That Inimitable Glow: Tour of 362 Miles of Oregon Coast Holiday Lights

Published 12/25/22 at 5:35 PM
By Oregon Coast Beach Connection staff

(Oregon Coast) – The spirit of the holidays is definitely alive and well along the Oregon coast, even if for a couple of years it took some time off due to the pandemic. That effervescent glow is like a giant twinkle in a collective eye along the villages of the state, with one town after another showing its luminous, multi-colored sides. (Photo Oregon Coast Beach Connection)

Therein lies this photo essay, with sometimes historic shots that Oregon Coast Beach Connection has snapped over the last two decades. For some little beach burghs, you'll glimpse what the lights looked like at one time – and they may or not still be in those configurations.

If they look the same or not – well, you'll just have to jaunt out here to see for yourself.

Others are newish celebrations or those that have only recently gotten some ink, especially down on the south coast.

First along the stops is Astoria, where the Astoria Column gets lit up in fanciful ways. This shot is from at least a few years ago, and its look is completely different now. Hotels in Astoria - Where to eat - Astoria Maps and Virtual Tours

In Seaside, the festive bulbs have a deep sea theme. You may notice some of the businesses seen here are not around now, so yes, it's one of Oregon Coast Beach Connection's old collections, in this case about 2005. Hotels in Seaside - Where to eat - Seaside Maps and Virtual Tours

Cannon Beach is always a powerhouse of holiday spirit, and there are moments its decorations rival those big neighborhood tours in Portland. Hotels in Cannon Beach - Where to eat - Cannon Beach Maps and Virtual Tours

A bit farther south, tiny Manzanita is no shirker, either. Here the place is locked up tight and the sidewalks have all but rolled up on a particularly beautiful but chilly Christmas night. Hotels in Manzanita, Wheeler - Where to eat - Manzanita, Wheeler Maps and Virtual Tours

A few years back, Tillamook County had this lovely shindig from its northern border to its southern edges called The Village Light. This shot from Tillamook is from that event (courtesy photo), where every town in the county would get itself draped in Xmas cheer in a joint effort. Each town had its own theme: like Garibaldi had a fishing theme, Tillamook and Cloverdale spotlighted barns and cows, and Neskowin's motif was golf.

That lovely drive-by tour disappeared just before the pandemic. Hopefully it will return. Hotels in Tillamook Bay - Where to eat - Tillamook Maps and Virtual Tours

Insider's Tip: Garibaldi has a surprising amount of radiant constructs, including the giant G gussied up in different colors each year.

Lincoln City's outlet mall, circa 2002. Glowing reindeer often graced its lawns while other forms of seasonal sparkle covered the mall itself. Also of visual note is the Lincoln City Cultural Center's phat tree out front: it's out-freakin'-standing. Hotels in Lincoln City - Where to eat - Lincoln City Maps and Virtual Tours

In Newport, for at least 20 years the Oregon Coast Aquarium has held its spectacular Sea of Lights, probably the most dense concentration of lights on the entire north half of the shore. Hotels in Newport - Where to eat - Newport Maps and Virtual Tours

Near Florence, the BnB at Heceta Head Lightstation is always outstanding in its field. Holiday celebrations held within is walls are rather legendary too (courtesy photo).

Holiday Lights near Coos Bay, on the south Oregon coast, could well be the most impressive along all of the area's 362 miles, and this year it's returned after a certain, icky disease shut things down for two years. Its light bulbs are in the hundreds of thousands. (Photo courtesy Friends of Shore Acres State Park) See Oregon's Adventure Coast for more

Finally, just above California we come to the final town on the Oregon coast: Brookings. Its Nature's Coastal Holiday – Festival of Lights is held at its Azalea Park. There, some three million blobs of light create nothing short of a tsunami of color. (Courtesy photo).

- South Coast Hotels - Where to eat - Maps - Virtual Tours

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