North Pole Nights at Gilroy Gardens opens Saturday, November 21. The same weekend, Fortino Winery holds its Fall Market and Cinnabar Winery hosts its Fall Sip & Shop. Two weekends later, downtown Gilroy holds its Holiday Festival & Parade on a day the park is also open. Every one of Gilroy's big weekend holiday events this year falls on a day when the park is running its holiday nights. That means the main choice this season isn't which single day to visit the park. It's whether you'll make one long visit or several short ones, and Gilroy Gardens' own pricing answers that question clearly.
The free dates and the park nights overlap
North Pole Nights runs on select evenings from November 21 through December 31, 2026. Hours posted for the season show 1 to 9pm on most days, with some Friday nights at 5 to 10pm. The park's Calendar & Hours page has the final word on each date. The events around town line up with those dates like this:
| Date | Event elsewhere in Gilroy | North Pole Nights that day |
|---|---|---|
| Sat, Nov 21 | Cinnabar Winery Fall Sip & Shop, noon to 5pm; Fortino Winery Fall Market opens | Opening day, 1 to 9pm |
| Sun, Nov 22 | Fortino Winery Fall Market, day two | Open, 1 to 9pm |
| Sat, Nov 28 | Small Business Saturday in downtown Gilroy | Open, 1 to 9pm |
| Thu, Dec 3 | Fortino Wine Club Christmas Open House, 6:30 to 8:30pm | Not on the posted schedule |
| Sat, Dec 5 | GDBA Holiday Festival & Parade, from 3pm | Open, 1 to 9pm |
| Sat–Sun, Dec 12–13 | Fortino 23rd Annual Holiday Boutique | Open, 1 to 9pm, with Lunch with Santa |
The one event on the list that doesn't share a day with the park is Fortino's Thursday-night open house. The rest fall on weekends with park hours starting at 1pm. A family that wants a winery market, the downtown parade or a holiday boutique, plus an evening under the park's lights, will usually be deciding how to split one day between them.
The park opened a week earlier this year
The 2025 run of North Pole Nights started November 28. Starting November 21 this year adds a full weekend at the front of the season, and that weekend falls on the Fortino and Cinnabar dates.
The park's finances help explain how it handles the calendar. Gilroy Gardens Family Theme Park, Inc. is the nonprofit that operates the park under a lease with the City of Gilroy. In a July 2026 release, it said its model relies on earned revenue rather than mainly on donations and grants. That same release announced the Hecker Pass Outdoor Events Center, a separately branded venue on the same property for festivals, concerts, picnics and trade shows. The park's 2025 Impact Report announcement counted 458,372 visitors in 2025. It also said more than 10,000 Gilroy residents got free or discounted admission that year. A park that earns its own revenue and already serves thousands of local visitors has a reason to price for people who come back. Its membership is set up that way.
The $98 membership vs. the $80 gate
These are the numbers posted on the park's Tickets & Memberships page and its North Pole Nights page:
- Gate price for North Pole Nights: $80 per person. Buying online saves up to $25.
- Parking: not included with a single-day ticket. The membership includes it, and the park values that perk at $25 per visit.
- 2027 Premium Membership: listed at $98. It includes unlimited visits for the rest of 2026 and all of 2027, free parking, and admission to The Great Big BOO, North Pole Nights and the New Year's Eve event in both 2026 and 2027.
- Bonuses: three Bring-a-Friend tickets and one Fast Lane wristband, both good through December 31, 2027, plus a $10 in-park spending voucher good through December 31, 2026. Members can also bring a friend free every Friday.
One gate ticket costs $80 before parking, only $18 less than a membership that covers parking and every North Pole Nights date. The park says the membership "pays for itself in less than 2 visits." That's because the membership counts the rest of 2026 as a bonus. Buy it before November 21 and every North Pole Nights date this season is included, and then 2027 starts.
That's where the overlapping calendar matters. With a single ticket, you want to get a full day out of it, which on December 5 means skipping the parade or rushing it. With a membership, you can stop in for a couple of hours after Cinnabar on November 21, go home, and come back another weekend for Lunch with Santa.
