November 12, 2026
On most parade nights, a decorated boat on Lake Lanier has one job. It falls in line near Port Royale, follows the boats ahead of it past the marinas, and finishes under the lights at Margaritaville. This year the organizers added a sentence to the route page that changes things for every boat owner thinking about entering: "Because of lake levels, you can follow in the parade or you can bring your boat to Margaritaville and decorate it for the contest."
The Lake Lanier Holiday Boat Light Parade is Saturday, Dec. 12. That makes Margaritaville, at the end of the route, the place this year's event comes together. It is the one stop any lit boat can reach on its own schedule, and the boat light contest is judged there at 9 p.m. How you take part this year depends mostly on the lake.
As of Wednesday, Nov. 4, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers measured Lake Lanier at 1,062.58 feet. That is nearly eight and a half feet below full pool and the lowest level since April 2017, AccessNorthGA reported. The lake had been falling steadily since early August. In the same report, the Corps urged caution on the water because obstructions that are normally out of sight can become hazards when the lake is this low. The Corps added that the short-term forecast calls for normal to below-normal rainfall, while long-range models show a better chance of normal rainfall over the winter months.
Low water matters more for a nighttime parade because of a second problem. The Lake Lanier Association maintains solar lights on top of 300 hazard markers around the lake, a program it started in 2013 to make night boating safer. The Association's spring survey, reported in its Summer Kickoff '26 newsletter, found about 75 of those lights not working. It had replacement lights in stock and a contractor ready to go. In some spots, though, the water had dropped so far that light poles stood as much as 20 feet above the surface. Because the lights have to be installed from the top of the pole, many repairs couldn't be done safely, and the Association said full refurbishment would have to wait for the water to rise. The lake has kept falling since that survey.
The same update points out one upside. Low water has exposed shoals, rock ledges, stumps and other hazards that are usually underwater, and the Association warned that a lower lake can change routes boaters know well. That is the backdrop for a procession of decorated boats running the south end after dark.
The organizers, Lanier Charity Events, now offer two ways in. Here they are side by side, using the details from the organizer's page.
| Run the parade | Go straight to Margaritaville | |
|---|---|---|
| When you show up | 5 p.m., at the bridge just north of Port Royale | Any time on parade day |
| Where your boat goes | Pelican Pete's at Port Royale, then Aqualand Gas Docks & Pig Tales, then University Yacht Club, then Margaritaville | Margaritaville |
| Judging | Aqualand Gas Docks & Pig Tales is listed as the judges' spot on the route | All boats judged at Margaritaville at 9 p.m. |
| What you get | Trophy eligibility, plus the full on-water run past every party | A spot in the boat light contest |
Parade entry costs $100 for boats 18 to 30 feet, $150 for 31 to 40 feet, and $200 for 41 feet and up. Registration is online at the Lanier Charity Events registration page. The organizer's page says contest registration details are still to come.
Running the route means a coordinated after-dark trip with other boats from Port Royale down to Lanier Islands, on a lake where some marker lights are out. The Margaritaville option lets an owner pick their own arrival time, even in daylight, and still be on the dock when the contest is judged.
Boats stage at 5 p.m. at the bridge just north of Port Royale. Lakeside News' roundup of holiday events lists 6 p.m. as the parade start, so plan on about an hour between meeting up and rolling out. From there the route has four stops.
You don't need a boat to take part. Lakeside News reported that the event runs on land and water, with music, a golf cart parade and a vendor market. The paper quoted Jeff Mogan of the organizing committee:
"Our 2026 Holiday Boat Light Parade will have something for everyone. At all three parade locations will have activities for participants and spectators, so come on out and support this festive Lake Lanier tradition."
The organizer's page lists a Grinch DJ, the golf cart parade and kids' games. Light shows for trucks, boats and golf carts are planned, plus a Polar Plunge, with proceeds going to charity. Trucks and cars can also enter their own light show contest, which offers cash prizes.
The three stops line up differently over the evening. Port Royale has the staging and the send-off. Aqualand has the boats passing the judges. Margaritaville is the only spot that gets both the parade boats arriving and the boats that came for the contest alone, so it should have the most decorated boats in one place when judging starts at 9 p.m.
For owners planning the night run, the Lake Lanier Association's online Navigation Map shows where the lighted markers are. The Association reminds boaters that standard signs mark hazardous areas, but they should still watch for submerged stumps, logs, rock and shallow water. If you see a solar light out or a marker down, you can report it through the Report a Problem section of lakelanier.org. The Corps' Lake Lanier boating page also lists shallow water, rocks, logs and submerged stumps as hazards and tells boaters how to report them. It also notes that ramps that are usually open year-round may close when the water is low.
Georgia DNR's required equipment checklist covers navigation lights by boat length and says personal watercraft may not operate between sunset and sunrise. The state's full rules and boating handbook are linked from DNR's boating rules and regulations page.
Several other lakeside dates fall around the parade weekend.
Dani has lived on Lake Lanier since 2006, so she knows what a lower lake does to the docks, coves and shorelines people count on, both on parade night and when it's time to sell. If you're thinking about how this year's water levels affect your own lake property, Dani Burns is happy to walk you through it. Get Your Home's Value.
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