Thanksgiving Weekend in Cincinnati {2024}

If you’re looking for something to do for the 2024 Thanksgiving Day weekend in Cincinnati, we’ve got you covered!

Whether you have family in town, you’re visiting for the weekend, or you simply have a few days off of work, you’ll enjoy this list of events for Thanksgiving weekend.

We will add to this list as more Thanksgiving Weekend events pop up so be sure to bookmark the link and check back often!

Don’t miss our list of Holiday Events that go on all weekend – find it after the dated events.

We have LOADS of Christmas and Holiday Craft Shows and Markets to choose from this weekend!

Friday, Nov. 29:

Santa arrives at Cincinnati Museum Center! Santa will make his Holiday Junction debut on Friday and he is scheduled to arrive via helicopter! The fun should start around noon (more details to come) with Santa landing and then heading inside for some jolly fun in the Rotunda.

Duke Energy’s Light Up the Square, the annual tree lighting celebration, is back! Festivities will begin at 6pm with live music and a special appearance by Santa Claus with a dazzling fireworks display. The Fountain Square Ice Rink will be open (no reservations needed and skates are included with admission) as will the Fountain Square Bar and the ice rink’s concession stand.

Head to Indiana for the Metamora Old Fashioned Christmas Walk, opens for the season on Friday.

Winterfest at Kings Island opens for the season on Nov. 29.

The Coca-Cola Caravan is making a stop at Summit Park on Friday, 5-8pm. Take a photo with Santa atop his magical new throne, and get your photo as a printed postcard, or a digital one you can personalize and send instantly. Fill out your postcards and slot them into the Magic Mailbox to send them to friends and family anywhere in the US for free! This free event will also feature a reindeer encounter, samples of Coca-Cola and Skyline, and Nanny Belle’s treats and cocoa available for purchase. 

Head to downtown Milford for Hometown for the Holidays, November 29 – December 1. Visit with Santa, enjoy strolling carolers (Fri. and Sat.), a tree lighting (Fri.), take a ride in an Antique Fire Truck (Friday and Sat., 11am-4pm weather permitting), and more! Check their site for details and specific event times.

Jingle Jams (at Washington Park) is a merry mix of live holiday music, great drinks, and festive vibes. This seasonal event on the Porch kicks off on November 29 with music from Meaghan Richardson, 4-7pm.

The Madcap Puppets present The Nutcracker, a free family fun show at Montgomery Quarter Park on Friday, 3-4pm.

Saturday, Nov. 30:

Downtown Dazzle is happening at Fountain Square, 6-8pm. See Santa rappel from a Cincinnati skyrise and wait with anticipation for the sky to fill with a fabulous fireworks display! Come early and stay late – Saturdays at the Square are full of festive fun. Enjoy a drink or hot cocoa at Fountain Square’s Bar or make a holiday memory at the UC Health Ice Rink, presented by Fifth Third Bank! Ice skating admission is walk-up only, no reservations required.

Crafty Supermarket will be at Music Hall on Saturday, 11am-5pm. This indie juried show features crafters, artists, and makers from all over North America and draws shoppers from Ohio, Indiana, Kentucky and beyond.

Main Street is the place to be this Holiday Season! Get into the holiday spirit with Merry Movies on Main at Ziegler Park. This week’s featured holiday movie is Home Alone and will show at the park from 5 to 7pm. Be sure to leave some time to see the Shillito Elves (1312 and 1324 Main Street) and the nearby Main Street Pop-Up Holiday Market too (1312 Main St.).

Head to downtown Milford for Hometown for the Holidays, November 29 – December 1. Visit with Santa, enjoy strolling carolers (Fri. and Sat.), take a ride in an Antique Fire Truck (Friday and Sat., 11am-4pm weather permitting), and more! Check their site for details and specific event times.

Witness Santa being rescued by a CFD Ladder Truck at the Cincinnati Fire Museum, noon. Watching the rescue outside at noon is free! Join in the fun afterwards for hot chocolate, snacks, and the opportunity to sit on Santa’s lap inside for the cost of admission to the Fire Museum.

The City of Lebanon is offering free Horse-Drawn Carriage Rides around Downtown Lebanon, 1-8pm. Rides start and end in front of the City Building.

It’s time for the Westside Holiday Market, Saturday, 12-5pm. It’s National Small Business Saturday, and they’re transforming Westwood Town Hall into the ultimate holiday shopping HQ! With over 120 local businesses, this indoor/outdoor event is the perfect place to find unique gifts and festive cheer. 

Deerfield Township is having a Holiday Lights Event on Saturday, 5-7pm. The event, held at Deerfield Towne Center, includes: iceless skating rink (with ice skates), candy cane playland, a hot cocoa bar, mechanical reindeer, polar bear slide, snow axe throwing, music, and more. The tree lighting is a 6pm.

Sunday, Dec. 1:

Head to downtown Milford for Hometown for the Holidays, November 29 – December 1. Visit with Santa, enjoy strolling carolers (Fri. and Sat.), take a ride in an Antique Fire Truck (Friday and Sat., 11am-4pm weather permitting), and more! Check their site for details and specific event times.

