Looking for things to do in Wichita, KS for Christmas? November and December are normally filled with holiday events in Wichita, including Christmas concerts and shows, festive bazaars and markets, visits with Santa, Christmas light tours, and even horse-drawn carriage rides.
Many of these events make for an affordable day out with the family, a date-night with your spouse, or an evening with friends.
This is a growing list of 2020 holiday events in the Wichita area. This page will be updated continually throughout the holidays as new information comes in. Be sure to scroll down to the day-by-day list of holiday activities!
Ongoing Christmas Attractions Wichita
Botanica Illuminations
Botanica, 701 Amidon St., Wichita
See the spectacular family-friendly light display that has become an annual tradition in Wichita! Botanica’s Illuminations also includes live music, hot beverages, and plenty of other holiday fun. From November 14 through January 9, 2020. (Closed on November 25 & 26 (Thanksgiving,) Christmas Eve, Christmas Day.)
Holiday Laser Adventure
Exploration Place, 300 N. McLean Blvd., Wichita
Opens Friday, November 27. This fun family show in the Dome theater at Exploration Place will put you in the seasonal mood with holiday images and scenes set to favorite songs. No museum admission needed to do the Dome. Dome-only fees are $3 for kids ages 3 to 11, $5 for adults and $4 for seniors 65 and older.
Kansas in Miniature Holiday Show
Exploration Place, 300 N. McLean Blvd., Wichita
Opens November 30
See the popular “Kansas in Miniature” display – an elaborate, animated miniature of a 1950s Kansas town – decked out with the sights and sounds of the holiday season – complete with a Christmas parade and nostalgic music. The display is included with Exploration Place admission; free for members.
Fulton Valley Farms A Country Christmas
Friday, Saturday, and Sunday evenings throughout the holiday season, enjoy the lights and visit with Santa and his reindeer on the farm in rural Kansas. A Country Christmas at Fulton Valley Farm is only $7 per person.
Prairie Pines Christmas
Experience an old-fashioned family Christmas tradition of going out to choose your tree, and enjoy other traditional holiday activities too at Prairie Pines Christmas Tree Farm.
The Arc’s Lights
2919 W. 2nd St. in Wichita, approach from Douglas and St. Paul St.
Drive through a tunnel of lights and over a million other lights on your drive through this all-volunteer Christmas light display. The Arc’s Lights are on nightly during the holiday season November 26 (Thanksgiving) through December 28, 2020, with a requested $10 donation per carload on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday nights. (Or you can pick up $8 tickets at QT.)
Ice Skating at Chicken N Pickle
Bundle up the family or meet up with friends to skate the outdoor ice pond at Chicken N Pickle. Afterwards, warm up with some hot cocoa. On Saturdays, you can skate with Santa. This is an inexpensive outing and a nice way to put some “merry” in your holiday.
Look at Christmas Lights
Turn on the radio and enjoy festive holiday light displays in neighborhoods all over Wichita. You can enjoy the residential displays completely free of charge, or donate to the charities the homeowners are collecting for. Another way to enjoy holiday lights is to drive through The Arc Lights or drive or walk through Illuminations at Botanica.
Take a Horse-drawn Carriage Ride
There’s nothing better for a Hallmark Ho-Ho than to enjoy a horse-drawn carriage. (Okay, if we had more snow it would be better to ride in a horse-drawn sleigh, but this is Kansas.) On Sundays during the Christmas season, Bradley Fair once again has free horse-drawn carriage rides, and the Winfield Isle of Lights has them on select Saturdays this year.
Visit Santa
Ho ho ho! Where’s the big guy? You can find Santa (and even his reindeer) at locations around Wichita. Santa prefers Wichita’s milder climate and high-percentage of “Nice List” residents so he often flies in for visits (kind of like Harrison Ford). Find out Where to See Santa in Wichita.
Visit a Christmas Tree Farm
You can find live Christmas trees in a lot of places, but it’s really fun to go out into a field and choose the perfect tree for you and your family. Wichita’s Christmas Tree Farms will give you the full holiday experience. You won’t find the cheapest trees there but you’ll have memories that are priceless! (In a normal year, some Christmas tree farms have holiday activities and wagon rides out to the fields, making this a very Christmassy thing to do. This isn’t a normal year though, so be sure to double-check what is being offered before you make your plans.)
Do a Little Local Shopping
As soon as the autumn leaves start turning, local makers start bringing all their lovingly made goods to fall bazaars and Christmas craft fairs all around Wichita. In 2020, we did see several craft fairs and holiday markets get canceled but they aren’t all a thing of Christmas past!
Looking for all the holiday fun in Wichita? Check out these pages!
Christmas Lights in Wichita
Where to See Santa in Wichita
Horse-Drawn Carriage Rides
Holiday Craft Shows, Local Vendor Markets, and Shopping Events
Free and Cheap Activities for Winter Break in Wichita
Wichita Holiday Shopping Guide
How to Make the Holidays Special When You Can’t Afford Big Presents
Wichita Christmas Tree Farms
Day by Day Holiday Christmas Events near Wichita KS
Holiday Attractions from Christmas Past
North Pole Substation
[Closed] 1841 S. Glenn in Wichita
The non-profit Claus, Inc. closed after the holiday season last year. Find out where else you can Visit with Santa in Wichita.
Carolyn,
Thanks for all you do to keep families informed of great ways to spend time together. I wanted to let you know about an awesome free, family event coming up:
Holy Cross Lutheran Church and School at 600 N. Greenwich Rd is having a Renaissance Christmas Pageant on Dec 6 & 7. This FREE Renaissance Christmas Pageant: Boar’s Head Festival will include music, dance, costumes, comedy, worship and family fun to start the Christmas season!
The entire community is invited to attend and help us celebrate the joy of Jesus’s birth!
The Facebook event is: https://facebook.com/events/741918932934401/?ti=icl
Thanks, Sarah! I will add it.
My husband and I thought it would be nice if tracked down and listed the best holiday decorated restaurants and bars and hotel lobbies. We just want to go out for a holiday drink to enjoy the decorations as we have no family in town.
That is a good idea! I know that Old Town was having a contest for the best holiday window display, so maybe some of those places (in Old Town) would be good ones to start with.
Please let us know if you find anything awesome!
This is a great list! So nice to have these all in one place. Can you add the location to the Journey to Bethlehem?
Thank you!
Thanks for the kind words. There’s a link (in the article above) to the Journey to Bethlehem event with all the information you need, but it’s at Rose Hill Christian Church, 314 N. Rose Hill Rd., Rose Hill, KS 67133
Don’t forget the Luminaries in Hyde Park in Hutchinson from 18th – 23rd & Main St – Monroe St Dec. 23rd
Thanks, Amber! I’ve added it. 🙂
Wichita Childrens Theatre doing Best Christmas Pagent Ever December 5 – 10. Also they are doing Gingerbread Man November 29th – December 16th.
Thanks for all you do!?
Thanks for sharing all of these great events!
Christmas vendor, craft, & bake sale 12/6/13 at Westview Baptist Church @ 1325 S. Meridian 6-10pm. Come for some holiday shopping, storytelling, family photos, & more.
http://Www.facebook.com/events/1424706314424357
The Old Cowtown Christmas Dec 6/7, 13/14.
The Collegiate Association of Parents (CAP) of Wichita Collegiate School is hosting its annual holiday market and poinsettia sale on Thursday, December 6 from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. The event will be held in the school’s multi-purpose room, which is located on the southwest corner of Wichita Collegiate School’s campus. Admission is free.