Scarborough Lights 2026: circus, stargazing and trails

Scarborough is about to light up for the winter, and the best part is how much of it you can see without spending a penny. Scarborough Lights returns from Thursday 12 November to Sunday 20 December, with 28 light-themed events spread across the town — a number picked from more than 40 proposals, all run by festival director Catherine Goble. It's built as a family-friendly evening of light installations, monument illuminations and free light-based activities, so it works as well for a casual stroll as it does for a planned night out.

The big draws are the ones you can't miss. The Scarborough Castle illuminations throw dramatic projections across the headland and its old stone walls, with the evening coastline views as part of the show. Over at Peasholm Park, a light trail winds around the central lake and the Japanese Gardens, with illuminated trees, lanterns and reflections on the water. St Mary's Church gets its own moment with 'Scarborough: 400 Years and Beyond', an animated projection exploring the town's history as England's first seaside spa town, plus handmade illuminations and lanterns inside. That one runs Fridays to Sundays from 14 November to 7 December, with half-hour slots at 4:30pm, 5:00pm, 5:30pm, 6:00pm and 6:30pm.

If you're after something a bit more active, the town centre is split into three illuminated routes. 'Sherbertella's Seaside Sparkle' puts illuminated fairies in shop windows; 'Choose Your Own Scarborough' is an interactive walk inspired by Choose Your Own Adventure books; and 'A Christmas Carol' tells Dickens' story through silhouettes in shop windows, with a three-ghosts installation at the Market Vaults. There's also UV mini-golf at the Jam Jar Wine & Pinball Lounge, a UV art exhibition at the Market Vaults, a community-made market light display in the Market mezzanine and the Dino-bouts over on Vernon Road. Three choirs are contracted to sing carols, and there's free street entertainment in Westborough on the afternoons of Saturday 5, 12 and 19 December.

For the more adventurous, the Astro Dog stargazing events are worth a look. The Aurora Experience at St Columba's Church runs from Monday 16 to Sunday 22 November with atmospheric lighting, timelapse footage, film projections, an astrophotography exhibition and a science and discovery zone, and it's pay-what-you-want. The stargazing at Scarborough Castle, a guided laser tour and constellation lesson on the headland, runs from Wednesday 11 to Friday 13 December at £10 for adults and £8 for children. And save the date for 20 December, when Falsgrave Park is taken over for 'Glow in the Park' — a one-night circus show from dusk at around 4:30pm to 9:00pm, with aerial acrobats, underwater sirens, LED jugglers, hula-hoopers, a percussion circle and a poi performance, plus food and drink from the Friends of Falsgrave Park at £5 for adults and £3 for children.

A few practical notes before you go. The main trails switch on at dusk, roughly 4:30pm, and run until 9:00pm nightly. A lot of the outdoor town and seafront displays are free, but the headline trail sites and the ticketed events need booking ahead. The promenade and park displays are on paved routes, while the castle headland paths are steeper and uneven. Trains run regularly from York, Leeds and Hull, and there's pay-and-display parking at Marine Drive, the harbour and the Victoria Road multi-storey. And as with anything outdoors in December, keep an eye on the weather, because installations can change or be cancelled if it turns nasty.