Rally the corgi has sniffed out the Christmas events for kids in Glendale, Arizona for 2026, and both happen in Historic Downtown Glendale. Glendale Glitters switches on its holiday lights with a free kickoff weekend on November 27 and 28, and the Hometown Christmas Parade brings marching bands and floats downtown on the morning of Saturday, December 12. We check every date on the host’s own website and link straight there. For the rest of the state, see our Arizona Christmas events for kids guide.
What Rally found in Glendale
- 2 Christmas events for kids in Glendale, AZ
- Both are free and both are in Historic Downtown Glendale
- Holiday lights: Glendale Glitters kickoff, November 27 and 28, 5 to 10 pm
- Parade: Hometown Christmas Parade, Saturday, December 12, 11 am
- Every date checked on the City of Glendale’s site on Nov 11
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Free Christmas events for kids in Glendale
Holiday lightsFree
Glendale Glitters Kickoff Weekend
- When: Friday and Saturday, November 27 and 28, 2026, 5 to 10 pm
- Where: Historic Downtown Glendale, Murphy Park, 58th Ave and Glendale Ave, Glendale, AZ 85301 (opens in maps)
- Cost: Free
- Ages: All ages
Expand to see the parent tip
Glendale Glitters wraps Historic Downtown Glendale and Murphy Park in lights every holiday season, and Thanksgiving weekend is when it switches on. The kickoff runs Friday and Saturday evening, November 27 and 28, from 5 to 10 pm.
The two kickoff nights are the busiest and most festive of the season, with entertainment, food and vendors spread around the park and the downtown streets. Once the kickoff is over, the lights stay up for evening walks through the holidays.
Parent tip: Light rail does not reach downtown Glendale, so arrive before dark for easier parking near Murphy Park, then stay to watch the lights come on.
- Host
- City of Glendale, Arizona (opens in a new tab)
- Address
- Historic Downtown Glendale, Murphy Park, 58th Ave and Glendale Ave, Glendale, AZ 85301 (opens in maps)
- Confirmed
- On the host’s page, checked
New Glendale events every week
Rally researches Christmas events in Glendale daily and updates this page with new events. Enter your email to get a weekly update with new events in Glendale.
Free. Unsubscribe anytime. Privacy policy (opens in a new tab)
Rally’s Christmas research
Rally the corgi has 1 more Glendale event 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 Glendale.
- Exclusive access to free events Find the free Christmas events in Glendale 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.
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- 1 Santa
- 1 Lights
- 1 Parades
- 2 Free
Enter your email to get new Christmas events in Glendale every week.
ParadeFree
The True Star Hometown Christmas Parade
- When: Saturday, December 12, 2026, 11 am to 1:30 pm
- Where: Downtown Glendale, 58th Ave and Glendale Ave, Glendale, AZ 85301 (opens in maps)
- Cost: Free to watch
- Ages: All ages
Expand to see the parent tip
Glendale’s Hometown Christmas Parade is a late-morning parade, which makes it one of the easier holiday parades for families with young kids and nap schedules. It runs through the heart of downtown Glendale.
Expect a marching band competition, decorated floats and awards for the entry with the best Christmas spirit. It is a classic small-town parade inside a big city, and the bands are a big draw for kids who love a drumline.
Parent tip: Bring chairs and sunscreen: December mornings in the Valley are bright. A spot near the start lets you catch the bands while they are still fresh.
- Host
- City of Glendale, Arizona (opens in a new tab)
- Address
- Downtown Glendale, 58th Ave and Glendale Ave, Glendale, AZ 85301 (opens in maps)
- Confirmed
- On the host’s page, checked
New Glendale events every week
Rally researches Christmas events in Glendale daily and updates this page with new events. Enter your email to get a weekly update with new events in Glendale.
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 Arizona Christmas train rides page.
See every event on a December calendar
Plan your December
When each Glendale Christmas event for kids happens
Glendale Glitters kicks off over Thanksgiving weekend, Friday and Saturday evenings. The Hometown Christmas Parade is a Saturday morning two weeks later, December 12, so you can do one evening and one morning trip downtown.
- Glendale Glitters Kickoff WeekendGlendale · Nov 27 to Nov 28
- The True Star Hometown Christmas ParadeGlendale · Dec 12
Looking further afield? Our Arizona Christmas events for kids guide lists every confirmed event in the state, and we have city guides for Phoenix, Surprise, Scottsdale and Mesa. 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 Arizona city.
Glendale Christmas events for kids: questions parents ask
What are the best Christmas events for kids in Glendale, AZ this year?
Rally Takes the Train has confirmed 2 Christmas events for kids in Glendale, Arizona for 2026: the Glendale Glitters kickoff weekend on November 27 and 28 in Historic Downtown Glendale, and the Hometown Christmas Parade on Saturday, December 12. Both are free.
When does Glendale Glitters start in 2026?
The Glendale Glitters kickoff is Friday and Saturday, November 27 and 28, 2026, from 5 to 10 pm in Historic Downtown Glendale and Murphy Park.
When is the Glendale Hometown Christmas Parade?
Saturday, December 12, 2026, from 11 am to 1:30 pm in downtown Glendale. It features a marching band competition, floats and Christmas spirit awards.
Are Glendale Glitters and the parade free?
Yes. Both events are free to attend.
Who organizes these events?
The City of Glendale, Arizona. Its special events team can be reached at Events@glendaleaz.com.
Are there Christmas train rides for kids in Arizona?
Yes. Santa trains and holiday train rides have their own guide: Rally Takes the Train’s Arizona 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 Glendale 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.