Virgin River: Netflix Announces Season 5 Premiere Date, Holiday Specials

The highly anticipated fifth season of Virgin River is arriving on Netflix this fall, but fans of the acclaimed dramedy series have even more to look forward to than that over the course of 2023. On Tuesday, Netflix announced the premiere date for Virgin River Season 5, confirming the new episodes would arrive on September 7th. Additionally, Virgin River is getting a Christmas special at the end of the year.

Virgin River Season 5 was initially given an order of 12 total episodes. When the season arrives on September 7th, it will only consist of 10 episodes. Those other two episodes were given the holiday treatment, allowing for a couple of hours to come later in the year and serve as a Christmas special. The two holiday episodes of Virgin River will debut on Netflix on November 30th.

Netflix's own Tudum site says that the fifth season of Virgin River will feature "surprising new relationships, a shocking break-up, a difficult court trial, a heartbreaking goodbye, and a wildfire that threatens the town, bringing some residents of Virgin River together while tearing others apart."

Virgin River Season 5

"What you can expect from Season 5 is a lot of answers to the questions you have been waiting for," executive producer and writer Erin Cardillo told Tudum last year, when the new season was in production. Of course, those questions include the truth about the father of Charmaine's twins, Hope's recovery, Doc's diagnosis, and many others, many of which will be addressed head-on in the new season.

Season 5 of Virgin River will also include some new characters. Not much is known about the new additions, except that one of them will be played by Battlestar Galactica's Kandyse McClure.

"There's some new characters coming to Virgin River this season that will mix things up a bit," said writer and executive producer Richard Keith.

Is Virgin River Returning for Season 6?

There's little concern for the future of Virgin River, as Netflix has already ordered more episodes of the popular series. Earlier this year, Netflix announced that Virgin River had been renewed for Season 6.

"I think we definitely see more longevity and growth with the show," Netflix's Head Of Drama, Development Jinny Howe told Deadline last year. "As long as the audience asks for it and shows up – and I think we see with Season 4 that the fandom is very strong and growing in many places as well – it feels like based on what we're seeing with Season 4 and the anticipation for Season 5 that there is a lot more storytelling to offer us."