Rally the corgi has sniffed out the Christmas events for kids in Columbus for 2026. The Columbus Arts Council’s Gingerbread Holiday Market and Main Street Columbus’ Wassail Fest share Friday evening, December 4, downtown, and the Columbus Christmas Parade rolls on Monday night, December 7. We check every date on the host’s own website or the official visitors bureau calendar and link straight there. For the rest of the state, see our Mississippi Christmas events for kids guide.
What Rally found in Columbus
- 3 Christmas events for kids in Columbus
- Gingerbread Holiday Market: Friday, December 4, 4 to 8 pm
- Wassail Fest: Friday, December 4, 5 to 8 pm downtown
- Christmas Parade: Monday, December 7, 7 pm downtown
- Every date checked on the Columbus-Lowndes CVB calendar on Nov 11
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All 3 events
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Rally’s Christmas research
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Free Christmas events for kids in Columbus
Christmas paradeFree
Columbus Christmas Parade
- When: Monday, December 7, 2026, 7 to 8 pm
- Where: Downtown Columbus, Columbus, MS 39701 (opens in maps)
- Cost: Free
- Ages: All ages
Expand to see the parent tip
Main Street Columbus runs the city’s Christmas Parade through downtown on a weeknight, the Monday after the first weekend of December.
It starts at 7 pm and lasts about an hour, a manageable length for little ones bundled up along the curb.
Parent tip: The parade is on a Monday night, so plan an early dinner and grab a curbside spot downtown before 7 pm.
- Host
- Main Street Columbus (opens in a new tab)
- Address
- Downtown Columbus, Columbus, MS 39701 (opens in maps)
- Confirmed
- On the host’s page, checked
New Columbus events every week
Rally researches Christmas events in Columbus daily and updates this page with new events. Enter your email to get a weekly update with new events in Columbus.
Free. Unsubscribe anytime. Privacy policy (opens in a new tab)
Rally’s Christmas research
Rally the corgi has 2 more Columbus events researched for you.
- New events every week We research new events daily and send you one email a week with the new ones we find in Columbus.
- Exclusive access to free events Find the free Christmas events in Columbus before they fill up.
- Unlock the filters Find Santa visits, free events and weekend plans in one tap.
- Rally’s Christmas Eve Express and a free advent calendar Get early access to Rally the corgi’s Christmas Eve tracker, plus a free digital advent calendar to count down to Christmas.
- One-tap add to calendar Save any event to your Google, Apple or Outlook calendar so you never miss it.
Coming up on this page
- 1 Parades
- 1 Free
Enter your email to get new Christmas events in Columbus every week.
Ticketed and paid Christmas events for kids in Columbus
Admission, tickets or a fee apply. Where a host has not posted a price yet, the listing says so.
Event hosts: free events are listed first. The #1 spot puts your event at the top of this page.Inquire about the #1 spotAdd your event for free
Holiday market
Gingerbread Holiday Market
- When: Friday, December 4, 2026, 4 to 8 pm
- Where: Columbus Arts Council, 501 Main St., Columbus, MS 39701 (opens in maps)
- Cost: Check with the Columbus Arts Council
- Ages: All ages
Expand to see the parent tip
The Columbus Arts Council opens its Main Street home for the Gingerbread Holiday Market on the first Friday evening of December.
It lines up with Main Street Columbus’ Wassail Fest the same night, so families can browse the market and then wander the decorated downtown blocks.
Parent tip: Come around 5 pm, when Wassail Fest starts outside, so you can do both in one trip downtown.
- Host
- Columbus Arts Council (opens in a new tab)
- Address
- Columbus Arts Council, 501 Main St., Columbus, MS 39701 (opens in maps)
- Confirmed
- On the host’s page, checked
New Columbus events every week
Rally researches Christmas events in Columbus daily and updates this page with new events. Enter your email to get a weekly update with new events in Columbus.
