The Salt Lake ValleyHand-picked Salt Lake County happenings, straight to your inbox. No fluff, no spam, easy to leave.
Things to do in Salt Lake City in December 2026 include Christkindlmarkt, Festival of Trees, Ballet West's Nutcracker, Candlelight Christmas and Utah Symphony holiday concerts. Every dated event below links to its organizer's page. Lights and traditions that have not posted 2026 dates yet are listed separately, with last year's dates for reference.
Updated Wednesday, November 434 events with confirmed 2026 dates, in date order.
The downtown farmers market moves indoors for the cold months, with local farms and food makers selling on Saturday mornings. It opens November 14 at 209 E 500 South and runs weekly through April 17.
Hale Centre Theatre opens the musical Anastasia, about a young woman in 1920s Paris who may be the lost Russian grand duchess. The run continues into mid-January.
The Salt Lake Bees' ballpark in Daybreak becomes a walk-through light show with a 60-foot tree synced to music, light tunnels and a nine-hole mini golf course. Entry is by timed evening ticket, Wednesdays have a four-ticket family deal for $48, and it is closed Thanksgiving and Christmas Day.
Gardner Village decorates its shops and paths for the holidays and adds seasonal activities like Breakfast with Santa. Entry and parking are free, with fees for some activities, and the village is closed on Thanksgiving.
Hale's yearly stage version of the Dickens story about Scrooge and three ghosts opens the day after Thanksgiving. Performances run through December 26.
Ballet West's Nutcracker opens the day after Thanksgiving and runs through December 26 at the Capitol Theatre, with matinee and evening shows.
Violinist Jenny Oaks Baker plays carols with her family ensemble and guest singers, with dancers and a Christmas story built into the show. Doors open at 6 PM.
A German-style Christmas market with vendor booths, traditional food, German music and dancing. Parking is off-site with a shuttle.
Details and tickets →Decorated trees on display at the Expo Center on State Street, with donations going to Primary Children's Hospital. Opening night on December 1 is by invitation only.
Details and tickets →The Mammoth host the Winnipeg Jets at the Delta Center.
Composer Kurt Bestor plays his arrangements of Christmas music in Delta Hall. Recommended for ages 8 and up.
Details and tickets →The Backstreet Boys singer plays a solo show at The Complex.
Ballet West dances Willam Christensen's Nutcracker, which he created in 1944. The company has performed this production since 1955.
Details and tickets →West Jordan's December First Friday is a holiday concert, put on with the Salt Lake County Library and Excellence in the Community.
Details and tickets →South Jordan's tree lighting, with live music, candy windows, gingerbread houses, a petting zoo, trackless train rides and photos with Santa.
Details and tickets →The Utah Symphony plays Mendelssohn's Reformation Symphony, with violinist Stella Chen on Prokofiev's Violin Concerto No. 2.
Details and tickets →The Utah Symphony plays Mendelssohn's Reformation Symphony on Friday and Saturday night at Abravanel Hall.
BYU plays Northwestern at the Delta Center, its second Salt Lake game of the season after Ohio State on November 2.
A trading card show at the Maverik Center, with dealer tables for sports and collectible cards. Doors open at 10 AM.
The touring big band plays the Glenn Miller swing catalog at Kingsbury Hall on the University of Utah campus.
The Utes women host Denver in a Sunday afternoon game at the Huntsman Center.
Millennial Choirs & Orchestras marks 20 years with a Christmas concert of choirs and a symphony orchestra. Recommended for ages 8 and up.
Details and tickets →The Jonas Brothers bring their Burning Up Tour All Over Again to the Delta Center on a Monday night.
The Disney musical with its Oscar-winning score, directed and choreographed by Matt West. Recommended for ages 6 and up.
Details and tickets →One Voice Children's Choir sings Christmas classics in the Jeanne Wagner Theatre, and the audience is invited to sing along.
Details and tickets →Lantern-lit village streets, the Heritage Carolers, a live Nativity, Father Christmas, and holiday crafts and 1800s Christmas customs in the historic homes.
Details and tickets →Grammy-nominated singer-songwriter Cody Fry plays Christmas songs and his own hits with the Utah Symphony, with live projections.
Details and tickets →The Utah Symphony and Broadway singer Mamie Parris play holiday favorites with a singalong, and a holiday market of local makers opens before the show.
Details and tickets →The Utah Symphony plays a family concert with a story about Noel the Elf, and lobby activities before the show.
Details and tickets →A holiday cirque show with acrobats, comedy and magic set to Christmas songs. Recommended for ages 8 and up.
Details and tickets →The Utah Symphony plays the score live while The Muppet Christmas Carol plays on screen.
Details and tickets →Mannheim Steamroller plays its Christmas arrangements with multimedia effects in Delta Hall, the weekend after Christmas.
Details and tickets →Salt Lake City native Derek Hough brings his holiday dance show to Delta Hall.
Details and tickets →The Depot's 17th annual New Year's Eve masquerade party at 13 North 400 West.
Details and tickets →Some of these have not posted 2026 dates yet. Where that is the case we say so and give last year's dates for reference.
Elf displays and an elf scavenger hunt, Breakfast with Santa and holiday shops at 1100 West 7800 South. Some activities need reservations.
Source → Christmas and Holiday Markets in the Salt Lake Valley →Lights in Draper Park every evening and early morning, starting with the tree lighting on Monday, November 30.
Source → Where to See Christmas Lights in the Salt Lake Valley →Lights across the open grounds of Temple Square, which the Church posts each fall.
Source → Where to See Christmas Lights in the Salt Lake Valley →An evening light display at the zoo, open on select nights. The zoo's page says holiday details are coming.
Source → Where to See Christmas Lights in the Salt Lake Valley →Residents of the Glen Arbor cul-de-sac in Sugar House decorate every house on the street each December.
Source → Where to See Christmas Lights in the Salt Lake Valley →The 2025 concerts were free but required tickets. Temple Square's schedule for 2026 lists a Christmas Opening Concert in the Tabernacle on November 27 and 28.
Source →Check each resort's own page for the current opening status.
Source → Ski Resorts Near Salt Lake City →New dates get announced all month. We put the ones worth knowing in your inbox every Monday, Wednesday and Friday morning. Free.