Tree lightings, Santa parades, German-style Christmas markets and small-town Christmas days start Saturday, Nov. 14, 2026, in Pendleton and run into mid-December across Indianapolis and the suburbs. This list of free family fun goes in order of start date, and each entry gives the time, the place and anything that costs extra, such as food, skating or Santa photos. For ticketed lights, shows and Santa trains, our guide to holiday fun in Indianapolis covers the rest of the season.
Free Holiday Festivals in November 2026
Christmas in Pendleton
- Date: Saturday, Nov. 14, 2026
- Time: 10 a.m.-6:30 p.m.; parade at 5:30 p.m.
- Where: Downtown Pendleton
Main Street Pendleton’s Christmas in Pendleton fills a Saturday with local shopping, food booths, a tree lighting and a snowball fight before the evening parade. Santa rides the last float, and walkers hand out candy instead of tossing it from the floats.
Holidays in Carmel Kick-off
- Date: Saturday, Nov. 21, 2026
- Tree lighting: 6 p.m. at the Carmel Christkindlmarkt
- Where: Carter Green, City Hall, Main Street, City Center and the Monon Greenway, Carmel
The Holidays in Carmel Kick-off spreads Santa, his reindeer, seasonal activities and holiday entertainment across downtown for an evening. It ends with the countdown and lighting of the city’s tree at the Christkindlmarkt, where admission is free. The city’s free Holiday Trolley starts the same day and runs Fridays 5 to 9 p.m. and Saturdays 2 to 9 p.m. through Dec. 19, 2026.
Carmel Christkindlmarkt
- Dates: Nov. 21-Dec. 24, 2026
- Hours: Wednesdays and Thursdays 4-9 p.m.; Fridays and Saturdays noon-9 p.m.; Sundays noon-8 p.m.
- Closed: Mondays and Tuesdays (open Dec. 21 and 22), Thanksgiving and Christmas Day
- Where: 10 Carter Green, Carmel
- Cost: Free admission and parking
The Carmel Christkindlmarkt is a German-style outdoor market with more than 60 huts on Carter Green. Entertainment and the kids’ activities are free too: crafts in the Kinderecke during all market hours, a stamp passport that earns a small prize, a wooden marble run and Spielhaus visits from Santa, his elves and puppet shows. Santa poses for a free photo from noon to 6 p.m. on Sundays. On Sankt Nikolaustag, Saturday, Dec. 5, 2026, from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m., kids recite a poem or sing a song for Sankt Nikolaus and get a small gift. The market opens at noon on Wednesday, Nov. 25, and Dec. 23, and closes at 4 p.m. on Dec. 24, 2026. Skating at The Ice at Carter Green costs extra, and pets aren’t allowed.
Circle of Lights
- Date: Friday, Nov. 27, 2026
- Time: 5-8 p.m.; the monument lights up before 7 p.m.
- Where: Monument Circle, downtown Indianapolis
- Cost: Free
Downtown Indy Alliance’s Circle of Lights lights the Soldiers and Sailors Monument the night after Thanksgiving, with live music, vendors, food trucks and Santa around the Circle. A child picked through the AES Coloring Contest flips the switch, and WTHR carries the ceremony live from 6 to 7 p.m. SPARK Holidays on the Circle follows each Saturday and Sunday in December with hot cocoa, live performances and Santa. The Circle is also the first stop on our list of free Christmas lights near Indianapolis.
Night Lights Tree Lighting and Jingle Bell Junction (Fishers)
- Tree lighting: Friday, Nov. 27, 2026, 5-7 p.m.; the tree lights at 6:30 p.m.
