(Somewhat fewer than) 101 Ideas for Holiday Family Fun in the San Francisco Bay Area - 2020
The Bay area's holiday events list is somewhat shorter this year than our traditional 101 ideas for local holiday fun, but there are still ways to make the holidays special in our area for 2020. 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. Enjoy the holidays!
If you don't already receive KidsOutAndAbout's free weekly e-newsletter for San Francisco, sign up today to make sure you're in the know about free stuff, festivals, classes, camps, vacation ideas, and all the best events near you! In the meantime, enjoy the ideas below for holiday family fun in 2020!
Santa Sightings
| Nov 14, 2020- Jan 7, 2020 | Virtual Visits with Santa - Stonestown Galleria |
| Nov 20- Dec 24, 2020 | Photos with Santa- Stonestown Galleria |
| Nov 27, 2020- Dec 20, 2020 | Santa Visits- Santa’s Tree Farm and Village- Half Moon Bay |
| Nov 27- Dec 24, 2020 | Photos with Santa- The Shops at Tanforan |
| CANCELLED for 2020 | 41st Annual San Rafael Parade of Lights & Holiday Festival |
| Nov 28, 2020 | Santa’s Riverboat Cruise- Petaluma |
| Dec 4-24, 2020 | Photos with Santa- Broadway Plaza |
| Dec 4- 20, 2020 | Socially Distant Santa- City Center Bishop Ranch |
| Dec 5, 2020 | 2020 Sensitive Santa Sighting- All Children Academics |
| Dec 5-6, 12-13, 19-20, 2020 | Live From The Workshop- El Campanil Theatre |
| Dec 5, 12, 19, 2020 | Socially Distanced Santa Visits- Letters to Santa- Bon Air Center |
| Dec 5, 2020 | Pictures with Santa in A Snow Globe- Concord |
| CANCELLED for 2020 | Santa Fly-In 2020- Pacific Coast Air Museum |
| Dec 15- 23, 2020 | Visit To The North Pole- Lesher Center for the Arts |
Light Displays
| Nov 20, 2020- Dec 19, 2020 | CuriOdyssey’s IlluminOdyssey Outdoors |
| Nov 20, 2020- Jan 17, 2021 | Glowfari- Oakland Zoo |
| Nov 20- Dec 20, 2020 | Garden of d’Lights- Ruth Bancroft Garden |
| Nov 29, 2020 | Festival of Lights Float Display- Rancho Shopping Center- Los Altos |
| Dec 5- 31, 2020 | Christmas Tree Lane- Alameda |
| Dec 10, 202- Feb 2021 | Entwined- Whimsical Wonderland of Lights- Golden Gate Park |
| Dec 12-31, 2020 | Christmas Tree Lane- Palo Alto |
| Dec 12, 2020 | Sausalito 33rd Annual Lighted Boat Parade & Fireworks |
| Dec 18- 30, 2020 | Fairy Winterland- Children's Fairyland |
| CANCELLED | Holiday Lights Train- Roaring Camp |
Living Nativities
| Dec 1-31, 2020 | BETHLEHEM Drive-Thru- Santa Clara First Baptist Church |
Holiday Theatre
| Nov 27-28 and 4-5, 2020 | It's A Wonderful Life - A Musical Streaming Live on YouTube |
| Dec 4-31, 2020 | A Christmas Carol: On Air- American Conservatory Theater |
| Dec 4-6, 2020 | Broadway Holiday at The Drive-In- SOMO Village |
| Dec 11-13, 2020 | Broadway Holiday at The Drive-In- Sonoma Raceway |
| Dec 17, 2020 | Manual Cinema’s A Christmas Carol- Cal Performances at Home |
| Dec 18- 23, 2020 | Broadway Holiday Online- Transcendence Theatre Company |
Holiday Concerts
| Dec 15 - Jan 1 | A Chanticleer Christmas |
| Dec 5-6, 2020 | Deck the Hall Virtual Celebration- San Francisco Symphony |
| Dec 5, 2020 | 35th Annual Holiday Concert - "The New Main Stage"- Virtual |
