Christmas at Crown Center & Union Station District

For generations of Kansas Citians, it wouldn't be Christmas without an annual visit to Crown Center and Union Station. From family photos with the 100-ft Mayor's Christmas tree, to outdoor ice skating at the Crown Center Ice Terrace, to a visit with Santa himself at the Gingerbread Village - Crown Center is the perfect destination to make memories with your family this holiday season. Enjoy live theater with charming Christmas shows, holiday performances, dining and shopping.

We have also included great exhibits and museums that are perfect for sight-seeing with family!

• Christmas at Crown Center

  Nov. 29: Santa's Arrival Santa Claus arrives in a horse-drawn carriage to kick off the holiday season. Join Santa as he makes his way to Santa's Gingerbread Station, where he resides through December 24.

  Nov. 29: Mayor's Tree Lighting Crown Center will host its annual Mayor’s Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony on Friday, Nov. 29, with programming beginning at 5:30 p.m. The public is welcome to join Kansas City, Missouri Mayor Quinton Lucas and as he officially flips the switch to light more than 48,000 LED white lights around Crown Center, including on the 100-foot Mayor’s Christmas Tree, a Douglas fir that is the centerpiece of Crown Center during the holidays and one of the nation’s tallest Christmas trees. The Mayor’s Christmas Tree, with 10,600 LED white lights, was named one of “10 travel-worthy Christmas trees across the USA” by USA Today last year. The tree also includes 892 ball ornaments, 100 snowflakes, and new this year, 300 bells. 

  Starting Nov. 29: EBT Santa  Don't miss one of Kanas City's favorite pieces of Christmas nostalgia. EBT Laughing Santa, who first appeared at KC's Emery, Bird, Thayer department store in the early 1900s, has been providing memories for new generations at Crown Center since 1979. Children of all ages will marvel at this Jolly Ol' Soul as he chuckles his way through the holiday season while counting down the days until Christmas.

  Starting Nov. 29: Santa's Gingerbread Village  All aboard for a favorite holiday tradition at Crown Center! Kids and families can explore this interactive exhibit, meet and have their photo taken with Santa Claus (through December 24), climb aboard the Crown Center Express Train Engine, and enjoy Gingerbread Village. No admission fee. Photos with Santa are available for a fee, or you may take your own.

• Roy Inman

  Holidays Come Alive at Historic Union Station

  Celebrate the magic of the holidays with a full season of award-winning fun and nostalgia at your historic Union Station. Laugh, dream, explore, make, sing and MORE at these one-of-a-kind events that are part of Kansas City’s holiday family tradition.

  • Nov 23: Kick Off Ceremony beginning at 10 AM. Special performance by Quixotic and More!
  • Nov 24: Holiday Dance Showcase
  • Nov. 28: All Union Station Attractions including Science City Closed for Thanksgiving
  • Nov 30 & Dec 1: Strawberry Swing’s “Holiday Swing” Indie Craft Fair. Purchase gifts from local crafters and makers. Food trucks and cash bar available.
  • Dec. 21: The Snow Globes:  This show will feature some of your holiday favorites along with some of The Snow Globes' own material they have created. Come one come all, as this show is free and open to the public. This will be their final public performance of 2019. There truly is no where else like Union Station for the holidays.

  $3 Classic Holiday Movies:

  Bring the family for only $3/ticket and enjoy seasonal throw-backs on the Region's Biggest Screen.

  • Nov 15 - 21: National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation 
  • Nov 22 - 28: Elf
  • Nov 29 - Dec 5: How The Grinch Stole Christmas
  • Dec 6 - 18: Polar Express PJ Party

  KCS Holiday Express: Dec. 18-22

  Back for its 19th annual run, the Kansas City Southern Holiday Express train brings Santa Claus and his elves back to Union Station. The Kansas City Southern Holiday Express is unlike any other train in the world! One of Kansas City's favorite holiday traditions, the Kansas City Southern Holiday Express Train brings Santa to Union Station just before Christmas. Guests can visit with Santa and tour the train for free. This magical holiday train will roll into Union Station for a four-day visit this year from Dec. 18-22. Led by Kansas City Southern, Southern Belle business train, the Holiday Express train includes a smiling tank car Rudy; a flatcar carrying Santa's sleigh, reindeer and a miniature village; a gingerbread boxcar; the elves' workshop; the reindeer stable; and a little red caboose.

