Snohomish's Holiday Season Starts Three Weeks Before the Tree Lighting, and Santa Changes Shops Every Weekend

From 3 to 5 p.m. this Saturday, First Street turns into a one-way loop. For First Street Trick or Treat on October 31, foot traffic goes westbound on the north side of the street and eastbound on the south side. Police will staff key intersections, and some crosswalks will be closed. A block over, St. John's Episcopal Church at 913 2nd Street has a free spooky organ concert and hands out candy during the same two hours.

That afternoon starts the downtown calendar's busiest run of the year. It lasts until the winter solstice. The Historic Downtown Snohomish Association calendar spreads the 2026 holiday season over about seven weeks. The tree lighting most people think of as the start falls almost in the middle. The first holiday event is the Holiday Open House on November 6, and Santa spends December at a different storefront each weekend.

The First Holiday Weekend Is November 6

The Holiday Open House runs Friday, November 6, from 4 to 8 p.m. and Saturday, November 7, from noon to 8 p.m. HDSA lists festive window displays, extended shopping hours, treats and drinks, and live music and entertainment around town. Its event page tells visitors to "come early, stay late."

Most downtown merchants dress their windows that weekend, and the later hours make it the easiest weekend of the season for a weeknight-style trip downtown. The Saturday listing gives the same noon-to-8 window. Twenty-one days pass between this weekend and the tree lighting, and the Open House is the main downtown event in that gap.

One thing in that gap takes place away from First Street. The Snoho Farmers Market's 8th annual Snohomish Harvested Holiday Market is Sunday, November 22, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Snohomish High School. The organizers describe it as their pre-Thanksgiving tradition, with more than 175 vendors, indoor shopping and dining, Santa photos, and live music. Parking is free. Those Santa photos come a week before Santa in the Shops opens its first downtown visit on November 29.

Thanksgiving Weekend Runs Through the Carnegie

The season returns downtown the weekend after Thanksgiving, and much of it centers on one building. The free Snohomish Tree Lighting is Saturday, November 28, from 3 to 5 p.m. at the Snohomish Carnegie Building, 105 Cedar Ave. Santa arrives at 3 p.m., the music countdown starts at 4:45, and the tree lights at 5. That two-hour program has a fixed finish. A family that comes at 4:30 still catches the part the event is named for.

That weekend also has a smaller event. The Snohomish Chamber calendar lists a Holiday Pop-Up Bookshop from The Little Books at Mara's Office, Friday and Saturday, November 27 and 28, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. On Saturday, it closes an hour before the tree lights, so a family could visit both on the same afternoon.

The day after the tree lighting, Santa moves into the shops.

Santa Has a New Address Each Weekend

Santa in the Shops runs from noon to 3 p.m. on weekend days from November 29 through December 20. Each date has its own host business. The visit is free, and HDSA asks families to bring their own camera. The page also says Mrs. Claus might make an appearance.

HDSA notes that every Santa in the Shops location is ADA accessible.

The table shows a pattern. Three of the seven stops are in the 900 block of First Street: Snohomish General Store at 922, Anna Marie Collective at 916, and Snoqualmie Ice Cream at 923. The Raven and the Swan, on Glen Avenue, is the only host off First Street. A family that walks to the wrong storefront on a given Sunday will probably find the right one within a block or two. Still, checking the date before you leave the house saves a cold walk.

Santa has two downtown appointments on December 12. He is at Anna Marie Collective from noon to 3 p.m., and the Winterfest schedule also puts a Santa photo experience at the Carnegie that same Saturday. That second appointment comes from a larger event.

Winterfest Fills the Middle Weekend of December

Winterfest runs December 11 to 13, 2026. HDSA calls it a three-day celebration across downtown. HDSA also notes that the schedule may change and that ticket prices and registration links will be posted later. Here is how the current schedule falls by day.

