Christmas Events for Kids in Wayne (2026)

Christmas Events for Kids
Written by Kelsey Cecil

Updated 4 min read

Rally the corgi has sniffed out the best Christmas events for kids in Wayne for 2026, and here is what he found: 6 family events. The magic runs from November 28 (Winter Wonderland Tea) through January 1, with Christmas in Wayne (from December 4), Family Day of Clay: Elf Planter (December 5) and Holiday Family Fun Workshop Day (December 6) along the way. We check every date on the host’s own website, and each listing links straight there. For the rest of the state, see our Pennsylvania Christmas events for kids guide.

What Rally found in Wayne

  • 6 Christmas events for kids in Wayne
  • Also on the list: 1 Christmas light display and 5 craft workshops
  • Season: November 28 (Winter Wonderland Tea) to January 1 (Winter Wonderland Tea)
  • Every date checked on the host’s own site on Nov 10

Ticketed and paid Christmas events for kids in Wayne

Admission, tickets or a fee apply. Where a host has not posted a price yet, the listing says so.

Holiday event

Winter Wonderland Tea

  • When: Sat November 28, Sun November 29, Sat December 5, Sun December 6, Sat December 12, Sun December 13 and Sat December 19, 2026 (Weekends from November 28 through December 13, then every day from December 19 through January 1. Closed Christmas Day. Seating times are chosen when you reserve, and each tea takes about 2 hours.)
  • Where: A Taste of Britain, 503 W Lancaster Ave, Wayne, PA 19087 (opens in maps)
  • Cost: $70 per adult, $45 per child, plus tax and a 20% service fee
  • Ages: All ages
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A Taste of Britain turns its afternoon tea into a set holiday menu: a pot of loose leaf tea with festive savouries, a warm fruitcake scone and a plate of holiday sweets. Children have a menu of their own, and the adult tea opens with a mimosa or a blackcurrant spritzer. The tearoom calls this its most popular event of the year.

The tea is served on weekends from November 28 through December 13, 2026, then daily from December 19 through January 1, except Christmas Day. It costs $70 per adult and $45 per child, plus tax and a 20% service fee. Prepaid tickets are required and can be refunded up to 7 days before your reservation.

Parent tip: The tearoom asks you to allow 2 hours, which is a long sit for a small child, so pick a seating that steers clear of nap time. Read the menus before paying: gluten-free, vegetarian and children's versions are offered, but vegan, egg-free and dairy-free requests are not.

Host
A Taste of Britain (opens in a new tab)
Address
A Taste of Britain, 503 W Lancaster Ave, Wayne, PA 19087 (opens in maps)
Confirmed
On the host’s page, checked
See dates and detailsfrom A Taste of Britain (opens in a new tab)

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Rally’s Christmas research

Rally the corgi has 5 more Wayne events researched for you.

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Coming up on this page

  • 5 Crafts
  • 3 Breakfast and treats
  • 2 Zoos and museums
  • 1 Lights

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Holiday event

Christmas in Wayne

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Downtown Wayne turns North Wayne Avenue into a holiday street party, with an ice skating rink under strings of lights, carnival games, a fun slide and strolling carolers. Christmas trolleys tour the decorated streets of South Wayne and North Wayne, and the Radnor Firehouse opens its doors for ornament crafts, face painting and a balloon artist. Mrs. Claus and her elves are expected, and the Grinch may put in an appearance.

The Wayne Business Association lists the celebration from 4:30 pm on Friday, December 4, through noon on Sunday, December 6, 2026, with Friday evening as the big night. North Wayne Avenue will have road closures and limited parking on Friday from about 4:30 to 9:00 pm. Trolleys board at the Radnor Middle School bus loop on South Wayne Avenue and beside the ice rink, and no admission price appears on the page.

Parent tip: Park away from North Wayne Avenue on Friday, since it is closed from about 4:30 to 9:00 pm, and think about boarding the trolley at the Radnor Middle School bus loop instead. Use the firehouse craft room as your warm-up stop between the rink and the carnival games.

Host
Wayne Business Association (opens in a new tab)
Address
North Wayne Avenue and the Radnor Firehouse, downtown Wayne, N Wayne Ave, Wayne, PA 19087 (opens in maps)
Confirmed
On the host’s page, checked
See dates and detailsfrom Wayne Business Association (opens in a new tab)

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Holiday crafts

Family Day of Clay: Elf Planter

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An adult and child team up to build a clay planter shaped like a pair of elf pants, as if an elf had left them behind. Along the way you learn the basics of kiln-fired clay and colorful glazes. The art center fires the finished pieces after the workshop.

The workshop is on Saturday, December 5, 2026, from 11:00 am to 1:00 pm at Wayne Art Center. Registration is $60 and covers one shared project for ages 6 and up with an adult. If each of you wants your own planter, register every person separately.

