# Christmas and holiday events for kids in Milwaukee

> 28 Christmas, Hanukkah and holiday events and programs for kids in the Milwaukee–Waukesha area through New Year’s Day, each linked to the organizer’s own page with the date we last checked it.

Source: Grassy Knees is a directory of real family events, places and programs for kids across major U.S. metro areas, where every listing is researched from the organizer’s own page and shows the date we last checked it. https://grassyknees.com covers 42 metro areas as of Oct 24, 2026, with more added regularly. About: https://grassyknees.com/about
Freshness: listings are re-checked on a daily research run (latest check 2026-10-24), and new events are added as organizers post them. Sell-outs, weather cancellations and time changes show up on the live page first: https://grassyknees.com/milwaukee/christmas

Towns with listings: Milwaukee (15), Saukville (3), West Allis (3), Waukesha (2), Eagle (1), Franklin (1), Grafton (1), Menomonee Falls (1), Whitefish Bay (1).

## Quick answers

### What free Christmas events are there for kids in Milwaukee?

9 listings, the soonest 4: [Milwaukee Holiday Lights Festival](https://grassyknees.com/milwaukee/activities/milwaukee-holiday-lights-festival--listing-24195b3989c8c8ffc6a53e68) (Thu, Nov 19, Free); [Milwaukee Holiday Lights Festival Kickoff Extravaganza](https://grassyknees.com/milwaukee/activities/milwaukee-holiday-lights-festival-kickoff-extravaganza--listing-2cadc531557e6a7c4f3f93c3) (Thu, Nov 19, Free); [Grafton Christmas Tree Lighting](https://grassyknees.com/milwaukee/activities/grafton-christmas-tree-lighting--listing-e2faeeff9d8b9e16a2608e6c) (Sun, Nov 22, Free); [West Allis Christmas Parade](https://grassyknees.com/milwaukee/activities/west-allis-christmas-parade--listing-535dd181000d09cb38c32e5b) (Sat, Dec 5, Free).

