When it comes to official Christmas celebrations, Penticton's come a long, long way in a short, short time.
And Sunday's second annual "Magic on Main Street," a combined seasonal parade and light-up ceremony that packed the sidewalks and later Gyro Park, is the current pinnacle.
But that wasn't the way just a few just a few short years ago. In 2019, for example, the parade and the light-up (the latter unfolding at Nanaimo Square) happened on separate nights, partially splitting the crowd.
Didn’t help that the parade was almost scuttled by torrential rains.
Two years of COVID postponements would follow. Then in 2022 the parade and light-up were moved to the same night and the latter shifted to Gyro Park. It seemed like the right move.
But the parade that year was woefully short and the light-up that followed felt slow-moving.
Then in 2023, the powers that be got serious. The City and the Downtown Penticton Business Improvement Association partnered and poured a good deal of effort and organization into what would become the very first Magic on Main Street.
The parade was bigger and more creative and the light-up more dynamic. And the crowds turned out en masse.
That winning recipe remained unchanged Sunday for the running of Magic 2.0. And for folks like Brandon Bare of Penticton, who we spotted dancing under the lights at Gyro with his daughter Rowan in one arm and and her best friend Sapphire in the other, the night was indeed laced with magic.
"This was our first year doing this," said Bare, who moved to Penticton three years ago. "We were out of town for last year's and the year before we just didn’t hear about it."
"But we're just so happy to be here tonight. They had the bus that brought us down. We just met at the mall and they had the Santa Express. Then the parade came and it was amazing. Everyone seemed to put so much effort into their floats."
But for Bare and Co., the best part of the evening was still ahead. And like many, the focal point was the walk-through light tunnel on the sidewalk adjacent to Gyro. It debuted spectacularly in 2023 and remained a mega attraction in 2024.
"The light-up was so wonderful," he said. "We went through the light tunnel and everything, and we met up with our friends and just had a grand old time. Rowan was so happy. It blew her little mind. I had her up on my shoulders."
The City couldn’t have found a better spokesperson than our interviewee had they been looking all evening.
"I just think Penticton is doing an excellent job," said Bare. "I think they're doing wonders with everything. It looks gorgeous and it's extremely festive. I hope they keep up the great work."
He didn’t even reference the evening's one obvious miscue – a miscue that began when Santa, standing on the Gyro stage in front of a huge crowd, depressed a giant decorative "ON" switch that was intended to trigger the park-wide light-up.
Instead, it triggered only part of it. And the crowd held its collective breath 'til full-blown illumination a minute or so later.
For parade organizer and City of Penticton sport and event supervisor Jeff Plant, a second consecutive successful Magic on Main Street means leaving memories of prior events permanently in the past.
"Look at this turnout," he said as he strolled alongside Sunday's parade. "We have thousands down here. It's just great community spirit.
"We’ve had huge buy-in from the business community and non-profit groups and people who are just contributing and families out enjoying the fantastic weather (it was dry and approximately three degrees at parade time) and this great event."
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According to Plant, who believes Magic on Main Street is now a permanent city fixture, the number of parade entries in 2024 was "about the same" as 2023. But the crowd number, spurred on by the Magic debut, was up.
"The crowd seems to be bigger because I think the light-up was so good last year and now they’re expecting bigger and better things," he said. "And they're about to get them.
"Even from a city staff point of view, it’s become their favourite thing of the year."
Next up on the City of Penticton event schedule is another sophomore happening, Frost Fest. Only this time around it'll expand to three days.
"Last year it was a one-day thing," said Plant. "But this year it'll run from January 17th to 19th.
"We've added a hot air balloon blow-up (at Okanagan Lake Park) and a movie night at Cleland Theatre on the Friday night and on Sunday a polar bear swim.
"You know, Penticton's such a wonderful community. So we're just trying to showcase that we can be a vibrant winter community as well."
For more info on the 2025 Frost Fest Winter Carnival, turn here.
