Find holiday decor lit up around downtown Lakeland every night this month, including Munn Park’s first Christmas tree. | Photo by LALtoday
You can tell the holiday season has arrived just by looking at our December calendar. Check this list (and check it twice) for the top events happening this month.
Meet the Magic: Dancing Lights Nights | Thursday, Dec. 4-Tuesday, Dec. 30 | 6-9 p.m. | Lakeside Village | Free | Watch thousands of lights synchronized to music around a new tree.
Artful Bowl | Friday, Dec. 5 | 6:30-9 p.m. | The Junior League Building | $150+ | Join Platform Art for its annual fundraiser party and celebrate with nontraditional entertainment.
Make like Rudolph and fly to ACE for this family event — tickets are sold at the door.
The Flight Before Christmas | Saturday, Dec. 6 | 4-7 p.m. | Aerospace Center for Excellence | $5+ | Walk through a maze of twinkling lights with hot cider in hand, and find Santa to hand over your wish list.
Lakeland Menorah Lighting | Sunday, Dec. 14 | 5 p.m. | Kryger Park | Free | Light up the night with Chabad of Lakeland’s giant menorah, treats, and family activities.
Tis the Season: Holiday Concert | 5-7 p.m. | Lakeside Village | Free | Head to Lakeside Village for an enchanting evening of holiday cheer, including live music, storytime with Santa + Mrs. Claus, festive treats, and even a little snow.*
Basketball season is here, and you don’t have to make the drive to Orlando (or pay NBA ticket prices) to enjoy it: Florida Southern College basketball is bringing the heat right here in Lakeland.
No. 89. That’s where Lakeland ranked on the “2025 America’s Best Cities Report” thanks to its combination of green spaces, industrial developments, and busy airport. In its report, Best Cities called Lakeland a “city-meets-oasis.” We’ll take it.
Seasonal
Snowfest is officially on for this Saturday, Dec. 6, 5-9 p.m. on the Frances Langford Promenade. The City of Lakeland will host this event for the 45th year, inviting families to walk in a winter wonderland, complete with shimmering snow. Just bring canned good donations for entry.
Shop
Heading downtown for the Lakeland Christmas Parade tonight? Do some early shopping at the Holiday Market in Catapult’s parking lot before the festivities begin. Local makers + food vendors will be on-site starting at 5 p.m.
History
The Coleman-Bush Building turns 50 years old this month, and the community center’s team celebrated by opening a time capsule from 2000. What’s inside? All will be revealed in February — but the team’s safe-cracking video had us cracking up.
Kids
Is your little one the next Simone Biles? Find out at two new gymnastics centers just for young children, opening soon. Sweet Peas Educational Gymnastics is coming to Swim Dynamics in spring 2026, and The Little Gym in Lakeside Village will open its doors on Saturday, Jan. 3.
Network
Mingle and jingle at the Lakeland Independent Filmmakers & Creators holiday mixer on Tuesday, Dec. 9 at 5:30 p.m. All local creatives are welcome to join for a night of networking, plus the premiere of a “Fuel Our Power” documentary. RSVP.
Shop
If you’re a Costco shopper, you know about the $1.50 hot dog. But are you in on these other 10 lesser-known hacks all Costco shoppers should know about? Wait until you see number six.*
Finance
This just in: 6% is the new 2%. This card is every reward-seeker’s dream, offering up to 6% cash back in categories you’ll actually use. Bonus: You can get 0% intro APR on purchases and balance transfers into 2027. Learn more and apply.*
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🎧 Who’s in your headphones?
Spotify, meet Swan City. | Photo by LALtoday
The day music lovers have been waiting for finally arrived: Spotify Wrapped dropped yesterday. At the end of every year, the music streaming service shares each user’s top artists, genres, songs, and more stats — and you’re probably seeing your friends’ all over your social media feeds.
We looked through several lists of listening statistics to see what’s trending in Lakeland this year, but even on a list of top genres in 4,200+ cities, Swan City was left out. So we’re taking it into our own hands.
Were you jamming along to local musicians like Van Plating? How about hitting “replay” on the Florida Men on Florida Man podcast? Share your Wrapped results below, then we’ll wrap up the answers.
Editor Connor here — I’ll go first. I was in the top 1% of Taylor Swift listeners, my favorite genre was indie pop, and my top album was Lady Gaga’s “Mayhem.” If you need more ideas, check out these Lakeland-themed playlists.
Asked
Asked
Who was your top artist of the year?
Don’t worry, Apple Music users — we’ll take your Replay results, too.
Discover clever, useful tech that solves everyday problems in this guide to 2025’s coolest gadgets. We’re talking a small but mighty home security upgrade, a power bank the size of a credit card, and more.
When it comes to roundabouts, it looks like our readers have been around the block. We asked how confident you are driving these, and 55% said, “No sweat, bring it on.” Reader Edin V. also pointed out that at the new Drane Field Road roundabout, you should only take the right lane to go right, but hop in the left lane to go straight or left. Here are more tips from FDOT.
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