Free New Jersey Christmas Events
Do not let a low amount of money in your bank account get you down. Most of the best Christmas events are free! Read about some of our favorites that we have attended in the past as well as other unique upcoming events. What is your favorite part of Christmas? For me it is the memories made with family members each year. One of our favorite ways to do this is by attending free Christmas events. Most of the events below we have attended ourselves. They are listed according to North, Central and South Jersey. In each section the events are listed in order of their dates. Check out my map to see where they are located.
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Event Map
North Jersey
Christmas on the Farm
Location: Howell Living History Farm in Lambertville, NJ
Date: December 7, 2024
Time: 10:00 am to 3:30 pm
Facebook Event: Christmas on the Farm
Information: Santa is arriving by steam tractor at 12:30. There is a Jugtown Mountain String Band at the visitors center. Create a paper Victorian ornament for a $5 fee. See a sleigh and blacksmith. Bring unwrapped toys for Toys for Tots.
Our experience: We attended this another year and it was magical. Horses were walking by in the flurries. The kids had fun making ornaments for the trees on their property.
Dickens Village
Location: Ricalton Square in Maplewood, NJ
Date: December 1, 7 and 14, 2024
Time: 1 to 4 pm
Event information: Dickens Village
Information: Each day that the village will feature different fun things such as horse and carriage rides, Santa and a menorah lighting!
Our Experience: The town of Maplewood is a great place to visit around Christmas with its well-maintained downtown and pretty decor. The kids especially enjoyed looking into all the small houses in the Dickens Village here.
Winter Wonderland
Location: Papaianni Park in Edison, NJ
Date: December 7, 2024
Time: 3:00 pm to 8:00 pm (Tree Lighting at 7:30 pm)
Event Information: Winter Wonderland
Information: There will be lots of free things such as fire pits with marshmallows, Christmas and Hannukah crafts, horse-drawn carriage rides, a trackless train, Story Time with Mrs. Claus and more! There will be performances by different groups as well.
Our Experience: We recently attended for a Diwali celebration here. We were impressed by the number of lights and vendors here.
Santa Saturday
Location: The Fort Lee Commons Park (229 Main Street) in Fort Lee, NJ
Date: December 14, 2024
Time: 11:00 am to 3:00 pm
Facebook Event: Santa Saturday in Fort Lee
Information: This event will have carolers, Santa and free hot cocoa and candy canes.
Math Blizzard with RSM Edison
Location: RSM Edison (3480 Park Avenue)
Date: December 15, 2024
Time: 5:00 pm to 6:30 pm
Facebook Event: Math Blizzard
Information: Build an igloo out of sugar, make marshmallow snowflakes, work on equations and more! Win prizes! This event is for grades Kindergarten to 7th Grade.
Central Jersey
Winter Wonderland at Kuser Farm Park
Location: Kuser Farm Park
Date & Time: December 7, 2024 from 4:30 pm to 7:30 pm and December 8, 2024 from 2:00 pm to 7:30 pm
Event website: Winter Wonderland.
Information: The event this year will have pony rides, wagon rides through the lights, a small Candy Land Express train ride, Candy Lane cottage, a Gingerbread bounce house and more!
The Kuser mansion and Jersey Valley Railroad Club model railroad tours will also be going on during this event.
Our Experience: Learn more about these two things that we have done before here: Trains and Mansion Tours at Kuser Farm Park.
Tree Lighting Ceremony with Drone Light Show
Location: Ronald Rogers Arboretum in West Windsor, NJ
Date: December 8, 2024
Time: 7:00 pm
Facebook Event: Tree Lighting Ceremony with Drone Light Show
Information: This event will also have refreshments from McCafrey’s Market and music sung by the HS South Choir.
Film: “Love, Actually”
Location: Community Room in the Princeton Public Library
Date: December 16, 2024
Time: 3:00 pm to 5:15 pm
Event Website: Love, Actually
Information: Watch this classic comedy in the library. Refreshments will be served starting at 2:45. No registration is needed. The event is wheelchair accessible. There are also assistive listening devices.
Christmas Eve Sing-A-Long
Location: Palmer Square in Princeton
Date: December 24, 2024
Time: 5:00 pm to 6:00 pm
Facebook Event: Christmas Eve Sing-A-Long
Head to Palmer Square to sing carols with your family. Visit Santa afterwards!
Our Experience: We have not been here for this event but Princeton is a great place to walk around near Christmas with all of the shops and merry atmosphere.
South Jersey
Deck the Dell: A Holiday Movie Night
Location: McLaughlin Norcross Memorial Dell in Haddon Heights, NJ
Date: December 6, 2024
Time: 5:00 pm to 10:30 pm
Event website: A Muppet Christmas Carol
Information: The movie will start at 5:30 pm. There will be pictures with Santa, ornaments to decorate, popcorn and a hot chocolate bar.
Our Experience: We have not been to this particular event but our kids love the kids events held here. They especially love the snacks. There is bleacher style seating that goes down towards a stage.
Delran Winter Festival
Location: Delran Municipal Building in Delran, NJ
Date: December 6, 2024
Time: 6 pm
Santa arrives at 7 pm for the tree lighting and pictures with him will be after this.
Website: Winter Festival & Tree Lighting
Parking: We usually park at the Delran Middle School. There is also street parking and parking on Underwood Boulevard.
Information: This event has a bonfire, food trucks and more!
Our experience: Read about our visits to this festival here: Delran Winter Festival.
