At 7 p.m. on Friday, Dec. 4, the community Christmas tree in downtown Kalispell lights up, and the Kalispell Chamber expects thousands of people to count down together. In past years that countdown was the end of the event. This year downtown opens again the next morning for a full second day. Earlier in the week, the Conrad Mansion opens its stage production. That same Saturday night, the Glacier Symphony performs Handel's Messiah.
A two-day stroll changes the season. Kalispell's December now has a center of gravity, the four days from Thursday, Dec. 3 through Sunday, Dec. 6. The weeks before it lead up to it, and the weeks after it are mostly a countdown to things that end.
The stroll grew a second day, and a new host
The Daily Inter Lake reported in October that Downtown Kalispell Forward is running the Holiday Stroll for the first time. The Kalispell Downtown Association, which used to organize it, dissolved and joined the Chamber in February 2025. The new organizers are billing the whole thing as Holiday Kickoff Weekend and added a full Saturday to the usual Friday evening.
Friday keeps the familiar format. From 5 to 8 p.m., downtown merchants and community groups host activities and treats, local performers sing holiday music and carols, and Santa Claus is on hand for wishes and photos. The tree lighting at 7 p.m. is the main event.
Saturday is the new part, and it's built for daylight and for families. According to the Kalispell Chamber's event page, the day includes:
- Kalispell Parks & Recreation programming at Depot Park
- The "Find the Yeti" Challenge, with yetis hidden inside participating downtown businesses
- Holiday programs at the Glacier Art Museum and the Kalispell Public Library
- St. Matthew's School pancake breakfast and brunch, 8:30 to 11:30 a.m.
- St. Matthew's Starlight Market Carnival, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., with carnival games, face painting, photo booths, carnival food after breakfast ends, and local vendors selling handmade crafts, candles, jewelry and holiday décor
The Daily Inter Lake also reported that Parks & Recreation planned ice skating at Woodland Park, if the weather cooperates. In early December, that depends on the cold.
The yeti hunt sends families into storefronts, and several of those shops are new. Jubilee Cottage, Kris Shiesl's home décor shop, carries antiques, handmade goods, apparel and accessories. It's at 4 First St. E., Suite 100, across from the Kalispell Grand Hotel and near the Bookshelf.
Four days, one stretch of calendar
With the stroll on Friday and Saturday, the busiest days of Kalispell's season now overlap. Here's how Dec. 3 through 6 fits together:
| Day | Event | Where | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| Thu., Dec. 3 | A Christmas Carol Radio Broadcast | Conrad Mansion | 7 p.m. |
| Fri., Dec. 4 | Holiday Stroll | Downtown | 5 to 8 p.m. |
| Fri., Dec. 4 | Community Tree Lighting | Downtown | 7 p.m. |
| Fri., Dec. 4 | A Christmas Carol Radio Broadcast | Conrad Mansion | 7 p.m. |
| Sat., Dec. 5 | St. Matthew's pancake breakfast | St. Matthew's School | 8:30 to 11:30 a.m. |
| Sat., Dec. 5 | Starlight Market Carnival | St. Matthew's School | 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. |
| Sat., Dec. 5 | A Christmas Carol Radio Broadcast | Conrad Mansion | 2 and 7 p.m. |
| Sat., Dec. 5 | Handel's Messiah | Glacier Symphony and Chorale | 7:30 p.m. |
| Sun., Dec. 6 | A Christmas Carol Radio Broadcast | Conrad Mansion | 2 p.m. |
On Friday, the 7 p.m. radio play and the 7 p.m. tree lighting are at the same time, so you'll have to pick one. Saturday works better for doing several things. You could have pancakes at St. Matthew's, spend the afternoon downtown, see the 2 p.m. Christmas Carol and still make the 7:30 Messiah. The Conrad Mansion presents its Dickens production with the Gypsy Theater Guild, and tickets are sold online. Messiah features the orchestra, the chorale and guest vocal soloists. The Glacier Symphony asks patrons to buy tickets only through its own site or the Wachholz College Center, and adult tickets start at $15.
One museum closing date falls on the same Saturday. "Through the Lens of Joseph Henry Sharp" at the Glacier Art Museum ends Dec. 5, the same day the museum hosts its stroll programming. If you're coming downtown for the stroll anyway, Saturday is the last chance to see it.