## Dated events

### Milwaukee (15)

- [Milwaukee Holiday Lights Festival](https://grassyknees.com/milwaukee/activities/milwaukee-holiday-lights-festival--listing-24195b3989c8c8ffc6a53e68) — Nov 19 – Jan 1 · Cathedral Square Park (Community Spirit Park) and other downtown parks · All ages · Free · checked Oct 24. For six weeks downtown Milwaukee's parks and Wisconsin Avenue glow with more than half a million lights. Cathedral Square becomes 'Community Spirit Park', a forest of more than…
- [Milwaukee Holiday Lights Festival Kickoff Extravaganza](https://grassyknees.com/milwaukee/activities/milwaukee-holiday-lights-festival-kickoff-extravaganza--listing-2cadc531557e6a7c4f3f93c3) — Thu, Nov 19 · 5:30 PM · Pere Marquette Park · All ages · Free · checked Oct 24. Downtown Milwaukee switches on more than half a million holiday lights at this free evening kickoff. Pre-show entertainment starts at 5:30 p.m. and the main show at 6:30 p.m…
- [Northern Lights — Friday Night Planetarium Show](https://grassyknees.com/milwaukee/activities/northern-lights-friday-night-planetarium-show--listing-24b6fa1bd26aee93ee432fed) — Fri, Nov 6 (+4 more dates) · 7:00 PM – 8:00 PM · UWM Manfred Olson Planetarium · From $7 · checked Oct 24. A Friday-night dome show on the aurora: the colorful dancing lights of the night sky and a behind-the-scenes look at the science behind them, followed by an indoor stargazing…
- [Wild Lights at the Milwaukee County Zoo](https://grassyknees.com/milwaukee/activities/wild-lights-at-the-milwaukee-county-zoo--listing-6725a69572e3ab326b45745b) — Fri, Nov 20 (+27 more dates) · 5:30 PM – 9:00 PM · Milwaukee County Zoo · From $15 · checked Oct 24. The zoo's winter night walk: families stroll forest paths and zoo pathways lit by hundreds of thousands of lights and animal-themed light displays. It is a walking event after…
- [Dr. Seuss's How the Grinch Stole Christmas! at First Stage](https://grassyknees.com/milwaukee/activities/dr-seuss-s-how-the-grinch-stole-christmas-at-first-stage--listing-9081136c84ea6a4adeb31942) — Sat, Nov 21 (+18 more dates) · Todd Wehr Theater at the Marcus Performing Arts Center · Ages 5+ · Paid · checked Oct 24. First Stage's holiday musical of the Dr. Seuss story, with toe-tapping songs and Seussian spectacle, performed by alternating Red and Green casts that include young actors. It…
- [Holiday Show at the Mitchell Park Domes](https://grassyknees.com/milwaukee/activities/holiday-show-at-the-mitchell-park-domes--listing-737a7dbdda4395a03d425ae0) — Nov 21 – Jan 3 · 8:00 AM – 5:00 PM · Mitchell Park Domes · All ages · Paid · checked Oct 24. The Show Dome's seasonal holiday floral display opens November 21 after the dome closes November 9-20 to install it; the Desert and Tropical domes stay open during the…
- [Wild Lights Drive Thru](https://grassyknees.com/milwaukee/activities/wild-lights-drive-thru--listing-8b939aaff22ad2c8c896338c) — Sun, Nov 22 (+2 more dates) · 5:00 PM – 9:00 PM · Milwaukee County Zoo · All ages · From $40 · checked Oct 24. On three nights the zoo opens its Wild Lights holiday light displays to cars, so families can see the illuminated forest and animal-themed displays from the warmth of the back…
- [Storytime with Santa at Discovery World](https://grassyknees.com/milwaukee/activities/storytime-with-santa-at-discovery-world--listing-ac6bbfab45b4fe3d412c1c53) — Sat, Nov 28 (+1 more date) · 11:00 AM – 1:30 PM · Discovery World · With admission · checked Oct 24. Santa reads holiday stories in the Discovery World theater at 11 a.m., noon and 1 p.m., then strolls through the building between sessions greeting children. A low-key Santa…
- [A Christmas Carol — Milwaukee Rep](https://grassyknees.com/milwaukee/activities/a-christmas-carol-milwaukee-rep--listing-196b14fb610d5232641e8305) — Dec 2 – Dec 24 · Pabst Theater · Ages 6+ · Paid · checked Oct 24. Milwaukee Rep's annual staging of Dickens's holiday story, adapted and directed by Mark Clements, with Matt Daniels as Ebenezer Scrooge. Scrooge is visited by Jacob Marley and…
- [The Nutcracker: Drosselmeyer's Imaginarium — Milwaukee Ballet](https://grassyknees.com/milwaukee/activities/the-nutcracker-drosselmeyer-s-imaginarium-milwaukee-ballet--listing-6e516087816ea24dbaba5ed7) — Sat, Dec 5 (+10 more dates) · Marcus Performing Arts Center · Paid · checked Oct 24. Milwaukee Ballet's annual holiday production, Michael Pink's The Nutcracker: Drosselmeyer's Imaginarium, follows the Tannenbaum children on a magical adventure where reality and…
- [Winter Wonder Woods at Hawthorn Glen](https://grassyknees.com/milwaukee/activities/winter-wonder-woods-at-hawthorn-glen--listing-728fc3df9605992ca94ef7fe) — Thu, Dec 10 (+2 more dates) · 5:00 PM – 8:00 PM · Hawthorn Glen Outdoor Education Center · Free · checked Oct 24. An evening walk through the woods at Hawthorn Glen, Milwaukee Recreation's 23-acre nature center, with nature-inspired displays that gently light the path and explain the natural…
- [The Nutcracker Sensory-Friendly Performance — Milwaukee Ballet](https://grassyknees.com/milwaukee/activities/the-nutcracker-sensory-friendly-performance-milwaukee-ballet--listing-f3cfc325951a69a2f14542e5) — Thu, Dec 17 · Marcus Performing Arts Center · Paid · checked Oct 24. An adapted performance of Milwaukee Ballet's The Nutcracker made for children, families and individuals with autism or other sensory processing needs. A meet-and-greet with…
- [Christmas Bird Count Hike at Schlitz Audubon](https://grassyknees.com/milwaukee/activities/christmas-bird-count-hike-at-schlitz-audubon--listing-2f6e28eeba41165ec5c9709d) — Sat, Dec 19 · 8:00 AM – 10:00 AM · Schlitz Audubon Nature Center · Free · checked Oct 24. Take part in the National Audubon Society's Christmas Bird Count, the longest-running community science birding project, on a free guided hike along the Lake Terrace Loop. The…
- [Frosty Free Week at the Milwaukee County Zoo](https://grassyknees.com/milwaukee/activities/frosty-free-week-at-the-milwaukee-county-zoo--listing-916783d3c3325cb696662eec) — Sat, Dec 26 (+4 more dates) · 9:30 AM – 4:30 PM · Milwaukee County Zoo · All ages · Free · checked Oct 24. During winter break the zoo waives daytime admission for five days in a row, a low-cost outing for families with kids home from school. Indoor animal buildings make it workable…
- [Wild Lights Zoo Year's Eve](https://grassyknees.com/milwaukee/activities/wild-lights-zoo-year-s-eve--listing-bf611aecb14601c90cbb087d) — Thu, Dec 31 · 5:30 PM – 9:00 PM · Milwaukee County Zoo · Paid · checked Oct 24. A New Year's Eve edition of the zoo's Wild Lights night walk, sold as ticket packages so a family can ring in the new year early among the light displays and animal-themed scenes…

