The Denver Christmas Show opens this Friday at the Livestock Center at the National Western Center, kicking off a three-day holiday market packed with gifts, crafts, food, and a visit from Santa Claus. The show runs November 6 through November 8, 2026, and is expected to bring in more than 300 local and regional vendors for Denver shoppers looking to get a jump on their holiday lists.
According to 9News, the show features hundreds of vendors offering holiday gifts, crafts, and food under one roof. The National Western Center’s own event listing backs up that vendor count, describing the show as National Western Center puts it, featuring more than 300 local and regional vendors selling festive décor, home accessories, stylish apparel, jewelry, toys, artwork, gourmet treats, and handmade treasures. The venue also promises live entertainment and seasonal food throughout the weekend.
Santa, Cocoa, and a Holiday Train
Santa Claus is on this year’s guest list, with the show’s own website confirming that he’ll be visiting this year. The event’s show-features page, found on denverchristmasshow.com, lists hot cocoa, warm stories, and Mrs. Claus among the weekend’s offerings, alongside a Tinsel Town Train attraction and performances from a local caroling group.
Hours for the 2026 show are listed on Humanitix’s event page as 9 a.m. Friday, November 6, through 5 p.m. Sunday, November 8, Mountain time. That schedule mirrors the format of last year’s event, when the show — then billed as the Denver Christmas Gift Show — ran November 21 through 23 at the National Western Complex with similarly sized vendor turnout, according to a release from Ellis Communications.
How This Year Compares to 2025
Last year’s edition also advertised more than 300 local and regional vendors, per the same Ellis Communications release, and featured Santa on hand daily from noon to 4 p.m. The 2025 show ran longer hours, too, with doors open from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Friday and Saturday and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Sunday. Specific Santa appearance times and exact vendor counts for this year’s show have not been published.
Whether this year’s show draws the same kind of turnout remains to be seen, but the lineup of gifts, crafts, food, and family-friendly holiday touches gives Denver shoppers a familiar reason to head to the Livestock Center this weekend to kick off the season.
