Deck the Chairs opens at SeaWalk Pavilion on Wednesday, November 25, and runs through January 1. The 2026 season is set up differently from earlier ones. Last year it had one big opening and two markets. This year it runs as five themed weeks, each with a fixed pattern, a sponsor, and its own Sunday morning market. With a market every Sunday and a different stage theme each week, it pays to come back more than once.
Who Runs It Now
The change starts with the organizer. In April, Deck the Chairs launched a new nonprofit called the Students in the Arts Alliance, and Deck the Chairs is now its flagship program. As the Ponte Vedra Recorder reported, executive director Kurtis Loftus described it this way: "Deck The Chairs is our tradition, and Students in the Arts Alliance is our future." He said the new structure lets the group "support student artists year round."
The schedule shows that student focus. This year's printed lineup carries the tagline "It Starts With Arts," and student dance studios, school choirs and theater groups fill most of the daytime stage slots. Since 2013, Deck the Chairs has been known for its decorated lifeguard chairs, and those chairs are now the centerpiece of a broader student arts calendar run by SITAA.
Five Weeks, Five Themes
The official event guide splits the season into blocks that each run Wednesday through the following Tuesday, with a named sponsor for each week.
| Week | Dates | Theme and sponsor | Stage highlight |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nov. 25 to Dec. 1 | Opening Week Celebration with HFG Wealth Advisors | Ray of Sunshine Theatre, Jordan Judith, Music Rowe and The Big Orange Chorus on Saturday, Nov. 28 |
| 2 | Dec. 2 to Dec. 8 | It Starts With Arts with the City of Jacksonville Beach | The Florida Ballet's The Nutcracker on Friday, Dec. 4 |
| 3 | Dec. 9 to Dec. 15 | Tuba Christmas and More with IQ Fiber | Tuba Christmas on Saturday, Dec. 12 |
| 4 | Dec. 16 to Dec. 22 | Chair Decorating Awards with Artistic Contractors | Awards at noon on Sunday, Dec. 20 |
| 5 | Dec. 23 to Dec. 30 | Christmas to New Year's with TaxSlayer Gator Bowl | Gator Bowl Pep Rally on Tuesday, Dec. 29 |
The chairs stay up through January 1, but the stage program ends with the pep rally on December 29.
Every Week Follows the Same Pattern
Most weeks of the downloadable 2026 schedule follow a similar pattern:
- Monday and Tuesday: The chairs are on display, and SITAA concessions and merchandise are usually closed.
- Wednesday through Friday: On most of these evenings, concessions open around 5 p.m., with stage acts on the bigger nights.
- Saturday: Afternoon performances, mostly student dance, choir and band groups.
- Sunday: The Deck the Chairs Christmas Market at 10 a.m., a Kids Craft Shop at 1 p.m. presented by SITAA and Deck The Jaguar, and concessions from 2 p.m.
The Sunday market is the biggest change. In 2025, News4JAX reported two Christmas Markets, on November 29 and December 6. The 2026 schedule has five: November 29 and December 6, 13, 20 and 27. That makes Sunday morning a regular downtown date for the whole season.
The light show has changed too. Last season, according to the same News4JAX report, it ran hourly from 6 to 9 p.m. The 2026 schedule lists chair displays with a musical light show nightly from 5 to 10 p.m., except on Worship Night, December 18. That fits a post-work stop on a Tuesday as easily as a late walk after dinner on a Saturday. The printed schedule notes that dates and times may change and points visitors to the website for updates.
Holidays and late December break the pattern. Concessions are closed on Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, Monday, December 28, and from December 30 through January 1. They are open on Tuesday, December 29, for the pep rally.
The Dates Worth Circling
With a weekly pattern in place, the anchor events are spread across the season instead of crowded into opening weekend. These are the dates that justify more than one trip downtown:
- Wednesday, Nov. 25. Opening night. Chair voting and concessions open, and The Boys and Girls Club of Northeast Florida takes the Pavilion Stage.
- Friday, Dec. 4. The Florida Ballet's The Nutcracker, presented by the City of Jacksonville Beach, at 6 p.m.
- Sunday, Dec. 6. Greenlight Theatre Company presents Santa Claus is Coming to Town on the same morning as that week's market.
- Thursday, Dec. 10. Pier Dance with John Miller and The Bay Street Band.
- Saturday, Dec. 12. Tuba Christmas at 1 p.m., followed by a long afternoon of dance studios and twirling groups.
- Sunday, Dec. 13. Cathedral Arts Project, plus the Global Academy of Jacksonville Choir and Orff Ensemble.
- Thursday, Dec. 17. St. Paul's Night at 5 p.m. The next evening is Worship Night, and the schedule lists no light show that night.
- Sunday, Dec. 20. The Chair Decorating Awards at noon, with Greenlight Theatre Company's Santa Claus is Coming to Town returning at 10:30 a.m.
- Thursday, Dec. 24. A Christmas Eve service with Ocean City Church at 5 p.m., with concessions closed.
- Tuesday, Dec. 29. The TaxSlayer Gator Bowl Pep Rally at 4 p.m.
The awards date also matters for anyone who wants a say in them. The chair voting page says voting opens November 25 and has each visitor pick three community chairs by the numbers posted at the display. Public-vote winners will be recognized at the 2026 awards. Voting closes in mid-December, so the chairs need to be seen during the first three weeks to count.
Dinner Within Reach of the Pavilion
A season of repeat visits means more dinners downtown, and the restaurants near the pavilion have changed since last December.
The closest new option is Alder & Oak, which opened on July 15, 2026, at 131 First Ave. N., next to Oaxaca Club. The Jax Daily Record reported that the venue includes Zorbas, a rooftop bar. That's a short walk from the chairs on a 5 p.m. light-show evening.
A few blocks south at 120 Third St. S., Beachside Seafood has been around since 1989. Its owner, Pearl Hospitality Group, announced in late summer that the second-floor restaurant would wind down in October. The first-floor seafood market stays open and becomes the main focus, with renovations and new prepared food and grab-and-go offerings planned, according to Action News Jax.
The third is a drive rather than a walk. Jenne and Tom Corsano, who started several Two Dudes Seafood Restaurants in the region, are renovating 1067 Beach Blvd. into Circa 26, a steakhouse they expected to open in December. As described to the Jax Daily Record, the plan is dinner Monday through Saturday from 4:30 p.m., with house-cut steaks from Quincey Cattle in Chiefland and a whole bone-in filet carved tableside for call-ahead reservations. The restaurant is less than a mile west of Third Street South. Its planned weeknight hours and the 5-to-10 p.m. light show would fit a Wednesday through Saturday evening that starts at the steakhouse and ends at the chairs.
If you're planning to host family over the holidays and want help working Deck the Chairs and downtown dinners into your plans, or simply want to talk through life near the beach, Glen Hamilton is glad to help. Let's Connect.