  Arvin Gottlieb Planetarium Holiday Shows

  • Laser Holiday Magic: Nov. 23 - Jan. 5: Celebrate the season with Laser Holiday Magic. We've gathered a selection of our favorite holiday tunes and brought them to life with gorgeous laser choreography. Vibrant animations and gorgeous abstracts dance above your heads, as the music takes you away from the hustle and bustle. It might be cold outside, but it's nice and toasty under the dome! Gather up your loved ones and share the one of a kind experience that is Laser Holiday Magic! And don't forget to check out both our morning showings and our afternoon matinees for a different variety of holiday classics.
  • Laser Nutcracker: Nov. 23 - Jan. 5:  Tchaikovsky’s holiday classic as you’ve never seen it before. 'Laser Nutcracker' has already become a holiday tradition in theaters around the country. This program combines some of Laser Fantasy’s most ambitious cel-frame animation with beautiful holiday imagery.

  Trombone Christmas: Dec. 21

  2019 marks the 3rd Annual Trombone Christmas Kansas City held in the Grand Plaza at historic Union Station! The Trombone Christmas Kansas City Concert was founded by Dr. Frank Perez and Mr. William Biggs in 2017 and is presented to promote and encourage the fellowship and musicianship of trombone players through the performance of Christmas Music.  Participation in the concert is open to trombone players of all ages and experience levels.  Whether you are a beginner or a seasoned trombonist, we hope that you will join us!  Help us meet our goal of having amassed a trombone choir of 200 participants!

• Crown Center Ice Terrace

  Enjoy ice skating at Kansas City's original outdoor rink!

  Admission

  • Regular admission is $7, or free for adults over age 60 and children age 4 and under. Skate rental is $4, or skaters may bring their own.
  • Skaters age 12 and under must be under the supervision of a parent or guardian (21 or older).
  • Season Passes are available for just $80 and you can skate all season long from November 1, 2019 - March 8, 2020.  Visit the Ice Terrace Pro Shop or Crown Center Customer Service to purchase your season pass.
  • Two-for-One Tuesdays! After 5 p.m., pay one full-price admission and receive a second for FREE. (Skate rental not included, but it's just $4 per person.)

• A Charlie Brown Christmas

  A Charlie Brown Christmas: November 5 - December 29, 2019

  By Charles M. SchulzBased on the television special by Bill Melendez and Lee MendelsonDirected by William J. Christie

  The animated classic will come to life on The Coterie stage - and a live jazz trio will play the original Vince Guaraldi arrangements! Join Charlie Brown on a memorable journey as he tries to direct the school Christmas pageant. In their letters to Santa, everyone seems to be acting materialistic - so Charlie Brown tries to restore holiday spirit with a ragged little fir tree. Experience the power of this wonderful story live onstage as Charlie Brown turns to his best friend Linus to learn the season’s real meaning. Special encore: Snoopy’s Christmas Eve encounter with the Red Baron!

• SEA LIFE Aquarium

  Sea Life Kansas City

  Sea of Lights: Dec. 6 - Jan. 5

  Prepare to be dazzled at Sea of Lights! Experience SEA LIFE Aquarium as thousands of lights twinkle across our undersea wonderland for a one of a kind holiday lights extravaganza. Santa meet & greets will be hosted on Saturdays & Sundays in the aquarium throughout December at select times!

• LEGOLAND Discovery Center

  LEGOLAND Discovery Center

  Holiday Bricktacular: Dec. 6 - Jan. 5

  Build holiday memories this December in our mind-bopping, winter wonderland filled with LEGO® bricks at Holiday Bricktacular! Little LEGO lovers will have festive fun meeting LEGO Santa, building ornaments in the LEGO Art Gallery, writing letters to Kansas City’s Master Model Builder & more!

• Merry Science

  Merry Science: Dec. 14 & 15

  FREE WITH SCIENCE CITY ADMISSION!(UNION STATION MEMBERS RECEIVE FREE ADMISSION TO SCIENCE CITY YEAR-ROUND!)

