Downtown Vincennes has scheduled nearly all of its holiday season for one Friday, Dec. 4. The Christkindlmarkt, the tree lighting, the Parade of Lights, the First Friday Art Walk, Grouseland's Christmas Open House and the candlelight tours at the Vincennes State Historic Sites all fall on that evening.
The events don't all run side by side, though. The market's Friday hours end at 6 p.m., and the Downtown Vincennes Association has the Christmas tree lit at that same hour. So the Friday market is an afternoon event. Anyone who arrives for the parade will find the vendors closing. The rest of the night takes place in the dark, spread between Main Street and the historic sites, and it goes best if you plan the order ahead of time.
The Market Closes When the Lights Come On
Here is how Friday, Dec. 4 lines up, using the downtown association's calendar, the Visit Vincennes event listings and Grouseland's own events page.
| Time | Event | Where |
|---|---|---|
| Noon to 6 p.m. | First City Christkindlmarkt, Friday hours | Downtown Vincennes |
| 5 to 8 p.m. | First Friday Art Walk | Main Street galleries |
| 6 p.m. | Community Christmas Tree Lighting | Main Street |
| 6 to 9 p.m. | Grouseland Christmas Open House | Grouseland |
| 6:30 p.m. | Parade of Lights steps off | Main Street, 2nd to 7th streets |
| 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. | Christmas Candlelight Tour | Territorial Capital, 1 W. Harrison St. |
The listings don't all agree on the details. Visit Vincennes shows the tree lighting event running from 5:30 to 8 p.m., with the tree itself lit at 6. The Art Walk is listed from 5 to 8 p.m. on the Visit Vincennes calendar and from 6 to 8 p.m. on the city's America's 250th schedule. That 250th page also says its 2026 events are tentative and may change as the dates get closer. Arriving around 5 p.m. covers you under either version.
The parade is sponsored by the Vincennes City Council and follows a route from 2nd to 7th streets. Visit Vincennes lists it as free and running about an hour, from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. Last year's parade was the 27th annual, themed "Merry & Bright." WVUT described families watching floats and decorated vehicles move along Main Street on a chilly evening. Parade photos in the Sun-Commercial showed a toy-themed float, Santa, and the Lincoln High School Color Guard and Marching Band.
After the Parade, the Night Moves to the Historic Sites
When the parade ends around 7:30, Main Street is mostly done for the night. Grouseland stays open another hour and a half, the candlelight tour runs two more hours, and both are free.
Grouseland, William Henry Harrison's mansion, holds its annual Christmas Open House from 6 to 9 p.m. Its events page lists music, refreshments, carriage rides "and other holiday merriment." There's no admission charge, and donations are accepted.
The Christmas Candlelight Tour runs from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. and starts at the Territorial Capital, 1 W. Harrison St. Visit Vincennes says the buildings will be lit by candlelight, visitors can tour each one, and costumed interpreters will be on site. It presents the tour as part of Christmas at Grouseland, the Christkindlmarkt and the Parade of Lights. The Indiana State Museum's listing for last year's tour said the interpreters walked visitors through the buildings and shared local holiday traditions.
The candlelight tour starts at the same time as the parade, so the two compete only for that first hour. The tour keeps going for two hours after the last float passes. That makes it the easiest event to save for later in the evening.
Saturday Is the Real Market Day
The Friday market and the Friday evening events barely overlap. On Saturday, Dec. 5, the Christkindlmarkt runs from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. with nothing else downtown competing for your time.
The 2026 schedule places the market in downtown Vincennes without a more specific site or program, so last year is the best guide to what Saturday looks like. For the Dec. 5–6, 2025 market, Anne Pratt of the Red Skelton Museum took the market plans to the Vincennes Board of Works, the Sun-Commercial reported. That was the fifth annual market, held at Patrick Henry Square. Pratt asked the board to close Market Street and Patrick Henry Drive starting Thursday afternoon for setup. She said Saturday would bring different vendors on those two streets, live music on Patrick Henry Square, and the Holly Jolly Trolley Frosty Pub Crawl from 5 to 10 p.m. Earlier Visit Vincennes listings put the square at 2nd and Market streets.
In 2025, a Friday afternoon visit and a Saturday morning visit were not the same market. The two hours of live music on the square were on Saturday too.
The Sun-Commercial's coverage of the third annual market listed German fare including glühwein, Nuremberg bratwurst, pretzels and sweets. Craft booths sold coffee, hot sauce, tote bags and handmade Christmas cards. The market started in 2021. If the pattern holds, this year's market is the sixth.
November Has the Same Overlap, a Month Earlier
Dec. 4 isn't the first time this season that a Friday doubles up downtown. On Friday, Nov. 6, the downtown Christmas Open Houses run from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. They continue Saturday, Nov. 7, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. The November First Friday Art Walk runs from 5 to 8 p.m. on Nov. 6, during the last three hours of the open houses. The America's 250th calendar adds a history tour that evening, with the time still listed as to be determined.
One listing to watch out for: Visit Vincennes shows the Nov. 6 "Christmas Open House" at Grouseland, using the same 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. hours. Grouseland's own page lists only its Dec. 4 open house. For November, go by the downtown storefront schedule.
After that come Black Friday on Nov. 27 and Small Business Saturday on Nov. 28. The downtown association promotes both as shop-local days. That leaves a quiet week before Dec. 4.
Picking an Order for the Night
The schedule works best in one direction, from the market in the afternoon to Main Street at dusk to the historic sites after dark. Here are three ways to plan Friday, depending on what matters most to you.
- Market first. Get to the Christkindlmarkt by mid-afternoon, before vendors close at 6. Then stay on Main Street for the 6 p.m. tree lighting and the 6:30 parade. Finish at Grouseland, which stays open until 9.
- Parade, then candlelight. Skip the Friday market. Walk the Art Walk galleries from 5, watch the parade, then start the candlelight tour at 1 W. Harrison St. any time before it ends at 9:30. Come back Saturday between 11 and 3 for the market.
- Historic sites only. Arrive at 6 for Grouseland's music and carriage rides. Move to the candlelight tour once the parade crowds thin out. Keep Saturday for the market.
Dinner is the gap in all three plans, since the parade starts right at suppertime. Downtown has a new option this year. Vinyl Pies Pizza opened in early September. WVUT reported that Karen Howard Goss runs it with her husband, son and daughter-in-law, and the restaurant held a ribbon-cutting the week it opened. WTHI also covered the opening. Holiday hours haven't been posted yet, so call ahead before you build the evening around it.
This year the whole lineup also sits on the city's America's 250th calendar. On that schedule, the Dec. 4 events come after a full year of speakers, reenactments and First Fridays. Before Dec. 4, check the Downtown Vincennes Association calendar and Visit Vincennes in case times have changed.
Klein Real Estate has worked out of Vincennes since 1990, and the Parade of Lights still marks the start of the season for our team. If you'd like to know what your home near downtown is worth before the new year, try our Instant Home Valuation. Then come find us on Main Street on Dec. 4.