December 5: the parade and the park on the same day
Downtown
The Gilroy Downtown Business Association's Holiday Festival & Parade is free and starts at 3pm on Saturday, December 5. The schedule:
- 3 to 5pm: The Trail of Treats, with goodies for kids, a petting zoo and photos with Chillroy, plus live entertainment on two stages.
- During the festival: Santa's Village downtown, plus Grinchville.
- 5pm: The Holiday Parade, with local groups, performers and lit-up entries competing in the float contest.
- 6:30pm: The tree lighting, presented by Gina Lopez Insurance & Financial Services, with Gina Lopez, the Mayor and a GDBA representative.
This year's Grand Marshal is Kurt Michielssen, who moved to Gilroy in 1981 and spent his banking career serving South County businesses, families and farmers. He has volunteered with the Rotary Club of Gilroy, the Gilroy Foundation and Gilroy Gardens. The Junior Grand Marshal is Don "Donnie" Rose Jr., a 19-year-old Gilroy native who started D'Rose Petting Zoo at age 10 and grew it into a local business that brings animals to community events. The GDBA sends the final parade route to registered entries.
On Hecker Pass
North Pole Nights is listed as open 1 to 9pm that same Saturday. The parade and tree lighting take up the early evening, which is when the park's light displays are at their best. The posted hours give two options: visit the park from 1pm and leave by 5pm for the parade, or watch the tree lighting at 6:30pm and get to the park for its final two and a half hours. Members can do either without paying twice. The next day, Sunday, December 6, the park is open 1 to 9pm with no competing downtown event.
The Hecker Pass wineries fill the gaps
The two wineries' events cover the weekends before and after the parade.
Fortino Winery at 4525 Hecker Pass Hwy has three events this season. Its Fall Market runs November 21 and 22, with free entry according to Visit Gilroy. The Wine Club Christmas Open House is Thursday, December 3, from 6:30 to 8:30pm. The 23rd Annual Holiday Boutique runs December 12 and 13, also with free entry. The Holiday Boutique falls on the same weekend as the park's Lunch with Santa, so a Hecker Pass Saturday could include both.
Cinnabar Winery at 3200A Dryden Avenue holds its Fall Sip & Shop on November 21 from noon to 5pm. Live music is free, food is for sale, and 12 local vendors will set up. It ends at 5pm, four hours before North Pole Nights closes on its opening night.
What you only get inside the park
The membership makes repeat visits worthwhile because several holiday events happen only at Gilroy Gardens:
- Lunch with Santa, December 12 and 13, 1 to 3pm. It includes storytime, a Christmas craft and a lunch of ham, French toast and a Green Eggs Scramble. Kids under 12 eat free.
- Holiday Feast, December 19 and 20, with seatings at 5, 6 and 7pm. The menu includes roasted turkey, honey baked ham, garlic mashed potatoes and stuffing, and kids under 12 eat free.
- The Magic of Santa, a new musical show with Rudy the Polar Bear, Mrs. Claus, Tinsel the Tree, Skitter the Mouse and Santa's reindeer. It's included with admission and runs several times each night.
- Ice skating in North Pole Village. If you bring your own skates and sign a waiver, you skate free.
- The 100-foot animated musical Tunnel of Lights, plus warm drinks and cocktails at Skitter's Cozy Cabin, the Live Tonight Bar and the Merry & Mischief Bar.
- New Year's Eve, with a live DJ dance party and fireworks. Non-members pay $55 online for a ticket valid only on December 31, 2026. Members get in with their membership.
The Rainbow Garden Round Boat Ride, the Paddle Boats and the Sky Trail Monorail are closed during North Pole Nights.
From November 21 through New Year's Eve, Hecker Pass and downtown Gilroy share the same weekends. If you're also weighing a move up, a move down or a sale in the new year, The Palacios Group works in Gilroy year-round and can give you a clear read on your home's value. Get your free home valuation and work with our team.