Friday, December 11 starts with a Gingerbread House Party at Top It Yogurt Shoppe from 2 to 3 p.m., where kids build gingerbread houses with Santa and Mrs. Claus. The evening belongs to adults: Santapalooza, a holiday pub crawl with a costume contest, runs from 5 to 9 p.m.

Saturday, December 12 is the busiest day. The current schedule includes:

• Breakfast with Santa at Feather Ballroom, 10 a.m. to noon
• Santa in Flight, a Santa photo experience at the Snohomish Carnegie Building, noon to 6 p.m.
• Fire & Ice at Andy's Fish House, noon to 3 p.m., with an ice-sculpting contest, fire pits, and s'mores
• Gingerbread House Parties at Top It Yogurt Shoppe, 12:30 to 1:30 p.m. and 2 to 3 p.m.
• The Holiday Wine Walk, with check-in at the Snohomish Carnegie Building

The Wine Walk's hours differ between sources. HDSA's Winterfest schedule lists 4 to 8 p.m., and the Snohomish Chamber calendar lists the Snohomish Wine Walk for 3 to 7 p.m. that day. Check the time again when tickets go on sale.

Sunday, December 13 starts early with the Snohomish Reindeer Games, a 5K and kids' dash on the Centennial Trail based at Averill Field. HDSA lists it from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. The City of Snohomish calendar lists the race from 8 a.m. to noon, names Emerson PTA as the organizer, and still shows the permit as pending. The rest of Sunday includes a second Breakfast with Santa at Feather Ballroom from 10 a.m. to noon, and a Historical Parlor Tour from the Snohomish Historical Society from noon to 4 p.m., which shows local historic homes decorated for the holidays. A Youth Art Show runs at the Carnegie from 1 to 5 p.m., and Top It Yogurt Shoppe hosts one more Gingerbread House Party from 2 to 3 p.m. Santa Photos with Pets is on the Sunday schedule, but HDSA still lists its time and place as to be announced.

Over the season, the Carnegie Building hosts the tree lighting, Santa in Flight, the Wine Walk check-in, and the Youth Art Show. That affects where to park.

Skip the Carnegie Lot

HDSA's visitor page lists free parking at the Snohomish Carnegie Building, 105 Cedar Avenue, but says signs prohibit parking there during special events. On event days, the lot nearest much of the holiday programming may be off-limits. Better options from the same page:

• Most downtown street parking is free with no time limit.
• First Street west of Avenue D has ample street parking and four EV charging stations.
• City Hall parking is free in the evenings and on weekends.
• For longer stays, HDSA suggests the Snohomish Library lot, Averill Field, and Maple Avenue north of Second Street.

Averill Field comes with a caveat on December 13, when it's the base for the Reindeer Games that morning. For accessible parking, HDSA lists spaces at First Street and Union Avenue, at City Hall on evenings and weekends, at the Carnegie Building, at Glen and Pearl, at First Street and Avenue B, and on Avenue B by the Waltz Building. The Harvested Holiday Market avoids the question entirely, since Snohomish High School has free parking.

The Season Ends on the River Trail

After December 20, Santa's last shop visit is at Peaches. The downtown calendar then has one last event, and it's the quietest of the season. The Winter Solstice Walk is Monday, December 21, from 4 to 7 p.m. It is a free, self-guided walk along the Snohomish River Front Trail, lit by luminaries. You can start anywhere along the trail and follow the lights. HDSA suggests arriving early for sunset, staying later to see the lanterns in the dark, or doing both. The City of Snohomish calendar lists the walk at 40 Maple Ave, still marked as permit pending.

In order, the season runs from trick-or-treating on October 31 to the Open House on November 6 and 7, then the market at the high school on November 22. Thanksgiving weekend brings the tree and the bookshop. Seven Santa stops follow, then three days of Winterfest, and finally the luminaries on the river trail on December 21.

At Sipos Homes, we pay attention to which weekends bring the most people downtown, because that also shapes how a historic Snohomish home shows in December. If you're planning a winter sale or purchase around this calendar, schedule a consultation and we'll build your timing around the season.