A Complete Guide to All the Holidays in San Diego

How the Grinch Stole Christmas! is one of the most famous Christmas tales. See this classic storybook live on stage at the Old Globe Theater in Balboa Park with a yearly performance based on the 1966 movie adaptation.

Sing along to all your favorite songs and a few new ones as you and the family watch a charming tale sure to make your heart grow three sizes. This is an excellent way to get in the spirit, and it also makes for a charming new tradition your family can share for generations to come.

If you’re looking for a unique San Diego holiday experience, the San Diego Santa Run is the perfect event for you!

Each year thousands of people clad in Santa costumes fill the streets of Pacific Beach during the annual Santa Run. This run is a 5k marathon that takes place on December 9 this year.

All are invited to watch the Santa Run, and if you register ahead of time, you can join in! Be sure to wear a costume if you plan on participating.

The Santa Run holds an afterparty with fun themed events and the Pacific Beach Holiday Parade following the conclusion of the run.

The Hilton Bayfront San Diego hosts one of the biggest bashes of the year on Big Night San Diego. This massive party begins in the evening on New Year’s Eve and continues straight on until midnight. Dance all night, sing your heart out to the year’s hottest songs, and enjoy the rush of being part of the crowd during this pulse-pounding celebration.

Perks of attending include an open bar, experienced DJs, multiple dance floors, and VIP options with upgrades including private rooms and access to a buffet. Big Night is the ultimate in New Year’s Eve parties and can’t be missed.

If loud parties aren’t your scene, a cruise around the bay might be more your style. Relax to the soothing sounds of live music and stunning views of the bay’s landmarks on a New Year’s Eve Brunch or Dinner Cruise. All meals are freshly prepared with many options to choose from.

Guests on the cruise will enjoy a multi-course meal as they tour the San Diego Bay, plus a complimentary champagne toast for those 21 and older. We love this cruise as a more family-friendly way to celebrate New Year’s Eve, as all ages are invited, with free admission for kids under three.

Start a tradition of incorporating healthy habits into the holiday season when you sign up for the O’Side Turkey Trot. This annual event held in Oceanside is a great way to get your family active before sitting down for a big Thanksgiving meal, and since the proceeds go toward charity, you’ll get to give back too!

The O’Side Turkey Trot has four unique races, with two options for adults and two for kids, letting the whole family get in on the fun. Live entertainment and a costume contest round out the experience as a rapidly-growing new Thanksgiving tradition.

San Diego’s Little Italy neighborhood is best known for its Italian fare, but restaurants like Herb & Wood serve up Thanksgiving dinner in style too. Enjoy all the classic desserts and sides - plus turkey, of course - infused with a subtle Mediterranean flare for a truly unbeatable menu.

Herb & Wood is one of my personal favorite restaurants in all of San Diego. Eating Thanksgiving dinner there comes with the added benefit of getting to skip out on all the tidying and washing-up of eating at home. I say save yourself the hassle and spend the extra time with your family instead. Your stomach will also thank you!

I look forward to the Día de los Muertos activities and events that spice up Old Town San Diego each year. One of my family’s favorite things to do while visiting is to join in the procession to the El Santos Campo Cemetery which will take place this year on the evening of Día de Los Muertos, November 2nd, 2024.

The candlelight procession will start right after sunset at the Immaculate Church on San Diego Ave. The parade will feature dancers in full regalia, a live Mariachi band, and a large public altar located inside the cemetery.

Both watching the parade and participating are completely free, as well as suitable for all ages. For my family, we choose to participate each year. It’s an exciting cultural event that I can say from personal experience is well worth the time!

To learn more about the 2024 festivities before and during the celebration, including this year’s specific times, performers and more, check out our Complete Guide to the Día de Los Muertos Celebration in Old Town San Diego.

Also making a spot on our Best Things to Do in Old Town San Diego list, the Fiesta de Reyes stage hosts musical acts and dance performances all through the year on weekends. But during Día de los Muertos, the festivities truly take off!

In addition to seeing shows by Mexican bands and performers, you can also shop at vendor stalls threaded through the pavilion, where you’ll find handmade goods and specialty items.

Watching the live entertainment is free, but if you choose to dine at the Casa De Reyes restaurant, know that you’ll have a great view of the main stage from your seat!

While many San Diego celebrations have all the trappings of Día de Los Muertos - complete with face painting, sugar skulls, and Catrinas costumes - few bring the soul of the holiday to the forefront quite like the festivities in Chula Vista.

