Rally the corgi has sniffed out the Christmas events for kids in Lake Elsinore for 2026, and both happen on downtown Main Street in the same week. The city tree lights up on Thursday, December 3, and Winterfest follows on Saturday, December 5, with sled runs, Santa and a Storybook Christmas parade after dark. We check every date on the host’s own website and link straight there. For the rest of the state, see our California Christmas events for kids guide.
What Rally found in Lake Elsinore
- 2 free Christmas events for kids in Lake Elsinore
- Tree Lighting Ceremony: Thursday, December 3, 6 pm on Main Street
- Winterfest: Saturday, December 5, 4 pm to 8:30 pm
- Holiday Parade: 5:15 pm, theme A Storybook Christmas
- Every date checked on the City of Lake Elsinore’s site on Nov 11
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All 2 events
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Rally’s Christmas research
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Free Christmas events for kids in Lake Elsinore
Tree lightingFree
Tree Lighting Ceremony
- When: Thursday, December 3, 2026, 6 pm to 7:30 pm
- Where: Downtown Main Street, Lake Elsinore, CA 92530 (opens in maps)
- Cost: Free
- Ages: All ages
Expand to see the parent tip
Lake Elsinore holds its second annual Tree Lighting Ceremony on historic downtown Main Street, lighting the city’s holiday tree under a sprinkle of make-believe snowfall.
Santa is on hand for photos and there is live entertainment through the evening. It is a short, weeknight-friendly event, and the downtown coffee shops make it easy to grab a hot chocolate while you wait for the big moment.
Parent tip: The program only runs 90 minutes, so aim to be on Main Street by 6 pm if you want a Santa photo before the tree is lit.
- Host
- City of Lake Elsinore Special Events (opens in a new tab)
- Address
- Downtown Main Street, Lake Elsinore, CA 92530 (opens in maps)
- Confirmed
- On the host’s page, checked
New Lake Elsinore events every week
Rally researches Christmas events in Lake Elsinore daily and updates this page with new events. Enter your email to get a weekly update with new events in Lake Elsinore.
Free. Unsubscribe anytime. Privacy policy (opens in a new tab)
Rally’s Christmas research
Rally the corgi has 1 more Lake Elsinore 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 Lake Elsinore.
- Exclusive access to free events Find the free Christmas events in Lake Elsinore 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
- 2 Santa
- 1 Lights
- 1 Parades
- 2 Free
Enter your email to get new Christmas events in Lake Elsinore every week.
Festival and paradeFree
Winterfest and Holiday Parade
- When: Saturday, December 5, 2026, 4 pm to 8:30 pm, holiday parade at 5:15 pm
- Where: Downtown Main Street and Gediman Square, Lake Elsinore, CA 92530 (opens in maps)
- Cost: Free admission; amusements and vendor purchases extra
- Ages: All ages
Expand to see the parent tip
Winterfest takes over downtown Main Street on the first Saturday in December with photos with Santa in Gediman Square, amusements, vendors, live entertainment, snowfall and sled runs.
The nighttime holiday parade steps off at 5:15 pm from Limited Avenue and South Poe Street, and this year’s theme, A Storybook Christmas, should give kids plenty of favorite characters to spot.
Parent tip: Head to Gediman Square right at 4 pm for Santa photos, then claim a curb spot along the route before the 5:15 pm parade start.
- Host
- City of Lake Elsinore Special Events (opens in a new tab)
- Address
- Downtown Main Street and Gediman Square, Lake Elsinore, CA 92530 (opens in maps)
- Confirmed
- On the host’s page, checked
New Lake Elsinore events every week
Rally researches Christmas events in Lake Elsinore daily and updates this page with new events. Enter your email to get a weekly update with new events in Lake Elsinore.
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 California Christmas train rides page.
See every event on a December calendar
Plan your December
When each Lake Elsinore Christmas event for kids happens
Both Lake Elsinore events sit on downtown Main Street three days apart. Catch the quick tree lighting on Thursday evening, then come back Saturday afternoon for Winterfest and the parade.
- Tree Lighting CeremonyLake Elsinore · Dec 3
- Winterfest and Holiday ParadeLake Elsinore · Dec 5
Looking further afield? Our California Christmas events for kids guide lists every confirmed event in the state, and we have city guides for Murrieta, Temecula, Ladera Ranch and Riverside. 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 California city.
Lake Elsinore Christmas events for kids: questions parents ask
What are the best Christmas events for kids in Lake Elsinore this year?
Rally Takes the Train has confirmed 2 free Christmas events for kids in Lake Elsinore for 2026, both from the City of Lake Elsinore: the Tree Lighting Ceremony on December 3 and Winterfest with the Holiday Parade on December 5.
When is the Lake Elsinore tree lighting in 2026?
Thursday, December 3, 2026, from 6 pm to 7:30 pm on downtown Main Street, with photos with Santa and live entertainment.
When is Lake Elsinore Winterfest in 2026?
Saturday, December 5, 2026, from 4 pm to 8:30 pm on downtown Main Street. Admission is free.
What time does the Lake Elsinore holiday parade start?
The parade starts at 5:15 pm at Limited Avenue and South Poe Street. The 2026 theme is A Storybook Christmas.
Who do I contact about Lake Elsinore holiday events?
Special Events Coordinator Melissa Veliz at 951-848-0481 or mveliz@lake-elsinore.org, or recreation@lake-elsinore.org for Winterfest.
Are there Christmas train rides for kids in California?
Yes. Santa trains and holiday train rides have their own guide: Rally Takes the Train’s California 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 Lake Elsinore 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.