On the Lebanon Area Chamber of Commerce's parade page, a countdown clock counts down the days, hours and minutes to "Saturday, December 5th 2026." The 37th Annual Horse-Drawn Carriage Parade is the one day every Lebanon resident already has on the calendar. Line it up with everything else posted for this season, though, and the parade lands right in the middle. The season starts at the Warren County Fairgrounds on November 13 and runs until the last skating slot at Bicentennial Park on December 23.
Two stretches of that calendar take some planning. One is a pair of Saturdays where several events land on the same day. The other is the post-parade stretch, when the main activities are sold in small, timed blocks.
The Whole Season on One Page
| Dates | Event | Where | What it costs |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fri–Sun, Nov 13–15 | The City Mercantile Christmas Market | Warren County Fairgrounds, 665 North Broadway | $12 Fri, $10 Sat, $5 Sun; 12 and under free |
| Sat, Nov 14, 4–9 p.m. | Chamber Girls Night Out, "Puttin' On the Glitz" | Lebanon | See Chamber listing |
| Nov 20–22, 27–29; Dec 3–6; Dec 10–23 | LM&M Railroad North Pole Express | 16 E. South Street | Coach from $40, Deluxe from $50 |
| Sat, Dec 5 | 37th Annual Horse-Drawn Carriage Parade and Christmas Festival | Historic downtown Lebanon | See Chamber parade page |
| Dec 10–23 | Lebanon Christmas Ice Skating | Bicentennial Park | $12 per one-hour session |
Laid out this way, the season has a clear shape. It opens with a weekend of shopping in mid-November. The train starts the weekend before Thanksgiving. The parade lands on the first Saturday in December, and after it the skating and daily train runs fill the last two weeks before Christmas.
November 14 Has Two Events on the Same Saturday
The first crowded day comes three weeks before the parade. The City Mercantile's Christmas Market fills the Warren County Fairgrounds from Friday, November 13 through Sunday, November 15. Each day is set up differently. Friday is "early buying," which the organizers say means lower crowds, first picks, free DIY stations and live music. The first 25 people in line get swag bags of vendor gifts. On Saturday, the first 25 in line get swag bags again, and a shopping-spree winner is drawn from the line at 9:30 a.m. Saturday also has pictures with Santa from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. and a petting zoo from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sunday is "last chance" day, with the cheapest admission, more than 100 vendors and a food truck court. According to the market, discounted tickets are sold online ahead of time, full-price tickets are sold at the gate, and re-entry is free with any ticket.
That same Saturday, the Lebanon Area Chamber of Commerce lists Girls Night Out November 2026 from 4 to 9 p.m. The calendar teaser calls it "Puttin' On the Glitz."
The times barely overlap, so both events fit in one day. The Mercantile's big Saturday features run in the morning and early afternoon, and Girls Night Out starts at 4. If you want both, plan the fairgrounds for the morning and save the evening for the Chamber event. If Saturday is already full, Friday's early-buying hours or Sunday's $5 admission get you into the same market.
The Train Is Running on Parade Weekend
The Lebanon Mason Monroe Railroad's North Pole Express starts the weekend of November 20. The LM&M Railroad's page describes a 1-hour-15-minute ride, with Coach starting at $40 and Deluxe at $50. The operating dates, as checked against the railroad's booking site and posted by Spotatrain on October 3, 2026, are:
- Friday through Sunday, November 20–22
- Friday through Sunday, November 27–29, the weekend after Thanksgiving
- Thursday through Sunday, December 3–6
- Every day from Thursday, December 10 through Wednesday, December 23
Spotatrain describes weekend departures running from late morning into the evening, with weekday trains usually leaving at 6 and 8 p.m.
The third block of dates includes Saturday, December 5. That makes parade day the second crowded Saturday: the carriages, the festival and North Pole Express departures all happen in Lebanon on the same day. A family that wants the train and the parade on the same day can do it, but the train ticket needs to be booked around two fixed parade times. A family that would rather keep parade day simple has three other weekends before it and two full weeks of daily departures after it.
