It's that time of year again: The lights are twinkling, the bells are jingling and the SamTrans bus is getting ready for its yearly holiday makeover.
Making its 10th appearance, the custom-decorated SamTrans holiday bus will will help reign in the festivities this Saturday, December 4 during Redwood City's annual Hometown Holidays Festival & Parade.
The holiday celebration runs, rain or shine, from 10 a.m. until 6 p.m. in Courthouse Square. In addition to the parade, which loops around the square, this free, family-friendly celebration will feature live entertainment, carnival rides, a children’s carnival and photos with Santa in the History Museum.
This year, for the first time, SamTrans will be decorating one of its 60-foot articulated buses. Previous years have seen buses decked out in life-size reindeer, stacks of presents, and even fake snow.
After a year hiatus, Caltrain’s Holiday Train will also return this weekend, making 9 stops between San Francisco and Santa Clara. Decorated with 70,000 glittering lights, the train will arrive at the nearby Sequoia Caltrain Station at 6:10 p.m., where the holiday bus will be parked after the parade. Attendees will catch onboard and in-station entertainment and appearance by characters like Frosty the Snowman and Santa’s elves.
Schedule of events
10:00 am – 3:00 pm: Complementary pictures with Santa under the cover of The Fox marquee on Broadway
10:00 am – 4:00 pm: Snow Lot and Entertainment Stage featuring local musical and dance performances
10:00 am – 6:00 pm: Holiday and Food Vendors, Kid’s Carnival and Rides
4:30 pm – 5:15 pm: Hometown Holidays Parade Extravaganza
5:45 pm: Courthouse Square Holiday Tree Lighting
