Downtown St. Charles will light up again as the Electric Christmas Parade and Holiday Homecoming, beloved holiday traditions in the Fox Valley, return Nov. 28-29.

The parade, which transforms the city’s main street into a river of dazzling, illuminated floats and marching bands all covered in thousands of festive lights, steps off in downtown St. Charles at 5:30 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 29.

The parade will begin at 6^th Street and will travel down Main Street to conclude at 4^th Avenue. This annual tradition will feature over 70 lighted entries, holiday music and an appearance from Santa Claus.

This year’s Grand Marshal for the Electric Christmas Parade is St. Charles native Chris Witaske. He has held many acting roles, including Emmy-winning FX original series “The Bear,” Netflix original comedy series “Love” and a recurring role in the popular “Turning into Your Parents” Progressive Insurance commercials, to name a few. The Community Guest of Honor for the Electric Christmas Parade is St. Charles resident, Deborah Foote, who was instrumental in starting this annual tradition in 2001.

The weekend kicks off at 5 p.m. Friday, Nov. 28 with the Lighting of the Lights Ceremony at the 1st Street Plaza. Enjoy holiday music from local high school choirs, free samples of roasted assorted nuts and more.

Santa will be there in his brand-new cottage on the 1st Street Plaza to take photos with children until 7 p.m. Santa will be at his new home on Saturdays and Sundays from 1-4 p.m. through Dec. 21.

On Saturday morning, the Arcada Theatre will have a free showing of the holiday classic “Elf” at 10 a.m. After the movie, stroll around the downtown area and check out the local businesses for Small Business Saturday specials and discounts, including the St. Charles Holiday Shop Crawl.

Shoppers who make a purchase from a local St. Charles shop will have the chance to win a Retail Relaxation Giveaway with gift cards to local spa, nail, hair businesses ($150 value). To find more information on how to enter the giveaway and to view sales and specials taking place, visit stcholidayhomecoming.com/shopcrawl.

For more information, visit stcholidayhomecoming.com.