- Where: Nickel Plate District Amphitheater, 6 Municipal Drive, Fishers
- Jingle Bell Junction: Dec. 8-13, 2026, 10 Municipal Drive
- Cost: Free, no registration; Cookies With Characters and the mixology classes cost extra
The tree-lighting kickoff has live music, fire pits, igloo seating, live ice carving, reindeer, Fishers AgriPark animals and food trucks, and Santa and Mayor Scott Fadness light the tree at 6:30. Jingle Bell Junction then runs six days of events. The free drop-ins include Santa’s Workshop with kids’ woodshop builds (Tuesday, Dec. 8, 4 to 8 p.m.), Reindeer Games kids’ bingo (Thursday, Dec. 10, 5 to 7 p.m.), a Winter Market (Saturday, Dec. 12) and a Holiday Thrift-A-Thon (Sunday, Dec. 13, 2026, noon to 5 p.m.). Cookies With Characters, Saturday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., costs $10 a person ($15 for nonresidents) and requires registration, with kids 2 and under free. The Winter Market’s mixology classes are $40 ($60 for nonresidents). The rest of the year, our guide to things to do in Fishers with kids covers the parks, the AgriPark and the Nickel Plate District.
Christmas on the Square (Danville)
- Date: Friday, Nov. 27, 2026
- Time: 4-7 p.m.; tree lighting at 6:30 p.m.
- Where: Courthouse Square, downtown Danville
- Cost: Free
The Downtown Danville Partnership’s evening on the courthouse square has a North Pole mailbox for letters to Santa, animals at a live Nativity, seasonal music and Danville Fire’s chili. A snowball fight with a few festive characters may break out, and Santa helps light the community tree at 6:30.
Athenaeum Christkindlmarkt
- Dates: Fridays through Sundays, Nov. 27-Dec. 20, 2026
- Where: The Athenaeum Biergarten, 401 E. Michigan St., Indianapolis
The Athenaeum Christkindlmarkt fills the historic Biergarten in the Mass Ave Arts District with German holiday huts, music, raclette, Glühwein and Plätzchen, the German Christmas cookies, along with German storytelling traditions.
Bridgeton Country Christmas
- Dates: Nov. 27-29 and Dec. 4-6, 2026
- Hours: 10 a.m.-5 p.m.
- Where: Bridgeton, Parke County, around the Bridgeton Mill (8104 S. Bridgeton Road)
Bridgeton Country Christmas fills the covered-bridge village with two weekends of handmade crafts, original art, decorations, lights, live music and food. It’s about an hour and 15 minutes west of Indianapolis, so plan it as a day trip. Kids can visit Santa in the 1822 Log Cabin from 1 to 3 p.m. on both Saturdays and both Sundays.
Clearview Family Tree Farm Artisan Festival
- Dates: Nov. 27-29, 2026 (Artisan Festival); Dec. 5 and 6, 2026 (Rustic Home Festival)
- Hours: 9 a.m.-5 p.m.
- Where: Clearview Family Tree Farm, 8451 W. 100 South, Arlington (Rush County)
- Extra: Enchanted Forest wagon ride, $5 a person (ages 3 and under free)
Local makers sell handmade goods at the Clearview Artisan Festival, with live music, and the Rustic Home Festival weekend brings chainsaw artists from around Indiana. The ticketed Enchanted Forest is an after-hours wagon ride through light displays, with Santa’s workshop, on Saturday nights only, Nov. 28 and Dec. 5, 2026. Wagons leave at 6 and 8 p.m. Clearview is also one of the Christmas tree farms near Indianapolis on our list.
Christmas in the Village Parade (Zionsville)
- Date: Saturday, Nov. 28, 2026
- Time: 5-6:30 p.m.
- Where: Main Street, downtown Zionsville
The Zionsville Chamber’s Christmas in the Village parade leaves Eagle Elementary at 5 p.m. and reaches Old National Bank on South Main Street in downtown Zionsville around 6, where Santa and Mrs. Claus light the tree. The pair also pose for selfies at the Santa House at Cedar and Main, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Nov. 29 and Dec. 5, 6, 12, 13, 19 and 20, 2026. Bring a phone or camera.
A Lawrence Christmas
- Date: Saturday, Nov. 28, 2026
- Where: Lawrence Civic Plaza, 5710 Lawrence Village Parkway, Lawrence
- Cost: Free
The City of Lawrence lights its tree at A Lawrence Christmas, with a parade, a variety show, food trucks and a skating rink on the plaza, rain or shine. Winterfest, the weekend festival that follows, runs Saturdays and Sundays, 3 to 7 p.m., from Nov. 28, 2026, to Jan. 3, 2027, and the skating rink is part of it. The rink is one of the outdoor rinks in our ice skating guide. Pets aren’t allowed.
