Santa Claus to light up Longford Town for Christmas on Black Friday
Grafton Court Christmas Fair runs Friday, 29 and Saturday, 30 November kicking off #ShopLongford Christmas season
Press Release: Monday, 21 November 2024
Santa Claus is coming to Longford Town on Black Friday, 29 November to light up the town by switching on the Christmas Lights at 6pm. Santa will also launch the Grafton Court Christmas Fair,
which will be open from 4-9pm on Friday, as well as from 2-7pm on Saturday, 30 November.
Meanwhile a new and exciting Christmas lights display will be projected onto the Market Square Building above the Longford Tourism Office on Friday and Saturday evening, as well as from 5-7pm
each day from 20-23 December.
Before the official switching on of the lights on the evening of Friday, 29 November, Santa will make his way down Main Street on his sleigh. Once Longford is lit up, Santa will then be joined by
Mrs Claus to meet all the children at his grotto on Main Street, to hear all about how good everyone has been this year, before Christmas comes. Santa will also be back to meet children in his grotto, this time on Ardrum Court on Saturday, 30 November, from 2-4pm. Ardrum Court is around the corner from Grafton Court and across from Longford Centre.
Soak up the festive atmosphere in Longford Town by visiting The Grafton Court Christmas Fair to buy a range of locally made goodies and gifts from County Longford based businesses and crafters.
Enjoy the top-class entertainment, with performances between 7 and 8pm on Friday and over the day on Saturday by Music Generation Longford; St Mel’s Musical Society with Musical Director Fintan Farrelly; Emily Doyle and the Sugar n Spice Band.
The Christmas Fair is an initiative of Longford County Council, in support of the businesses of Grafton Court that are reopening in advance of the Christmas trading season after a very difficult year of trading.
Road closures will be in place to facilitate Santa’s arrival and the Christmas Fair, with motorists approaching Longford Town advised that the Main Street will be closed between The Longford Arms Hotel and the Post Office, with pedestrian access maintained at all points on Friday evening. Grafton Court will be pedestrianised from 1am on Friday until midnight on Saturday to facilitate the Christmas Fair.
The Christmas Lights event coincides with the beginning of free off-street parking around Longford Town for the festive season to make it as easy as possible for people to choose to shop local. There will also be free off-street parking on 30 November, 7 December and every day from Saturday, 14 December to Tuesday, 31 December. Shoppers are also reminded that there is free parking every Sunday throughout the year.
Supporting Longford businesses helps to keep money in our local economy and boosts job creation for the betterment of our local business sector.
These events are organised by Longford County Council through Longford Municipal District, Longford Tourism, Longford Nighttime Economy and the Local Enterprise Office, Longford. The Christmas projection is being led by Longford Tourism with support from Longford Arts Service and Caroline Conway, Artistic Director of Longford Lights 2025.
