101 Ideas for Holiday Family Fun in Tampa - 2025
Tampa's big 2025 list of holiday events and activities: Santa sightings, Christmas concerts, lights, trees, nativities, and more. . . plus activities for Chanukah, Kwanzaa, and New Year's Eve.
The activities we've listed here are confirmed for this year, but many require reserving ahead of time, and please keep in mind that events could be canceled... so click through to make arrangements.
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Below are even more upcoming holiday events that have been posted to our calendar by local organizations. If you are affiliated with a business hosting a holiday event that should be on our calendar, we'd love to see it there... it's free to post! Click here for instructions about how to add your organization to our list and easily post your events to our calendar!
Nights of Shimmering Lights
SHIMMERING LIGHTS CHRISTMAS WALK the LIGHTS season opens on November 24th and runs Thursday-Sunday through December 24th 6:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m.. The family friendly activities include 1/3-mile walking trail with hundreds lighted displays, seasonal music, outdoor movies, maze of lights, scavenger hunt, games, face painting and FOAM play nights. All ages are welcome to play.
Would you rather sit in a car or spend time walking and talking with your friends enjoying the lights? It’s a short drive to the country to get into the spirit of the season. Tickets $8.00 in advance, $9.00 at gate for ages 3+ We are pet friendly too.
2025 Holiday Events in the Tampa area
Santa Sightings
| Multiple dates starting Nov 7, 2025 | Santa's Flight Academy Photo Experience - International Plaza and Bay Street |
| Multiple dates starting Nov 8, 2025 | Santa Visits and Photos at Wiregrass |
| Nov 15, 16 & Dec 1, 2, 2025 | Sensory Santa - International Plaza and Bay Street |
| Multiple dates starting Nov 26, 2025 | Visits and Photos with Santa - Westshore Plaza |
| Multiple dates starting Nov 28, 2025 | North Pole Express - Florida Railroad Museum |
| Dec 6, 2025 | 12 Oaks Santa's Holiday Market |
| Dec 6, 2025 | Breakfast with Santa - Dunedin Community Center |
| Dec 6, 2025 | 2025 Santa Fest - Curtis Dixon Park |
| Dec 6, 2025 | Christmas Storytime with Santa - Centennial Park Branch |
| Dec 13, 2025 | Santa's Scientific Workshop - MOSI |
| Dec 13, 2025 | Breakfast with Santa - Zephyrhills Public Library |
| Dec 14 & 21, 2025 | Santa Brunch Cruises - Yacht StarShip |
Old-Time Christmas
| Multiple dates starting Nov 4, 2025 | Gingerbread Village at Glazer Children's Museum |
| Multiple dates starting Nov 14, 2025 | Christmas Town Holiday at Busch Gardens - Tampa |
| Nov 28 - Dec 31, 2025 | Victorian Christmas Stroll - Robert B. Plant Museum |
| Dec 13, 2025 | Christmas in the Country - Cracker Country Rural Florida Living History Museum |
| Dec 13, 2025 | Old Fashioned Christmas & Holiday Parade - Downtown Dunedin |
Light Displays
| Multiple dates starting Nov 8, 2025 | Symphony in Lights - The Shops at Wiregrass |
| Nov 27, 2025 - Jan 4, 2026 | Holiday Lights, Ferris Wheel & Carousel - Largo Central Park |
