Last December, the Palisades tree lighting took place outside a property that was still closed. On Saturday, December 6, 2025, the community gathered on Monument Street from 4 to 7 p.m. There was hot cocoa and coffee, food from Sunset Smash and King Cone, and kids' crafts and face painting. At 5:30 p.m. Santa lit a 50-foot white fir that the Palisadian-Post reported had been hand-selected from the Mt. Shasta region and dressed with 3,000 lights and more than 1,500 ornaments. In a statement, organizers said the gathering "honors a heartfelt tradition" even though the property "remains temporarily closed."
This year the tree goes back inside the Village, and the celebration around it is much longer. Palisades Village officially reopened on August 15, 2026, and was reported 99% leased at reopening, with one-third of its tenants new. In its 2026 holiday announcement, Caruso calls this the Village's first holiday season since reopening. The program now covers a full Saturday, a Sunday menorah lighting and snowfall every night through New Year's Eve. Most of the neighborhood's December events fall within reach of that first weekend.
From three hours to a full day
The biggest change is the length. In 2025 the event lasted three hours, from late afternoon to early evening. In 2026 the Annual Christmas Tree Lighting & Holiday Stroll on Saturday, December 5 opens at 11 a.m. The stroll runs until 5 p.m., and the tree lighting follows at 5:30 p.m. Caruso lists holiday markets, live entertainment, Santa photos, seasonal activities and snowfall across the property.
The lighting stays at 5:30 p.m., the same time as last year. Everything before it is new. Last year's program had to fit on a single street. This year it has the whole Village, and the shops and restaurants along Swarthmore Avenue, Sunset Boulevard and Palisades Village Lane are open for it.
"The holidays return to Palisades Village marking another meaningful milestone for the community as the destination prepares to celebrate its first holiday season since reopening."
From Caruso's November 2, 2026 announcement
How December 5 lines up
Several other neighborhood events land on the same day as the stroll, so you can fill the afternoon and evening without leaving the Palisades.
- 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. The Holiday Stroll at Palisades Village, with holiday markets, Santa photos and live entertainment.
- 4 p.m. Dog Moms LA's Pacific Palisades Scenic Community Walk & Park Social at Will Rogers State Historic Park, according to the Palisadian-Post calendar.
- 5:30 p.m. The tree lighting at the Village.
- 6:30 p.m. The Palisades Holiday Soiree at American Legion Palisades Post 283, 15247 La Cruz Drive.
The timing works in one direction. The walk at Will Rogers starts an hour and a half before the lighting, and the Soiree starts an hour after it. Someone who spends the morning at the stroll, walks the dog up at the park in the late afternoon and comes back down for 5:30 still has time to reach La Cruz Drive by 6:30.
Where the stroll has new places to stop
The Village has had three months to fill in since reopening, and several of the doors along the stroll route are new this fall.
Spacca Tutto, Nancy Silverton's modern Italian steakhouse at 15255 Palisades Village Lane, was announced for an October 15 opening. Its site lists hours of 11:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and 11:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday. On December 5 it serves lunch during the stroll and dinner after the lighting, and it is open past the 6 p.m. snowfall every night of the month. The menu centers on steaks, seafood, salads and focaccia.
Loomey's Toys, a local toy shop returning to the neighborhood at 15275 W. Sunset Blvd., scheduled its Palisades Village grand opening for November 14. The plan was a ribbon cutting at 10:30 a.m., doors at 11 a.m., and a Loomey's tote with goodies for the first 50 customers who spent $75 or more. For families shopping during the December stroll, it adds an independent toy store right on Sunset.
The Village has also brought back some practical services. City National Bank reopened its branch at 15273 Sunset Blvd. on October 5, restoring in-person banking. The Palisadian-Post reported weekday hours of 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and a 24-hour ATM.
The rest of the month runs on Village time
After the first weekend, the Village sets the evening rhythm. The Menorah Lighting is Sunday, December 6 at 5 p.m. Nightly snowfall starts the same evening and runs at 6 p.m. through December 31. That makes 26 nights. For comparison, the same announcement lists two snowfalls a night at The Grove, at 6 and 8 p.m., from November 17 through January 3. The Palisades season is shorter and starts after its own lighting weekend, and every night has a single 6 p.m. snowfall.
The other recurring events of the month fit around that schedule.
| Date | Event | Where | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wednesdays through Dec. 30 | Pacific Palisades Farmers Market | Swarthmore Avenue at Palisades Village | 1:30 to 5:30 p.m. |
| Sat., Dec. 5 | Holiday Stroll, then tree lighting | Palisades Village | 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.; lighting 5:30 p.m. |
| Sun., Dec. 6 | Menorah Lighting | Palisades Village | 5 p.m. |
| Dec. 6 to Dec. 31 | Nightly snowfall | Palisades Village | 6 p.m. |
| Fri., Dec. 11 | Holiday Concert with The Choir of Clare College, Cambridge | The Parish of St. Matthew | 8 p.m. |
| December, listed from Dec. 1 | Lowe Family YMCA Tree Lot | Simon Meadow, 15551 Sunset Blvd. | Weekdays 3 to 7 p.m.; weekends 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. |
The Pacific Palisades Farmers Market is back on Swarthmore Avenue, with local produce, flowers, specialty foods and artisan goods. Its last listed Wednesday is December 30, the day before the final snowfall, so the market and the snow end the year together.
The Lowe Family YMCA Tree Lot is on the Palisadian-Post calendar at Simon Meadow, on Sunset a short drive west of the Village. Its weekend hours, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., nearly match the Holiday Stroll on December 5. You could choose a tree and see the Village's tree lit on the same day.
The Choir of Clare College concert at The Parish of St. Matthew on Friday, December 11 at 8 p.m. is the main evening event of the season away from the Village.
A quieter December address
The Palisades Branch Library is also open more this season. Starting November 3, it is open noon to 5:30 p.m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays and 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. on Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays, and closed Sundays and Mondays, the Palisadian-Post reported. On December 5 the library is open until 5:30 p.m., the same time as the tree lighting. A Saturday that starts with library books in the morning and ends under the Village tree all happens within the neighborhood this year.
Taken together, the 2026 schedule depends on the Village again. A year ago the tree lighting took place outside closed storefronts. This December, the same tree lighting at the same 5:30 p.m. time starts a full day of events, a Sunday menorah lighting and 26 nights of snow, and a farmers market, a tree lot and a choir concert all fall within a few miles of it.
At Shelton Wilder, we keep track of the Palisades as it comes back, from the opening of each new storefront to the first snowfall in the Village. If you're weighing a move within the neighborhood, back to it or into it, schedule a private consultation with Shelton Wilder and we'll walk you through what the recovery looks like street by street.
