Encinitas held its 40th birthday party on Oct. 3, but the one lasting change from the anniversary year comes in December. On Friday, Dec. 4, the Encinitas Chamber of Commerce will open the first Encinitas Holiday Village & Market in the Moonlight Beach parking lot. The Heritage Tree lighting happens that same evening, and the parade the next night carries the birthday theme, "40 and Still Fabulous!"

Most of what happens downtown between now and then is familiar. The new market is the exception, and it changes how that first December weekend works. Here is the whole season, starting this Sunday.

The birthday party already happened

The city counts its birthday from Oct. 1, 1986, the day New Encinitas, Old Encinitas, Cardiff-by-the-Sea, Olivenhain and Leucadia became one city. In a Coast News commentary marking the 40th, former mayor Sheila Cameron recalled that the first mayor and council were sworn in that same day.

The city's 40th anniversary celebration took up the first Saturday of the month. It had an 1980s theme and ran at Moonlight Beach and Pacific View Arts Center from 8 a.m. until an outdoor screening of Back to the Future. The day also included a sandcastle exhibition, chalk art, 1980s line dancing and a BETAMAXX concert. The Encinitas Historical Society opened the 1883 Schoolhouse with an exhibit on the five communities and the push for cityhood, including oral histories from past mayors and old newspaper pages.

That was a one-time party. The Chamber hopes the December market will come back every year.

An afternoon in Cardiff, then a night on 101

The fall calendar starts this Sunday, a few miles south of downtown. The 13th Annual Encinitas Día de los Muertos Festival runs Oct. 25 from noon to 4 p.m. at MiraCosta College's San Elijo Campus, 3333 Manchester Ave. in Cardiff, and it is free. The program lists folklórico and Aztec dancers, mariachi, a community ofrenda, sugar-skull decorating and tissue-paper flowers. The Callejeros de Encinitas Car Club is on the city's list too. You may still see the city's general events page listing a Nov. 1 date at the library. The festival's own page gives Oct. 25 at MiraCosta. The festival moved to the college in 2023, after nearly ten years at the Encinitas Community Center. Patch reported that it had outgrown that space.

Six days later, on Saturday, Oct. 31, things move back to Highway 101. Encinitas Safe Trick-or-Treat runs 5 to 8 p.m., with downtown businesses and restaurants open late and live music in The Lumberyard Courtyard. The Union-Tribune's Halloween guide describes trick-or-treaters walking South Coast Highway 101 from Encinitas Boulevard to K Street. A few details worth knowing before you go:

• Pacific View Arts Center will host free arts activities for families and let families park in its lot for free that evening.
• Self-Realization Fellowship is putting a large pumpkin display in front of its bookstore at K Street and 101.
• Modena Allergy + Asthma, this year's treat sponsor, will be in The Lumberyard Courtyard handing out allergy-friendly YumEarth candy.

November stays on the highway

The month's big day is Sunday, Nov. 22, when the Holiday Street Fair fills the middle of six blocks of South Coast Highway 101. The 2026 listing says 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Encinitas 101's general fair FAQ says the fair runs until 5, and this year's stage schedule also goes to 5 p.m. Encinitas 101's general fair page advertises more than 450 food, arts and crafts vendors.

The week after the fair, the events get smaller and more spread out. Shop Small Saturday runs Nov. 28 from noon to 3 p.m., with live music, sidewalk sales and specials at participating businesses. Deck the Windows, the downtown holiday art week, starts the next day and runs through Dec. 6.

All of these events happen along the same strip of Highway 101. Until this year, the tree lighting on the first Friday of December was the one event set up on the bluff above it, with no market of its own.

A market built around the tree

Every December, the Historical Society lights the Heritage Tree, a Norfolk Island pine at the corner of 4th and C streets above Moonlight Beach. The tree was planted in 1952 and named an official Heritage Tree in 2011. In September, Chamber CEO Carol Knight told The Coast News how the idea for a market next to it started:

"It occurred to me there's not really a holiday market here in Encinitas."

The City Council voted unanimously on Sept. 9 to approve an agreement with the Chamber. It covers about $1,600 in event costs, mostly permits and oversight, plus promotion on banners, fliers and online. The Union-Tribune described the plan as modeled on traditional European Christmas markets, with lights, evergreen garlands and decorated booths.

The main change is the timing. The market opens at 2 p.m., two hours before the lighting festivities begin at 4. According to the Union-Tribune's report on the Chamber's announcement, Friday, Dec. 4 is planned like this:

1. 2 p.m. The Holiday Village & Market opens in part of the Moonlight Beach parking lot. About 20 local artisans and small businesses will sell handmade gifts, jewelry, candles, holiday décor, specialty foods and seasonal treats.
2. Through the afternoon Strolling carolers, hot chocolate and warm cider, gingerbread house decorating, a holiday photo backdrop, children's activities and a Visit Encinitas and Chamber information booth.
3. 4 p.m. The Heritage Tree Lighting festivities begin.
4. 7 p.m. The market closes.

Carolyn Cope, president of the Encinitas Historical Society, said in the Chamber's news release that the market "will add another wonderful reason to gather and celebrate." The full program for the lighting itself has not been posted yet. Last year's lighting on Dec. 5, 2025 included four children's choirs, the Free Verse band and a visit from the North Pole, which gives some idea of what to expect. Booths cost $200, with preference for Chamber members and selected local businesses. As of mid-October, the Chamber was still looking for vendors and sponsors.

Three nights in a row

The market is the first night of a three-day stretch. On Saturday, Dec. 5, the Encinitas Holiday Parade starts at 5:30 p.m. on South Coast Highway 101 between D and J streets. This year's theme is "40 and Still Fabulous!" and the city is asking entries to celebrate Encinitas history and culture. Entry applications close Nov. 13. Fees are $75 for nonprofit groups, $150 for private groups and $200 for businesses. Later applications are accepted only if space remains, with a $25 late fee. The Union-Tribune lists Kringle Mingle on Sunday, Dec. 6 as the last event of the weekend. Deck the Windows ends the same day.

That puts the birthday-themed parade, the long-running tree lighting and the new market within a few blocks of each other over one weekend.

Getting downtown without circling for parking

The Encinitas 101 MainStreet Association's parking guide applies to every event on this calendar:

• City Hall, 561 S. Vulcan Ave.
• Moonlight Beach parking, 409 4th St. The market will take up part of this lot on Dec. 4.
• The two Coaster Station lots at 25 E. D St., at Vulcan and D and at Vulcan and E.

The train is another option. On the COASTER weekend schedule in effect since July 26, 2026, northbound Saturday trains from San Diego reach Encinitas at 5:05, 6:25, 8:05 and 9:25 p.m., and southbound trains leave Encinitas at 7:35 and 9:35 p.m. That covers Halloween night. It should also fit the Dec. 5 parade if the schedule stays the same, so check NCTD before you go.

Robert Blank has watched downtown Encinitas change since well before 1986, and every season like this one gives him a better sense of what makes each part of the coast feel like home. If the city's 40th has you thinking about your own place in it, whether that means staying, moving up or making a change, Robert Blank Realtor is glad to talk it through. Get in Touch.