"Our 2027 event lineup will be announced early 2027." That line is on the City of Centennial's Community Events page right now, and no city-hosted holiday event appears on it this season.
Other organizations run the season: South Suburban Parks and Recreation, Arapahoe Libraries and a handful of private market organizers. Their events don't share one gathering place. Each weekend lands in a different part of Centennial. The first is on South University Boulevard, the second on South Peoria Street, and the markets run along Dry Creek Road and County Line Road. If you know the order of those weekends, you can plan the whole month in a few minutes.
The City's Own Season Ended at Centennial Center Park
Centennial's 2026 Signature Events were the city's 25th-anniversary lineup, with five Saturday dates between June 6 and October 17. The Summer 2026 city newsletter listed the last two. The Chalk Art Festival was Sept. 12, and Sip in Centennial was scheduled for Oct. 17 at Centennial Center Park. The city's recap of the Chalk Art Festival put attendance at nearly 7,000.
So the season closed at Centennial Center Park, the park the city uses for its own gatherings. This winter the land beside that park is a construction site, which comes up again below. The organizations that carry December are spread out, and the calendar follows them.
The First Weekend Belongs to the West Side
South Suburban announced its 2026–27 winter events on Nov. 4. Two of them are back to back at Goodson Recreation Center, 6315 S. University Blvd.
- Polar Party, Friday, Dec. 4. The district lists a hot cocoa bar, cookie decorating and marshmallow igloo building. Registration is through South Suburban.
- 39th Annual Craft Fair, Saturday, Dec. 5. Colorado artisans sell pottery, jewelry and holiday items, and admission is free.
Goodson is also one of the four rec centers in a new offer this year. Throughout December, first-time visitors can sign up for a free 7-day trial at Buck, Goodson, Lone Tree or Sheridan, and the district pairs it with its Winter Sale membership discounts. The free week starts on the day you sign up, so signing up on craft-fair Saturday, Dec. 5, covers you through Friday, Dec. 11.
That same first weekend also brings three private events. Tagawa Gardens holds holiday wreath workshops Dec. 3 through 5, with sessions at 10 a.m. and 1 p.m. each day, and its Santa visits start Dec. 4, running 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. The Colorado Christmas Bazaar at 9555 E. County Line Road holds its second weekend Dec. 5 and 6. All of that falls within about 72 hours. It's the busiest weekend of the month and the one that takes the most planning.
The Second Weekend Moves East to Peoria Street
Holidays on Ice runs Dec. 11 through 13. Most of the Centennial schedule is at Family Sports Center, 6901 S. Peoria St., which South Suburban lists among its winter 2026/27 events. The ice shows are free. Here is the Family Sports Center schedule as the district posted it:
- Friday, Dec. 11: Holiday Ice Show 6 to 7 p.m., public skate 7 to 8:30 p.m., Skate with Santa 7 to 7:45 p.m.
- Saturday, Dec. 12: public skate 1 to 3 p.m., Skate with Santa 2:15 to 3 p.m., Holiday Ice Show 3:15 to 4:15 p.m.
The district's Sports Complex has its own Skate with Santa sessions on Dec. 12 and 13, and its Holiday Ice Show is Sunday, Dec. 13 at 3:15 p.m.
You pay standard public-skate prices to get on the ice. At the Family Sports Ice Arena, weekday daytime sessions are $8.50 for district residents and $11 for non-district skaters. Friday evening and weekend daytime sessions are $8 and $10. Skate rental is $2.50 for district residents and $3.50 otherwise, and children under 3 skate free, though rental isn't included. The arena is also the Colorado Avalanche's practice facility, and the Avalanche Grill overlooks the team's practice sheet.
The building has more than ice. On weekends, the Family Sports Fun Pass costs $22.50 and gives unlimited bumper cars, climbing wall, laser tag and public-session skating with rental, plus one round of Eurobungy. On weekdays the attractions are by reservation only. Holidays on Ice covers a Friday night and a Saturday afternoon, so the pass works best on Saturday, when a skate session, the 3:15 show and the other attractions all fall on the same afternoon.