Parade Day Runs on Two Clocks
The Chamber's event page lists three times for Saturday, December 5:
- 10:00 a.m. The Christmas Festival and Market opens with food trucks, local vendors, holiday shopping and pictures with Santa.
- 1:00 p.m. The Daylight Parade.
- 7:00 p.m. The Candlelight Parade, with the festival running until 8:00 p.m.
The Chamber describes "dozens of equine-pulled carriages" moving through Lebanon's historic downtown. Holding two parades gives the same route a midday crowd and an after-dark crowd, with six hours between them. The City of Lebanon's calendar lists the festival until 9:00. The Chamber, which organizes the event, lists 8:00 p.m. in both its visitor page and its event listing. Treat 8:00 as the closing time unless the Chamber changes it.
Several practical details for 2026 aren't posted yet. As of late October, the Chamber's visitor page says to check back for route information and still links the 2025 parade map. It also hasn't announced a theme, a grand marshal or the entertainment lineup. The page does link a downtown Lebanon public parking map and a 2026 shuttle map. The Chamber calendar also lists parking and reserved boxes for the 37th parade as a separate item. The Chamber's parade page is the place to watch as December gets closer, since last year's route and shuttle details aren't confirmed for this year.
After the Parade, Skating Is Sold by the Hour
After the parade, the calendar changes. The Chamber's Lebanon Christmas Ice Skating at Bicentennial Park isn't a show-up-anytime rink. Each session is one hour at $12, and the registration form lists 30 spots per session. How many sessions run each day depends on the day of the week:
| Dates | Sessions listed |
|---|---|
| Thu–Fri, Dec 10–11 | Hourly, 4:00 to 8:00 p.m. |
| Sat, Dec 12 | Hourly, noon to 8:00 p.m. |
| Sun, Dec 13 | Noon to 1:00 p.m. |
| Mon–Fri, Dec 14–18 | 4:00 to 5:00 p.m. |
| Sat–Sun, Dec 19–20 | Noon to 1:00 p.m. |
| Mon–Wed, Dec 21–23 | Noon to 1:00 p.m. |
The Chamber's event summaries give the dates as December 10–13 for Week 1 and December 14–20 for Week 2. The registration form lists sessions through December 23.
The schedule is lopsided. The first four days have 17 sessions between them, and Saturday, December 12 alone has eight. After December 13, there's one session a day, which adds up to 10 sessions over the final 10 days. With 30 spots per hour, the second Saturday in December offers nearly as much skating as the whole final week and a half combined. If you want a weekday after school, there's a single 4 p.m. hour on each school day of the week of December 14. Once winter break starts, the only option is the noon hour.
The same stretch is full of other things. The North Pole Express runs every day from December 10 through December 23. The Chamber calendar also lists Lebanon Theatre Company's "The Game's Afoot" at 7:30 p.m. on December 11. If you had to pick one evening for a skate, a train ride and a show, Friday, December 11 has the most to choose from. Skating runs every hour from 4 to 8, weekday trains usually leave at 6 and 8, and a show starts at 7:30.
Planning the Six Weeks From Here
As of this week, the season breaks into a few planning windows:
- Before November 13: Discounted Mercantile tickets are sold online ahead of the market. The market lists admission at $12 Friday, $10 Saturday and $5 Sunday.
- Before November 20: North Pole Express weekends start, and the Thanksgiving weekend run follows a week later.
- Late November: Check the Chamber's parade page for the 2026 route, shuttle and reserved-box details.
- Early December: Book skating sessions, especially if you're counting on one of the few hours left after December 13.
The parade is still the big day of the season. Most of the holiday calendar that has to be booked ahead, though, comes in the weeks before and after it.
At The Woehrmyer Team, Lebanon is home base, and December 5 is on our calendar too. If parade season has you thinking about selling your Lebanon home or finding your next one in 2027, we'd be glad to sit down after the holidays and map out the timing with you. Book a consultation whenever you're ready.
