This year’s Oak Bay Light Up is bigger, better and brighter than ever.
The 12th annual Oak Bay Christmas Festival opening celebration on Nov. 25 offers a greater variety of music and activities than ever before. The line up for the Oak Bay Light Up includes a hip hop dance show, a performance by the Daniel Lapp Trio, the B.C. Fiddle Orchestra and the Joy of Life Choir.
“Light Up is a popular event and we wanted to present more activities for families as well as expand the musical offerings,” said Oak Bay Business Improvement Association President Elizabeth Smith. “It’s a great way to celebrate the start of the season.”
The family fun begins at 2 p.m. in Oak Bay Village with a bouncy castle, street hockey games for kids ages two to 10 years old and Let’s Play Wheelchairs, where children have the opportunity to discover how incredible sports can be from the perspective of a wheelchair athlete.
There will also be face painting, giant board games and a roving magician presenting Christmas-themed magic tricks. Trucks from the Lighted Truck Parade will also be at the event, including the 80-foot-long Galey Farm entry and an illuminated Canada Post van. Canada Post employees will be collecting letters for delivery directly to Santa Claus. The Oak Bay Flower Shop is hosting a Christmas craft booth where children will be guided through the process of creating a mini door swag, which they can take home.
At precisely 5 p.m. thousands of lights that have been strung on the buildings, lampposts and trees along Oak Bay Avenue will light up in a dazzling display of holiday spirit. Santa Claus will arrive on an Oak Bay fire truck to wish everyone a Merry Christmas and then go to Athlone Travel for photos and to hear Christmas wishes.