General ticket sales for Zoo Lights open this morning. At 10 a.m., Denver Botanic Gardens opens Blossoms of Light presale to its Friends & Family members. Public tickets follow on Monday, under a pricing model where the price for a given night can go up but never down. Nobody will see the first light display until November 20, but most of what a family pays for the paid half of Denver's holiday season gets decided over these five days.
The free half is easier. The Christkindlmarket and the Mile High Tree are both on Auraria's Tivoli Quad again this year, about 15 minutes on foot from Union Station. Here is the order of this week's ticket sales:
- Monday, Nov. 2: Denver Zoo members got early access to Zoo Lights tickets.
- Wednesday, Nov. 4, 10 a.m.: Blossoms of Light presale opened for the Gardens' upper membership levels, from President's Circle through Gardens Plus.
- Thursday, Nov. 5: Zoo Lights general sale opens. Blossoms presale opens to Friends & Family members at 10 a.m.
- Friday, Nov. 6, 10 a.m.: Blossoms presale opens to Dual Plus and Individual Plus members.
- Monday, Nov. 9, 10 a.m.: Blossoms of Light public tickets go on sale.
Blossoms of Light prices now only go one way
Blossoms of Light runs at the York Street gardens from November 20, 2026, through January 10, 2027, according to VISIT DENVER. This season the Gardens labels its "Plan-Ahead Pricing" as new. Each date and entry time has its own price, based on expected attendance, weather and other factors. Busier nights cost more, quieter nights cost less, and buying further ahead saves more. The Gardens states the key rule directly:
"Prices will never decrease, however they may increase."
The 2026 range is $19 to $45 for the public and $16 to $38 for members, and children two and under get in free. Compare that with last season: a 2025 event listing put public tickets at $24 to $29 and member tickets at $20 to $25. The cheapest 2026 public ticket is $5 below last year's floor, and the most expensive is $16 above last year's ceiling. Your choice of night now makes a much bigger difference to the price.
That has a practical consequence. In the old model, waiting for the weather forecast before picking a night cost nothing. Under Plan-Ahead Pricing, waiting can cost more, and changing a date later can change the ticket price and adds an exchange fee. The Gardens also says its own website is the only official place to buy Blossoms of Light tickets. It offers no support for tickets bought from third parties and won't hold them at Will Call. During the event, Offshoots Café and the Hive Garden Bistro sell holiday treats and warm drinks.
At the zoo, the cheaper nights are often the themed ones
Zoo Lights pricing works differently. The prices are fixed and posted now, in two tiers, and every date in the run is assigned to one of them. This is the 35th season: 80 acres and three million lights, on select nights from November 23 through January 3. Hours are 4:30 to 9 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and 4:30 to 10 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays, and the zoo is closed on Thanksgiving and Christmas.
| Tier | 2026 dates | Adults and seniors | Youth | Member adult / youth |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Standard | Nov. 23–25, 27–28; Dec. 3–5, 10–12, 17–24, 26–30 | $29.95 | $22.95 | $25.95 / $20.65 |
| Value | Nov. 29–Dec. 2; Dec. 6, 8–9, 13–16; Jan. 2–3 | $25.95 | $18.95 | $23.35 / $17.05 |
Children two and under get in free on every night. For two adults and two youth, a value night costs $89.80 and a standard night costs $105.80. That's a $16 difference just for picking the date.
The value nights in early and mid-December mostly fall Sunday through Wednesday. The Thursday-through-Saturday runs on December 3–5 and 10–12 are standard pricing, and so is every night from December 17 through Christmas Eve.
For the 35th season, the zoo is bringing back historic displays from the Wild Lights era, adding vintage-inspired merchandise, new theme nights and more Adult Nights, and bringing back the Zoo Lights Market. The theme nights are scheduled for December 8–9, December 14–16 and December 28–30. The first five of those dates fall on value nights, so some of the season's new programming comes at the lower price. The December 28–30 theme nights are standard pricing.
