Christmas Ships Parade at the St. Helens Riverfront

Outdoor viewing from public waterfront spots; no tickets or registration mentioned. Schedule subject to weather, river conditions and boating safety.

Get alerts for this listingAn email if the date, time or place changes, it’s cancelled or sells out, or registration opens. Plus a reminder the day before.

Notify me

Or get a push on your phoneSave this listing in the free app. It’ll notify you about time or place changes, cancellations, sell-outs, when registration opens, and the day before.

About this adventure

Once a season the combined Christmas Ships fleet, both the Columbia River and Willamette River boats, sails down to St. Helens and puts on its light show for Columbia County. The decorated boats assemble at the St. Helens City Docks at 6 p.m. and parade in front of the docks for about half an hour, then head downriver past Columbia City and, when the weather and river allow, cross toward the Washington shore near Woodland before returning to St. Helens; the fleet is out for roughly two hours. Families can watch from the bluff by the Columbia County Courthouse above the docks or from Columbia View Park on the waterfront, and further downriver from the Caples House Museum grounds and Pixie Park in Columbia City. The boats tie up overnight at the St. Helens docks before continuing up the Multnomah Channel the next day. Bring warm, waterproof layers and arrive early to find a spot along the railing; the volunteer-run parade can change with wind, debris and river conditions.