Parent tip: Fired pieces are ready for pickup roughly two weeks after the workshop, which lands just before Christmas, so do not promise the planter as an early December gift. Decide ahead of time whether you will share one project or register separately.

Host
Wayne Art Center (opens in a new tab)
Address
Wayne Art Center, 413 Maplewood Ave, Wayne, PA 19087 (opens in maps)
Confirmed
On the host’s page, checked
See dates and detailsfrom Wayne Art Center (opens in a new tab)

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Holiday crafts

Holiday Family Fun Workshop Day

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Families rotate through six craft stations at their own pace: printing holiday cards, making wreaths, decorating candy houses, trimming a Christmas tree, shaping clay ornaments and designing fairy ornaments. There are also caricatures, a holiday photo booth and a gingerbread house raffle.

It runs on Sunday, December 6, 2026, from 11:00 am to 1:00 pm at Wayne Art Center, for families with children ages 4 and up. The fee is $60 for the six workshops. The art center strongly recommends registering ahead but accepts walk-ins, and the stations run continuously so you can arrive at any point.

Parent tip: Each station takes about 20 to 25 minutes, so six of them fill the whole two hours. Arrive right at 11:00 am if your kids want to finish all of them, and start with the candy house or wreath if you only have time for a few.

Host
Wayne Art Center (opens in a new tab)
Address
Wayne Art Center, 413 Maplewood Ave, Wayne, PA 19087 (opens in maps)
Confirmed
On the host’s page, checked
See dates and detailsfrom Wayne Art Center (opens in a new tab)

New Wayne events every week

Rally researches Christmas events in Wayne daily and updates this page with new events. Enter your email to get a weekly update with new events in Wayne.

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Holiday crafts

Gingerbread House Decorating Workshop (Afternoon)

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Every parent and child team gets a gingerbread cottage that is already assembled, along with royal icing and a generous pile of candy to cover it. The session also works in games, a little gingerbread history and trivia, and it ends with award certificates in categories such as most creative, most patient and most innovative.

The afternoon session is on Sunday, December 13, 2026, from 1:00 to 3:00 pm at Wayne Art Center. Registration is $70 and all materials are supplied. Space is limited, so sign up in advance.

Parent tip: The afternoon slot suits kids who are slow starters on a Sunday, but go easy on lunch sweets since candy sampling is hard to avoid. You are allowed to bring extra decorations from home if your child has a favorite candy in mind.

Host
Wayne Art Center (opens in a new tab)
Address
Wayne Art Center, 413 Maplewood Ave, Wayne, PA 19087 (opens in maps)
Confirmed
On the host’s page, checked
See dates and detailsfrom Wayne Art Center (opens in a new tab)

New Wayne events every week

Rally researches Christmas events in Wayne daily and updates this page with new events. Enter your email to get a weekly update with new events in Wayne.

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Holiday crafts

Gingerbread House Decorating Workshop (Morning)

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This is the morning sitting of the art center's gingerbread workshop. Parent and child teams each decorate a ready-built cookie cottage with royal icing and plenty of candy, with games, history and trivia mixed in. Certificates are handed out for titles like most creative and most patient.

The morning session is on Sunday, December 13, 2026, from 10:00 am to 12:00 pm at Wayne Art Center. Registration is $70 with all materials provided. Spots are limited, and the same workshop repeats at 1:00 pm.

Parent tip: Choose this 10:00 am session for preschoolers who fade after lunch, and feed them a solid breakfast before two hours around icing and candy. If it fills, the afternoon session at 1:00 pm is identical.

Host
Wayne Art Center (opens in a new tab)
Address
Wayne Art Center, 413 Maplewood Ave, Wayne, PA 19087 (opens in maps)
Confirmed
On the host’s page, checked
See dates and detailsfrom Wayne Art Center (opens in a new tab)

New Wayne events every week

Rally researches Christmas events in Wayne daily and updates this page with new events. Enter your email to get a weekly update with new events in Wayne.

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 Pennsylvania Christmas train rides page.

See every event on a December calendar

Plan your December

When each Wayne Christmas event for kids happens

The first is Winter Wonderland Tea in Wayne on November 28; the last runs to January 1. Each bar spans an event’s dates, not every hour in them, so check the host’s page for times.

Looking further afield? Our Pennsylvania Christmas events for kids guide lists every event we have found in the state, and we have city guides for King of Prussia, Malvern, West Chester and Philadelphia. 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.

Rally Takes the Train book cover: a watercolor corgi peeking from a red train

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 Amazon (opens in a new tab)

2026 Christmas events are coming in late November

More Christmas events arrive in late November. We add them here as soon as we confirm them.

