It’s the most magical time of year… and we make it extra magical in our family by creating a 25-day activity advent calendar every year! This year I want to share some of the best Christmas activities in San Antonio and surrounding areas so you can get out and make some memories with your families!
It all started in 2016 when my son was a year old and I was spending way too much time on Pinterest (c’mon, I still do!). I searched for activity advent calendars and only found crafts. We like a good craft as much as the next family, but 25 days is way too much for our active and adventure-seeking family! As a result, I created this activity calendar because we all share the joy of EVENTS! My husband and I loved doing all the things (hello, bar crawls!) before baby, now we are all about family Christmas fun (hello, Santa & snow & jumpy houses!). So with this being our sixth year of absolute fun, I wanted to share the joy with all my fellow locals and visitors!
And because a lot of y’all aren’t local to SA, I’ve included alternatives for every day that you can do easily anywhere you are in the world! That and, to be totally honest, we rarely get to do everything because something always comes up! This will help you plan out your holiday calendar easily if events change, the weather doesn’t cooperate or someone comes down with a cold.
I encourage you to keep this handy to come back to as you plan your 25 days of Christmas activities in San Antonio, and above all know that you can be super flexible and have FUN!
25 days of Christmas Activities in San Antonio (or at home!)
December 1
6:00pm: Whataburger Zoo Lights*
Anywhere: Zoo lights in your city or nearby city
December 2
6:00pm: Deck the City Hall
6:00-9:00pm: La Cantera Resort Annual Tree Lighting
Anywhere: Unwrap & read a new Christmas book
December 3
9:00am: Merry on Main (Dec 3 and 4)
12:00-6:00pm: Winter Wonderland Skating Rink and Market (Dec 3, 4 and 5)
5:00pm: Festival de Navidad
6:00-9:00pm: Christmas in the Park
6:00pm: Lighting of the Lights
Anywhere: Gingerbread Man Scavenger Hunt
December 4
8:00am: Breakfast with Santa, Leon Valley
8:00-11:00am: Breakfast with Santa, Converse
9:00am: Homemade Christmas at The Alamo
9:00am-6:00pm: We Rock the Spectrum San Antonio | Holiday Bash
10:00am-2:00pm: How the Grinch Stole Brunch
10:00am-3:00pm: WinterFest San Antonio
10:00am-4:00pm: 5th Annual Community Event GRINCH-MAS PHOTOS
11:00am-6:00pm: SA Tamales Fest
4:00-9:00pm: Silver Bells in the City
5:00-9:00pm: Concordia’s Drive-Thru Nativity
Anywhere: Candy Cane Hunt in your backyard (invite some friends over for more fun!)
December 5
9:00am-12:00pm: Deck the Paws Parade
10:00am-2:00pm: Cowboy Christmas on the River Walk
10:00am-4:00pm: Christmas in the Village (Dec 4 & 5)
1:00-3:00pm: Children’s Christmas Party
2:00-4:00pm: A Visit with Santa & Mrs. Clause
Anywhere: Visit a local drive-through light display
December 6
6:30-10:30pm: Elf Acres Christmas Lights Drive Thru*
Anywhere: Pack an Operation Christmas Box or shop for a Giving Tree recipient. Every year we pick kids the same age as our kiddos.
December 7
6:00 – 7:00pm: Universal City Tree Lighting Ceremony
6:30 – 8:30pm: Merry Movie Nights: Jingle All the Way
Anywhere: Christmas movie night with themed snacks (Strawberry Santas, Egg Snowmen, Grinch Fruit Kabobs)
December 8
Anywhere: Faux Snow Day! Some of the things we’re doing: Make pretend snow, Paint by Sticker, Christmas Mad Libs, Would You Rather? Christmas Edition
December 9
5:00-8:00pm: Pearl Holiday Stroll
6:00pm: Old West Christmas Light Fest (Thu-Sun in Dec)
Anywhere: Make gingerbread crafts or cookies
December 10
4:30-9:00pm: 2nd Annual Santa & the Elves visit Eklectic Eats!