### Saukville (3)

- [Handmade for the Holidays: Teens Edition](https://grassyknees.com/milwaukee/activities/handmade-for-the-holidays-teens-edition--listing-b1dea7b5ee5f58df2d1c683c) — Fri, Nov 20 · 6:00 PM – 9:00 PM · Riveredge Nature Center, Saukville · Ages 12–18 · From $20 · checked Oct 24. A teens-only holiday craft night at Riveredge. Participants try new crafts and make one-of-a-kind gifts to give over the holidays; this year's projects include a gingerbread gift…
- [Handmade for the Holidays: A Giftmaking Gathering](https://grassyknees.com/milwaukee/activities/handmade-for-the-holidays-a-giftmaking-gathering--listing-a6e2c3e6de8c0a1336355a5e) — Sat, Nov 21 · 12:00 PM – 4:00 PM · Riveredge Nature Center, Saukville · Ages 2–12 · From $20 · checked Oct 24. A drop-in afternoon of nature-inspired holiday gift making for children. Each child can make and take home several projects; 2026 crafts include a gingerbread cardboard house, a…
- [Winter Solstice Celebration at Riveredge](https://grassyknees.com/milwaukee/activities/winter-solstice-celebration-at-riveredge--listing-c759e927a3ae3fd82958b6bb) — Sat, Dec 19 · 1:00 PM – 6:00 PM · Riveredge Nature Center, Saukville · All ages · Free · checked Oct 24. A free afternoon of outdoor adventure for all ages on the shortest days of the year. Educators lead one-hour guided hikes at 1 and 2:30 p.m. and a sunset hike at 4 p.m.; in the…

### West Allis (3)

- [Allis in Winterland and Christmas Tree Lighting — West Allis City Hall](https://grassyknees.com/milwaukee/activities/allis-in-winterland-and-christmas-tree-lighting-west-allis-city-hall--listing-6a0d22d374ab8283b1adea57) — Sat, Dec 5 · 3:00 PM – 4:45 PM · West Allis City Hall (Art Gallery and Centennial Plaza) · checked Oct 24. West Allis starts its Christmas Saturday at City Hall. From 3 to 4 p.m. Allis in Winterland turns the City Hall Art Gallery into a family-friendly, Christmas-movie-themed space…
- [West Allis Christmas Parade](https://grassyknees.com/milwaukee/activities/west-allis-christmas-parade--listing-535dd181000d09cb38c32e5b) — Sat, Dec 5 · 4:45 PM – 6:00 PM · Downtown West Allis — Greenfield Avenue · All ages · Free · checked Oct 24. Billed as the premier nighttime Christmas parade in southeastern Wisconsin, West Allis's parade rolls east along Greenfield Avenue after dark with marching bands, live…
- [Jingle Bell 5K Hustle & free 1K Jingle Dash with Santa](https://grassyknees.com/milwaukee/activities/jingle-bell-5k-hustle-and-free-1k-jingle-dash-with-santa--listing-b006cdfad40d98b50fc5685b) — Sat, Dec 12 · 9:30 AM – 11:45 AM · Greenfield Park Pavilion, West Allis · Ages 2–10 · Paid · checked Oct 24. A YMCA holiday run at Greenfield Park built for families. Grown-ups can run or walk the chip-timed 5K (kids in strollers ride free, and leashed dogs can join with an add-on), and…

