At 2:00 a.m. on Sunday, November 1, Laughlin moved its clocks back an hour. Bullhead City kept its time. Since then, the casino towers you can see from the Arizona bank have been an hour behind, and they stay that way until 2:00 a.m. on Sunday, March 14, 2027.
Most of the year, nobody needs to think about this. Arizona, apart from the Navajo Nation, does not observe daylight saving time and stays on Mountain Standard Time year-round. During Nevada's summer daylight time, the two sides of the river show the same time. Once Nevada returns to Pacific Standard Time, they don't.
That difference falls in the busiest stretch of the year. The holiday season in 2026 is split across both banks, and two listings for the same night can be running on different clocks.
Why the hour matters this year
The Pima County Public Library's explainer covers the Arizona side of the rule. Timeanddate's Laughlin page has the Nevada dates. Put them together and you get a five-month window when a show at 7:00 in Laughlin starts at 8:00 on your kitchen clock.
December's calendar shows how this works in practice. The city's own events calendar converts Laughlin showtimes for its readers. Its listing for the Nutcracker at the Riverside spells it out: "Performances begin at 7:00 PM Nevada time (times posted are Arizona time)." Not every listing does that. The Visit Laughlin page for the same production gives dates and a venue but no clock. For a night out in December, the time zone on a listing matters as much as the date.
The Arizona side runs in three evenings and a Saturday
Bullhead City's own holiday events are all on Arizona time and run on a few fixed nights. Here they are in order:
- Friday, December 4, 6:00 p.m. The 28th Annual CRWC Boom Box Parade starts at River Gardens Drive and Hancock Road and ends at Alona Way.
- Friday, December 4, 7:00 to 10:00 p.m. Lights in the Park, presented by Community Pride Advocates, Inc., fills Gary Keith Civic Center Park at 2295 Hoppas Drive. The city's Christmas tree is lit at 9:00 p.m.
- Monday, December 7, 5:30 p.m. Light the Belle switches on the holiday lights on the Bullhead Belle in Community Park, and they stay up for the rest of the season.
- Tuesday, December 8, 4:30 to 7:00 p.m. Christmas on the City Hall Deck brings Santa to 2355 Trane Road.
- Saturday, December 12, 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. The Great Christmas Carnival, presented by Republic Services and the City, takes over Anderson Auto Group Fieldhouse at 3663 Bullhead Parkway. Admission is free, and ride wristbands are sold separately.
December 4 is the busiest night. The Boom Box Parade starts at 6:00 and the park opens at 7:00, so the evening moves from one to the other with the tree lighting at 9:00. Both events are on the Arizona side, so the time zone doesn't come into it.
Light the Belle also sets up the end of the month. Once the Belle is lit on December 7, it is the same boat the city recommends as a place to watch the lighted boat parade twelve days later.
Crossing the river means converting the time
The Laughlin casino shows are where the hour matters, and they fill the middle of the month. Times below come from the city calendar's conversions and the venues' own notes.
| Date | Show | Venue | Nevada time | Arizona time |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dec. 10–13 | The Nutcracker, Anaheim Ballet | Don Laughlin's Riverside Resort, 1650 S. Casino Dr. | 7:00 p.m. | 8:00 p.m. |
| Dec. 12 | Cirque Musica Holiday Wonderland | The Edge Pavilion, Edgewater Casino Resort, 2020 S. Casino Dr. | Doors 6:00, show 7:00 p.m. | Doors 7:00, show 8:00 p.m. |
| Dec. 16–20 | Whey Jennings "Rockin' Country Christmas" | Don Laughlin's Riverside Resort, 1650 S. Casino Dr. | Check with the Riverside | Add one hour |
Visit Laughlin lists the Nutcracker from December 10 through 13. The Anaheim Ballet production includes the battle scene, the Russian dancers, the Bon Bons and the "Waltz of the Flowers." Tickets are sold through the Riverside box office at 1-800-227-3849, extension 616, which can also confirm which nights have performances.
The Whey Jennings listing on Visit Laughlin covers five nights, December 16 through 20, at the Riverside. Laughlin is still on Pacific time that week, so whatever showtime the resort posts, add an hour for the Arizona clock.
December 12 is when the two clocks collide
On most December nights, you only need one time zone. Saturday, December 12, is the exception.
The day starts in Arizona. The Great Christmas Carnival runs at Anderson Auto Group Fieldhouse until 4:00 p.m. local time. The evening moves to Laughlin, where two holiday productions start at the same time a short distance apart on Casino Drive. Cirque Musica Holiday Wonderland opens its doors at the Edgewater's Edge Pavilion at 6:00 p.m. Nevada time and starts at 7:00. The Nutcracker is listed that night too, also at 7:00 p.m. Nevada time, at the Riverside.
On the Arizona side, that's 7:00 p.m. doors for Cirque and an 8:00 p.m. start for both shows. When the carnival closes at 4:00 p.m. in Bullhead City, it's 3:00 p.m. in Laughlin, so the gap before curtain is four hours on either clock. The difference is the numbers you're reading. A dinner reservation across the river is booked in Nevada time, and a 6:30 table there is 7:30 on your own clock. Since both shows start at once, Saturday night means choosing one.
The boat parade starts on the Arizona side
The season's main river event is back on Bullhead time. Christmas on the Colorado is on Saturday, December 19, at the Bullhead Area Chamber Event Center, 1251 Highway 95. The Chamber's itinerary has the Christmas Market doors opening at 4:00 p.m. MST and lists the Lighted Boat Parade at 5:00 p.m. MST. The city's calendar entry for the parade shows 6:00 p.m. MST. The market has local vendors, a Kids Zone and holiday entertainment.
The Chamber's page has two details for the parade crowd. The parking lot in front of the building is reserved for boat loading, staging and final parade preparations, with restricted vehicle access and parking. Boat owners who want to join register through the Chamber's boat registration link. Both times are Arizona time, so check the organizer's Chamber event page during the week before December 19 for the final start time.
For a place to watch, the city's listing suggests finding a spot along the river or watching from the Bullhead Belle, which will be "decorated with thousands of twinkling lights for the season." Those lights go on December 7. On December 19 they're part of the parade route.
The same week, Whey Jennings is playing at the Riverside on the Nevada side, so the clocks diverge again that evening. The parade runs on Arizona time and the concert runs on Nevada time. If you're planning both, convert before you leave.
Keeping the season straight
These four habits match how the 2026 calendar is set up:
- Anything held in Bullhead City is on Arizona time: the Boom Box Parade, Lights in the Park, Light the Belle, the City Hall Deck, the carnival and Christmas on the Colorado.
- Anything on South Casino Drive in Laughlin is on Pacific time until March 14, 2027.
- The city's events calendar converts Laughlin shows to Arizona time and says so in the listing.
- Venue and tourism pages in Laughlin use their own local clock, or give dates only, so add an hour.
The hour difference also affects winter showings, closings and moving days for anyone working across the river. The Modern Desert Group plans transactions on both clocks, so if a fast, predictable sale is on your 2027 calendar, request a cash offer or a strategic listing plan and we'll schedule it before the clocks line up again on March 14.