  Saturday, December 14

  • 11-4                 Maker Studio Open House: Make a Toy (Maker Studio)
  • 11-12               Workshop: Holiday Lights-Using a simple circuit (Periodic Table)
  • 11-12               Animal Encounter: (Nature Works)
  • 12-1                 Demo: Scents of the Season-Sense of Smell and Your Brain (Periodic Table)
  • 2-4                   Workshop: Fun with Mrs. Claus-Decorating Cookies (Test Kitchen)
  • 1:30-2              Nature Discovery: Winter’s Adornments (Nature Works)
  • 2:30-3:30         Maker Workshop: Print Your Own Card (Maker Studio
  • 3-4                   Animal Feeding (Nature Works)

  Sunday, December 15

  • 12-12:30          Animal Encounter (Nature Works)
  • 12:30-1:30       Demo: Scents of the Season-Sense of Smell and Your Brain (Periodic Table)
  • 1:30-2:00         Nature Discovery: Winter’s Adornments (Nature Works)
  • 1-4                   Maker Studio Open House: Make a Toy (Maker Studio)
  • 2:30-3:30         Maker Workshop: Print Your Own Card (Maker Studio)
  • 2-3                   Demo: Scents of the Season-Sense of Smell and Your Brain (Periodic Table)3-3:30              Animal Feeding (Nature Works)
  • 3-3:30              Workshop: Holiday Lights-Using a simple circuit (Periodic Table)

• The Best Christmas Pageant Ever

  The Best Christmas Pageant Ever: Nov. 23 - Dec. 28 at Union Station City Stage

  The Herdman kids are a rough and tumble bunch who create mayhem wherever they go. Cast in the church's annual Christmas pageant, they bring their own unique interpretation to the familiar events. Remarkably, they help every-one rediscover its true meaning. The Seattle Times calls it "One of the best Christmas stories ever - and certainly one of the funniest." Adapted by Barbara Robinson from her book of the same name, a favorite of young readers since 1972.

• A Spectacular Christmas Show

  A Spectacular Christmas Show: Dec. 5-22 at MTH at Crown Center

  Singing • Dancing • Show Tunes • Christmas: These are a few of our favorite things! Holiday tunes from Musical Theater, innovative arrangements of Holiday classics and more! A jam-packed Holiday treat sure to fill you with the Christmas spirit. There’s nothing better than Crown Center during the Holidays! 

• National WWI Museum and Memorial

  The National WWI Museum and Memorial is America’s leading institution dedicated to remembering, interpreting and understanding the Great War and its enduring impact on the global community. Named one of the top 25 museums in the United Sta...

• Genghis Khan at Union Station

  Genghis Khan: Bringing the Legend to Life at Union Station

  Discover how legends are made in this world-class exhibition that explores the culture, conquests and heritage of the world’s greatest conqueror . . . the man Time Magazine and The Washington Post named "The Most Important Person of the Last Millennium."

  Journey back 800 years, to experience the treasures and stories of Genghis Khan's 13th-century Mongol Empire. Presented in Kansas City for the first time, this world tour exhibition invites your entire family into an adventure across the vast grasslands of Central Asia, among the relics of Genghis Khan's reign.

  Experience life in 13th-century Mongolia. Entering the tents, battlegrounds, and marketplaces of a vanished world. Explore Genghis Khan's life and those of his sons and grandsons during the formation, peak, and decline of the Mongol Empire.

  View rare treasures from 13th-century Mongolia; more than 200 spectacular objects dramatically displayed to illustrate this legendary story. Gold jewelry and ornaments. Silk robes, musical instruments, pottery, sophisticated weaponry, and numerous other fascinating relics and elaborate artifacts.

  Even encounter daily, authentic Mongolian live music, artisitic and dance performers. A rare cultural opportunity specific to this remarkable exhibition.

  Plan and purchase tickets now to this exotic and uniquely interactive exhibition that tells the story of Genghis Khan - his life, his land, his people, his culture, and his enduring legacy.

• Federal Reserve Bank & Money Museum

  Tour Kansas City’s Federal Reserve Bank and learn about the U.S. Monetary System. Children can make their own money and leave with a shredded souvenir!