This year the cheapest ticket to Hudson Holidays is $15 for an adult, and it's on sale for three days, starting Friday, November 6, at 10 a.m. That's the same morning Guardian-level members of the Friends of the Littleton Library & Museum can start buying tickets for Holiday's Evening, an hour earlier at 9 a.m.
Neither event begins until late November or December. What a household pays for them, and whether it gets the night it wants, mostly comes down to one week in early November. That week starts eight days after this post goes up.
Hudson's pricing rewards deciding early
Hudson Gardens runs Hudson Holidays from November 27, 2026, through January 3, 2027, on a 0.65-mile lighted route. Regular show hours are 5 to 9 p.m. There are three ticket tiers, and each one costs a different amount depending on when you buy.
| Ticket type | When it's sold | Adult | Senior, 65 and up | Youth, 3 to 12 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Any Day presale | Nov. 6, 10 a.m., to Nov. 8, 11:59 p.m., while supplies last | $15 | $15 | $10 |
| Dated | On sale Nov. 9 at 10 a.m. | $20 | $18 | $15 |
| Any Day, after presale | After the presale ends | $25 | $20 | $20 |
Children 2 and under get in free at every tier. For two adults and two children ages 3 to 12, that comes to $50 at presale, $70 with dated tickets, and $90 for any-day tickets once the presale is over. The flexible ticket is the cheapest option for three days. After that it's the most expensive.
The weather policy is part of what that flexibility buys. Hudson Gardens says tickets are final and won't be refunded because of weather unless the show is canceled. If you hold a dated ticket and want a different night, you can email the venue, and changing the date costs $10 per order. When the venue cancels a night, ticket holders get an Any Day ticket for any remaining night of the season. A presale ticket also skips the problem of picking a December evening in early November and then watching the forecast.
You don't have to plan the visit down to the minute. Tickets aren't timed, so guests can arrive anytime during show hours on their day, but there's no re-entry. The venue suggests setting aside 45 minutes to two hours. Its ticket-alert sign-up also mentions a Cyber Monday flash sale with savings of up to 50%, and Cyber Monday this year is November 30.
The theme nights are why a dated ticket can be worth it
Dated tickets go on sale November 9, and they make the most sense for a particular night. Hudson's calendar has a cluster of theme nights in the first week of December.
- Wednesday, Dec. 2: Sensory-Friendly Night, with lower music volume and capped attendance. Hudson Gardens describes it as calmer for guests with sensory sensitivities, autism or PTSD.
- Thursday, Dec. 3: gourmet s'mores and storytellers.
- Friday, Dec. 4: Festive Friday, the Merry & Bright Night.
- Saturday, Dec. 5: Storytellers with the Grinch and Cindy Lou Who.
The Santa schedule matters too. Santa takes free photos in the Pavilion through December 23 from 5 to 9 p.m. On December 24, Mrs. Claus and Jingle the Elf fill in, and the show closes at 7 p.m. Santa comes back December 26 and 27 in what the venue calls "Vacation Mode." If a Santa photo is the point of the trip, plan for a dated ticket on or before the 23rd.
The museum's evening runs on a members-first clock
Holiday's Evening at the Littleton Museum is Sunday, December 13, from 5 to 8 p.m. It's an outdoor evening at the living history farms, with wagon rides, cornbread and cookies, hot cider and costumed interpreters showing what the 19th-century winter holidays looked like. The ticket price covers all activities and refreshments.
The museum sells tickets in two rounds:
- Friday, Nov. 6, 9 a.m.: sales open to Guardian-level Friends members, at $10 for adults and $5 for children ages 2 to 16.
- Friday, Nov. 13, 9 a.m.: general admission opens, at $15 for adults and $7 for children.
Children under 2 are free. All tickets are nonrefundable. You can buy them online or at the museum's front desk during regular hours, paying with cash or check. The museum's FAQ says that if the event is fully sold out a week ahead, it will offer early will-call pickup. Because members get a full week before the public, membership through the Friends of the Littleton Library & Museum is the deciding factor if this evening is a family tradition.
