The start and end dates for the holidays at Walt Disney World aren’t always cut and dry. Now that the decorations are going up, I thought that a quick rundown of the holiday dates might be a good idea. Remember, these are the official dates, there could be decorations and music outside of these perimeters.
The first Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party of 2026 will take place on Sunday, November 8. The final one will run on December 22. (There aren’t many open dates left!) While Mickey starts early, the official holiday season start date at the Magic Kingdom is Friday, November 13. The festivities will wrap up on Wednesday, January 6.
Epcot never seems to follow the rules during the holidays! The Epcot International Festival of the Holidays will begin on Friday, November 27. The final day will be Wednesday, December 30. There will be special festivities on Thursday, December 31 for New Year’s Eve, but the Candlelight Processional will be over by then.
Disney Jollywood Nights will kick things off at Disney’s Hollywood Studios on Saturday, November 7. That said, the holidays will officially arrive on Friday, November 13. The final evening of Disney Jollywood Nights will be Tuesday, January 5. The holiday season will officially wrap up the following day, January 6.
The holiday season at Disney’s Animal Kingdom will officially begin on Friday, November 13. It will run through Wednesday, January 6. Check the hours, because you don’t want to miss the holiday version of Tree of Life Awakenings! If the park closes early, it won’t run.
The Christmas Tree Stroll will begin on November 11, and end on January 3. The official holidays dates are November 13 through January 6. Disney Springs is a great place to take the kids or grandkids to meet Santa (through December 24) and you won’t need a theme park ticket!
The resorts are tricky, because there aren’t really any official start and end dates. Traditionally, the resorts are decorated after the theme parks. They’re also the first place that the decorations are removed.