York Beach's Summer Ends on One October Weekend. Here's What Fills the Calendar After.
October 8, 2026
October 8, 2026
"It's definitely slower," Patti Krukoff-Bernier, owner of Molly-O's, told the Portsmouth Herald in late September. She was talking about the summer, not the fall. Her revenue rose by about $100,000 after she added lunch and dinner service. Even so, she said beachgoers mostly stayed on the sand instead of visiting nearby shops and restaurants. David Bridges of the Ellis Park board said the 250 metered spaces next to Short Sands looked full for most of the season. The town had not yet released official meter figures.
So the 2026 season had full parking lots and careful spending. Now it is ending, and on a schedule that is easier to plan around than most years. York Beach doesn't close gradually through the fall. Most of it closes over three days in the middle of October. After that, until the Nubble comes back on in late November, the town's calendar is run mostly by the parks department, the land trust, the historical society and the chamber.
The weekend of October 17 is when it happens. The 2026 dates fall close together:
| Date | What happens |
|---|---|
| Saturday, Oct. 17 | York Harvestfest & Kidsfest at Short Sands, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. |
| Sunday, Oct. 18 | Last day of the season at the Nubble Light Gift Shop & Welcome Center |
| Sunday, Oct. 18 | Last day of daily service at Fox's Lobster House for 2026 |
| Monday, Oct. 19 | Lobster Cove Restaurant closes for the season, reopening in April |
Harvestfest is the last big day for the beach business district. The festival lists 18 Railroad Ave. as its address and sends cars to York's Wild Kingdom at 1 Animal Park Road. The Wild Kingdom ended its own 2026 season on September 20 after opening May 23, so its lot is empty that day and serves as overflow parking.
The Nubble gift shop is keeping fall hours of 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. until it closes on the 18th. Up the road, Dunne's at 214 Nubble Road lists noon to 8 p.m., closed Wednesdays. It asks visitors to call ahead because road construction was scheduled to start after Labor Day. Dunne's hasn't posted a 2026 closing date, so a phone call is the only way to know.
Some places taper off over several weeks. Sun and Surf, at 264 Long Beach Ave., serves lunch and dinner daily through mid-October. It then switches to weekends through November, closes for December and January except possibly New Year's Eve, and reopens on weekends from mid-February through May. At Stones Throw Hotel and Restaurant, the rooftop bar opened this year in the building across from the main property at 123 Long Beach Ave. Its outdoor Island rooftop has a peak season of June 12 to October 4, which is today.
Few places have posted winter plans. Nick's Beachside Grille at 1 Ocean Ave. is the clearest. Its own site says it is open year-round, although the hours it lists are labeled as summer hours: weekdays noon to 9 p.m., weekends noon to 10 p.m. Union Bluff's pub currently lists daily hours of 11:30 a.m. to 10 p.m., with food served until close.
This year's new openings mostly haven't said what they'll do in winter. The Flounder, a counter-service spot for sushi, poke and seafood, and Shorties Beach Cafe, a coffee-and-bagel shop, both opened by late May. The owners of the Sand Dollar Bar & Grille launched them in the same building as their restaurant, which is at 2 Beach St. The Sand Dollar's posted schedule is labeled "Summer 2026" and says nothing about winter. Farther up York Street, York Street Kitchen at 7 York St. has been open since March 28. Vibe, at 242 York St., opened May 8 and serves until 3 p.m. None of these places has published a winter schedule yet. This will be the first off-season for most of them, so their November hours will be new information when they're announced.
Once the restaurants close, other organizations take over the calendar. York Land Trust has filled October with smaller outdoor events:
The ferns walk is the same morning as Harvestfest. That gives a household two choices on October 17: a quiet 90 minutes at Fuller Forest or a busy day at Short Sands.
Halloween in York runs on public and nonprofit events. York Parks & Recreation's Festival of Frights lines up at 4:15 p.m. Friday, October 23, at the Short Sands basketball courts. The costume parade starts at 4:30 and ends at Trunk or Treat at the Center for Active Living. Two days later, on Sunday, October 25, Old York hosts "Spirits of the Tavern," a Dungeons & Dragons Halloween adventure, from 5 to 9 p.m. at the Old York Museum Center, 3 Lindsay Road.
The last week of October centers on the Old Burying Ground. On Thursday, October 29, community carving runs noon to 6 p.m. Old York provides the pumpkins, and they go along the stone walls around the burying ground. Trick-or-treating at Old York starts at 3:30 p.m. Friday, October 30, the town's trick-or-treat night, and the pumpkins are lit at 5.
November is slower. On November 11, the Committee for Veteran Affairs holds its annual Veterans Breakfast at Norma's, starting at 6 a.m., with a free special for veterans. The York Region Chamber's Gateway Holiday Market opens November 21 and runs every Saturday through December 19, from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., inside and outside the Chamber at 1 Stonewall Lane.
Through all of this, Short Sands hosts only one event, the Festival of Frights lineup. The beach comes back on the calendar on Saturday, November 28, when the Nubble Holiday Lights come on. They stay lit every night through February 1. The Lighting of the Anchorage takes place the same evening from 4 to 7:30 p.m. at the Anchorage Inn, with music, hot chocolate, an ice bar and Santa.
The Nubble gift shop closes October 18 and the lights come on November 28. That gap of a little under six weeks is the quietest stretch at the lighthouse all year. After the 28th, the lighthouse is again an evening destination for more than two months, at a time when most nearby restaurants are closed.
Once the lights are on, December fills up:
One scheduling note: the town's dedicated Festival of Lights page still shows an older, conflicting schedule. The 2026 dates above come from Parks & Recreation's current community calendar and special events page, which agree with each other.
Polar Express is the only December event in that list held in the beach district itself. It is for York residents only, and it takes place at a Railroad Avenue pizza place three weeks after most of the street has closed.
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