Last year, my family really liked the community ofrendas and live performances by musicians and dancers. We enjoyed walking the rows of vendor stalls and noticed that there was a family-friendly movie for kids in the evening.

Chula Vista’s Día de Los Muertos event isn’t the biggest in the city, but its wide range of activities and shows that more than make up for it!

The 2024 festivities will be held November 2nd from 3pm to 8pm in Downtown Chula Vista. Attending is completely FREE!

The Día de los Muertos celebration in Barrio Logan is an annual event that centers around Mexican culture and tradition.

For a few weeks each year, the area transforms into a depiction of the Day of the Dead that’s right out of the history books. Altars, or ofrendas, decorated with marigolds and themed painted skull decorations line the streets of the Cultural District of Barrio Logan.

Barrio Logan’s annual festivities are dubbed Espíritu de Xochimilco, or “Spirit of Xochimilco,” a name that calls back to the holiday’s roots and celebrates its Mexican origins. With two blocks of vendors, food trucks, and décor, I especially like the food selection, live musical performances and cultural art displays at this event.

I can also say that if you like tacos, Barrio Logan has the best tacos in San Diego and you can try them out when you visit this event!

The Carlsbad Strawberry Company’s Pumpkin Patch is the first to make our best of the best 2024 season pumpkin patches and that is in part due to the abundance of fall-themed activities.

Alongside being able to pick out and decorate pumpkins, there are lots of activities, from the kid-friendly petting zoo and corn maze to a spookier haunted corn maze for older kids and teens in the evenings. You’ll also find fields of marigolds and other idyllic photo spots around the farm, or you can take a tractor ride out to the pumpkin patch.

For even more fun, visit on a weekend, when the Carlsbad Strawberry Company hosts food vendors and market stalls selling locally-made goods. The pumpkin patch is pet-friendly, so you can bring the whole family! Just know that there is an entrance fee to this patch but we think that the plethora of picture spots and things to do make it worth the price.

There are lots of places to pick a pumpkin in San Diego, from farm stands to stores, but one of our favorites is the Goff Family Pumpkin Patch. No matter what kind of gourd you’re hoping to take home, the patch has a lot of variety, so you’re sure to find the perfect pumpkin to decorate or carve into a jack-o’-lantern.

Plus, with its location in Liberty Station, you’ll be right by the ARTS DISTRICT. Take some time to walk around and see the sculptures and other artwork on display - just make sure to do it before hitting the pumpkin patch if you’re planning on picking a heavy one!

There are also photograph stations with hay bales and tractors, plus a Tap Truck that serves beer and wine on the weekends for the adults!

SeaWorld San Diego may be best known for its animal shows and aquarium enclosures, but that doesn’t stop this theme park from having a thrilling Halloween celebration that kicks off in mid-September and continues all the way through early November.

SeaWorld’s Howl-O-Scream event is geared toward older kids and adults with scares that may be too intense for younger children. But if you’ve got a teenager who’s learning to appreciate all things spooky and doesn’t mind a fright or two, this is one event that’s just as fun for parents as it is for their kids.

Held Thursdays through Sundays from 7:00pm – 12:00am at an admission cost starting at $92, the event features haunted houses, live scare actors roaming around, chilling decorations, special effects, shows and musical performances. Of course, the thrill rides that SeaWorld San Diego is known for are open too!

I personally can’t wait to attend in 2024 with my teenagers to experience Howl-O-Scream’s commitment to immersive storytelling throughout the park.

Parents of younger kids who are looking for a more laid-back Halloween event can find it at the San Diego Zoo during their annual HalGLOWeen event.

Held from 5:00pm - 9:00pm on Fridays through Sundays from October 4th until October 29th in 2024, this Halloween festivity is included at no additional charge with park admission. Even better, as part of the Kids Free San Diego program held in October, kids get in free to the zoo and the HalGLOWeen event. I’d say it doesn’t get much better than that!

That said, like any day at the zoo, animal lovers of all ages are sure to find lots to enjoy here. You won’t just be chaperoning the kids, but also enjoying the festivities yourself!

You’ll notice the difference as soon as you enter the zoo in the evenings, with glow-in-the-dark decorations. True to the event’s name, the highlight to me is the new Enchanted HalGLOWeen Forest which lights up the walkways with scenes right out of nature.

It wouldn’t be a zoo event without animals, and HalGLOWeen has plenty of wildlife with its Featured Creatures show and Python Path in the reptile house. Pair that with family-friendly performances lining Front Street and all the way up to the Northern Frontier, and you get a Halloween-themed night to remember for kids of all ages!