Merchantville Holiday Parade and Tree Lighting
Location: Maple Avenue in Merchantville, NJ
Date: December 6, 2024
Time: 7:00 pm
Facebook Event: Merchantville Holiday Parade
The parade will start on Browning Road and head downtown. There will be marching bands, jugglers and more!
Yuletide at the Museum
Location: Indian King Tavern Museum in Haddonfield, NJ
Dates: December 6, 13 and 20, 2024
Time: 6:00 pm to 8:00 pm
Event Information: Indian King Tavern Museum Yuletide
Learn about how the holidays were celebrated during the American Revolution. Make your own ornament. On the 13th there will also be a performance with limberjacks and period music. This event coincides with Late Night Candlelight Shopping in Haddonfield. Parking is also free in Haddonfield this month.
Our Experience: We have been to the Indian King Tavern for other events. The kids love to learn about history there and participate in their activities.
City of Burlington Holiday Extravaganza
Location: Burlington City Riverfront Promenade
Date: December 7, 2024
Time and Information: Annual Holiday Village at noon, Holiday Parade at 5 pm and Tree Lighting at 5 pm
Facebook Event: Burlington Holiday Extravaganza
Our Experience: We have not attended this specific event before but events at the Riverfront are always a blast. We love the picturesque backdrop of the Delaware River.
Dickens Festival on Main Street
Location: South Main Street in Medford, NJ
Date: December 8, 2024
Time: 4:30 pm to 9:00 pm
Facebook Event: Dickens Festival
Event website: Festival Itinerary
Information: This event features a slew of things such as carolers, jugglers, a Grinchmobile, Dickensian stilt walkers, reenactments of “ A Christmas Carol” and more. Parking and event admission are free. There is a free shuttle bus that stops at the Acme Plaza, Freedom Park and close to Main Street and Union Street.
Mount Laurel Township & Rancocas Woods Annual Tree Lighting
Location: Rancocas Woods in Mount Laurel, NJ
Date: December 7, 2024
Time: 5:00 pm to 10:00 pm
Facebook Event: Annual Tree Lighting
Information: This event will have holiday shops. Santa will arrive at 6 pm to light the tree. Fleetwood Elementary School will have mechanical rides and bounce houses and face painting.
Our Experience: We have not attended this particular event but we have attended other events at Rancocas Woods around Christmas. There are lots of log cabins, lights and more.
Friends Classic Rock Holiday Concert
Location: Burlington County Library
Date: December 8, 2024
Time: 2:00 pm to 3:15 pm
Event Website: Friends Classic Rock
Information: There is limited seating for 250 people. Tickets will be handed out starting at 1:15 pm. Auditorium seating starts at 1:45 pm.
Our Experience: We went to this library for a great show in the past with an Abba tribute band. There is a full auditorium with a stage and good sound system.
Winterfest at Smithville Park
Location: Smithville Park in Eastampton, NJ
Date: December 14, 2024
Time: 1:00 pm to 6:00 pm
Facebook Event: Winterfest
Information: This year there will be lots of fun activities such as a Holiday Marketplace, bonfire with s’mores, iceless skating, an elf hunt and food trucks.
Our Experience: This is a great way to experience a Victorian style Christmas. An article about our experience will be coming soon.
Evesham Township Holiday Light Parade and Festivities
Location: Main Street in Evesham Township, NJ
Date: December 14, 2024
Time: 4:00 pm to 7:00 pm
Facebook Event: Holiday Light Parade
Information: This is the second year for this event. It is a vehicle parade that ends with a tree lighting at the corner of Main Street and Maple Avenue. There will be free hot chocolate stations, a holiday train ride, a holiday film and more.
Mill Race Holiday Village
Location: Mill Race Village in Mount Holly, NJ on White, Church and Charles Street
Date: December 21, 2024
Time: 11:00 am to 5:00 pm
Facebook Event: Mill Race Holiday Village
Information: This outdoor holiday village will have vendors, crafters, a bounce house, inflatable axe throwing and more!
Our experience: The kids loved the Grinch event at the coffee shop the year we went to this. They also really enjoyed seeing alpacas and walking around Mill Race Village with its holiday decor.
What to Wear
If you are heading to an event at night we like to wear light necklaces such as these: Light Up Christmas Lights Necklace. They are a great way to look festive and keep track of family members.
Reindeer antlers are my personal favorite head accessory: Reindeer antlers headbands.
It is usually cold so it is fun to wear some cute gloves. Our favorites are the fingerless gloves like these that also turn into a mitten: Fingerless Christmas Gloves.
Santa hats are another good option we sometimes wear to keep our heads warm: Santa Hats.
Need other free activity ideas?
The Bellmawr Recreation Center does a Holiday Lights Drive Through called Christmas in the Park. It is short but it is a fun and free activity. When we went last year they even were giving goody bags to kids. This year it is on December 6th, 7th, 13th and 14th from 6:00 pm to 9:00 pm.
Shamong is my favorite town that we have driven through for seeing lights. I will update this article once they announce their Holiday Light Tour addresses.
See the Light Map for the Lights and Sights of New Jersey to drive around to see lights. We like to make an itinerary from the map and bring along some hot cocoa in the car.
Put your zip code into Christmas Light Finder to see if there are any light displays near you.
Head to Philadelphia for some free Christmas activities! Here are free ongoing events in Philadelphia: Free Philadelphia Christmas Events.
Head to Peddler’s Village in Lahaska, PA for some free Christmas fun: Peddler’s Village.
Where to Stay
This map will give you options of places that you can stay in New Jersey: