Kansas City's NEW Christmas Traditions

This holiday season, celebrate Christmas in Kansas City with a NEW tradition! From familiar stage shows with new tellings, to new exhibits, displays, and events... Kansas City's Christmas just got better!

WinterFest at Worlds of Fun

We're looking forward to this NEW KC holiday tradition - WinterFest at Worlds of Fun select dates Nov. 24-Dec. 30! Holiday cheer rings out at Worlds of Fun during the first annual WinterFest celebration. Thousands of sparkling lights transform the park with an inviting glow that warms the heart and lifts the spirit. Witness 10 live shows, meet over 16 iconic holiday characters, join 9 holiday activities like ice skating and cooking decorating, ride select park attractions, and create lasting memories with family and friends. We're especially excited to celebrate with Charlie Brown and Snoopy! Charlie, the gang, and a cast of 18 singers and dancers will present a Christmas Holiday Spectacular! This stunning display of holiday cheer includes high-kicking and a hefty amount of sequins to dazzle the audience. Charlie Brown even takes the stage to impress the audience with his extra special dance moves, but you can be assured the Snoopy and Lucy won’t let him steal the spotlight. All of the PEANUTS gang will be represented in this fast-paced spectacle, brought together with the talented performers who will delight with their harmonious vocals and fancy footwork in this Broadway-caliber show!

Astro Botanicals at Union Station

We love the Holidays Alive at Union Station! From the KCS Holiday Express train, to Mini Train Rides, the lighting ceremony with Quixotic, holiday shows, and $3 holiday movies... there is something for everyone. This year, in addition to our holiday favorites, we're excited about Astro Botanicals. From November 18th through December 31st, experience a bold, new sculpture garden that’s going to catch the eye of nature lovers, art enthusiasts and will capture the hearts of the playful. Just outside Science City in the new Haverty Family Yards, eight inflatable sculptures between eight and 15 feet tall will “grow” in a unique and fantastical exhibition. The inflatable designs are purposefully massive in scale, so their multi-colored light displays give off a magical aura. “In the daytime they appear to be bigger-than-life ice sculptures, and at night, Astro Botanicals are illuminated in holiday colors for a dreamy winter wonderland feel,” says Tammy Ruder, Special Events Manager at Union Station. This newest addition to “Holidays Come Alive” will be visible from the West Yards Garage pedestrian bridge, but to truly be immersed with them, guest should plan to walk among them. During regular daytime hours, Science City guests are invited into the “garden” via Science City outdoor gates. For evening hours, Haverty Family Yards gates will be your access point. Either way, you won’t want to miss interacting and taking pictures with the sculptures titled, Magnolia Starship, Asparagus and Dragon Lotus. Astro Botanicals visits Kansas City for the first time and ONLY at Union Station. Union Station Members will experience it for FREE and non-members can expect a nominal charge. We also love the Classic Holiday Throwback Movie Series: Watch your holiday favorites on the Extreme Screen for just $3/ticket. Nov 17-22 - National Lampoons Christmas Vacation. Nov 24-30 - Elf. Dec 1-7 - Home Alone. Dec 8-14 - Polar Express in Your PJs. 

ALL-NEW Adaptation of A Christmas Carol at The KC Repertory Theatre

Christmas Carol  at The KC Rep showing Nov. 17 - Dec. 24. Kansas City’s favorite holiday tradition is back for its 37th season, with an all-NEW adaptation by KCRep Artistic Director, Eric Rosen! A ripping good telling of the classic story of Ebenezer Scrooge, the curmudgeonly businessman who requires the intervention of a few spectral guides to understand the true meaning of Christmas and life. Complete with lively musical numbers, ornate costumes, and dashing stagecraft, Dickens’ classic tale of hope and redemption continues to remind us what’s really worth celebrating – at the holidays, or any time! A Kansas City Holiday Tradition!

Cirque Musica Holiday Presents BELIEVE

The Cirque Musica Holiday Presents BELIEVE on Dec. 5 at Silverstein Event Center in Independence. This is a fun filled holiday entertainment event for the entire family.  The perfect celebration for the holidays as the cast of Cirque Musica performs incredible feats of strength, skill, and grace to great Holiday music favorites performed by a live symphony.

Festival of Lights at Powell Gardens

Festival of Lights Dec. 1 - Jan. 7 at Powell Gardens 1609 N.W. U.S. Highway 50, Kingsville, MO. A lighting exhibition, artfully curated by the Powell Gardens Horticulture staff, the Festival of Lights includes botanically-themed lighting displays that begin at the garden entrance and stretch along a winding pathway through six of the seven themed gardens.

