Holiday Events in Evanston

Light the way to your holidays on Central Street. Our shops are filled with treasures, and our restaurants serve delicious food. We encourage you to shop early this year and visit local shops to give a gift from the heart. When you invest your dollars at a local business, you are also investing in your local community.
Show your support, shop on Central Street, and make an impact!

The Winter Arts & Crafts Expo includes original, handmade works of jewelry, ceramics, fiber, metal, glass, painting, photography, mixed media, and more. All proceeds from the Expo will benefit the ongoing exhibition, education, and outreach programs at the Art Center. The Winter Expo is also the perfect opportunity for families to shop for everyone on their holiday gift list.

The Women's Club of Evanston's Holiday Bazaar is a juried gift fair featuring artists and makers of handcrafted, one-of-a-kind gifts. Exhibitors include makers of fashion and accessories, gourmet foods, home decor, jewelry, and specialty items.

Drop-In to the Rebuilding Exchange Evanston between 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Nov. 25 for our Holiday Scraptacular! We’ll have warehouse scraps of wood, hardware, tile and more for you to create your own ornaments, menorahs, kinaras or whatever will make your space feel festive for the holidays.

Wear clothes that can get messy if you want to paint!

Get started on your holiday shopping! Head down to Central Street on November 30th and enjoy a night of extended shopping hours and dining specials.

Get excited for the 3rd annual Shop Evanston Made Holiday Market! Located at 1631 Chicago Ave. (former Found restaurant). The holiday market will be open from December 1 - 17. Shop for original art, jewelry, ceramics, wearables, textiles, stationery, home goods and so much more! Evanston Made artists will also host workshops and special events. Attend the Preview Party on Friday, December 1, 5 p-8pm..m. to 8 p.m. RSVP. 

Bring your families into Downtown Evanston to celebrate the annual Christmas tree lighting with Mayor Daniel Biss, City Clerk Stephanie Mendoza, Santa and other special visitors. Enjoy holiday musical performances by the Evanston Children's Choir, Evanston Owns It, NU Community Singers, and Soul4Real Acapella. The tree lighting will take place right at 5pm, after which Santa will offer photo ops at The Merion (1611 Chicago Ave.) Please join us!

Holiday Market at Art Makers Outpost will happen on December 2nd & 16th from 11-3pm and are open to the public! Shop from over 20 different amazing artisans over 2 days and support local artists! A great big open house it shall be with lots of amazing gifts and art to purchase!

Get back to basics and learn the centuries old, meditative art of spoon carving. You’ll start with a chunk of wood and turn it into a usable kitchen utensil and piece of functional art.

This is a 2-session class that meets on consecutive weeks for ages 14+*

*Parents must sign a liability waiver for students under 18 yrs.

Give back while holiday shopping this year! Visit Rebuilding Exchange's fourth annual Winter Lumberland on December 9th and shop one-of-a-kind crafts from local vendors.

Featuring local craft vendors, food, beer and non-alcoholic beverages, scraptacular ornament making, a giveaway contest and more!

The stores of the Main-Dempster Mile open their doors to everyone for the holidays, welcoming neighbors with warm bevvies and holiday treats! You'll find carolers, living windows, in-store sales, events and lots of fun along the way.

The entire Evanston community is invited to join Tannenbaum Chabad House to celebrate Hanukkah and ignite a public 10-foot menorah erected at Fountain Square. The celebration will feature greetings from Evanston Mayor Daniel Biss, live music, a LED robot dancer and Hanukkah treats. Evanston's menorah is one of more than 15,000 large public menorahs sponsored by Chabad in more than 100 countries around the world, including in front of landmarks such as the White House, the Eiffel Tower, and this year throughout Ukraine, helping children and adults of all walks of life discover and enjoy the holiday message.

Enjoy a self-guided stroll throughout Downtown Evanston visiting shops, restaurants, and other businesses offering warm beverages and shopping or dining specials. Warm Bevvy Walk event tickets are $10/person, a portion of which will be donated to local nonprofit organization, Evanston Made.  ID will be required if you intend to have alcoholic beverages.   

Please note this event is capped at 350 people. Click here to purchase a ticket!

Ring in the holiday season with the Central Evanston Business Association for their annual holiday festival and tree lighting activities. The whole community is invited to join in to help spread holiday cheer and kick off the season of giving! Bring your favorite ornament to hang or decorate one on site. Enjoy food, holiday crafts, vendors, and music by the ETHS choir!

Join Chicago Ballet Arts on Sunday, December 17 at 4 pm for their Winter Showcase! This family-friendly event is an opportunity for our students to learn and grow through performance. The showcase will also include musical guests from The Musical Offering and additional students from the Pre-Professional Division in selections from The Nutcracker.

Don’t miss enjoying these favorite Yule festivities with your family and friends … and you can take advantage of our special rates for a package of 2 adult tickets and 3 children's tickets.

The award-winning Evanston Symphony Orchestra is joined by:

North Shore Choral Society [learn more]

Chicago Ballet Arts [learn more]

Evanston Children's Choir [learn more]

Evanston Dance Ensemble [learn more]

The Evanston Symphony Holiday Gospel Choir

And, a BIG bonus for all kids from 1 to 101 — a visit from Santa and his elves!

Santa will return to Evanston aboard the CTA Holiday Train, which will visit stops at the along the Purple Line. Then shop and eat downtown with your family! Holiday train timetables here.

The City of Evanston and Fleetwood-Jourdain Theater will host the annual first day of Kwanzaa celebration at the Robert Crown Community Center on Tuesday, Dec. 26 at 6 p.m. at the Robert Crown Community Center. The festivities will include the popular Artisan Market Place, delicious food, sweet treats, a Community Drum Circle with Tony Garrett, arts & crafts for the entire family (sponsored by the Evanston Public Library), a performance of 'A Poetic Kwanzaa' featuring JustUsArts, and conclude with the traditional Kwanzaa Ceremony. This is a free Evanston Community Sharing event.