Holiday Events Lineup: December Nights in Truckee and North Lake Tahoe
HOW THIS GUIDE WORKS
This guide highlights the best holiday nights from December 10 through Christmas across Truckee, North Lake Tahoe, and the West Shore. Think lights, strolls, markets, Nutcracker performances, and one very classic torchlight parade.
Everything below is in date order, so you can map out your December game plan and see how these nights line up with the neighborhoods and villages you are curious about for a future home base.
NORTHSTAR HOLIDAY TREE LIGHTING
Northstar’s tree lighting night is as close as Tahoe gets to a holiday movie. The rink is spinning, the fire pits are crackling, and everyone crowds in around the big tree waiting for that flip when everything lights up at once. It is an easy win for a village stroll, a few laps on the ice, and those December in the mountains photos you actually want to keep.
Where
The Village at Northstar, around the Village Ice Rink
When
Friday, December 19, tree lighting at 5:00 in the evening, with skating open before and after
Cost
Free community event
Why It’s Worth Going
If you want one night that checks every mountain holiday box in a single shot, this is it. You can skate, grab cocoa, wander the village, and still be back at your place in Truckee or Tahoe Donner without a long drive. For second-home owners or anyone thinking about buying near Northstar, this is the night that shows what winter in the village really feels like.
KINGS BEACH MERRY AND BRIGHT HOLIDAY STROLL
Date
Friday December 12
Time
4:00 to 7:00 in the evening
Location
Downtown Kings Beach along North Lake Boulevard
Event Info
Search: Kings Beach Merry And Bright Holiday Stroll on local Tahoe event calendars.
Why It’s Worth Going
Kings Beach goes full twinkle mode for this one. Storefronts compete for the most festive, carolers work the sidewalks, and local businesses stay open with treats and small-town holiday specials. You park once, stroll the lakefront strip, grab dinner, and feel like you just walked through the North Shore version of a classic holiday movie.
If you are considering owning in Kings Beach, Tahoe Vista, or Brockway, this stroll showcases the neighborhood vibe better than any brochure.
TAHOE CITY HOLIDAY MARKETS AT BOATWORKS MALL
Dates
Saturday December 13
Saturday December 20
Tuesday December 23
Time
Afternoon into evening, with exact hours listed on the event pages
Location
Boatworks Mall, Tahoe City
Event Info
Search Tahoe City Holiday Market listings for Boatworks Mall on local holiday guides
Why It Is Worth Going
Tahoe City Holiday Markets turn Boatworks Mall into a lakeside maker fair with local art, crafts, food, and last-minute gifts in one spot. You can pick up something from North Tahoe artists, step outside for a lake check, and head straight into dinner in town.
If you are eyeing Tahoe City or the West Shore for a home base, this is a good snapshot of what the lakeside community feels like in winter, even while the long-term future of Boatworks is being discussed.
TAHOE NUTCRACKER AT NORTH TAHOE HIGH SCHOOL
Dates and Times
Friday, December 19 at 7:00 PM
Saturday, December 20 at 3:00 PM
Sunday, December 21 at 3:00 PM
Location
North Tahoe High School Theater, Tahoe City
Event Info
Search Tahoe Nutcracker performance details from Lake Tahoe Dance Collective
Why It Is Worth Going
Tahoe Nutcracker is a local take on the classic story, set in a Lake Tahoe hotel ballroom in 1919. You get the familiar music with staging and cast choices that feel rooted in Tahoe history. Guest artists from major ballet companies join local dancers, ensuring high quality without losing the community feel.
It’s the perfect slow-down night between ski days and parties. If you have kids or grandkids who might go to school up here one day, seeing a show in the high school theater hits differently.
CHRISTMAS EVE TORCHLIGHT PARADE AT GRANLIBAKKEN
Date
Wednesday December 24
Time
5:00 in the evening
Location
Granlibakken Tahoe, just outside Tahoe City on the West Shore side
Event Info
Search Granlibakken Christmas Eve Torchlight Parade listings and resort event pages
Why It Is Worth Going
This one feels like pure Tahoe tradition. Skiers and riders come down Granlibakken’s little hill at dusk with torches, Santa rolls in on a vintage Sno Cat, gifts go out to kids, and cookies and winter drinks wait by the fire. It photographs beautifully and feels like a memory your family will bring up for years.
For West Shore homeowners and anyone considering buying near Tahoe City, this night captures the low-key, classic lodge community vibe that makes the area feel like a true village rather than a resort corridor.
HOW THESE HOLIDAY NIGHTS CONNECT TO REAL ESTATE
Holiday events are more than things to do. They are one of the easiest ways to read a town.
Northstar offers the full-service resort-village experience when everything is lit and buzzing. Kings Beach offers a walkable, main-street holiday vibe. Tahoe City blends lakefront shopping with arts and theater. Granlibakken brings the old school lodge tradition to the West Shore.
If you catch yourself thinking you could see your family doing this every December, pay attention. That feeling is a signal. It tells you where you might feel most at home, whether that is a ski-in village condo, a walkable Kings Beach cabin, or a West Shore place where Granlibakken becomes your neighborhood hill.
WRAPPING IT UP
Use this guide to build your own December in Tahoe. Start with the Northstar tree lighting, then hit the Kings Beach Merry And Bright Stroll, roll through a Tahoe City market, catch a Nutcracker performance, and wrap it all up under the torches at Granlibakken.
If these nights line up with the version of Tahoe you want more of in your life, that is where I come in. I help people find homes and condos in Truckee and North Lake Tahoe that match the way they actually want to spend their time up here.
Whenever you want to talk through what owning in these neighborhoods could look like for you, you can always find me at KennyKnowsTahoe.com.