Free. Unsubscribe anytime. Privacy policy (opens in a new tab)
Downtown holiday night
Wassail Fest
- When: Friday, December 4, 2026, 5 to 8 pm
- Where: Downtown Columbus, Columbus, MS 39701 (opens in maps)
- Cost: Check with Main Street Columbus
- Ages: All ages
Expand to see the parent tip
Main Street Columbus brings families downtown for Wassail Fest, a Friday evening of holiday cheer named for the spiced Christmas punch.
The Columbus-Lowndes visitors bureau files it under family fun, and it is a relaxed way to see downtown dressed for the season.
Parent tip: Park once near the Arts Council at 501 Main St. and walk, since the Gingerbread Holiday Market runs the same evening.
- Host
- Main Street Columbus (opens in a new tab)
- Address
- Downtown Columbus, Columbus, MS 39701 (opens in maps)
- Confirmed
- On the host’s page, checked
New Columbus events every week
Rally researches Christmas events in Columbus daily and updates this page with new events. Enter your email to get a weekly update with new events in Columbus.
Free. Unsubscribe anytime. Privacy policy (opens in a new tab)
We check every event above on the host’s own page for the date, time and cost, plus the things parents ask about, like sign-ups and ages. Looking for a Santa train instead? Those are on our Mississippi Christmas train rides page.
See every event on a December calendar
Plan your December
When each Columbus Christmas event for kids happens
Make Friday, December 4 your downtown night for the market and Wassail Fest, then come back Monday, December 7 for the parade.
- Gingerbread Holiday MarketColumbus · Dec 4
- Wassail FestColumbus · Dec 4
- Columbus Christmas ParadeColumbus · Dec 7
Looking further afield? Our Mississippi Christmas events for kids guide lists every confirmed event in the state, and we have city guides for Meridian, Oxford, Madison and Olive Branch. The national search sorts every event by distance from your town.
A story for the drive home
A morning with Santa or an evening of holiday stories tends to end the same way: tired kids, a long drive and one more book before bed. Our picture book follows Rally the corgi on his first train ride to see his grand-paw-rents, and every page is painted by hand. If your family is spending December missing someone, it was written for that too. For the car, print our free corgi and train coloring pages.
A bedtime story after seeing SantaRally Takes the Train is a five-minute rhyming picture book about a corgi’s first ride on a California train, hand-painted in watercolor. $16.99 on Amazon, ages 0 to 8.
Buy on AmazonKeep the Christmas magic going: track Rally the corgi on Christmas Eve, print free Christmas coloring pages, learn how to say Merry Christmas in 100+ languages, find train museums to visit with kids, or browse Christmas events in every Mississippi city.
Columbus Christmas events for kids: questions parents ask
What are the best Christmas events for kids in Columbus this year?
Rally Takes the Train has confirmed 3 Christmas events for kids in Columbus for 2026: the Gingerbread Holiday Market and Wassail Fest on December 4 and the Christmas Parade on December 7.
When is the Columbus, MS Christmas Parade in 2026?
Monday, December 7, 2026, from 7 to 8 pm in downtown Columbus, hosted by Main Street Columbus.
When is Wassail Fest in Columbus?
Friday, December 4, 2026, from 5 to 8 pm in downtown Columbus.
Where is the Gingerbread Holiday Market?
At the Columbus Arts Council, 501 Main St., on Friday, December 4, 2026, from 4 to 8 pm.
Who do I contact about Columbus holiday events?
Main Street Columbus at info@columbusmainstreet.com or 662-328-6305 for the parade and Wassail Fest, and the Columbus Arts Council at info@columbusartscouncil.com for the market.
Are there Christmas train rides for kids in Mississippi?
Yes. Santa trains and holiday train rides have their own guide: Rally Takes the Train’s Mississippi Christmas train rides page.
How do you confirm these events?
We list an event only after we find this season’s date on the host’s own website or an official city or tourism calendar. We last checked Columbus on November 11, 2026. Rally is also contacting each organizer to confirm details like parking, restrooms and bad-weather plans.
Event names belong to their hosts. Rally Takes the Train is a family picture book and is not affiliated with, sponsored by or endorsed by any host listed here. Confirm dates, times and prices on each host’s own site before you go.