Prescott: “Arizona’s Christmas City”

In 1989, Governor Rose Mofford named Prescott “Arizona’s Christmas City.” With an attractive 4 season climate (including brisk temperatures in December and a slight possibility of snow!), historic Victorian architecture, and a whole lineup of festive holiday activities, this really comes at no surprise to me. Mike and I frequently take daytrips to this charming small city to enjoy hikes in the national forest and shop and dine on historic Main St. We also love the seasonal holiday light displays and parade.

This city is super festive with lots of budget friendly events to enjoy during the month of December. As an easy daytrip from Flagstaff, Sedona, and small towns in between, I recommend a quick drive to enjoy the festivities.

The main holiday draw here is the long running lighting ceremony at the Yavapai County Courthouse. As part of the city’s biggest event, more than 100 trees sparkle with nearly a million colorful holiday lights. 2025 marks the 71st lighting, which kicks off on December 6th with music (at 5pm) and a fireworks show.

Even if you can’t make it to the opening ceremony, the lights stay up through mid-January, so you have plenty of time to plan a visit. It’s a well organized and scenic display – one of the best I’ve seen in Arizona thus far.

Other seasonal holiday events occurring late November through the New Year include: Wild Lights at the Heritage Park Zoo, Christkindlmarket, “the World’s Largest Gingerbread Village at the Prescott Resort and Conference Center,” The Valley of Lights drive-thru holiday spectacular at Fain Park, various Christmas plays, holiday craft fairs and bake sales, and much more! You can see the full lineup of events on the official city website.

Small town holiday charm!

Prescott, with a population of just 40,000 (update – this number has soared to 48,000+ as of 2025), offers more of a small town feeling than the rest of the state. You will find a historic Main Street, charming old homes and buildings, an abundance of local shops and restaurants, and dozens of community events spread throughout the season.

These combining factors led to the city’s current title as the best place in the state to celebrate an old fashioned Christmas! I love shopping local here – there are lots of great boutique and antique shops and a pet shop that I stop in on every visit. Also, there are many great independent restaurants to check out during your visit. Instead of The Olive Garden, I recommend dining at a local Italian gem like Rosa’s Pizzeria and Papa’s Italian.

A cool escape from Phoenix

Although the small city is located just 2 hours from Phoenix, it luckily does not share the same crazy hot climate. In fact, the city is known for its’ desirable 4 season climate, one that includes both mild summers and winters. I love that I can bike along the beautiful Peavine in the summer and then enjoy festive holiday attraction during the chilly winter months.

Winter highs are typically in the 50’s with the occasional chance of snow due to the low (often freezing) nighttime desert temps. Temps vary drastically from morning to night, but daytime highs are perfect for strolling around downtown. Many southern Arizona transplants love that they can come up here and put on a jacket and feel like they are attending a holiday event in the north. Coming from Flagstaff, we don’t see much of a temp difference (maybe 10-15 degrees warmer), but we do love the festive lights.

My guide to holiday fun

Here are a few of the great events I’ve enjoyed during my daytrips to the city. Be sure to check with each individual business for this year’s dates and times.

Holiday Lights Parade

The city’s most festive event is the annual holiday lights parade taking place along the streets of historic downtown. So much effort is put into this lively 2 hour parade, which features illuminated floats, cars, and trucks. Many local businesses really go all out with the lights, creating the ultimate festive setting.

The brisk nighttime temps (be sure to wear a hat, gloves, and scarf!), enthusiastic mix of locals and tourists, and bright lights really create an enjoyable holiday setting. Everyone is in the holiday spirit and there is a great vibe in the air. The parade officially kicks off the holiday season. Flagstaff puts on a similar parade, but this one is a bit more festive in my opinion.

2025 Date: Nov. 29th at 6pm. Following the parade, there will be a fest and bonfire at Mile High Middle School.

Wild Lights at Heritage Park Zoo

Each year, quaint Heritage Park Zoo hosts a small, but spectacular holiday zoo lights event known as Wild Lights. The zoo is very small (just 10 acres!), yet still houses a diverse range of animals (a black bear, tiger, mountain lion, Mexican wolf, coyote, lemur, bobcat, and a variety of birds and reptiles are a few of the notable zoo animals you will come across). Heritage is not your typical zoo: all the animals here have been rescued.

I love the colorful display and many animal and holiday themed wire displays. In addition to enjoying the colorful lights, you may even see a few animals out! We were able to see most of the animals aside from the black bear and a few of the cats. It’s pretty dark, however, volunteers are around to help shine a light to help you out!

If you are from a big city, you may be a bit disappointed in the display. While it may not be as extravagant as what you are used to, it’s quite affordable, quiet, and not as crowded. Walking the grounds will not take more than a half hour or so. Grab a hot cocoa in the visitor’s center and enjoy a leisurely stroll without big city crowds. It’s a great little holiday activity that doesn’t cost a lot and will not take up your whole night.

2025 Dates: Friday and Saturday nights from 6pm-9pm, from Nov. 28th-Jan. 3rd. Tickets are $12 per person.

Valley of Lights

One of the top holiday traditions to check out this season is the amazing Valley of Lights drive-thru holiday light spectacular. Driving the gorgeous 1 mile pathway of lighted tunnels and displays in Fain Park is the must-do. It’s one of the best drive thru light displays I’ve ever seen, and best of all, it’s completely free ($5 donations appreciated).

From your warm car, you will slowly make the trip through this winter wonderland. Bring with a to go cup of hot chocolate to make it even more Christmasy. Along the mile long journey, you’ll see plenty of your favorite characters including the Grinch and the Peanuts gang. Santa and his reindeer make appearances too.

Add in a bit of local charm such as cacti and cowboy displays and you have a bit of everything! I really love the organization of this display – a job well done! The best part by far is driving through the beautifully decorated tunnels.

A cute soldier points you in the right direction so you won’t get lost. He can be seen from the highway!

Enjoy a few pics I took of some of the more festive displays.

2025 dates: This event runs from Thanksgiving -December 30th from 6pm-9pm (10 on weekends). A walk through stroll is offered on Dec. 2nd from 6 to 8pm.

“The World’s Largest Gingerbread Village”

In the lobby of the Prescott Resort and Conference Center, you will find some beautiful holiday decorations, most notably an impressive gingerbread village display. The attractive annual display features 100 or so diverse works of gingerbread art, from fun and nostalgic media inspired creations to artistic masterpieces modeled after local businesses.

Although the display is quite large, it’s not the largest gingerbread village, despite the title. That award goes to the 1102 piece gingerbread set up at the New York Hall of Science in Corona by artist Jon Lovitch. His creation has landed him a spot in the Guinness World Record for largest gingerbread village many years in a row.

Take a look at a few of the creative gingerbread displays I’ve seen recently.

The village is free of charge to explore. It is open 24/7 for holiday viewing up until New Year’s. Be sure to also check out the beautiful holiday tree in the lobby!