Rally the corgi has sniffed out 2 Christmas events for kids in Los Gatos for 2026, back to back on the first weekend of December. The town lights its tree in Plaza Park on Friday evening, December 4, and the 70th Children’s Christmas and Holidays Parade marches through downtown the next morning. 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 Los Gatos
- 2 free Christmas events for kids in Los Gatos
- Los Gatos in Lights: Friday, December 4, 5 to 7 pm, tree lighting at 6 pm
- Children’s Christmas and Holidays Parade: Saturday, December 5, 11 am
- Santa visits the tree lighting for pictures
- Every date checked on Town of Los Gatos and LGS Recreation sites on Nov 11
What are you looking for?
All 2 events
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Rally’s Christmas research
Rally the corgi has 1 more Los Gatos event researched for you.
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Free Christmas events for kids in Los Gatos
Tree lightingFree
Los Gatos in Lights Winter Celebration
- When: Friday, December 4, 2026, 5 to 7 pm, tree lighting at 6 pm
- Where: Town Plaza Park, Los Gatos, CA 95030 (opens in maps)
- Cost: Free
- Ages: All ages
Expand to see the parent tip
The Town of Los Gatos kicks off winter in Town Plaza Park with a Mayor’s welcome and the lighting of the tree at 6 pm. Fisher Middle School’s Chamber Strings and Encore choir and The Harker School’s Downbeat show choir provide the music.
Balloon artists work the crowd and Santa drops by for pictures, so it is an easy one-hour outing after school that leaves time for dinner on North Santa Cruz Avenue.
Parent tip: Get to the plaza by about 5:45 pm to find a spot with a view of the tree before the 6 pm countdown.
- Host
- Town of Los Gatos (opens in a new tab)
- Address
- Town Plaza Park, Los Gatos, CA 95030 (opens in maps)
- Confirmed
- On the host’s page, checked
New Los Gatos events every week
Rally researches Christmas events in Los Gatos daily and updates this page with new events. Enter your email to get a weekly update with new events in Los Gatos.
Free. Unsubscribe anytime. Privacy policy (opens in a new tab)
Rally’s Christmas research
Rally the corgi has 1 more Los Gatos 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 Los Gatos.
- Exclusive access to free events Find the free Christmas events in Los Gatos 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 Santa
- 1 Lights
- 1 Parades
- 1 Shows
- 2 Free
Enter your email to get new Christmas events in Los Gatos every week.
Children’s paradeFree
70th Annual Children’s Christmas and Holidays Parade
- When: Saturday, December 5, 2026, at 11 am, rain or shine
- Where: Downtown Los Gatos (see the 2026 parade map), Los Gatos, CA 95030 (opens in maps)
- Cost: Free to watch
- Ages: All ages
Expand to see the parent tip
Los Gatos has staged a children’s holiday parade for 70 years, and it remains one of the South Bay’s biggest, with school bands, youth groups, equestrian units and floats marching through downtown on a Saturday morning, rain or shine.
LGS Recreation and the Los Gatos Lions Club organize it, and KCAT Public Media streams it live and reruns it over the holidays for anyone who cannot make it.
Parent tip: Check the 2026 parade map on the LGS Recreation site for street closures, and plan to park well outside downtown and walk in.
- Host
- LGS Recreation (opens in a new tab)
- Address
- Downtown Los Gatos (see the 2026 parade map), Los Gatos, CA 95030 (opens in maps)
- Confirmed
- On the host’s page, checked
New Los Gatos events every week
Rally researches Christmas events in Los Gatos daily and updates this page with new events. Enter your email to get a weekly update with new events in Los Gatos.
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 Los Gatos Christmas event for kids happens
Make it a full Los Gatos weekend: the tree lighting and Santa on Friday night, then back downtown Saturday morning for the parade.
- Los Gatos in Lights Winter CelebrationLos Gatos · Dec 4
- 70th Annual Children’s Christmas and Holidays ParadeLos Gatos · 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 Saratoga, Campbell, Cupertino and San Jose. 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.
Los Gatos Christmas events for kids: questions parents ask
What are the best Christmas events for kids in Los Gatos this year?
Rally Takes the Train has confirmed 2 free Christmas events for kids in Los Gatos for 2026: Los Gatos in Lights with the town tree lighting, and the 70th Annual Children’s Christmas and Holidays Parade.
When is the Los Gatos tree lighting in 2026?
Friday, December 4, 2026, from 5 to 7 pm in Town Plaza Park, with the tree lit at 6 pm. Santa visits for pictures.
When is the Los Gatos Children’s Christmas Parade in 2026?
Saturday, December 5, 2026, at 11 am, rain or shine, in downtown Los Gatos.
Can I watch the Los Gatos parade from home?
Yes. KCAT Public Media live streams the parade and reruns current and past parades from December 25 to January 1 on Comcast Channel 15.
Who do I contact about Los Gatos holiday events?
For Los Gatos in Lights, the town’s Economic Vitality and Events team at specialevents@losgatosca.gov. For the parade, LGS Recreation at Parade@lgsrecreation.org or 408-354-8700.
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 Los Gatos 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.