| Dec 11, 2020 | Virtual Posada Navideña by Calidanza |
| Dec 12, 2020- Jan 5, 2021 | A Cathedral Christmas - Grace Cathedral |
| Dec 12, 2020- Jan 5, 2021 | Soulful Joy @ Grace |
| Dec 12, 2020- Jan 5, 2021 | Sing You A Merry Christmas- Grace Cathedral |
Christmas Tree Experience
| Dec 5, 2020 | Festival of Trees- Gamble Garden |
| SEASONAL | The Guardsmen Tree Lot |
| SEASONAL | Brent's Christmas Trees |
| SEASONAL | Santa's Tree Farm and Village- Half Moon Bay |
| SEASONAL | Wonderland Trees |
| SEASONAL | Christmas Tree Jamboree- San Francisco |
| SEASONAL | Clancy's Christmas Trees |
| SEASONAL | Castro Valley Christmas Tree Farm |
| SEASONAL | Larsen's Christmas Tree Farm- Petaluma |
| SEASONAL | Frosty Mountain Tree Farm- Sebastopol |
| SEASONAL | Little Hills Christmas Tree Farm- Petaluma |
| SEASONAL | Pronzini Farms- Petaluma |
| SEASONAL | Garlock Christmas Tree Farm- Sebastopol |
| SEASONAL | Grandma Buddy's Christmas Trees- Sebastopol |
| SEASONAL | Reindeer Ridge Christmas Tree Farm- Sebastopol |
Ice Skating
| Yerba Buena Ice Skating and Bowling Center | |
| Oakland Ice Center | |
| Winter Lodge- Palo Alto | |
| CANCELLED | Union Square Ice Rink |
| CANCELLED | Winter Park at Civic Center |
| CANCELLED | The Holiday Ice Rink at Embarcadero Center |
Hanukkah
| Dec 4, 11, 2020 | AT HOME KIT Chanukah Cookie Decorating Kit- Taste Buds Kitchen |
| Dec 6, 2020 | CKids Pre-Chanukah Scavenger Hunt- Chabad of Contra Costa |
| Dec 7, 2020 | CTeen Pre-Chanukah Paint Night- Chabad of Contra Costa |
| Dec 12, 2020 | Season in Song- California Symphony |
| Dec 13, 2020 | ArtBash Live: Hanukkah- Contemporary Jewish Museum |
| Dec 13, 2020 | Chanukah Drive Thru Experience- Sonoma Marin Fairgrounds |
| CANCELLED | Chanukah Train- Roaring Camp |
Shopping & Craft Fairs
| Nov 14, 2020 | Buckeye Ranch Holiday Market- Petaluma |
| Nov 21, 2020 | ART on the Square- Virtual Holiday Show |
| Nov 27, 2020 | Holiday Marketplace & Christmas Tree Stroll- Ghirardelli Square |
New Year's Eve
| Dec 31, 2020 | New Year’s Eve Musical Celebration- Cal Performances at Home |
Miscellaneous
| Nov 20, 2020- Jan 3, 2021 | ‘Tis the Season for Science- California Academy of Sciences |
| Nov 27-Dec 18, 2020 | Winterfest- Mill Valley |
| Dec 4, 2020 | Holiday Tree Lighting - Burlingame - Virtual |
| Dec 4-18, 2020 | At Home Kit Holiday Cookie Decorating- Taste Buds Kitchen |
| Dec 5, 2020 | Classic Film Series-The Muppet Christmas Carol- El Campanil Theatre |
| Dec 6, 2020 | Virtual Holiday Celebration- Guide Dogs for the Blind |
| Dec 12, 2020 | Classic Film Series-Miracle On 34th Street- El Campanil Theatre |
| Dec 18, 2020 | Outdoor Movie Night at the Brickhouse- ELF |
| Dec 19, 2020 | Classic Film Series-It's A Wonderful Life- El Campanil Theatre |
| Dec 19-20, 2020 | A Christmas Carol- Lesher Center for the Arts |
| Dec 23, 2020 | Outdoor Movie Night at the Brickhouse- A Christmas Story |
| CANCELLED | The Building Lighting Ceremony at Embarcadero Center |
Below are items that have been posted to our calendar. 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!
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