Last December, the Canandaigua Business Improvement District listed the brewery keg tree lighting in one line: "Our local breweries will light up the holidays with a Keg Tree Lighting at each of their locations at varying times!" The listing gave a window of 3 to 9 p.m. Each brewery picked its own time.
The 2026 listing reads more like a train schedule. On Saturday, December 5, the four trees light in order, 90 minutes apart. The trail starts lakeside at 5:00 p.m. and finishes just off Main Street at 9:30. Tuba Christmas moved earlier to fit in ahead of it. With a set order, the day becomes one walk with a fixed start, and where you stand at each hour decides what you see.
What moved between last December and this one
| December 6, 2025 | December 5, 2026 | |
|---|---|---|
| Tuba Christmas | 5 to 6 p.m., The Central on Main | 2 to 3 p.m., Commons Park |
| Keg tree lighting | 3 to 9 p.m., each brewery at its own time | 5 to 10:30 p.m., four lightings in a set order |
| How they fit together | Overlapping | One after the other |
In 2025, the tuba concert ran right in the middle of the lighting window. If you went to hear the carols, you missed whatever tree lit that hour. This year the concert ends at 3 p.m. and the first tree lights at 5. The BID's 2026 pages link the two directly. The Tuba Christmas listing suggests heading "down toward the lakeshore" after the last notes, and the keg tree listing suggests stopping at Commons Park first.
All of this falls inside the Hallmark Holiday Open House, which runs Friday, December 4, through Sunday, December 6. The BID lists more than 100 downtown shops, restaurants and galleries as part of it, with participating merchants offering music, appetizers and holiday touches.
The morning is a last-chance morning
December 5 is also the final day for several things that have been running all season, so the hours before the concert matter.
- Canandaigua Winter Farmers' Market. The winter market meets every other Saturday from November 7, 2026, through May 22, 2027, so December 5 is a market Saturday. The Finger Lakes Event Guide lists it at Mill Street Pavilion from 10 to 11 a.m.
- Festival of Trees at Granger Homestead. Granger's event calendar lists the festival from November 13 through December 5, 2026, so Saturday is the last day.
- "Seeing" at Wood Library. Visit Finger Lakes lists the library's art exhibit as running daily through December 5, 2026.
The Ontario County Historical Society's "America 250 Exhibit: Changemakers of Ontario County" runs weekdays through December 21, 2026. It is closed on Saturday, but the following week still gives you time to see it.
2 p.m., Commons Park
Tuba Christmas brings a park full of low brass to the middle of downtown: tubas, sousaphones, baritones and euphoniums, all playing classic carols. The BID describes the performers as local musicians of every age. The concert is free, and the crowd is invited to sing along.
If you play, you can join. The BID invites tuba and euphonium players of any horn style and skill level, with registration and rehearsal held just before the concert. Players are encouraged to decorate their instruments and wear bright holiday clothes.
Ending at 3 p.m. leaves two hours of open time. That window lines up with the open house, so it's the natural slot for shopping on Main Street before the trail heads down to the water.
5:00 and 6:30, on Lakeshore Drive
The first two lightings are lakeside.
Twisted Rail Brewing Co., 169 Lakeshore Drive, 5:00 p.m. The BID calls this the official kickoff, with live music. Twisted Rail lists Saturday hours of 11 a.m. to 10 p.m., so anyone can come early. Its menus differ by location, and it posts a separate food menu for Canandaigua.
Other Half Brewing, 24 Lakeshore Drive, 6:30 p.m. This is the second lakeside lighting, "just down the road." Other Half describes its Canandaigua taproom as having a full kitchen with bar snacks and mains, an outdoor patio, and a second-floor loft overlooking Canandaigua Lake. Since this is the one stop with a full kitchen, it makes sense to have dinner here.
The 24 Lakeshore address also has history with this event. The first lighting, called Get Lit in Canandaigua, took place in December 2022. MPNnow reported that Twisted Rail, Young Lion, Frequentem and Peacemaker each built a tree out of empty kegs and lit it, modeled on Genesee Brewery's annual keg tree in Rochester. Several breweries poured special holiday beers that night, including an eggnog ale from Young Lion. Young Lion's taproom was at 24 Lakeshore Drive. The Democrat and Chronicle reported in November 2023 that Other Half was acquiring the brewery and taproom. By June 2024, the paper reported Other Half open at the lakefront site. So the second stop on this year's trail is still a tree at 24 Lakeshore. Only the name on the sign has changed.
8:00 and 9:30, back uphill
After 6:30, the trail turns away from the water and heads back into downtown, toward where the afternoon started.
Frequentem Brewing Co., 254 South Main Street, 8:00 p.m. The BID puts this lighting "in the downtown historic core." Frequentem's current tap list includes a Czech pilsner brewed with The Lake House. Its hours change, so check them before you go.
Peacemaker Brewing Co., 39 Coach Street, 9:30 p.m. The finale, just off Main Street. Peacemaker lists Saturday hours of noon to 10 p.m. The BID's listing for the trail as a whole runs to 10:30 p.m. The last tree lights close to closing time, so arriving early makes sense here.
The BID says every stop will have holiday cheer, live music and seasonal drafts, and that the trail is free.
The whole day, on one clock
- 10 a.m. Winter Farmers' Market, Mill Street Pavilion
- Daytime Festival of Trees at Granger Homestead and "Seeing" at Wood Library, both on their last day
- 2:00 p.m. Tuba Christmas, Commons Park
- 3:00 to 5:00 p.m. Hallmark Holiday Open House on Main Street
- 5:00 p.m. Twisted Rail, 169 Lakeshore Drive
- 6:30 p.m. Other Half, 24 Lakeshore Drive
- 8:00 p.m. Frequentem, 254 South Main Street
- 9:30 p.m. Peacemaker, 39 Coach Street
If one Saturday is too much, the night before has its own lakeside option. The Lake House holiday market runs December 3 and 4 from 6 to 9 p.m. in its Event Barn. FingerLakes1 reports that the December 4 tree lighting there will include carolers, live reindeer and visits from Mr. and Mrs. Claus. The next weekend, December 12 and 13, the BID's Holiday Artist Showcase brings artist demonstrations, signings and strolling musicians back to downtown galleries.
These breweries also work together after the holidays. In January 2026, the Democrat and Chronicle covered Stout Month at Canandaigua-area breweries. Visit Finger Lakes listed Peacemaker, Frequentem, Naked Dove, Twisted Rail, Other Half and Gem Creek as that year's participants.
If you're mapping out December 5 and wondering which nearby streets would make the easiest walk to Commons Park, Lakeshore Drive and Coach Street, Deanna & Steve Nissen are glad to talk through the in-town Canandaigua blocks closest to that route. Get in Touch whenever it suits you.
