Dayton Holiday Festival

Admission to Dayton Holiday Festival is free.

  • When: Always the day after Thanksgiving from 4-9pm with tree lighting at 7:45pm (Grande Illumination & Dayton Children’s Parade Spectacular in Lights)
  • Location: (Map It) downtown Dayton, Ohio
  • Phone: 937-224-1518
  • Web: Click here

Dayton Holiday Festival in Dayton, Ohio:  The holiday season is everyone’s favorite time of year! With family, food, and entertainment, what’s not to love? Throw in some gingerbread homes, carriage rides, a holiday village, and one of the largest tree lighting ceremonies in the region and that’s only a taste of what the Dayton Holiday Festival has to offer! The Dayton Holiday Festival was started by Mrs. Virginia Kettering so that everyone in the community, regardless of their economic means, could enjoy the holiday season. And today, it still offers most activities to all for free. The festival has since expanded to include carnival and horse drawn carriage rides, holiday crafts in the Holiday Village and Gingerbread homes on display in the Old Courthouse! The fun doesn’t end there! The tree lighting will occur on Courthouse Square at 7:45pm and the Dayton Children’s Parade Spectacular and Lights will immediately follow. All this and much more at the Holiday Festival in downtown Dayton. Other activities are featured throughout December.