6:00-8:00pm: Santa’s Wonderland
7:00pm: The Children’s Nutcracker
Anywhere: Grab a Activity Tray and use some of the snow from your Faux Snow Day to make a winter wonderland experience with these Arctic Animals!
December 11
8:00am-12:00pm: Market with a Mission
9:00-11:00am: Breakfast with Santa
9:00am-12:00pm: Annual Santa Brunch
10:00am-4:00pm: Big Day Of Play: Winter Wonderland
10:00am-3:00pm: 20th Annual Blue Santa Parade
3:00-9:00pm: Holiday shopping, Ice Skating & Santa
6:30-10:30pm: Movie in the Park – How The Grinch Stole Christmas
7:30pm: Helotes Hill Country Christmas Parade
Anywhere: Visit downtown or a main area where the city has put up lights and decorations.
December 12
10:00am-1:00pm: Mean Green Brunch, Botanical Gardens
12:00-2:00pm: Brunch With Santa Claus, Emmazing Play
2:00-5:00pm: Santa Is Real!
6:00-9:00pm: Coker Christmas Festival
Anywhere: Christmas Dance Party in your living room (Get a Amazon Prime Music 30-day Free Trial)
December 13
Dusk: Windcrest Lights*
Anywhere: Find a sparkling, festive neighborhood to take a drive through. Pack some hot cocoa and Christmas tunes!
December 14
6:30-8:30pm: Merry Movie Nights: The Santa Clause
Anywhere: Make DIY Bead Elves
December 15
4:00-8:00pm: Night Market at The Pearl (Wednesdays in December)
Anywhere: Pick a country and learn how they celebrate Christmas
December 16
6:00-8:00pm: Dinner with the Grinch
Anywhere: Pick toys to donate to a shelter
December 17
6:30-8:30pm: Pajama Party With Mickey & Minnie Mouse
6:30-9:00pm: Down Home Christmas
Anywhere: Breakfast for dinner, pajamas and a Christmas TV special!
December 18
8:00-10:00am: Breakfast with Santa
12:00-4:00pm: Santa Saturdays (Dec 4 & 18)
12:00 – 5:00pm: Holiday Market Days: Sip + Shop
Anywhere: Paint Christmas rocks and leave them around your neighborhood
December 19
1:00-3:00pm: Santa Claus Meet & Greet
4:00-6:00pm: Cookies & Milk With Mickey & Minnie
6:00-10:00pm: Christmas On The Ranch Dec. 17, 18 & 19)
Anywhere: Go take a picture with Santa or walk the mall to see all the decorations!
December 20
11:00am-5:00pm Holiday Bricktacular
Anywhere: Eat at a local restaurant that has Christmas decorations or a festive event!
December 21
2:00-5:00pm: Free Selfies with Santa
6:30-8:30pm: Merry Movie Nights: Home Alone
Anywhere: String and snack on popcorn!
December 22
5:45-9:00pm: Lightscape at Botanical Gardens*
Anywhere: Make Santa Binoculars for Santa sightings!
December 23
6:00-9:00pm: Christmas at the Caverns (multiple dates)
Anywhere: Make Magic Reindeer Food
December 24
Anywhere: Pajamas & Christmas movie morning
Anywhere: Walk the neighborhood and look at Christmas lights
December 25
Anywhere: Bake a Cake for Jesus
Anywhere: Bake and decorate cookies
More San Antonio Events with multiple dates:
Milk and Cookies with LEGO® Santa (multiple dates)
Winter Wonderland ¡Celebración! (Dec 3 – Dec 23)
Westover Field of Lights (weekends in Dec)
Alamo Lights (all month)
Lights Alive (all month)
Lights at Sea World (all month)
Holiday Lights at the River Walk (all month)
Holiday in the Park, FIesta Texas (all month)
We keep this list fluid and sometimes even do 2-3 events per day. Some days we just stay home! As I said, it is all about making memories and having a good time! If you loved this list of 25 days of Christmas activities in San Antonio, I’d love to hear about it in the comments! Feel free to tag me in your activity posts on Instagram and Facebook using @lisaalfarostyles.
Y’all have a Merry Christmas!!
