Summit's Holiday Calendar Is Packed Into the Ten Days After Thanksgiving

Summit's 2026 holiday calendar runs from Thanksgiving to Jan. 5, but most of its dated events fall between Friday, Nov. 27 and Sunday, Dec. 6. In those ten days the city lights its tree, Summit Downtown Inc. launches its scavenger hunt, the farmers market holds two of its last four Sundays, and Reeves-Reed Arboretum opens its grounds for its biggest holiday afternoon.

After that first stretch the calendar thins out quickly. A household that wants all of it has to plan for that first stretch, not for mid-December.

Thursday Opens It, Friday Lights It

The City of Summit's September 2026 newsletter lists Thanksgiving at the Community Center on Thursday, Nov. 26. The next day is Miracle on Elm Street & Holiday Tree Lighting, on Friday, Nov. 27. The same newsletter notes that its schedule may change and tells readers to check the city website before heading out.

The city hasn't posted 2026 hours and activities yet, but the last two years set a clear pattern. TAPinto Summit reported that the 2025 event ran from 1 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. in the Elm Street parking lot and on the Village Green at 356 Broad Street. The parking lot became a free skating rink with skates provided, sessions every half hour and no pre-registration. Bonfires, hot drinks, cookie decorating and performances on the Village Green main stage filled the rest of the afternoon. At 5 p.m. the Summit Fire Department escorted Santa to the Village Green for the tree lighting with Mayor Fagan, and photos with Santa followed.

The 2024 edition followed the same plan. The city's 2024 event listing shows skating, caroling, performances, hot drinks and cookie decorating at the Village Green and the Elm Street lot, with the tree lit at 5 p.m. That year the event ran until 6 p.m. Two years in a row, the tree lighting came at 5 p.m., near the end of an afternoon of events. Arriving at 4:45 means seeing the lighting and little else.

The city's 2025 event page named the Department of Community Programs as the contact for questions. That department is the one to check with for this year's hours.

Saturday Starts the Longest Clock

The city's event is one afternoon. The next morning, a much longer clock starts. Summit Downtown Inc. lists the HillTop Elf Scavenger Hunt from Saturday, Nov. 28 through Jan. 5, 2027. Counting both ends, that is 39 days, and it is the only event on this calendar that runs past Dec. 20.

The list of participating businesses isn't up yet. The organization's page says details are still coming and asks readers to check back Thanksgiving week. The city newsletter also points residents to summitdowntown.org for downtown holiday events in November and December. Bookmark that site before the long weekend.

Because of the timing, a family can start the hunt the morning after the tree lighting. They'll be on the same downtown streets they walked the night before, and they'll still have more than five weeks to finish.

The Market Holds Its Sunday Slot to the End

The Summit Farmers Market runs on a schedule set back in April. Summit Downtown Inc.'s market page lists Sundays from April 19 to December 20, 2026, 8 a.m. to 1 p.m., at Park & Shop Lot #1 on the corner of DeForest and Woodland avenues. The city newsletter lists the same Dec. 20 end date.

From this Thursday, seven market Sundays are left: Nov. 8, 15, 22 and 29, then Dec. 6, 13 and 20. Four of them fall after Thanksgiving, and two of those four land inside the ten-day stretch.

Thanksgiving weekend looks like this:

Each of those four days has a new event on it, and from Saturday onward the Elf hunt runs in the background of every downtown visit, including the Nov. 29 market. The next new event arrives the following Sunday.

Dec. 6 Is the Day Two Calendars Overlap

Sunday, Dec. 6 is the only date on this calendar where two single-day events share the same hours. The farmers market runs from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. downtown. Reeves-Reed Arboretum's Holiday Open House runs from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. The two overlap for two hours, from 11 to 1. A morning at the market followed by an afternoon at the arboretum fits the day without rushing either one.

The Arboretum's 2026 program includes:

• Sip & Shop Holiday Market, with boutique vendors selling gifts, holiday décor and treats, plus a complimentary holiday cocktail
• Festival of Trees, with trees decorated by area businesses and organizations on display around the grounds and a vote for your favorite
• Cookies, Cocoa & Photos with Santa in historic Wisner House, which requires advance registration and a fee
• Kids and family activities, including the Woodland Winter Story Walk, Candy Cane Lane and a winter craft
• Carolers and a holiday raffle, with a lifetime family membership to the Arboretum as the raffle prize

Admission is $10 for members and non-members alike, and children under 12 get in free. The Santa photos need advance registration and a separate fee, so that step has to happen before the morning of Dec. 6.

The open house page went up on Oct. 15, 2026, which puts this event among the more firmly scheduled dates of the season.

What's Left After the First Stretch

After Dec. 6, the calendar thins. Here is the full season in one view:

Of the five events, four begin between Nov. 26 and Dec. 6, and the fifth, the farmers market, has been running all season. Only two continue past the Arboretum's open house. The market has its last two Sundays on Dec. 13 and Dec. 20. After Dec. 20, the Elf Scavenger Hunt is the only event on this list still running, and it goes for another 16 days, until Jan. 5.

The two weekends right before Christmas have the fewest dated events of the season. For anyone planning around family visits, the gatherings with the most going on are Nov. 27 and Dec. 6. The quieter stretch from Dec. 7 onward suits the walk-in errands: a last market haul on Dec. 20, or a few more stops on the Elf hunt between shopping trips.

Summit Downtown Inc. may announce more downtown holiday events after Thanksgiving week, and its events page is the place to watch for them. Any plans built around the Nov. 27 event should be checked against the city's posted hours, which last year ended at 5:30 p.m. with the tree lit half an hour before.

Early December puts Summit's downtown at its most festive, with the tree lit on the Village Green and the market still running on Sundays. If you've wondered what a home in Summit is worth this season, Michael Gabriel can put together a valuation based on current local sales, so you have a clear number before the new year. Get Your Free Home Valuation.