Nelson Santa Parade attracts its biggest crowd yet, organiser says

It wasn’t just Santa, there were storm troopers and a mermaid among the 1500 people entertaining the public at Nelson’s Christmas parade. 

Organiser Trevor Marshall said this year’s parade attracted its biggest crowd yet, as more than 25,000 people lined up to watch the action on Sunday. 

A Colombian bus repurposed as a float won the judges’ award, but the people’s choice was still up for grabs via the online vote, he said. 

Marshall, the chairperson of the Nelson Santa Parade Trust, said organisers couldn’t have asked for a better day with temperatures soaring higher than 20C. 

“Beautiful day, absolutely stunningly hot and a great crowd,” he said. 

The 71-year-old said 55 groups and floats took part in the parade, which started at 1pm and ended around 2.15pm. 

A special float reflected the connection Nelson had with the sea. 

“We had a giant shell with a mermaid on it, and had two giant seahorses that were pulling her along,” Marshall said. 

He said the floats would now be put in storage to get ready for the parade in Richmond on December 8.