of the evening happens on Forest. It's the first Hospitality Night since Forest became a permanent pedestrian street.
What the permanent Promenade adds to a December night
The Promenade on Forest opened on September 25, 2026, as a permanent pedestrian-only area for outdoor dining, shopping and art performances. The City planned for its remaining pieces to go in over the following weeks. The approved design includes permeable brick paving, gardens, seating and dining areas, wider walkways in front of the shops, new trees and spaces set aside for temporary performances.
A few of those details matter more on a December evening than in summer. In July, the Orange County Register reported that City Manager Dave Kiff listed custom tables and chairs, umbrellas with heaters, piped-in audio, new lighting and a fountain topped with kelp-inspired art among the amenities. The heaters and lighting count for more on a December evening that runs until 9 p.m.
The Register's September coverage of the finished project also described rustic specialty brick, greenery, a nautilus bench, bike racks and art by local tile artist Marlo Bartels. The Daily Pilot traced how the street went from a pandemic-era setup to a permanent one, and it named Alessa as a restaurant that serves diners on the Promenade and Moulin as its café. The September opening also marked two anniversaries, the 80th for Bushard's Pharmacy and the 10th for Moulin. Faherty, the clothing store, opened on Forest in April.
The Laguna Beach Independent covered the September 25 dedication, where the local band 133 played after the ribbon-cutting. The City's Music at the Promenade series ran Friday, Saturday and Sunday evenings from July 10 through August 30. On December 4 the Main Stage has music from 7 to 9 p.m.
Getting there from Bluebird Canyon without a car
Downtown streets start closing at 3 p.m., two hours before the first band plays. From Lower Bluebird, three free options cover the trip.
| Option | Where you board near Bluebird | Normal fall Friday hours | Hospitality Night |
|---|---|---|---|
| Coastal trolley | Coast Hwy & Bluebird Canyon Dr | 7:30 a.m. to 10 p.m., every 20 to 30 minutes | Free service until 11 p.m. |
| Neighborhood trolley stop | Cress St & Bluebird Canyon Dr, the stop the City lists for Bluebird Park | Trolley service hours | Free service until 11 p.m. |
| Laguna Local on-demand | Requested pickup from more than 150 locations | 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. | Free service until 11 p.m. |
The free Coastal Route follows Coast Highway from North Laguna and Heisler Park through downtown and South Laguna to the Ritz-Carlton in Dana Point. Its fall and winter schedule, posted for September 8, 2026, through June 25, 2027, runs Friday service from 7:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. The Coast Hwy & Bluebird Canyon Dr stop is served by both Long Coastal and Short Coastal trips.
Laguna Local is the City's free shared ride between residential neighborhoods and the main activity centers in town. It doesn't follow a fixed route or schedule. The City puts the average wait at 15 to 30 minutes and says it can't guarantee pickup times when demand is high. When the service launched in 2021, the City said it would serve the old Bluebird Canyon neighborhood trolley route. Rides are booked through the new Laguna Beach Transit app on iOS and Google Play, on the TripShot web link, or by calling Transit Dispatch at (949) 497-0766. It's worth checking your usual pickup point in the app well before December 4.
The extra hour is on the ride home
On a normal fall Friday, Laguna Local and the Coastal trolley both stop at 10 p.m. The City's holiday service sheet extends both to 11 p.m. on Hospitality Night. The Main Stage music and the business open houses both end at 9 p.m.
That leaves two hours of free service after the last song. It covers dinner at Alessa after the music, another round under the heated umbrellas, or simply waiting out the rush of people who all leave at once. The City warns that Laguna Local can run late at busy times, so a request made after the 9 p.m. crowd has thinned still leaves plenty of time before service ends. The Coastal trolley comes every 20 to 30 minutes along Coast Highway, so the Bluebird Canyon Drive stop is a dependable backup when the app shows a long wait.
A few other holiday dates on the same City sheet are worth knowing before December. Laguna Local and the trolley don't run on Thanksgiving Day, and both run from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Christmas Eve.
The City has kept both services free through this season. In May 2026, the Daily Pilot reported that the City Council approved a five-year contract of up to $19.1 million with LAZ Parking to keep running the trolley and on-demand service through fiscal year 2030–31. The paper also reported that the council backed away from a proposed $2 to $5 on-demand fare. The City's current Laguna Local page still lists the service as free.
For Lower Bluebird, December 4 works like this: board at Coast Highway or Cress Street any time after the streets close, see the tree lit at 6:10 p.m., follow the music down to the Promenade, and request a ride home any time before 11 p.m.
At Jacqueline Thompson Group, we follow how changes like the Promenade on Forest reshape everyday life in Laguna's canyon neighborhoods. If you'd like a confidential look at what this year's downtown changes mean for your Bluebird Canyon home, we'd be glad to arrange a private consultation.
