"SOLD OUT. Limited tickets may become available for purchase at check-in." That line is still posted on the Historic Downtown Snohomish Association's page for last December's Wine Walk, held December 13, 2025, at $40 a ticket.
This year's holiday Wine Walk is set for Saturday, December 12. When this post went up, its ticket page said only "Tickets available soon." Of all the events on the downtown holiday calendar, this is the one with a sell-out on record, and it isn't on sale yet. Most of the rest of the season, from the Holiday Open House on Friday, November 6, through the last Santa visit on December 20, costs nothing and needs no reservation. The planning comes down to a single weekend in mid-December.
Six weeks of showing up whenever you like
The season starts with the Holiday Open House on Friday, November 6, from 4 to 8 p.m., and continues Saturday, November 7, from noon to 8 p.m. HDSA's listing promises decorated windows, extended shopping hours, treats and drinks, and live music and entertainment around downtown. There's no ticket and no check-in. You walk First Street and stop wherever the lights are on.
Three weeks later the tree lighting has the same open-door format. It's Saturday, November 28, from 3 to 5 p.m. at the Snohomish Carnegie Building, 105 Cedar Ave. Santa arrives at 3, the music and sing-along start at 4:45, and the tree lights at 5. The event is free, and HDSA and the City of Snohomish put it on together. If you can only make part of the afternoon, aim for the last 15 minutes.
Santa in the Shops starts the next day. Every Saturday and Sunday from noon to 3 p.m. through December 20, Santa sets up inside a different downtown business. Visits are free, families bring their own cameras, and HDSA notes that every host location is ADA accessible. The posted rotation:
- Sunday, Nov. 29: Spada Farmhouse Brewery, 709 1st St.
- Saturday, Dec. 5: Snohomish General Store, 922 1st St.
- Sunday, Dec. 6: The Raven and the Swan, 119 Glen Ave.
- Saturday, Dec. 12: Anna Marie Collective, 916 1st St.
- Sunday, Dec. 13: Snoqualmie Ice Cream, 923 1st St.
- Saturday, Dec. 19: Sprig Beauty Co., 1204 1st St.
- Sunday, Dec. 20: Peaches, 1024 1st St., Suite 104
The list has some gaps. There's no Saturday, November 28 stop, because that afternoon belongs to the tree lighting. And six of the seven shops sit on First Street, so a stroller loop from Spada at the 700 block to Sprig Beauty at the 1200 block covers almost the whole run. If your kids want a Santa photo without a crowd, December 5, 6, 19 or 20 are the safer bets. The two middle dates fall on Winterfest weekend.
December 11 to 13 is where it all lands at once
Winterfest is scheduled for December 11 through 13, 2026. Nearly every ticketed event of the season falls on these three days, on top of free programming and a regular Santa in the Shops weekend. HDSA's Winterfest page says ticket prices and registration links will be added as they become available and that the schedule is subject to change. Here's how it lays out right now:
| Day | Time | Event | Where | Cost as posted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fri., Dec. 11 | 2 to 3 p.m. | Gingerbread House Party with Santa and Mrs. Claus | Top It Yogurt Shoppe | Not yet posted |
| Fri., Dec. 11 | 5 to 9 p.m. | Santapalooza holiday pub crawl and costume contest | Downtown | Not yet posted |
| Sat., Dec. 12 | 10 a.m. to noon | Breakfast with Santa | Feather Ballroom | Not yet posted |
| Sat., Dec. 12 | Noon to 6 p.m. | Santa in Flight photo experience | Snohomish Carnegie Building | Not yet posted |
| Sat., Dec. 12 | Noon to 3 p.m. | Fire & Ice ice-sculpting contest, fire pits and s'mores | Andy's Fish House | Not yet posted |
| Sat., Dec. 12 | 12:30 and 2 p.m. | Gingerbread House Parties | Top It Yogurt Shoppe | Not yet posted |
| Sat., Dec. 12 | 4 to 8 p.m. | Holiday Wine Walk | Check-in at the Carnegie | $40, not yet on sale |
| Sun., Dec. 13 | 8 a.m. start | Snohomish Reindeer Games 5K and Kids Dash | Averill Field and the Centennial Trail | $45 for the 5K |
| Sun., Dec. 13 | 10 a.m. to noon | Breakfast with Santa | Feather Ballroom | Not yet posted |
| Sun., Dec. 13 | Noon to 4 p.m. | Historical Parlour Tour | Snohomish Historical Society | $30 advance, $35 day of |
| Sun., Dec. 13 | 1 to 5 p.m. | Youth Art Show | Snohomish Carnegie Building | Not yet posted |
| Sun., Dec. 13 | 2 to 3 p.m. | Gingerbread House Party | Top It Yogurt Shoppe | Not yet posted |
Santa Photos with Pets is also on the Sunday list, but its time and location are still to be announced.