There is also a Zoo Lights Bundle for $28.65 to $44.95. It includes admission, a souvenir cup of hot cocoa and two vouchers for the Denver Zoo Railroad or the Conservation Carousel, and the zoo says it saves 10%. Quantities are limited each night.
November 20 is the night everything switches on
The paid events need planning ahead. Most of the free events start on a single Friday. On November 20, Blossoms of Light opens at York Street, and the Christkindlmarket opens on Tivoli Quad. The Mile High Tree lights up next to the market. At 5 p.m., the City of Denver's Light the Lights ceremony switches on the City and County Building, whose light-and-music display stays up through January 24, 2027.
A week later, on November 27, more free events start. Larimer Lights brings projection mapping, décor, Santa visits and carolers to Larimer Square through December 31. The 52nd annual 9NEWS Parade of Lights is free and goes through downtown on Saturday, December 5. That's also a standard-price Saturday at Zoo Lights, so if you're doing both, the parade fits that weekend better than the zoo does.
Denver Union Station's Grand Illumination puts a 40-foot tree with more than 7,000 lights in the Great Hall, with the Denver Dolls, Santa and live music. The event page doesn't list a date yet.
Tivoli Quad holds the free half of the season
The Christkindlmarket first moved to Auraria for 2025 because of construction at Civic Center Park. 9News reported that the market drew record attendance there last year, an estimated 15% above 2024. The German American Chamber of Commerce–Colorado Chapter runs the market. This year the chamber is keeping the market on campus and adding vendors and huts across a larger footprint on Tivoli Quad. The move to campus could last a while. Denver's 2026 park closure schedule lists Civic Center Park's Greek Theater, Plaza and Seal Pond as closed for improvements through November 19, 2027.
The market is at 1000 Larimer St. and is free to enter. It runs daily from November 20 through December 23. Hours are 1 to 9 p.m. Monday through Thursday and 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Friday through Sunday. During the last week, December 17 through 23, the market opens at 11 a.m. every day. Thanksgiving hours are shorter, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Vendors close at 9 p.m., and Festival Hall stays open until 10. The organizer also lists a 42-foot carousel and glass-ornament workshops with glassblowers.
The Mile High Tree stands next to the market from November 20 through December 31. It's a free, 110-foot tree with 60,000 LEDs and a light-and-music show every 15 minutes. The Denver Gazette reported in its 2025 coverage that up to 140 guests can stand under the tree at once.
Auraria is easy to reach by light rail. The market's getting-there page lists these RTD stations and walking times:
- Colfax at Auraria, about 9 minutes
- Ball Arena/Elitch Gardens, about 10 minutes
- Auraria West Campus, about 12 minutes
- Union Station, about 15 minutes
If you drive, the market recommends Holly Lot, 7th Street Garage, Elm Lot, Cherry Lot and 5th Street Garage. Campus parking is paid through ParkMobile, and rates depend on the lot and the time of day, so check the market's FAQ before you go.
Downtown skating is a few blocks away this year
Skyline Park's outdoor rink won't open for the 2026–27 winter. The Denver Post reported that it will be closed through at least spring 2027 while the park is rebuilt. The city's closure schedule lists Skyline Park Block 2 as closed until May 28, 2027. According to the Denver Gazette, a $1 million grant from Great Outdoors Colorado is paying for a year-round Skyline Park with a flexible plaza, an ice rink and space for food and drinks.
Until then, the main downtown rink is McGregor Skate on McGregor Square Plaza, open November 27 through January 25. Admission with skate rental is $15 for adults and $9 for children. Adults who bring their own skates pay $6. That makes ice time another line in the holiday budget, alongside the light displays.
So the free events are on Tivoli Quad and at the parade, and the costs to plan for this week are the zoo, the Gardens and the ice. Pick your Zoo Lights night from the value-night dates and buy Blossoms tickets early, because those prices only go up.
At Anna & Trevor Sholders, we follow Denver's seasonal calendar closely enough to tell you which nights are worth the trip. If you're hosting family this December and want a local's take on Denver, whether that's where to go on November 20 or how to plan a weekend around the Parade of Lights, schedule a free consultation and we'll talk it through.