Puppets for Paws with Santa Claus

Puppets for Paws on Dec. 8 enjoy a show from 6-8:30pm at Summit Fair! Located at 860 NW Blue Pkwy, Lee’s Summit, MO 64086 (in the corner store space next to Loft Next Door – behind Big Whiskey). Come out for a FREE, holiday themed version of the Mesner Puppet Theater’s, Comical Adventures of Old Mother Hubbard and help us support Furry Kids’ Refuge in the process! (Check out their wish list for items to donate – donations accepted at the event!) Kiddos get to sit with Santa Claus during the show and will have the opportunity to take photos with Santa following the event. (Bring your cameras! Photos opportunities will be available following the show from 7PM-8:30PM just for families who attend the show. No public admittance is available after showtime) Seating is first come first served.

Winter Wonderland at the Zoo

Celebrate the holiday season with the Kansas City Zoo’s furry, feathery and fluffy friends Saturday, December 16 and Sunday, December 17 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. The Zoo will be transformed into a magical winter wonderland. Polar Bear Passage will become the North Pole while Helzberg Penguin Plaza turns into the South Pole. Enjoy delicious treats, letters to Santa and much more! Our gentoo and king penguins will venture outside in the frosty air for a Penguin March at 11 a.m. See Santa dive underwater with our penguins at 2 p.m. What would a lion do with a Christmas tree decked in ornaments and presents underneath? Find out at 10 a.m. See our lion pride explore fully decorated trees trimmed with meatball ornaments and garland. Underneath the trees will be gift wrapped boxes, each filled with a special enrichment item. Included with admission.

Downtown Dazzle: Holiday Trolleys

Saturdays from 5-9pm Nov. 25 - Dec.23, Hop on the FREE Downtown Dazzle Holiday Trolleys for a scenic ride up and down Kansas City’s Grand Boulevard. Between the KC Streetcar and our Holiday Trolleys, getting around during Downtown Dazzle is easy and free. Stop at the new Downtown Dazzle Holiday Lighting installations in Washington Square Park and KC Power & Light District. The dazzling light installations in Washington Square Park will turn on at the same time as the Mayor’s Christmas Tree Lighting in Crown Center on Friday, November 24 and run through Jan. 1. Wander through Crown Center’s magnificent holiday lights and then make your way across Pershing Road, immediately north of Crown Center, to stroll through the Downtown Dazzle holiday lights.

Holidays at Crown Center

Crown Center is one of Kansas City's best-loved holiday landmarks with many great events all season long. This year, experience a mix of old and new with fresh new decoration, a new production of Into the Woods as well as beloved holiday traditions. Christmas at Crown Center is a Kansas City Tradition! With a whimsical playground, model trains traveling through a gingerbread village, visits with Santa, ice skating, and more... there is something for everyone!  Highlights include: Into the Woods at MTH: Nov. 2-19. Celebrating its 30th anniversary, Into the Woods is widely considered one of the greatest musicals ever written. This Stephen Sondheim masterpiece takes everyone's favorite storybook characters to "happily ever after" and beyond. A Charlie Brown Christmas at Coterie: Nov. 7-Dec. 31. 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. (Read our review of A Charlie Brown Christmas.) Mayor's Tree Lighting: The 100-foot-tall Mayor's Christmas Tree, one of the nation's tallest, is the centerpiece for an illuminating holiday celebration on November 24. Mayor Sly James and a celebrity guest will flip the switch to light the tree. The tree is a symbol of the Mayor's Christmas Tree Fund, which is dedicated to assisting the city's less fortunate. Program begins at 5:30 p.m. After the holidays, the wood from the Mayor's Christmas Tree is made into commemorative ornaments, which are sold the following year to benefit the Mayor's Christmas Tree Fund. Santa at Crown Center: Santa Claus arrives in a horse-drawn carriage on November 24 to kick off the holiday season. Join Santa as he makes his way to Santa's Gingerbread Station, where he resides through December 24.

Holidays at Legends Outlets

 Legends Outlets Kansas City (1843 Village W Pkwy, Kansas City, KS. 913.788.3700), Kansas City’s only designer outlet shopping center, announces its holiday calendar filled with multiple events and BRAND NEW prize giveaways throughout the season. Events include: 13th Annual Legendary Tree Lighting Ceremony Saturday, Nov. 18, 5 – 8 p.m. (center courtyard). The ceremony will include live holiday music and a special appearance from Santa Claus, who will lead the tree lighting countdown and ignite a center-wide light display – one of the region’s first and largest displays of animated lights synchronized to music. The holiday lights will remain on display through early January 2018. KCKPD COPPS UNIT HOLIDAY DRIVE: Nov. 1- Dec. 11: Join Legends Outlets to help support the community this holiday season by making a donation to the KCKPD COPPS Unit holiday gift drive. Legends Outlets will accept donations in the management office during operating hours, and in the security office after-hours. Black Friday Shopping ​Nov. 24, 6am-9pm. Legends Outlets will be closed on Thanksgiving Day (Nov. 23) and open at 6 a.m. on Friday, Nov. 24, for Black Friday shopping. Some store and restaurant hours on Thanksgiving and Black Friday may vary.