Events & Festivals
December 2026 Events for Families in Oakland County
A month-at-a-glance guide to December 2026 family events in Birmingham, Royal Oak, Troy, Rochester Hills, and downtown Rochester, from holiday markets and tree lightings to Santa visits, ice skating, and the season's last weeks of Wild Lights.
December 2026 brings a full calendar of family holiday events across Birmingham, Royal Oak, Troy, Rochester Hills, and downtown Rochester, from the Birmingham Winter Markt and multiple tree lightings to Santa visits, holiday markets, and outdoor ice skating. Most of it is free or low-cost, and the biggest programs have dedicated guides on this blog, so this is the month at a glance, with links to the full coverage.
Royal Oak runs the longest stretch of programming. Royal Oak Holidays returns for three consecutive weekends from Friday, December 4 through Sunday, December 20, with the Cookie Crawl on Sunday, December 6, visits with Santa and the Grinch, horse and wagon rides, holiday markets at Centennial Commons on all three weekends, ice sculptures, and ice skating at The Rink at Centennial Commons, all detailed at https://areyouclosing.com/blog/royal-oak-holidays-2026/. Just outside town, the Detroit Zoo turns on Wild Lights on select evenings from November 21 through January 3, covered at https://areyouclosing.com/blog/detroit-zoo-wild-lights-2026/.
Birmingham's season opens on the first Friday of the month. The Birmingham Holiday Tree Lighting happens Friday, December 4 at 6 p.m., with the tree at the corner of Henrietta and Martin Streets, and it opens the Winter Markt weekend in and around Shain Park, which runs through Sunday, December 6 and is covered at https://areyouclosing.com/blog/birmingham-winter-markt-2026/. The Santa House at Shain Park welcomes visits on November 28 and 29, the Winter Markt weekend of December 4 through 6, the weekends of December 12 and 13 and December 19 and 20, and Christmas Eve, December 24, while free horse-drawn carriage rides run on weekends from November 28 through December 24, all on the Birmingham Shopping District calendar at downtownbirmingham.com.
Troy holds its Christmas Tree Lighting on Friday, December 4 at 6:30 p.m. at the outdoor ice rink at Jeanne M. Stine Community Park at 241 Town Center Drive, with hot cocoa, treats, and a Santa visit, followed by Cocoa and Crafts with Santa at the Troy Historic Village on Saturday, December 5 and Sunday, December 6 from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. The free Polar Party at Stine Community Park follows on Saturday, December 13 with ice skating and other winter activities, and the full Troy season is covered at https://areyouclosing.com/blog/troy-holiday-events-2026/.
In Rochester Hills, the Rochester Hills Museum at Van Hoosen Farm hosts A Visit with Santa and Mrs. Claus on Saturday, December 5, with wagon rides to the 1840s farmhouse, and Old Fashioned Christmas on Saturday, December 19, with the All Aboard model railroad exhibit, wagon rides, music, and crafts. The Rochester Avon Recreation Authority holds its Youth LEGO Speed Building Competition on Saturday, December 5 and a Camp RARA school-day-off program on Wednesday, December 9 at its East Second Street center. In downtown Rochester, the Big, Bright Light Show lights the storefronts through the holiday season, and the Kris Kringle Market fills the Farmers Market lot on the first weekend of December, both covered in the downtown holiday guide at https://areyouclosing.com/blog/downtown-rochester-holiday-kickoff-2026/.
The month follows a November that already fills with Veterans Day ceremonies, Thanksgiving runs, and the season's kickoffs across the county, covered at https://areyouclosing.com/blog/november-2026-oakland-county-families/. Nearly every event here is free or pay-as-you-go, and all of it comes from the cities' or organizers' official pages, which is also where final times and any last-minute changes live. For families deciding where to settle in Oakland County, a December like this shows how Birmingham, Royal Oak, Troy, and Rochester Hills each turn their public spaces into holiday destinations for young children.
Sources: Birmingham Shopping District (downtownbirmingham.com), City of Royal Oak, City of Troy Recreation (rec.troymi.gov), Rochester Avon Recreation Authority (rararecreation.org), Rochester Hills Museum at Van Hoosen Farm (rochesterhills.org), Rochester Downtown Development Authority (downtownrochestermi.com), and the Detroit Zoological Society (detroitzoo.org). Information verified October 27, 2026.