Half a million Christmas lights hanging in several downtown parks can mean only one thing for Norfolk—Simcoe Christmas Panorama is back.
Every night at 6 pm sharp, parks in near-darkness are illuminated by 500,000 colored lights and 25 holiday-themed displays that include animatronic penguins and a live-action Santa’s workshop.
“There’s suddenly light and motion as everything comes to life,” said Panorama’s volunteer co-ordinator, Caitlin O’Neill.
“It’s a beautiful, heartwarming scene. I think the lights create a nice festive cheer in everyone who sees them.”
Nearly 1,000 people gathered in Wellington Park last Saturday to kick off the 64th edition of the month-long festival, which draws bus tours from Hamilton and beyond.
After a drive-thru edition of Panorama in 2020 and a scaled-down version in 2021, the festival is back and brighter than ever, with volunteers installing an additional $5,000 worth of lights and several new displays to give the park a “storybook” feel , O’Neill said.
“For a lot of families, especially in Norfolk, the light-up of the Panorama is like the official start of the holiday season,” O’Neill said.
Santa and Mrs. Claus rode in for the opening ceremonies on the Bickle, an antique fire truck provided by the Simcoe Firefighters Association. Kids lined up to whisper a few words into the big man’s ear while their parents and grandparents sipped hot apple cider and sampled poutine from a food truck.
Amanda Van Schyndel of Simcoe called Saturday’s festivities “sensational.”
“It was fabulous. We’ve been here 40-something years and we’d never been to opening day,” said Van Schyndel, who enjoyed the evening with her daughter and grandson.
“It really was magical when they put the lights on,” she said.
Weather permitting, the lights will be on every night from 6 to 10 pm until Jan. 1. Admission is free, though donations toward next year’s festival are welcome at the hot chocolate hut.
There are special events on Fridays and Saturdays, including horse-drawn trolley rides, Christmas markets and Paw Patrol-themed storytime in the park. Visit SimcoePanorama.ca for full details.
The festival is entirely run by volunteers, including a seven-person planning committee and 15 residents who set up the lights and displays using “kilometres and kilometers of extension cables,” O’Neill said.
Panorama organizers also invited homeowners across Norfolk to put up holiday displays and compete in the Light Up the County contest.
An online map directs tourists to areas where they are sure to see some impressive lights.
“It’s really nice to see when whole neighborhoods get involved and every house on the street has lights on it,” O’Neill said.
JP Antonacci is a Local Journalism Initiative reporter based at the Hamilton Spectator. The program is funded by the Government of Canada
