Rosemary Beach's Holiday Season Moves From Square to Square

"The night after Thanksgiving, South Barrett Square fills for the moment the tree lights up." That is how rosemarybeach.com opens its listing for the 2026 Tree Lighting Ceremony & Merchant Open House. The same listing says the shops "keep their doors open into the evening, so there's no hurry to leave."

The second half of that event's name says a lot about how the season is organized. The Rosemary Beach Merchants Association runs Thanksgiving week, and it plans the week around the town center: two squares, the green and Town Hall, all within a short walk of the shops. A week later, the Rosemary Beach Foundation takes over for one Saturday and sends people out of the squares and into six decorated private homes, with the proceeds going to two Walton County charities. Thanksgiving week keeps the shops busy, and the Foundation's Saturday raises money for charity. Seeing the season as two separate parts makes the next three weeks easier to plan.

Thanksgiving Week, by Address

With the post going up on Thursday, November 19, the first Merchants Association event is five days away. The Merchants Association organizes the face painting, the magic show, the movie, the tree lighting and Breakfast with Santa, and holds all of them in the squares, on the green or at Town Hall.

The Merchants Association's five events use four venues over four days. Tuesday covers both squares, with Festive Face Painting in South Barrett Square in the morning and early afternoon, then the Pittman Magic Holiday Spectacular in North Barrett Square once the face painting ends. On Wednesday evening, the night before Thanksgiving, Moonlight & Movies shows Elf on the Western Green. Friday brings everyone back to South Barrett Square for the tree, and Saturday morning moves indoors to Town Hall for Breakfast with Santa.

Only one Merchants Association event has a price. Breakfast with Santa is listed at $20. The face painting, the magic show, the movie and the tree lighting list no cost.

Thursday Belongs to the Road

Thanksgiving morning is the exception to the week's pattern. It is the only day organized around 30A rather than the squares. The 30A 10K & 1 Mile Fun Run starts at 7:30 a.m., is organized by the 30A 10K and costs $115 to enter. The race starts in Rosemary Beach, but most of the course runs past the neighboring communities, which our Seacrest race-day guide covers in detail. Rosemary Beach's own calendar has nothing else that day. The listings go straight from Wednesday's movie to Friday's tree lighting.

That gap makes Friday the busiest night of the week.

Friday Night Is a Shopping Night Too

The tree lighting has been held the Friday after Thanksgiving in both of the last two years. In 2025 it was set for November 28 from 6 to 6:30 p.m. in South Barrett Square, organized by the same Merchants Association. In 2026 it falls on November 27 at 6 p.m., in the same square.

The 2026 name adds "Merchant Open House," and the listing explains what that means. The shops around the square stay open after the lights come on, and the listing calls the evening "a little early holiday shopping and the first real sense that the season has arrived." A 6 p.m. start puts the lighting in early evening, with the open stores along the edges of South Barrett Square.

This is where the Merchants Association's plan is easiest to see. Each event in the week fills the squares, and the biggest one is set up so people can head straight into the shops afterward.

Dinner Between Events, Without a Reservation

A newer place to eat sits a short walk from both squares. SoWal reported in August that Tahona Tacos & Tequileria is on the ground floor of the building that has Pescado on its rooftop, at 74 Town Hall Road. The name comes from the traditional stone wheel used to crush agave hearts, and the bar is built around a curated tequila and mezcal list. Its address also appears in the town's merchant directory.

The practical details matter most on a busy holiday night:

• Hours. Tahona is open daily. The kitchen serves from noon to 9:30 p.m., and the bar stays open until 10 p.m.
• Seating. Tables are first come, first served, and standard reservations are not accepted.
• Groups. Hands-on cocktail classes for groups of eight or more run 60 to 90 minutes. Each guest makes two signature drinks, with a trio of chips and dip and a bartender's-choice cocktail at the end.
• Plates to know. SoWal calls the birria tacos, served with consommé for dipping, a local favorite. The street corn comes with Cotija, lime-cilantro aioli and Tajín.

Kitchen service until 9:30 p.m. covers the gap after Wednesday's movie ends at 8 p.m. and the hours after Friday's tree lighting. Without reservations, timing is the only way to plan. Menus and private-event details are on Tahona's site.

The First Saturday of December Belongs to the Foundation

The Merchants Association's week ends when Breakfast with Santa wraps up on November 28, and the Sunday chapel service at Town Hall follows the next morning. The town calendar lists nothing between November 30 and December 5. The next event has a different organizer, a different purpose and a ticket.

The Rosemary Beach Foundation hosts its 8th annual Holiday Tour of Homes on Saturday, December 5, from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. It is a self-guided walking tour of six homes decorated for the holidays, presented with the Rosemary Beach Cottage Rental Company and a local real estate partner. The squares are now just the starting point. Check-in is at 78 N Barrett Square, and from there the tour sends guests out to the homes.

Here is how the day works, according to the Eventbrite listing:

1. Buy ahead. Advance tickets are encouraged and space is limited. Prices start at $28.52.
2. Count everyone five and older. Tickets are required for ages 5 and up, and all tickets are nonrefundable.
3. Arrive early for the cup. The first 550 adult ticket holders receive a 2026 Holiday Tour of Homes commemorative cup.
4. Check in at North Barrett Square, then walk the six homes at your own pace before 5 p.m.
5. Enter the raffle if you like. Prizes include holiday decor and more from local merchants, and you need not be present to win.

The raffle prizes are the merchants' main part in the tour. Thanksgiving week is built around the shops, and on December 5 they contribute prizes.

Three Years, Same Saturday, Same Two Charities

The tour has stuck closely to its pattern. The 2024 tour was held December 7, the 2025 tour on December 6, and the 2026 tour on December 5. Each was the first Saturday of the month. All three years benefited the same two organizations.

Caring & Sharing of South Walton has served Walton County residents for 30 years. It provides crisis relief through financial assistance, food, counseling and case management, and currently helps an average of 850 local families each month. Alaqua Animal Refuge in Freeport describes itself as the Southeast's premier no-kill animal shelter, caring for domestic animals, farm animals and native Florida wildlife.

The tour is the main public event of a larger effort. The Foundation supports community, education and charitable work in Rosemary Beach and Walton County, and reports more than $1.6 million in cumulative local giving since 2006. With 850 families a month relying on one of the two charities, a December walking tour in Rosemary Beach helps people well beyond the town.

Putting the Three Weeks on One Calendar

For a household in town, the season comes down to a few decisions, each tied to a specific place:

• Tuesday, November 24 starts in South Barrett Square and moves to North Barrett Square at 2 p.m.
• Wednesday, November 25 is an evening on the Western Green, with Tahona's kitchen open until 9:30 p.m. after the movie.
• Thanksgiving morning has the race at 7:30 a.m. and nothing else on the town calendar.
• Friday, November 27 is the tree lighting at 6 p.m., with the shops open afterward.
• Saturday, November 28 is the one Thanksgiving-week event with a price, $20 for Breakfast with Santa at Town Hall.
• Saturday, December 5 needs a ticket for everyone five and older, bought ahead, with check-in at North Barrett Square from 11 a.m.

The Merchants Association's Thanksgiving week happens in the squares, and only one of its events has a price. December 5 takes the season into six private homes and needs a ticket bought in advance.

When the tour shows off six decorated homes, it's also a lesson in how a Rosemary Beach house can be presented, and that's the kind of work we do every day. If you'd like to talk about how your own home would show at its best this season or next, The Richards Group is here on 30A. Connect with Allison Richards.