The Carnegie Building does a lot of work on Saturday. Santa in Flight runs there from noon to 6. Wine Walk check-in opens there at 3 p.m. and runs until 7. For the last three hours of Santa photos, families and wine walkers share one door on Cedar Avenue. If your household wants both, do the photos before 3 and come back for the walk.
The Winterfest dates also moved. In 2025, Santapalooza was on Friday, December 12, and the Wine Walk on Saturday, December 13. This year each is one calendar day earlier on the same weekday. If you're going off last year's dates, you'll be a day late.
The tickets worth watching, and when
Holiday Wine Walk. General admission is $40. It includes 10 tasting tickets, a commemorative glass and a wine bottle tote, and extra tastings are $2 each at check-in. HDSA runs three wine walks a year, and this year's earlier dates were June 6 and September 12, the second during Snohomish in Bloom. The December walk is the only one tied to a full weekend of other events, and last year's sold out. Check the Wine Walk page every so often after the Open House weekend instead of waiting until December. Last year's sold-out notice mentioned limited tickets possibly being released at check-in, but nothing guarantees those will exist this year.
Historical Parlour Tour. The Snohomish Historical Society's tour of local historic homes in holiday decor runs Sunday, December 13, from noon to 4 p.m. On the Society's ticket page, advance admission is $30 through December 12 and event-day admission is $35. The member presale has already ended. Buying ahead saves $5 a ticket, and you can do it now.
Snohomish Reindeer Games. Registration opened August 10 at reindeergames5k.com. The organizer lists the 5K at $45 and the Kids Dash at $15, and says it will take a limited number of day-of registrations while supplies last. Some published details still conflict. The city's fall and winter community guide lists the Kids Dash at $35. HDSA's schedule says the event runs 8 a.m. to 1 p.m., while the City of Snohomish calendar says 8 a.m. to noon and still shows the event permit as pending. Confirm the price on the registration page before you pay for a kid's spot.
Santapalooza and Breakfast with Santa. Neither has a 2026 price or registration link yet. Breakfast with Santa runs on both mornings at Feather Ballroom. With two seatings, it may be easier to get into than the Wine Walk, but there are no posted numbers to go on.
Parking around the crowded weekend
On most visits, parking downtown is easy. According to HDSA's visitor guide, free street parking has no time limit in most of downtown, as long as you follow posted restrictions. City Hall's lot is free on evenings and weekends.
Winterfest weekend is when two of those spots can get complicated. HDSA lists free parking at the Carnegie Building but notes that signs go up for no-parking restrictions during events. That covers the tree lighting on November 28 and most of Saturday, December 12. For longer stays, HDSA suggests First Street west of Avenue D, the Snohomish Library lot, Averill Field, and Maple Avenue north of Second Street. But Averill Field is also where the Reindeer Games starts on Sunday morning, December 13. If you're coming in Sunday for breakfast at Feather Ballroom or the noon Parlour Tour, the library lot or Maple Avenue is the better bet until the race clears out.
No 2026 street-closure notices have been posted for Winterfest yet. The City calendar and HDSA's Winterfest page are the two places to check the week of December 7.
If walking past those decorated First Street windows this season gets you thinking about what your own Snohomish home might be worth, I'm happy to put real numbers on it. Sam Burke can get you a free home valuation, or you can reach out to me directly with questions about the market here in town.