Free Holiday Festivals in December
Light Up Main (Whitestown)
- Date: Friday, Dec. 4, 2026
- Time: 5-7 p.m.; park lighting at about 7 p.m.
- Where: Main Street Park, 4286 S. Main St., Whitestown
- Cost: Free; food trucks sell food and drinks
Whitestown’s Light Up Main is a two-hour Friday evening. Santa meets kids in his workshop from 5 to 7 p.m., food trucks park nearby and the town lights Main Street Park at about 7, watched from a marked-off section of the Main Street parking lot. Pets are welcome.
Yuletide on Baldwin (Bargersville)
- Date: Friday, Dec. 4, 2026
- Time: 5:30-8 p.m.; Santa arrives at 6 p.m., tree lighting at 7 p.m.
- Where: Baldwin Street and Umbarger Plaza, downtown Bargersville
- Cost: The train ride, hot chocolate and parking are free
Bargersville’s Yuletide on Baldwin has Santa and his reindeer, a trackless train and a cup of hot chocolate, with vendors and entertainment from 5:30. The town lights its tree at Umbarger Plaza at 7. Bring a new, unwrapped toy for the United Way of Johnson County Christmas Angels drive.
Enchanted Luminaria Walk at Minnetrista (Muncie)
- Dates: Friday and Saturday, Dec. 4 and 5, 2026
- Time: 5-9 p.m.
- Where: Minnetrista Museum & Gardens, 1200 N. Minnetrista Parkway, Muncie
- Cost: Free
Minnetrista, in Muncie about an hour northeast of Indianapolis, lights three miles of its campus for the Enchanted Luminaria Walk, with live music, live theater, winter crafts, sweet treats, a barrel train for kids and a Holiday Artisan Market. Free sensory support packs can be borrowed at the Center Building, the L.L. Ball Home and Oakhurst Home. Overflow parking is at the Delaware County Fairgrounds.
Trees of Plainfield
- Dates: Dec. 4-6 and 11-13, 2026
- Time: 6-9 p.m.
- Where: Al & Jan Barker Sports Complex, 451 S. Vestal Road, Plainfield
- Cost: Free for all ages
The Town of Plainfield lines a walking trail with Christmas trees, each decorated in its own theme by local businesses, organizations and families. The sixth annual Trees of Plainfield has six nights of programs in a heated tent, plus snowball fights for all ages, fireside s’mores, food trucks and photo spots.
Downtown Holiday Lighting and Winter Market (Franklin)
- Date: Saturday, Dec. 5, 2026
- Time: 8 a.m.-8 p.m.; parade at 5:30 p.m., courthouse lighting at 7 p.m.
- Where: Downtown Franklin
Franklin’s all-day Downtown Holiday Lighting and Winter Market starts with Breakfast with Santa at Compass Park from 8 a.m. to noon. Holiday story times at the library are at 10:30 and 11:30 a.m., a live Nativity runs from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. and the Winter Market opens at 1 p.m. on North Main Street. A live shark from the Newport Aquarium visits the library at 1 p.m., Santa sits at the Johnson County Museum of History from 1:30 to 4:30 p.m. and “A Christmas Story” plays at the Historic Artcraft Theatre at 2 and 7:30 p.m. The lighted parade steps off at 5:30, Compass Park lights up at 6:30 and the courthouse square at 7.
Victorian Christmas Celebration (Mooresville)
- Date: Saturday, Dec. 5, 2026
- Time: 10 a.m.-4 p.m.
- Where: Downtown Mooresville, with trolley stops around town
- Cost: Free
Mooresville’s 37th Victorian Christmas Celebration fills downtown with costumed characters, Scrooge in his counting house, a Punch and Judy puppet show, trackless train rides on West Main Street, a petting zoo and Father Christmas at the Christmas Cottage in Bicentennial Park. A trolley links the stops around town. The town’s tree lighting is earlier, Friday, Nov. 27, 2026, at 6 p.m. in Bicentennial Park.