Taft Museum of Art hosts a Free Holiday Family Fun Day, 10am-4pm. These special days offer a new experience each time you visit. Music, art-making, and gallery engagements throughout the day are sure to inspire your young creators. Celebrate the holiday season and explore their special exhibitions Posing Beauty in African American Culture and Resilience: New Ceramic Works by Terri Kern with festive art activities, food and drinks specials in the Café, family tours, and musical guests. 

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Holiday Events That Go On All Weekend:

Holiday Junction featuring the Duke Energy Trains at Cincinnati Museum Center: Nov. 9, 2024 – Jan. 6, 2025; Come experience a deep-rooted Cincinnati holiday tradition: Holiday Junction Featuring the Duke Energy Holiday Trains. The exhibition, a display of hundreds of model trains zipping around a winter wonderland, has been a part of Cincinnati holidays since 1946. You’ll also get to see Brickopolis, a room full of fantastical scenes created with LEGO bricks. Santa arrives on Friday (Nov. 29).

Cincinnati Christkindlmarkt: Nov. 22, 2024 – Jan.5, 2025. This festive event takes place adjacent to the Moerlein Lager House on the Schmidlapp Event Lawn and Stage in Smale Riverfront Park. The European, yet Cincinnati Holiday themed event features food, beverages, merchandise, holiday lights, choral and musical entertainment, character visits an ice rink, an Igloo boardwalk, and more. with a European, yet Cincinnati Holiday theme.

The Shillito Elves are returning to downtown windows this year! You can find them in the windows at 1312 and 1324 Main Street starting Nov. 22. You’ll find The Mail Sorter, Little Woodshop, Pete the Painter, Lazzie Bear and Gift Wrap, and Elves at Home including the Piano Player, Ned the Newspaper Reader, and the Bunkbed Elves. The Main Street Pop-Up Holiday Market will be at 1318-1320 Main Street and will feature 9 shops (open weekends from noon to 8pm, Friday-Sunday, Nov. 22 – Dec. 22)

Fountain Square Ice Rink, Nov. 2, 2024 – Feb. 17, 2025; Rink amenities include 600 pairs of rental skates, the WGU Warming Tent, a full-service concessions tent with hot and cold snacks, and alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages, on-site parking, and restrooms. The rink is open to skaters of all ages. The rink operates seven days a week. No reservations required, all admissions are walk-ups only. The rink is all ice skating this year (bumper cars no longer on the rink).

Festival of Lights at the Cincinnati Zoo,  Nov. 21, 2024 – Jan. 5, 2025. The Cincinnati Zoo will once again be transformed into a “Wild Wonderland” for the 42nd annual PNC Festival of Lights! In addition to admiring the beauty of 4 million LED lights, visitors can find the 5 Fiona fairies in Fairyland, take in a blacklight puppet show, marvel at the spectacular Wild Lights show on Swan Lake, or snack on one of their seasonal concessions. Santa will be available for visits starting at 4 p.m. through December 23. Tickets are required. Closed on Thanksgiving Day.

Deck the Y’alls Lightfest: Nov. 22 – Jan. 1, 2025 (closed on TDay, and a few Mondays – see site for details); This interactive sparkling wonderland features more than 2 million dazzling lights and ten immersive themed displays at Thomas More Stadium, located in Florence, KY. Guests will have the opportunity to walk around the field and can even skate on the outdoor ice rink located right on the first base line!

Holly Jolly Days is at the Behringer-Crawford Museum from Nov 16, 2024 – Jan 12, 2025. Visitors can look forward to new attractions, including 13 animated displays in the Holiday Toy Trains exhibit, a nostalgic “A Window Through Time” display with vintage Christmas decor, and a LEGO Makerspace for creative play.

Pyramid Hill Lights is an artful drive through adventure at Pyramid Hill Sculpture Park, Nov. 15, 2024 – Jan. 5, 2025. This art and nature filled route is illuminated by over one million lights and features installations by local artists.

Krohn Conservatory’s Holiday Show – Solstice Glow, Nov. 2, 2024 – Jan. 5, 2025. The seasonal display located in the main exhibition house, invites visitors to explore a botanically designed Cincinnati theme. Guests will experience an enchanting, immersive train display, winding their way through a miniature world of botanical models thoughtfully sculpted in natural plant material. Included are models of the famed Roebling Bridge, Great American Tower, P&G Towers, Fountain Square, Krohn Conservatory, Eden Park Water Tower, the Winton Place Rail Station, Mount Adams and its incline track, along with many other icons that represent the architectural diversity of the Queen City. G-scale model train tracks traverse the elegant flow of the walking path, and pass by a waterfall, which spills into a bubbling brook. Hand-sculpted cedar mountains combined with decorative grapevine stretch throughout the layout creating a perfect backdrop for the plants, trains and models. Open 10-8 on Thanksgiving Day.

Christmas at EnterTRAINment Junction will be open Nov. 16, 2024 – Jan. 5, 2025 (closed on Thanksgiving Day). See the magic of Christmas at the home of the World’s Largest Indoor Train Display. Take a “Journey to the North Pole”, where you can meet Mrs. Claus and Santa himself.

All events were accurate at the time of this posting but things do happen and events do occasionally get canceled or postponed. You should always double check with the event source before you head out the door. Links for each event are provided so that you can be sure the date is still accurate before you head out.