Getting to Peoria Street Runs Through a Work Zone
The route to that rink goes past the city's Lone Tree Creek Trail underpass project. Crews are building a concrete box culvert under E. Arapahoe Road between S. Revere Parkway and S. Potomac Street, a tunnel only for people on foot and bike. Once it's done, trail users won't have to cross traffic at the Revere crosswalk. The project page lists completion in spring 2027, and the city's Roadway Projects page says early spring 2027. The work will continue through every December event on this side of town.
The city's posted traffic impacts:
- Only right turns are allowed at E. Arapahoe Road and S. Revere Parkway. Left turns and north-south through-travel across Arapahoe are restricted around the clock.
- Lanes are narrowed to 10 feet and the speed limit is 45 mph, with at least three lanes open each way at peak times.
- On weekdays, single-lane closures run 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. eastbound and 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. westbound between Peoria and Potomac.
- The north-side sidewalk and the northeast crosswalks at Revere are closed. Pedestrians are detoured through Centennial Center Park to Peakview.
- RTD's Route 153 has changed its stops and schedule for the length of the project.
For north-south trips the city suggests S. Peoria Street or S. Potomac Street, and for east-west trips and business access it suggests E. Peakview Avenue or E. Briarwood Avenue. Peoria is also the rink's street, so the city's detour and the drive to Holidays on Ice are the same trip. The city notes that schedules depend on weather and can change, and it points drivers to COtrip.org for live lane closures. The 3 p.m. end of the weekday closures doesn't affect the Friday 6 p.m. ice show. The left-turn restriction at Revere does, so plan your turn before you reach that intersection.
Mid-December Shifts to the Libraries and the Markets
After the rink weekend, smaller events in other places take over. Here is the week-by-week calendar for everything named above, with the remaining dates added:
| Week | Event | Where | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Thanksgiving weekend | Colorado Christmas Bazaar opens | 9555 E. County Line Rd. | Nov. 28–29 |
| Dec. 3–6 | Tagawa wreath workshops | Tagawa Gardens | Dec. 3–5 |
| Dec. 3–6 | Polar Party | Goodson Recreation Center | Dec. 4 |
| Dec. 3–6 | Craft Fair, free admission | Goodson Recreation Center | Dec. 5 |
| Dec. 3–6 | Christmas Bazaar | 9555 E. County Line Rd. | Dec. 5–6 |
| Dec. 7–13 | Teen Winter Crafts | Koelbel Library | Dec. 8 |
| Dec. 7–13 | Holidays on Ice | Family Sports Center | Dec. 11–12 |
| Dec. 7–13 | Dry Creek Holiday Market | 7200 E. Dry Creek Rd. | Dec. 13 |
| Dec. 7–13 | Christmas Bazaar | 9555 E. County Line Rd. | Dec. 12–13 |
| Dec. 14–20 | Winter Crafts | Koelbel Library | Dec. 15 |
| Dec. 14–20 | Tween Time: Cozy Winter Fest | Smoky Hill Library | Dec. 16 |
| Dec. 14–20 | Christmas Bazaar final weekend | 9555 E. County Line Rd. | Dec. 19–20 |
The Colorado Christmas Bazaar is the longest-running event on this list, with four weekends from Nov. 28 through Dec. 20. It's open 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturdays and 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Sundays. The Dry Creek Holiday Market is a one-day event on Sunday, Dec. 13, from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tagawa Gardens has more Santa visits on Dec. 6, 12 and 13, also 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Arapahoe Libraries uses its two Centennial branches for after-school events. TeenAbilities Winter Crafts is at Koelbel Library, 5955 S. Holly St., on Tuesday, Dec. 8, from 4:30 to 5:30 p.m. Koelbel holds a general Winter Crafts session on Dec. 15 from 4 to 5 p.m. Smoky Hill Library, 5430 S. Biscay Cir., has Tween Time: Cozy Winter Fest with hot cocoa and a craft on Dec. 16 from 4 to 5 p.m.
The library district also has one adult evening event in Centennial. A Candlelit Holiday Concert is on Friday, Dec. 11, from 7 to 8 p.m. at Embassy Suites DTC, 10250 E. Costilla Ave. Registration is already full. It starts the minute the Friday ice show on Peoria ends, at a different venue, so households whose plans pull them both ways that night will need to pick one.
Deciding where you live in Centennial comes down to the same thing as planning December here: how the places you use every day fit together. If that question is on your mind this winter, Chad Nash is glad to talk it through with you, without hurry. Begin with a Strategic Conversation.