Fortville Winterfest
- Date: Saturday, Dec. 5, 2026
- Time: Noon-6 p.m.; parade at 1 p.m., tree lighting at 6 p.m.
- Where: Main Street, downtown Fortville
The Fortville Winterfest parade rolls down Main Street at 1 p.m. The day also has local vendors, food and seasonal treats, live entertainment, children’s activities, holiday crafts, ice skating and visits with Santa, and it ends with the Main Street and Christmas tree lighting at 6.
Christmas Under the Stars (Brownsburg)
- Date: Saturday, Dec. 5, 2026
- Time: 4-8 p.m.; parade at 6 p.m., tree lighting at 7:15 p.m.
- Where: Downtown Brownsburg and Town Hall Green, 61 N. Green St.
- Cost: Free; bring cash for the Winter Market and food trucks
Christmas Under the Stars opens at 4 p.m. in downtown Brownsburg with a Winter Market of more than 30 vendors on Town Hall Green, where kids can meet Santa’s reindeer. Santa’s Workshop crafts with the Brownsburg Public Library run in Eaton Hall from 4 to 8 p.m. The hourlong parade goes on in any weather, the grand marshal lights the tree at 7:15 and Santa poses for photos in the Town Hall lobby from 5:30 to 6:30 and 7:15 to 8 p.m.
Santa Soirée (Clay Terrace, Carmel)
- Date: Saturday, Dec. 5, 2026
- Time: 4-6 p.m.
- Where: Village Green near Dick’s Sporting Goods, Clay Terrace, 14390 Clay Terrace Blvd., Carmel
- Cost: Santa portraits are free
Clay Terrace’s two-hour Santa Soirée has free Santa portraits for digital download, horse-drawn carriage and trackless train rides, a giant snow globe, Elsa, one of Santa’s reindeer, face painters, a holiday craft zone, live music, warm drinks and the lighting of the Clay Terrace Christmas tree.
Cumberland Weihnachtsmarkt
- Date: Saturday, Dec. 5, 2026
- Time: Noon-5 p.m.
- Where: Historic Cumberland, East Washington Street (U.S. 40) from Muessing Street to South Heflin Street
- Cost: Free
Cumberland closes a stretch of U.S. 40 for its 15th Weihnachtsmarkt, a German-style winter market with vendors, German food and beer. Kids get reindeer games, letters to St. Nick and free face painting. St. Nick visits with children at the Gap Meeting House all afternoon, and a couple of his reindeer show up from 3 to 5 p.m. The Cumberland Police Department’s holiday drive collects new toys, nonperishable food and gift cards in boxes at Town Hall and participating businesses.
Westfield in Lights
- Date: Saturday, Dec. 5, 2026
- Time: 3-6 p.m.; tree lighting at 6 p.m.
- Where: Grand Junction Plaza, downtown Westfield
- Cost: Skating and Santa photos cost extra; parking at the library is free
Westfield in Lights puts holiday performers on the plaza’s Main Stage, with a Build-A-Buddy activity, hot chocolate and food vendors before the tree lighting. Three special skating sessions run on the Ice Ribbon. Santa photos at the Westfield Washington Public Library on Dec. 4 and 5, 2026, are $15 a session, with sessions released Nov. 5. Parking is free at the library, 17400 Westfield Blvd., and for the first three hours in the garage at The Union. Grand Junction Plaza anchors our list of things to do in Westfield with kids.
Broad Ripple Lights Up
- Date: Sunday, Dec. 6, 2026
- Time: 3-6:30 p.m.; parade at 5:30 p.m., tree lighting at 6 p.m.
- Where: Broad Ripple Village, Indianapolis
- Cost: Free
Broad Ripple Lights Up opens at 3 p.m. with Wonderland Village, where kids find holiday activities and Santa, plus maker vendors and live music. The twilight parade steps off at 5:30, and the village tree lights at 6.
Most Indy Parks holiday programs are free or a few dollars, but they need registration, and our Indy Parks holiday guide has the dates. For a road trip, our list of the best Christmas towns in Indiana covers Santa Claus, Carmel, Shipshewana, Madison and French Lick.
Related Article: Best Christmas Lights in Indianapolis
