Castle Rock's holiday season, 2026, in date order

The season in Castle Rock runs from the Outlets’ tree lighting in mid-November to two church services in the fairgrounds barns on Christmas Eve, with the star on the Rock lit in between. Here is all of it, in order, from the organizers’ own pages as read on October 31. Each one is on the events calendar with its listing. What the Town itself puts on in its parks is on crgov.com, which this guide cannot read automatically, so check there too.

Saturday, November 7: the craft show

The Castle Rock Senior Activity Center’s Craft Show Extraordinaire fills the Douglas County Events Center, 500 Fairgrounds Drive, from 9 am to 4 pm. Admission is free.

Saturday, November 14: the tree lighting at the Outlets

The Outlets at Castle Rock light what they call Colorado’s tallest Christmas tree, 4 to 7 pm, free. The concert starts at 4 with the Eric Golden Band, honky-tonk country, and Spinphony, a string quartet. Santa arrives escorted by the Castle Rock Fire Department, the Douglas County and Castle View high school marching bands and the Castle View winter guard, lights the tree, and a drone show follows. Beer and wine are sold for the Humane Society of the South Platte Valley. The Outlets are at 5050 Factory Shops Boulevard, off I-25 at exit 184.

Saturday, November 21: Starlighting

The Chamber of Commerce has opened the holidays this way since 1962; the star on the Rock itself was first lit in 1936. Downtown is closed to cars from 6 am to 8 pm (Perry Street from 5th to 2nd, North Wilcox from 5th to 3rd, 4th from Jerry to Perry, and 3rd and 2nd from Wilcox to Perry) and the event runs from 2 to 6 pm around Historic Wilcox Square and Festival Park, free. Santa is in Festival Park from 2 to 4:15. Biff Gore plays the main stage at 4th and Wilcox, where the ceremony begins at 5; the star is lit at about 5:30 and fireworks follow immediately, weather permitting. The Castle Rock Professional Firefighters serve their 90th annual chili supper at Fire Station 151: beef chili, nachos, hot dogs, drinks and desserts. The Town calls the weeks that follow the Season of the Star: the star stays lit from Starlighting night through Saturday, January 23, the end of the National Western Stock Show.

Free shuttles run from 1:30 to 8 pm from three lots, each dropping at Fifth and Wilcox or nearby: the Alexander lot at AdventHealth Castle Rock, 2350 Meadows Boulevard; the south building at Douglas County High School, 2842 Front Street; and Lot 5 at the fairgrounds, 500 Fairgrounds Drive. Return shuttles pick up where they dropped off. Chamber events take cards only, no cash. The event map, booth list and entertainment schedule were still marked coming soon at the end of October.

From Sunday, November 22: carriage rides

The Downtown Alliance’s horse-drawn carriage rides start by the big tree in Festival Park and run Wednesday to Sunday from November 22 to January 3: 4:30 to 8:30 pm Wednesday to Friday and 5 to 8 pm at the weekend, with no rides on November 26, December 24, 25 or 31. A ticket is $59 for the whole carriage; the Alliance works that out at $14.75 a head for four. The 75 in-person tickets were sold at the library on October 29. The rest go on sale online at noon on Wednesday, November 18, through the Alliance’s carriage-rides page, Facebook and Instagram, by card only; the Alliance advises being online with a fast connection at noon exactly.

From Monday, November 23: the free trolley

The Alliance’s free winter trolley runs Mondays and Tuesdays from 5:30 to 7:30 pm, November 23 to December 29, a figure-eight past the lights: from the Encore garage entrance on South Street north up Wilcox, right on Third to a second stop, then Perry Street to the school district lot on 6th. A full loop takes about 12 minutes, and every stop takes wheelchairs and strollers. This year’s sponsor is Owens Ames Kimball.

Thursday, November 26: the Turkey ROCK Trot

RUN to Change Lives’ Thanksgiving-morning 5K starts at the Events Center, 7:30 to 11 am. Entry is $45 through November 23 and $50 on the day; the 1K Kids Dash is free.

Sunday, November 29: Jingle Jam at the library

A holiday sing-along with live music, run like a storytime, in the event halls at the Philip & Jerry Miller Library, 100 South Wilcox Street, 2 to 2:45 pm. All ages, best for two- to five-year-olds; register every guest on the library’s page.

Monday, December 7: book wrapping at Sudden Fiction

The bookshop in Ecclesia Market, 221 Perry Street, teaches holiday book wrapping from 6 to 8 pm, ticketed through Eventbrite from its events page.

Thursday, December 10: Santa at the library

Holiday stories, activities, snacks and time with Santa in the library’s event halls, in three hour-long sessions at 10 am, 2 pm and 6 pm. Register each child from November 10; adults need not register. Santa arrives at the start, so come within the first half hour.

Saturday, December 12: Santa at the museum

The Castle Rock Historical Society has Santa at the Castle Rock Museum, the 1875 depot at 420 Elbert Street, from 10 am to noon, with hot chocolate and cookies.

Thursday, December 24: Christmas Eve at the fairgrounds

Two congregations hold their Christmas Eve services at the Douglas County Fairgrounds, 500 Fairgrounds Drive, both free. Emmaus Anglican Church’s live nativity service is at 5 pm in the heated Multi-Purpose Barn North: the Christmas story with live animals, carols, the choir and bell choir, and Holy Communion. St. Francis of Assisi Catholic Church’s service is in the Events Center; its time was not published at the end of October (the parish is on 303-688-3025).

After New Year

The library’s January classes take registrations from late December: an embroidery workshop with Nikki Ray on January 21 (registration opens December 22) and a metal-stamped cuff bracelet workshop with Alison Kelley on January 25, two sessions, $15 (registration opens December 26). Sudden Fiction’s late-night release party for the seventh A Court of Thorns and Roses book is January 11.