The run-up: trees, tours and a fairgrounds show
Most of the dates before the big weekend are openings.
Snowline Acres gets its fresh trees and greenery on Friday, Nov. 20, and sells them through Dec. 12 while supplies last. Its Christmas Market at The Collective runs through Dec. 12. Hours are Tuesday through Saturday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., plus noon to 5 p.m. on three Sundays: Nov. 22, Nov. 29 and Dec. 6.
The Conrad Mansion begins its Christmas Tours on Nov. 23. They run Tuesday through Sunday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., through Dec. 31, with a choice of a self-guided walk or a docent-led tour of the decorated rooms. These tours run the longest of anything on the season's calendar, so they're the one Kalispell holiday outing you can still fit in after Christmas.
Christmas at the Fairgrounds is an art show, craft fair and makers market at the Flathead County Fairgrounds over Thanksgiving weekend, Nov. 27 through 29, according to Discover Kalispell. That makes three days of handmade gifts the weekend before downtown has its turn.
The wind-down: concerts, candlelight and a museum going dark
After the stroll, the calendar changes. Most of the December dates past Dec. 6 are closings and last chances.
The weekend of Dec. 12 and 13 has two big ticketed events on the same days. The Conrad Mansion hosts its Christmas Tea Party & Tour at 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. both days. It starts with a tour of all three decorated floors and ends with tea in the Great Hall. The Glacier Symphony stages The Nutcracker with San Diego Ballet at 2 and 7 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 12, and at 1 p.m. on Sunday, Dec. 13. Dec. 12 is also the last day of Snowline Acres' market and tree sales.
The week after that, the mansion hosts its evening events:
- Thursday, Dec. 17: the Valley Voices Choir sings carols and holiday favorites at the Conrad Mansion, 7 to 9 p.m. The mansion calls it an annual favorite.
- Friday and Saturday, Dec. 18 and 19: "The Mansion by Candlelight" opens the decorated rooms after dark, lit by candles. Tickets are sold at the door, with no reservations.
- Saturday, Dec. 19: the Glacier Symphony's Snowman Christmas Festival starts at 7:30 p.m.
Dec. 19 is also the last day for two of the Glacier Art Museum's fall exhibitions. The Glacier Art Museum, at 302 2nd Ave. E., is in the classical revival building that opened as the town library in 1903. The address may be familiar from its years as the Hockaday Museum of Art. Two exhibitions close Dec. 19:
- "Watermedia 2026: Montana Watercolor Society Exhibition," the society's 44th annual juried show, on view since Oct. 3
- "Local Legacy: The Art of Hugh Hockaday," paintings and sculpture from the museum's permanent collection by the Lakeside artist who lived from 1892 to 1968
The museum then closes to the public from Dec. 21, 2026 through Jan. 20, 2027. Regular hours are Tuesday through Saturday, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Admission is $8 for adults, $6 for seniors 60 and older and for veterans, $4 for college students and active military, and free for anyone under 18 and for members. That means Saturday, Dec. 19 is the last day you can walk in until late January, and Hugh Hockaday's winter scenes leave the walls that day.
After Dec. 19, the Conrad Mansion's daytime tours are the only event from this calendar still running, and they continue through New Year's Eve.
Putting the dates in order
If you only have room for a few outings, these are the dates that can't be moved:
- Nov. 20: Snowline Acres trees arrive
- Nov. 27 to 29: Christmas at the Fairgrounds
- Dec. 4 at 7 p.m.: tree lighting downtown
- Dec. 5: the stroll's second day, the last day of the Sharp exhibition, and Messiah in the evening
- Dec. 12: last day for Snowline Acres trees and its market
- Dec. 18 and 19: Conrad Mansion by candlelight
- Dec. 19: last day at the Glacier Art Museum until Jan. 21
Everything else, from the Conrad Mansion tours to downtown shopping, has more flexibility.
At National Parks Realty, we count the Flathead Valley's winter traditions among the best parts of living and working here. If you see us downtown on Dec. 5, say hello, or contact us anytime you'd like a local's take on the season ahead.
