Seasonal & Holidays
Christmas In July? Vendors Already Sought for Mission Inn's Famed Lights Festival
The 25th annual festival will begin on Nov. 25 and run until Jan. 6.
RIVERSIDE, CA - Merchants and others wishing for a spot in the quarter- century celebration of the Mission Inn Hotel & Spa's famed Festival of Lights have one to four weeks left -- depending on their operation -- to submit applications to the city of Riverside for review, it was announced Friday.
Artisans, horse carriage operators, holiday food suppliers and anyone else interested in setting up shop on the Main Street pedestrian mall and in the vicinity of the Mission Inn are welcome to apply, according to city spokesman Phil Pitchford.
Vendors have to be insured and agree to sign liability waivers and revenue-sharing agreements with the city before they will be considered, according to documents. Some merchants will also be required to have a business license, a seller's permit and a food facility permit.
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Horse carriage operators have until July 21 to apply, while artisan applications are due by Aug. 4, and food vendor applications by Aug. 11.
Forms can be found on the city's website, http://www.riversideca.gov, or obtained by calling the 311 information line, or emailing a request to SpecialEvents@riversideca.gov .
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The 25th annual festival will begin on Nov. 25 and run until Jan. 6.
Around Labor Day weekend, crews will start stringing Christmas lights and placing decorations around the Mission Inn, continuing work straight up to Thanksgiving.
Festival founder and innkeeper Duane Roberts began organizing the events in 1992, soon after he took ownership of the property.
This year's festival will get underway with a switch-on ceremony, featuring a pyrotechnics show that illuminates the entire Main Street plaza. Afterward, more than four million Christmas lights will bathe the castle-like inn in multi-colored hues, staying on nightly until the first week of January.
There will be nightly horse-drawn carriage rides, carolers, ice-skating and visits from Santa and Mrs. Claus on the pedestrian mall fronting the hotel.
Most years, the festival draws about a quarter million visitors.
— By City News Service / Image courtesy: Mission Inn