The story of Christmas in Wayne

In December 1922, a tall fir on Lancaster Pike was lit for the first time and the organist of St. Mary's Church led neighbors in carols around it. More than a century later Wayne still gathers around a tree each December, and Santa still rolls into town on a Radnor fire truck.

How Wayne celebrates

The modern centerpiece is Christmas in Wayne, hosted each year by the Wayne Business Association on the first weekend of December. Friday evening brings carolers, crafts at the Radnor firehouse, a tree lighting and Santa's arrival down North Wayne Avenue on a decorated fire truck. On Saturday morning the Santa Parade follows East Lancaster Avenue behind the Radnor High School Marching Band. The custom of a community tree goes back much further. Local historian Emma C. Patterson recorded that a fir on Lancaster Pike was first lighted in December 1922, and that a memorial Douglas fir was dedicated beside the Wayne Presbyterian Church chapel in 1952.

Christmas last year in Wayne

Christmas in Wayne 2025 opened on Friday, December 5, and hundreds of people filled North Wayne Avenue in spite of bitter cold. An ice rink and fire pits were new that year, free hot chocolate was handed out, and the tree was lit around 7:30 p.m. with 6abc sports director Ducis Rodgers hosting before Santa arrived by fire truck. On Saturday, December 6, the Santa Parade stepped off at 10 a.m., and Santa greeted children in the Wayne Presbyterian Church courtyard afterward. The weekend also included the Radnor Memorial Library's Elves for Shelves 5K, the Windows of Wayne decorating contest and a Sunday performance of Handel's Messiah by the Wayne Oratorio Society.

Fun facts about Christmas in Wayne

In the early 1900s a fir planted beside Wayne Primary School was never lighted, yet carolers gathered at it for years, and it later became a birds' Christmas tree hung with food for birds. North Wayne's first tree, in 1950, was a large tree that a November windstorm had toppled in Rosemont and neighbors hauled over to light. Santa was already riding a Radnor Fire Company engine in 1952, when he arrived in Wayne Terraces to hand out gifts under the tree. In 2014 the tree lighting was held at the Wayne train station.

Traditions today

  • Christmas in Wayne: The Wayne Business Association's annual hometown celebration fills downtown with carolers, crafts and family activities on the first Friday of December.
  • Tree lighting: Wayne lights its Christmas tree on the Friday night of the celebration, continuing a custom of community trees that dates to a first lighting in December 1922.
  • Santa on the fire truck: Santa arrives down North Wayne Avenue aboard a decorated Radnor fire truck right after the tree is lit.
  • Santa Parade: On Saturday morning the Radnor High School Marching Band leads Santa along East Lancaster Avenue from Aberdeen Avenue to North Wayne Avenue.
  • Windows of Wayne: Shops compete in a window-decorating contest judged by Wayne Art Center instructors, with prizes for best use of light and best use of merchandise.
  • Firehouse crafts: The Radnor firehouse opens during the Friday festivities so children can make ornaments and get their faces painted indoors.

A fact for kids

Long ago, one of Wayne's Christmas trees was decorated just for the birds. Instead of lights and ornaments, people hung it with food so the birds could have a Christmas feast.

Questions about Christmas in Wayne

When was Wayne's first lighted community Christmas tree?

According to a 1952 local history column by Emma C. Patterson, a tall fir on Lancaster Pike was first lighted in December 1922. Edgar L. Hunt, the organist at St. Mary's Church and a music instructor at Radnor High School, led carol singing around it.

Who organizes Christmas in Wayne?

The Wayne Business Association hosts Christmas in Wayne every year. A spokesperson told 6abc in 2025 that the celebration has run for years and years and is a tradition shared by several generations, though no exact starting year was given in the coverage.

How does Santa arrive in Wayne?

Santa comes down North Wayne Avenue on a decorated Radnor fire truck right after the tree lighting. The fire engine connection is an old one: in December 1952 Santa reached the Wayne Terraces neighborhood on a Radnor Fire Company engine and handed out gifts beneath the tree.

What route does the Wayne Santa Parade take?

In 2025 the Santa Parade ran on Saturday, December 6, at 10 a.m. along East Lancaster Avenue, heading west from Aberdeen Avenue to North Wayne Avenue. The Radnor High School Marching Band opened the parade, and Santa and Mrs. Claus rode a Radnor fire truck.

Where can kids meet Santa after the parade?

After the 2025 parade, Santa met families in the courtyard of Wayne Presbyterian Church on Lancaster Avenue until 11:45 a.m. Local businesses supplied hot chocolate and cookies. Check the Wayne Business Association's schedule each year, since details can change.

Where has Wayne's Christmas tree stood over the years?

It has moved more than once. The 1922 tree stood on Lancaster Pike, and a 1952 memorial fir was planted beside the Wayne Presbyterian Church chapel. In 2014 the lighting was held at the Wayne train station, and recent celebrations have centered on North Wayne Avenue.

