Christmas in Chicago 2026

Go to Daley Plaza first. It is free, it is in the Loop, and it opens on 20 November 2026. Ride the CTA for the rest, and add the Lights Festival on Saturday 21 November if you can. Choose Chicago's pages and NBC Chicago's report of the market's announcement are our sources, read on 12 October 2026. The market's own site was blocked to us.

The 2026 dates in one table

Choose Chicago's page also shows a different Daley Plaza start, 21 November, in a social post. We use 20 November because Choose Chicago's main listing and NBC Chicago agree.

Daley Plaza: the hours and the cash rule

Address: Daley Plaza: 50 W. Washington St., Chicago. Open daily 20 November to 24 December 2026 (NBC Chicago, 20 Aug 2026, read 12 Oct 2026)

Hours: Daley Plaza hours: Sunday to Thursday 11 a.m. to 8 p.m., Friday and Saturday 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Thanksgiving (26 November) and Christmas Eve: 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. (NBC Chicago, same report)

Hours: Wrigleyville, at Gallagher Way, 3635 N. Clark St.: Monday to Thursday 3 p.m. to 9 p.m., Friday and Saturday 11 a.m. to 9 p.m., Sunday 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Closed Christmas Day (NBC Chicago, same report)

Price: Free entry. Many vendors do not accept credit cards, so NBC Chicago says to bring cash (same report)

The market's own site, christkindlmarket.com, returned an error 403 to us. NBC reports the market's announcement, so hours could still change. Check the market's page the week you go.

Ride the CTA holiday train, and let it find you

Getting there: The CTA Holiday Train runs on all rail lines from late November to late December as part of regular service and stops at all stations on its line. Schedules vary by line. Normal CTA fares apply (CTA holiday train page, read 12 Oct 2026). The page says to check back for the 2026 schedule

Note: The train has Santa on an open flatcar with reindeer and trees, and lights on every car. The Holiday Bus runs on bus routes through the same weeks. CTA says photos with Santa are on designated dates, first come, first served, with a firm cut-off time (same page)

The easy way to use this is to ride your normal route. If the holiday train comes in, you ride it for the normal fare. CTA also runs a holiday bus tracker while the bus is in service. We do not know the 2026 dates yet.

Where to go without a car

Choose Chicago lists Millennium Park's tree at Michigan Avenue and Washington Street. Daley Plaza is on Washington Street too, in the Loop. We did not measure the walk. The Lights Festival is held on the Magnificent Mile. We have not checked which CTA lines serve each event, and the CTA trip planner is the place to check.

Wrigleyville and Aurora are farther out. Wrigleyville's market is in Winterland at Gallagher Way. We have not confirmed how to reach Aurora without a car.

What is checked here and what is not

Checked on 12 October 2026: Choose Chicago's winter holiday traditions page and its Christmas lights page, NBC Chicago's report of 20 August 2026 on the Christkindlmarket dates and hours, and the CTA's holiday train page.

Not checked: christkindlmarket.com (error 403), the 2026 CTA holiday train and bus schedules, which CTA lines and stations serve each event, the Lights Festival time, parade routes, ticket prices for ZooLights or Lightscape, any hotel price, and how to reach Aurora without a car. NBC Chicago is a news source, not the market's own page. We did not visit Chicago for this page.