On Friday, November 27, 2026, Main Street hosts the Candlelight Walk from 5 to 8 p.m. That same evening, Hudson Holidays holds its Opening Night at Hudson Gardens from 5 to 8:30 p.m. Littleton's two biggest holiday openings overlap from 5 to 8 p.m. on the night after Thanksgiving. With a little planning, though, the season has room for both, and for several of the new downtown spots that opened in the past year.
The week that holds the season
Most of downtown Littleton's holiday calendar falls within nine days, and the rest runs into early January. Here is the calendar on one page.
| Date | Event | Where | Details |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fri., Nov. 20 | Pink Friday | Downtown Littleton | Local-shopping promotion; no hours listed |
| Fri., Nov. 27 | Candlelight Walk | Main Street | 5 to 8 p.m. |
| Fri., Nov. 27 | Hudson Holidays Opening Night | Hudson Gardens | 5 to 8:30 p.m., $15 to $20 |
| Sat., Nov. 28 | Small Business Saturday | Downtown Littleton | Shopping day; no hours listed |
| Nov. 27 to Jan. 3 | Hudson Holidays | Hudson Gardens | Light show on select nights; check the calendar |
| Wed., Dec. 2 | Sensory-friendly night | Hudson Gardens | Part of Hudson Holidays |
| Sun., Dec. 13 | Holiday's Evening | Littleton Museum | 5 to 8 p.m. |
Downtown Littleton lists Pink Friday on November 20 and Small Business Saturday on November 28. Those two shopping days fall a week before and the day after the Candlelight Walk.
Friday, November 27: choosing your evening
The Candlelight Walk is the night downtown fills up. Visit Littleton describes a holiday parade, performers and holiday music along Main Street. Local restaurants sell grab-and-go bites, and boutiques stay open for browsing. The evening ends with Santa lighting the holiday trees, followed by a drone show. Organizers also list cocktails for guests 21 and older, plus hot cocoa and cider along the route. A route map was still marked "coming soon" in mid-October. The organizers' own advice is to come early for dinner and make an evening of it. Because the tree lighting and drone show close the night, the last hour is the part to stay for.
Hudson Holidays fills more than 20 acres at Hudson Gardens & Event Center. It has light displays, large interactive holiday exhibits and a 9,000-square-foot Holiday Maze, along with the Holiday Railroad, photos with Santa, hot cocoa, cocktails and s'mores by the fire. According to the Opening Night listing, dated tickets go on sale November 9 at 10 a.m. That is the date to put on the calendar this week. The Opening Night listing gives hours of 5 to 8:30 p.m., while the Hudson Holidays FAQ page lists show hours of 5 to 9 p.m. Check the hours for the specific night you book.
The Candlelight Walk happens on one night only. Hudson Holidays runs from November 27 through January 3, 2027. If you can only make one of them on the 27th, Main Street is the one you can't reschedule. The Hudson Gardens season continues for more than five weeks, though on select dates rather than every night, so check its calendar before you book.
The newest stops are on the side streets
Many of the businesses added downtown over the past year or so sit just off Main Street, on South Rapp Street and West Alamo Avenue. On a crowded Candlelight Walk evening, those side streets are a good place to start, or a good place to end up once the drone show is over.
On South Rapp Street
- Tonic Zero Proof Bar, 5767 S. Rapp St. The Littleton Independent reports a menu of mocktails, kava, drip coffee and cold brew. It is an alcohol-free alternative to the cocktail stands.
- Honnibrook Craft Meadery, 5757 S. Rapp St., a few doors from Tonic. It was one of four recent openings highlighted by the Littleton Downtown Development Authority in July 2025.
- Lewis and Cluck, 5827 S. Rapp St. The chicken feed and supply shop started on Prince Street in 2016 and later moved to South Broadway. As the Littleton Independent reported in July 2026, it is now back downtown. If someone on your list keeps backyard hens, this is the gift stop.
On West Alamo Avenue
- DIRT Coffee, 2506 W. Alamo Ave. DIRT moved from Rapp Street into a larger, two-story space that opened to the public on October 17, 2025, according to the Littleton Independent. The extra room helps on a morning like Small Business Saturday.
- Outlanes Pinball Lounge, 2555 W. Alamo Ave., Unit 1. It serves beer and wine and was on the same Downtown Development Authority list.
On Main Street itself
- Leaves on Main, 2699 Main St. This small plant shop also carries books and plant-related goods. It opened September 5, 2026, and sits at the end of Main Street just before The Melting Pot, according to the Littleton Independent. This will be its first holiday season.
- Ruby Jane Boutique, 2756 W. Main St. Visit Littleton describes the Colorado-based retailer's mountain-chic fashion and gifts, which local shoppers previously had to find in Denver or the mountain towns.
Pink Friday on November 20 and Small Business Saturday on November 28 are good days for unhurried browsing, so you can come back to these shops when the parade crowd isn't there. Leaves on Main is the only one on this list having its first downtown holiday season.
Getting downtown while Prince Street is under construction
The light rail is a natural way to get to a crowded downtown event. This year, though, the area around the station is a construction zone. In its October 2, 2026 Littleton Links bulletin, the city said construction has begun on the Prince Street Link project. Expect traffic impacts on South Prince Street between West Lake Avenue and West Alamo Avenue through spring 2027, including a major reconstruction of the Prince and Church intersection.
The Prince Street Link project page explains that the project is meant to improve access to Downtown Littleton, Arapahoe Community College and RTD's Downtown Littleton Light Rail Station. Planned improvements include wider sidewalks where space allows, bike lanes in both directions and concrete pavement north of the Prince Street Bridge. When it's finished, the walk from the station to downtown should get better. This holiday season, it runs through active work.
The city updates its Cone Zone map weekly with construction impacts. Check it the week of Thanksgiving before deciding whether to drive, ride or walk in on the 27th. The city also notes that project dates depend on the weather and may change.
The larger Main Street streetscape plan has not started construction. The city's Project Downtown page shows those improvements still in preliminary design, with cost and construction phasing under evaluation and no construction start date. This year's Candlelight Walk will take place on the Main Street you already know.
After the big weekend: Dec. 2 and Dec. 13
The two December dates are good options for anyone who skips the November 27 crowds.
On Wednesday, December 2, Hudson Gardens hosts a designated Sensory-Friendly Night during Hudson Holidays. The gardens say the evening is meant to be calmer and includes accommodations, while noting it is not a low-sensory event.
On Sunday, December 13, the Littleton Museum holds Holiday's Evening from 5 to 8 p.m. The museum lists demonstrations at its living-history farms, wagon rides, carolers and music, Santa, cider and refreshments. According to the museum's event page, tickets cost $15 for adults and $7 for children in general admission, or $10 and $5 for Friends of the Littleton Museum members. Children under two get in free. For a family of four, membership pricing cuts the ticket total from $44 to $30. That gap is worth knowing if you plan to visit the museum again during the year.
If your plans this season include hosting family who are thinking about a move to Littleton, or if the Candlelight Walk has you thinking about your own next step, Paragon Realty Professionals is glad to talk through what downtown is like and how it fits your plans. Contact Us when you're ready.
