Park City Christmas: The Holidays in Park City and Deer Valley

Christmas in Park City, Utah, plays out across Historic Main Street and two mountains, and a holiday week here can take in all of it. Park City Mountain sends a line of torches down the slopes on Christmas Eve. Deer Valley, just up the road, welcomes Santa on the mountain that morning and holds its own torchlight parade on December 30.

Park City sits about 40 minutes from Salt Lake City International Airport, and the town’s free buses reach both resorts, so it’s easy to get around once you arrive.

Most 2026 holiday schedules are still being finalized, so this guide follows the traditions Park City and Deer Valley return to each December. Confirm this year’s times with each organizer as the holiday approaches.

Park City gives families two very different mountains and a historic town in one compact valley. Park City Mountain plans to open on November 20, and Deer Valley has announced it’s targeting December 5, so both mountains should be well into their season by Christmas week. Both opening dates depend on weather and conditions.

Getting around is wonderfully easy. Park City’s free bus system reaches Park City Mountain and Deer Valley, so you can leave the car parked for most of the week.

Historic Main Street is the heart of Christmas in Park City. The Historic Park City Alliance opens the season with its Holiday Lights Ceremony at the end of November, with music in the afternoon and the lights switching on at 5 pm.

The Snow Globe Stroll

Through the holiday season, life-size snow globes created by local artists line Main Street. In 2025 there were seven, each with a silver snowflake hidden inside to find. It’s a lovely walk after dinner, and an easy way to keep younger travelers happy between shops.

Santa Comes to Town (Lift)

Each December, Santa arrives on Main Street by riding the Town Lift down from the mountain. In 2025 he arrived on December 20, the Saturday before Christmas. Park City Mountain hosts the event, so check its events calendar for this year’s date and time.

The Holiday Spectacular

The historic Egyptian Theatre on Main Street stages Park City’s Holiday Spectacular and Sing-A-Long each December. The show features an all-local cast and a visit from Santa, and the audience is invited to sing along. If you have your heart set on a weekend show, buy tickets as soon as the dates are posted.

Park City Mountain’s Christmas Eve torchlight parade has lit the slopes for close to six decades. At dusk on December 24, instructors from the Ski and Ride School carry torches down the mountain while families gather at the base with cocoa and cookies. The parade has moved between base areas over the years. In 2024 it took place at Canyons Village, so check the resort’s events page for this year’s location before you head out. That year, torchbearers skied Raptor Way and Lower Doc’s run to the Ski Beach at 6 pm, with cookies and cocoa served from 4:30 pm.

For an evening of its own, book a sleigh ride with the Snowed Inn Sleigh Company, whose lodge sits on the slopes of Park City Mountain. Choose a 20- to 25-minute ride under the stars or a sleigh ride with dinner, which takes about two hours. Rides run nightly through the winter, so reserve your holiday evening as soon as your dates are set.

When the family wants a break from the slopes, the Park City Ice Arena offers public skating sessions throughout the winter. Times vary by day, so check the arena’s calendar.

Deer Valley’s standard is excellence, and the holidays show it, from the Snow Park base area to the lodges on the mountain. It’s a ski-only resort celebrated for ultra-luxury service and dining, and this winter brings new terrain to explore. The new Hail Peak Express is set to open for the 2026-27 winter, adding 200 acres and seven runs and bringing the resort to about 4,500 skiable acres. The East Village Express gondola, which opened last winter, carries skiers from the new East Village base area up to Park Peak. Our guide to Deer Valley East Village explains the new base area.

Santa Visits on Christmas Eve

In recent years, Santa has spent Christmas Eve morning greeting families at the Snow Park Lodge base area before heading mid-mountain to visit guests near Silver Lake Lodge at midday. He visits both lodges, so you can plan a ski morning around seeing him.

The December 30 Torchlight Parade

Deer Valley holds its torchlight parade on December 30, the night before New Year’s Eve. At dusk, skiers carry torches down the Big Stick run behind Snow Park Lodge, and in recent years fireworks have followed. In recent years, the parade has started at about 6 pm, with free cocoa, cider and cookies served on Snow Park Plaza from 5:30 to 7:30 pm.

Plan Ahead for Lift Tickets

Deer Valley limits the number of lift tickets it sells each day, and the resort typically reaches capacity over the holidays. Buy daily tickets well before you arrive. Season passes are not capped. Ikon Pass holders reserve their Deer Valley days in advance, and some Deer Valley passes have peak-day blackouts, so check your pass details before you plan your holiday ski days.

After a day on the mountain, Deer Valley’s dining is a highlight of any holiday trip. Our guide to the best restaurants in Deer Valley covers its lodges and fine-dining rooms.

New Year’s week gives you two celebrations on back-to-back nights. Deer Valley’s torchlight parade lights up the slopes at dusk on December 30. Then on New Year’s Eve, Canyons Village has celebrated with live music and a 7:30 pm fireworks show in recent years, an early hour that suits families with young children. Our guide to the best torchlight parades in the Rockies rounds up Park City’s parades alongside others in Colorado and Utah.

• Book your home early
  Christmas and New Year’s are among the most popular weeks of the winter, so reserve your home as soon as your dates are set.
  
  
• Buy Deer Valley tickets in advance
  Daily tickets are limited, and the resort typically reaches capacity over the holidays. Season passes are not capped.
  
  
• Reserve dinners and sleigh rides now
  Holiday tables and sleigh dinners are in demand, so book as soon as your plans are firm, especially for larger groups.
  
  
• Use the free buses
  Free buses reach both resorts, which keeps holiday parking simple.
  
  
• Arriving earlier in the season?
  Our guide to Thanksgiving in Park City covers the long weekend, from early-season skiing to Thanksgiving dinner.

After a day on the mountain and an evening on Main Street, it’s lovely to come home to a place with room for everyone. Our Park City luxury vacation rentals and Deer Valley luxury vacation rentals are privately owned and prepared to a five-star standard, with our local team looking after every detail of your stay. We would love to welcome you for Christmas.