The program is very local. The Smithtonian Handbell Ensemble, Littleton's community handbell choir, plays in the Museum Classroom. Spur Award winner Jon Chandler plays guitar and sings in the 1890s Barnyard. The Other Reindeer Carolers, dressed in Victorian clothes, wander the grounds. Santa comes too, dressed as Father Christmas in a green robe and holly crown, the way he looked in 1800s depictions. The farm buildings are decorated in two styles: simple 1860s decorations in the McBroom Cabin and Victorian decorations in the 1890s Bemis House.
November 27 puts two openings on one night
Opening night at Hudson Gardens is the same evening as the city's Candlelight Walk, the Friday after Thanksgiving. The city lists the downtown event from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. The parade starts at 6:30 p.m., Santa lights the big tree in Bowles Plaza, and then a drone show flies over the Melting Pot at the west end of Main Street. Other calendars list slightly different hours. Visit Littleton gives 5 to 8 p.m., so check the city's page again the week of the event.
Here's that evening by the clock:
- 5:00 p.m.: Hudson Holidays opens its gates for the season.
- 5:30 p.m.: The Candlelight Walk begins on Main Street. Western Welcome Week's booth at Bega Park, at the east end of Main Street, serves free hot cocoa and cider until 8 p.m.
- 6:30 p.m.: The parade starts.
- After the tree lighting: The drone show flies over the west end of Main Street. Last year's show started at 7 p.m. and used 200 drones, and the city's 2025 map recommended watching from Main Street between Rio Grande Street and Curtice Street.
- 9:00 p.m.: Hudson Holidays closes for the night.
Because Hudson's tickets aren't timed, you can do both in one evening if you hold a ticket for the 27th or an any-day ticket. Watch the parade and drones downtown, then head to the gardens with time left before the 9 p.m. close. Choosing that night is the reason to buy before November 27.
Where the cars go
Hudson Gardens is at 6115 S. Santa Fe Drive. Parking is free in the Hudson Gardens lot and in the overflow lot at Arapahoe Community College. For ADA parking or drop-off, use the Denver Seminary entrance on W. Weaver Avenue. ADA spaces are first-come, first-served.
The city hasn't posted 2026 parking details for the Candlelight Walk yet. Last year's map listed free parking at the City of Littleton Office Building at 2255 W. Berry Ave. and at Arapahoe Community College Lot B at 5900 S. Santa Fe Drive. Paid parking at the Elks Lodge was $6 for the first two hours and $2 for each hour after that. If the 2026 plan uses Arapahoe Community College again, that campus will be handling cars for both events on opening night. Plan for a full lot and leave extra time.
The weekend that follows
On Saturday, November 28, Historic Downtown Littleton hosts Small Business Saturday all day. It's the first holiday shopping weekend for Leaves on Main, a plant and home-goods shop at 2699 Main St. that held its grand opening September 5. Not far away, the Littleton Independent reported that 7Brew Drive Thru Coffee is slated to open at 111 W. Mineral Ave. sometime in November, with November 16 as the projected date.
Here are the dates that matter most for the season:
- Fri., Nov. 6: Hudson Any Day presale opens at 10 a.m. Holiday's Evening sales open to Guardian-level Friends members at 9 a.m.
- Sun., Nov. 8, 11:59 p.m.: Hudson presale closes, unless it sells out sooner.
- Mon., Nov. 9, 10 a.m.: Hudson dated tickets go on sale.
- Fri., Nov. 13, 9 a.m.: Holiday's Evening general admission opens.
- Fri., Nov. 27: Candlelight Walk downtown and opening night at Hudson Holidays.
- Sat., Nov. 28: Small Business Saturday downtown.
- Mon., Nov. 30: Cyber Monday, the day Hudson's advertised flash sale falls.
- Wed., Dec. 2 to Sat., Dec. 5: Hudson theme nights.
- Sun., Dec. 13: Holiday's Evening at the Littleton Museum, 5 to 8 p.m.
If you're hosting family who are moving to Littleton this winter, or you just want someone to talk through which nights work for your crew, I'm always glad to help. Laura Gilsdorf keeps up with Littleton's calendar all year, so let's connect before November 6.
