Winter Park Christmas 2026: Parade, Tree Lighting and Winter on the Avenue

Winter Park's Christmas events in 2026 fall on one weekend, December 3 to 5, and it's all free: Christmas in the Park on Thursday, December 3, Winter on the Avenue with the tree lighting on Friday, December 4 from 5 to 9 PM, and the 74th Christmas Parade on Saturday, December 5 from 9 to 10:30 AM on Park Avenue. Winter Park is Central Florida's prettiest place at Christmas, with brick streets and a tree in Central Park.

Winter Park Christmas 2026: dates and times

Christmas in the Park: Thursday, December 3

The Morse Museum sets out its Tiffany stained glass windows in Central Park, lit up after dark, with the Bach Festival Choir. It's listed for 6:15 to 8:30 PM. Confirm the 2026 date with the Morse Museum, and bring a blanket or a chair.

Winter on the Avenue: Friday, December 4

From 5 to 9 PM in Central Park, with Park Avenue turned into a pedestrian street party:

• The tree lighting and a menorah lighting
• Strolling carolers, children's choirs and stilt-walking elves
• S'mores, snow slides and a "snowy surprise" at Morse Blvd and Park Ave
• Santa and Mrs. Claus from 6:30 to 8 PM, who arrive with Winter Park Fire-Rescue
• Popcorn Flicks in the park

Christmas Parade: Saturday, December 5

From 9 to 10:30 AM on Park Avenue. It's the 74th year of what the Chamber calls the oldest continuous holiday parade in Central Florida, with more than 80 groups including marching bands, police and fire departments, and Santa. Before it, Leadership Winter Park hosts a fundraising pancake breakfast in Central Park.

Make a weekend of it

• Friday afternoon: Shop Park Avenue, then stay for the tree.
• Saturday morning: Pancakes and the parade.
• Saturday afternoon: Lunch on Park Avenue, or a clear kayak tour through the canals. It's about two hours in a tandem kayak.
• Saturday night: Drive to downtown Orlando for Lake Eola and the Merry Market, about 20 minutes away.

More ideas are in our Winter Park guide.

Tips for the Christmas weekend

• Come early for the parade. Park Avenue is the busiest place in town that morning, and streets close.
• Bring a jacket on Friday night. December evenings can feel cool.
• Check the Chamber's site before you go. Its pages list Winter on the Avenue on December 4, though one line still mentions "Friday, Dec. 5", which looks like last year's wording.
• Note the dates. Lake Eola's tree lighting is also on December 4, so pick one.

More Christmas near Winter Park

• Dazzling Nights at Leu Gardens, about 15 minutes away
• Orlando Christmas markets
• Orlando events in December

Coming from out of town? A Mini Moo Land bottle feeding or Boggy Creek airboat tour makes an easy daytime stop in Kissimmee, both 10% off through us. (I'm Boggy Creek's marketing manager.)

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Parking and getting around Park Avenue

Winter Park's downtown is one long brick street, and on Christmas weekend the whole area around Central Park closes to cars. The city posts the exact closures on its news and press release page a week or two out, so check it before you drive in.

Parking is easier than it looks:

• The city garages. There are public garages within a block of Park Avenue, including the garage on Canton Avenue across from the Morse Museum. The museum's visitor page lists free parking on certain floors of the Park Place garage on Canton, and that holds for the museum's evening events too. Read the signs on each floor; the free floors can change.
• Street parking on the side streets east of Park Avenue is free but fills by late morning on parade day.
• SunRail stops right at Central Park (Winter Park station on Morse Boulevard), which is the easiest way in from downtown Orlando on a weekday evening. Check the current schedule at sunrail.com, since weekend service has been limited to special events.

For the parade, arrive by 8 AM for a spot on the curb. Families set up chairs along Park Avenue from Canton down to Fairbanks, and the north end near the station tends to be less packed than the stretch by Central Park.

Free things to do while you're there

• Friday Nights at the Morse. From November through April the Morse Museum is free from 4 to 8 PM on Fridays, which lands right on Winter on the Avenue. Its Tiffany collection, including the chapel interior, is the best free hour in Orlando. Confirm the season's Friday dates on the museum's site. More in free things to do in Orlando.
• Central Park itself. The tree, the rose garden and the fountain are lit through the season, so a weeknight walk down Park Avenue gets you most of the atmosphere with none of the crowd.
• Hannibal Square. Two blocks west of Park Avenue, with restaurants and the Hannibal Square Heritage Center. It is where locals eat when Park Avenue has a wait.
• The Scenic Boat Tour is not free, but it is cheap for what it is: an hour on the chain of lakes, with adult tickets listed around $20 and kids around $10. Boats run hourly from the dock at the end of East Morse Boulevard, first come, first served, cash or card at the dock. Details at scenicboattours.com.

Locals' tips for the Christmas weekend

• Eat early or late. Park Avenue restaurants take walk-ins, but between 6 and 8 PM on Winter on the Avenue night the waits run past an hour. Put your name in before the tree lighting or plan dinner in Hannibal Square or Maitland.
• Bring cash for the pancake breakfast before the parade. It is a fundraiser and moves faster that way.
• Bathrooms are scarce. The public restrooms are in the Winter Park Farmers' Market building by the station and in the garages. Restaurants reserve theirs for guests on event nights.
• The weather turns. Early December evenings in Winter Park drop into the 50s after sunset. A jacket you can tie around your waist at 4 PM is the right call.

The rest of the season is in our Christmas in Orlando guide, and the year-round version of this town is in things to do in Winter Park.