| Nov 27 - Dec 28, 2025 | Tampa Bay Festival of Lights & Santa's Village - Hillsborough County Fairgrounds |
| Mulitple Dates starting Nov 28, 2025 | Christmas in the Wild - ZooTampa at Lowry Park |
| Nov 28 - Dec 24, 2025 | Christmas Lane - Florida Strawberry Festival Grounds |
| Multiple Dates starting Nov 29, 2025 | Nights of Shimmering Lights - Sunkissed Acres |
| Nov 28, 2025 - Jan 3, 2026 | Holiday Lights in The Garden at Florida Botanical Gardens |
| Dec 6, 2025 | Palm Harbor Annual Holiday Tree Lighting - Harbor Hall |
| Dec 7, 2025 | Annual Tree Lighting Ceremony - AdventHealth Center Ice |
| Dec 13 - 23, 2025 | Twelve Oaks Annual Light Fight |
Holiday Theatre
| Nov 12, 2025 | A Charlie Brown Christmas - The Mahaffey Theater |
| Nov 28 - 30, 2025 | A Christmas Story The Musical - Straz Center Morsani Hall |
| Nov 29, 2025 | Cirque Dreams Holidaze - The Mahaffey Theater |
| Dec 4, 2025 | A Nostalgic Night With Macaulay Culkin: Screening of Home Alone - Straz Center Morsani Hall |
| Dec 4 - 23, 2025 | A Christmas Carol: A Live Radio Play - Straz Center Shimberg Playhouse |
| Dec 5 - 7, 2025 | The Academy of Ballet Arts Inc. Presents: The Nutcracker - The Palladium |
| Dec 5 - 21, 2025 (Select Dates | A Christmas Carol - Carrollwood Players |
| Dec 10, 2025 | Vienna Light Orchestra - The Mahaffey Theater |
| Dec 13, 2025 | Frozen in Concert - The Mahaffey Theater |
| Dec 21, 2025 | A Very Broadway Christmas - The Mahaffey Theater |
| Dec 19 - 23, 2025 | Next Generation Ballet's Nutcracker - Straz Center Morsani Hall |
| Dec 28, 2025 | Nutcracker! Magical Christmas Ballet - The Mahaffey Theater |
Holiday Concerts
| Nov 23, 2025 | Pinellas Youth Symphony - The Palladium |
| Nov 29, 2025 | Top of the World: A Carpenters Christmas - Tarpon Springs Performing Arts Center |
| Dec 5 - 7, 2025 | St. Petersburg Ballet Presents: The Nutcracker 2025 - The Palladium Hough Concert Hall |
| Dec 8, 9 & 11, 2025 | Handel's "Messiah" Part I - Tampa Oratorio Singers |
| Dec 4, 2025 | Carolmania - Straz Center Ferguson Hall |
| Dec 6, 2025 | Handel's Messiah - The Mahaffey Theater |
| Dec 7, 2025 | Dunedin Community Chorus Holiday Concert - Dunedin Community Center |
| Dec 8, 2025 | The Holiday Spectacular - The Palladium |
| Dec 13, 2025 | Clara's New York Ciy Christmas - The Palladium |
| Dec 14, 2025 | Trans-Siberian Orchestra - The Ghosts Of Christmas Eve - Benchmark International Arena |
| Dec 19 - 21, 2025 | Holiday Sparkle - St. Pete Opera |
| Dec 19, 21 & 28, 2025 | Candelight: Christmas Carols on Strings - Centro Asturiano de Tampa |
| Dec 20, 2025 | Holiday Pops - The Mahaffey Theater |
Holiday Lights and Parades- Land and Sea
| Nov 14, 2025 | Winter Wonder Wharf - Water Street Tampa |
| Multiple dates starting Nov 21, 2025 | River of Lights Holiday Cruises - Pirate Water Taxi |
| Nov 30, 2025 | Christmas Tree Lighting - Seminole Heights United Methodist Church |
| Dec 5, 2025 | Dade City Christmas Parade - Downtown Dade City |
| Dec 6, 2025 | Tarpon Springs Christmas Parade |
| Dec 6, 2025 | Santa Fest 2025 Christmas Parade - Curtis Hixon |