### Other towns in the Milwaukee–Waukesha area (7)

- [Grafton Christmas Tree Lighting](https://grassyknees.com/milwaukee/activities/grafton-christmas-tree-lighting--listing-e2faeeff9d8b9e16a2608e6c) — Sun, Nov 22 · 6:00 PM – 7:00 PM · Lumberyard Plaza (next to Sahale Ale Works), Grafton · Free · checked Oct 24. Downtown Grafton's annual community tree lighting: count down to flipping the switch on Lumberyard Plaza, drop off letters to Santa, and enjoy free hot cocoa and treats. The…
- [Menomonee Falls Optimist Club Christmas Parade](https://grassyknees.com/milwaukee/activities/menomonee-falls-optimist-club-christmas-parade--listing-dfd0167f78d83fe45f6cde1d) — Sun, Nov 29 · 4:30 PM · Downtown Menomonee Falls — Main Street and Appleton Avenue · checked Oct 24. Menomonee Falls's Christmas parade steps off at dusk on the Sunday after Thanksgiving. It starts at Main Street and Harrison, heads west through downtown on Main Street, turns…
- [Waukesha Night of Lights: Tree Lighting, Lantern Stroll and Walk of Lights](https://grassyknees.com/milwaukee/activities/waukesha-night-of-lights-tree-lighting-lantern-stroll-and-walk-of-ligh--listing-4b05a6e74e0d4625ea09d904) — Fri, Dec 4 · 5:30 PM – 7:00 PM · The Rotunda (start) to Riverfront Plaza, Waukesha · checked Oct 24. Downtown Waukesha's holiday kickoff. It starts at 5:30 p.m. with the tree lighting at The Rotunda, with music, hot chocolate and Santa. Then families light lanterns and follow…
- [Home for the Holidays at Old World Wisconsin](https://grassyknees.com/milwaukee/activities/home-for-the-holidays-at-old-world-wisconsin--listing-8dd26dc81eb1add89b6909c5) — Sat, Dec 5 (+3 more dates) · 10:00 AM – 3:00 PM · Old World Wisconsin, Eagle · Paid · checked Oct 24. The outdoor history museum celebrates Victorian holiday traditions across its historic village. Families can visit St. Nicholas in a 19th-century Santa's workshop, make holiday…
- [Community Wide Hanukkah at the JCC](https://grassyknees.com/milwaukee/activities/community-wide-hanukkah-at-the-jcc--listing-7cc96fbc46b06ba7f016aea6) — Sun, Dec 6 · 1:00 PM – 2:30 PM · Daniel M. Soref Community Hall at the JCC, Whitefish Bay · All ages · checked Oct 24. The Milwaukee JCC's annual community-wide Hanukkah celebration for families of all ages, held in its Daniel M. Soref Community Hall on the Sunday of Hanukkah week. The JCC has…
- [¡Construye una Casa de Jengibre! (Build a Gingerbread House)](https://grassyknees.com/milwaukee/activities/construye-una-casa-de-jengibre-build-a-gingerbread-house--listing-bf0912bd3ac1ad5ffe9a505d) — Sat, Dec 12 · 10:00 AM – 11:00 AM · Waukesha Public Library — Program Room A/B · checked Oct 24. A Spanish-language family program: build a gingerbread house while enjoying a cup of Abuelita hot chocolate, pan dulce and festive seasonal music. All materials are provided…
- [Christmas Bird Count at Wehr Nature Center](https://grassyknees.com/milwaukee/activities/christmas-bird-count-at-wehr-nature-center--listing-e007657d7d8dfdd99f4ce158) — Sun, Dec 20 · 9:00 AM – 12:00 PM · Wehr Nature Center, Franklin · All ages · Free · checked Oct 24. Volunteers of all ages and experience levels help count birds at Wehr and at sites around southern Milwaukee County for the National Audubon Society's 127th Christmas Bird Count…

More for families in Milwaukee: https://grassyknees.com/milwaukee.md