Thousands line the streets for the Los Altos festival of lights parade

With over 50 groups participating in the holiday parade, people from across the South Bay lined the street in Los Altos.

LOS ALTOS, Calif. - Christmas holiday celebrations are in full swing across the Bay Area, including in Los Altos where the city held its 47th Annual Festival of Lights parade Sunday night.

The streets were lined with thousands of people who came out for the Festival of Lights parade. It seemed everyone was ready to get into the Christmas spirit.

"I was just walking in with all the floats and stuff, and they looked really cool. I saw Santa Claus, so awesome!" said Savannah of Los Altos.

With over 50 groups participating in the holiday parade, people from across the South Bay lined the street in Los Altos. The parade covered the downtown Los Altos Triangle, which included First, State and Main Streets.

"I just think the atmosphere is really fun, and it’s a nice way to get in the Christmas spirit," said Katie of Los Altos.

This year’s parade theme was "A Child’s Holiday Fantasy". High school marching bands and musical floats were a few of the crowd favorites. One proud parent told us it’s the second year her daughter has participated in the parade with the Mountain View High School band.

"I think it really brings the community together. There are a lot of people out here, and I think it does help," said Ana of Mountain View.

The parade is produced by community volunteers and has continued to grow since 1977. Some parade-watchers talked about how celebrating the holiday reminds them of how fortunate they are.

"I think when you have adorable little children like this, you’re super lucky and blessed. I think you have to look at the good things," said Marie of Palo Alto.

"We concentrate on good news, not bad news. There’s a lot of good happening in the world too, so you can’t forget that part," said Jenny of Los Altos.

And after seeing the floats, dancers, marching bands and, of course, Santa, these girls told us it felt good to have a little fun before hitting the books on Monday.

"Tomorrow, we have school, which is very bad news. But it makes me happy though that we have something good right before school," said the three young girls.

If you missed this year’s parade in Los Altos, you could watch the replay at Los Altos Parade.