| Dec 12, 2025 | 35th Annual Holiday Boat Parade - Tarpon Springs Recreation Division |
| Dec 4, 2025 | Holiday Tree Lighting - Dunedin City Hall |
| Dec 20, 2025 | Lighted Boat Parade Dinner Cruise - Yacht StarShip |
| Dec 20, 2025 | Holiday Lighted Boat Parade - Pirate Water Taxi |
Christmas Tree Experience
| Open Nov & Dec 2025 | Great Lakes Christmas Tree Farms |
| Opening Nov, 2025 | Tree Brothers Christmas |
| Opening Nov, 2025 | Lazy Lay Acres Christmas Tree Farm |
| Opening Nov, 2025 | Gallio Family Christmas Trees |
| Opening Nov 20, 2025 | Gallagher's Pumpkins & Christmas Trees |
| Opening Nov 23, 2025 | Dave's Christmas Tree Lot |
Ice Skating
| Open year round | Public Skating at AdventHealth Center Ice |
| Open year round | Public Skating at Tampa Bay Ice |
| Open year round | Public Skating - TGH Ice Plex |
| Nov 21, 2025 - Jan 4, 2026 | Winter Village at Curtis Hixon Park |
| Opens November 2025 | Crystal Ribbon at Snowcat Ridge - Alpine Snow Park |
Hanukkah
| Nov 17, 2025 | Modern Menorah Clay Workshop - Practically Pikasso |
| Dec 7, 2025 | Hillel Academy Chanukah Fair |
| Dec 14 - 22, 2025 | Chanukah On Ice - Chabad of Pinellas County |
| Dec 12, 2024 | Chanukah Menorah Parade - Chabad of Pinellas County |
| Dec 24, 2024 | Toddler Tuesday: My First Menorah - Practically Pikasso |
| Dec 30, 2024 | Dunedin Chanukah Festival - Chabad of Pinellas County |
Shopping & Craft Fairs
New Year's Eve
| Dec 31, 2025 | ZooTampa's New Year Celebration |
| Dec 31, 2025 | Downtown Countdown - Glazer Children's Museum |
| Dec 31, 2025 | New Year's Eve Cruise - Yacht StarShip |
| Dec 31, 2025 | New Year's Eve Fireworks Cruise - Pirate Water Taxi |
Miscellaneous
| Nov 12, 2025 | Winter Clay Prints Pop In - Practically Pikasso |
| Nov 14, 2025 | Season Specacular - Water Street Tampa |
| Nov 25 & Dec 7, 2025 | Family Clay Day Holiday Lantern Party - The Pottery Patch |
| Nov 21, 2025 - Jan 4, 2026 | Winter Village - Curtis Hixon Park |
| Nov 18, 2023 - Jan 8, 2024 | Winter Wonderland - AdventHealth Center Ice |
| Dec 6 - 31, 2025 | Holidays at Legoland |
| Nov 28 - Dec 31, 2025 | Holiday Dinner Buffet Cruises - Yacht StarShip |
| Dec 3 - 14, 2025 | A Very Merry Christmas at the 1883 Safford House Museum |
| Dec 9, 2025 | Santa's Calling - Downtown Tarpon Springs |
| Dec 10, 2025 | Santa's Calling - Dunedin Parks & Rec |
| Dec 12, 2025 | Snow Place Like Tarpon Springs - Tarpon Springs Recreation Division |
| Dec 12, 2025 | Boley Centers 43rd Annual Jingle Bell Run - North Straub Park |
| Dec 12, 2025 | Christmas Caroling - Feather Sound Church |
| Dec 21, 2025 | St. Pete Holiday Boat Parade Adventure - Demens Landing |
| Dec 13, 2025 | Avalon Aglow - Wesley Chapel Avalon Park |
Christmas Tree Farms
Do you get your own real Christmas tree? Here's our big list of places where you can get your own Christmas tree in Tampa.
Subscriptions Boxes: Gifts That Keep on Giving
Send thoughtful choices to the ones you love near and far, and plan some excellent expected surprises for your own family in the months to come. KidsOutAndAbout has put together of some of our favorite choices with a range for all different ages and interests.