What was the birds' Christmas tree in Wayne?

In the early 1900s, Mrs. James B. Riley of Pembroke Avenue arranged for a fir to be planted beside Wayne Primary School. It was never lighted, but carolers gathered there for several years. Later it was decorated with food for birds, a custom that lasted until a few years before 1952.

What is the story behind Wayne's 1952 Christmas tree?

Mr. and Mrs. E. Mortimer Newlin gave a Douglas fir in memory of their son, Frank Battles Newlin, who died in a car accident in 1951. The Community Garden Club chose and cared for the tree, and several hundred people attended its dedication, where children sang carols.

How did North Wayne get its own Christmas tree?

In November 1950 a windstorm knocked down a large tree in Rosemont. Members of the North Wayne Protective Association hauled it to the green at Walnut and North Wayne avenues and lit it before Christmas. A permanent Nordman fir was in place by Christmas 1951.

What was new at Christmas in Wayne in 2025?

The Wayne Winter Ice Rink made its debut on North Wayne Avenue, along with fire pits. Local coverage listed a $10 rink and game pass and said the rink stayed open until 9 p.m. on Friday, December 5. Hundreds turned out despite unusually cold weather.

What is Windows of Wayne?

Windows of Wayne is a window-decorating competition among downtown shops that runs through the Christmas in Wayne weekend. In 2025 it had two categories, best use of light and best use of merchandise, and instructors from Wayne Art Center served as the judges.

Sources

  1. Community Christmas Trees (Your Town and My Town, December 19, 1952), Radnor Historical Society
  2. Santa arrives, Christmas Trees: North Wayne, Wayne Terraces, Rosemont (Your Town and My Town, December 24, 1952), Radnor Historical Society
  3. Hundreds turn out for 'Christmas in Wayne,' even in bitter cold, 6abc Philadelphia
  4. Christmas In Wayne Promises Weekend Of Seasonal Fun, Patch
  5. Wayne's Christmas Tree Lighting is Friday, Patch
  6. Annual Tree Lighting and Santa Arrival in Wayne, County Lines Magazine

Keep 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 Pennsylvania city.

Wayne Christmas events for kids: questions parents ask

What are the best Christmas events for kids in Wayne to start with?

Start with Christmas in Wayne on Friday evening, December 4, 2026, when North Wayne Avenue fills with an ice rink, carnival games, carolers and trolley rides. For a calmer outing, the Holiday Family Fun Workshop Day at Wayne Art Center on Sunday, December 6, from 11:00 am to 1:00 pm, packs six craft stations into one visit.

Are there free Christmas events for kids in Wayne?

The Wayne Business Association's page for Christmas in Wayne on December 4 lists no admission price for the street festivities, the carolers or the crafts at the Radnor Firehouse, though it does not spell out what each attraction costs. The Wayne Art Center workshops and the Winter Wonderland Tea are all paid events.

Where can kids see Santa or Mrs. Claus in Wayne?

The 2026 Christmas in Wayne listing promises Mrs. Claus, her elves and a possible Grinch sighting on Friday, December 4, around North Wayne Avenue and the Radnor Firehouse. The page does not list a Santa photo session, so check with the Wayne Business Association for Santa's schedule that weekend.

Are there holiday lights, skating or rides in Wayne?

Yes. Christmas in Wayne sets up the Wayne Winter Ice Rink on North Wayne Avenue under twinkling lights, with carnival games and a fun slide close by. Christmas trolley rides tour the decorated streets of South Wayne and North Wayne, boarding at the Radnor Middle School bus loop or next to the rink.

Which Wayne Christmas events need tickets or sign-up?

The Winter Wonderland Tea at A Taste of Britain requires prepaid tickets. Wayne Art Center asks families to register for Family Day of Clay on December 5 and both Gingerbread House Decorating Workshops on December 13, which have limited space. Its Holiday Family Fun Workshop Day on December 6 recommends pre-registration but welcomes walk-ins.

Where should we park for Christmas in Wayne?

Plan around the closure. North Wayne Avenue has road closures and limited parking on Friday, December 4, 2026, from about 4:30 to 9:00 pm. The Christmas trolley starts and ends at the Radnor Middle School bus loop on South Wayne Avenue as well as by the ice rink, so it can double as your ride in.

Are there Christmas train rides for kids near Wayne?

Santa trains and holiday train rides have their own guide: Rally Takes the Train’s Pennsylvania Christmas train rides guide. This Wayne guide covers Santa visits, story times, light shows and other events off the rails.

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 every listing on November 10, 2026. Hosts change details, so always confirm on the host’s page before you go.

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.

Kelsey Cecil
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