The Canandaigua Lady ends its cruise season in October, and the lights at the pier go off two hours earlier each night. Where does a Canandaigua weekend go from there?
For four weeks this November, almost every dated event in the city is on Main Street, between the Granger Homestead at 295 N. Main and the blocks around City Hall and Commons Park. The month splits into two halves. Mid-November is centered at the north end of Main. The weekend after Thanksgiving is centered downtown. The weeknights in between depend on one museum's open hours.
The lakefront goes to winter hours on October 31
The first change is easy to miss because nothing actually closes. Kershaw Park keeps summer hours of 6 a.m. to 11 p.m. through October 30. From October 31 through April 30 it closes at 9 p.m. The Canandaigua City Pier follows the same calendar. It opens at 5 a.m. all year and stays open until 11 p.m. in summer and 9 p.m. from October 31 on.
The Canandaigua Lady sails from 205 Lakeshore Drive from May through October, according to its Visit Finger Lakes listing, which puts the end of its season at the same point as the park's hour change. October 31 is also the last Saturday of the outdoor farmers market season, which runs 9 a.m. to noon at the corner of Mill and Beeman Streets.
Only one event on the November calendar is on the lake, and it takes place indoors. Hotel Canandaigua, also at 205 Lakeshore Drive, holds a Murder Mystery Weekend from Friday, November 13, through Sunday, November 15. Nolan's Catering handles the menu, and the whole thing stays on the property. The same weekend is also the busiest one on Main Street.
November 7: the market shrinks to one hour
The farmers market keeps going through the winter on a much shorter schedule. In its October post, the Canandaigua Farmers' Market confirmed that the winter market begins November 7 this year. Cornell Cooperative Extension of Ontario County lists the winter market as every other Saturday from November 7, 2026, through May 22, 2027, from 10 a.m. to 11 a.m. Visit Finger Lakes gives the location as the Mill Street Pavilion.
In summer the market runs three hours every Saturday. In winter it runs one hour every other Saturday. If the every-other-week pattern holds from the November 7 start, the next dates are November 21 and December 5. That means there's no market on November 14, the Saturday of the Christkindl weekend, and December 5 falls on the last day of the Festival of Trees. The market's own posts are the place to confirm each date.
November 13 to 15: North Main carries the weekend
Visit Finger Lakes' November roundup describes the 20th annual Granger Homestead Christkindl Market as having more than 100 artisans, craftspeople, and specialty food vendors at 295 N. Main St. According to Granger's event page, the market is set up on the homestead lawn in decorated, heated tents, and a free Holiday Trolley runs park-and-ride service from the historic downtown. With the trolley, you can park downtown and ride the length of Main Street.
The details from the Visit Finger Lakes event listing:
- Admission: cash only, $10 for one day or $15 for more than one day. Children under 12 get in free.
- Tent hours: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday and Saturday, and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday. The listing's summary line gives 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. for every day, so check Granger's page before you plan a late arrival.
- Saturday evening: free food and drinks from 5 to 7 p.m. on Saturday.
- For kids: the Visit Finger Lakes roundup mentions an early visit with Santa during the market weekend.
Granger's Festival of Trees opens on the same three days. The homestead says it displays well over 100 items each year. The Christkindl weekend is the only time the market and the trees are open together, and the lake's one November event falls on the same three days.
The weeknights in between belong to Granger
After the Christkindl tents come down, the Festival of Trees reopens Wednesday, November 18, and runs through Saturday, December 5. Admission is $5. Hours on Granger's page:
- Wednesdays and Sundays, 1 to 5 p.m.
- Thursdays and Fridays, 1 to 7 p.m.
- Saturdays, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.
- Closed Thursday, November 19, and Thanksgiving Day.
Thursday and Friday are the only days the festival stays open past 5 p.m., and in late November it's dark well before 7. With the first Thursday closed and the second one falling on Thanksgiving, the Friday evenings of November 20 and November 27, plus the first week of December, are the most realistic after-work visits. The festival runs from mid-November into December, longer than anything else on this calendar, and it's the only event that keeps North Main busy on weeknights between the two big weekends.
Thanksgiving weekend moves to the downtown blocks
The second big weekend is downtown, a short way south of Granger. On Friday, November 27, the Downtown Shopping District holds two events at once, both 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Plaid Friday is focused on independent local businesses. Canandaigua Kicks Off Whoville adds decorated storefronts, lights, a Grinch Village, and a Santa's Village. Small Business Saturday follows on November 28 across Ontario County.
On Saturday evening the shopping weekend ends with the Illuminate Light Parade. The Canandaigua BID presents it, and it's free. The listing runs it from 6 to 7 p.m., starting at City Hall, with the tree lighting right afterward at Commons Park. That's also where caroling, food, and family activities take place. Visit Finger Lakes' roundup describes illuminated floats, fire trucks, and antique cars in the parade, with Santa arriving at Commons Park before the tree lighting.
The 2026 route hasn't been posted yet. In 2024, the downtown district's event page said the parade went down Main Street from City Hall to Antis Street. That route is from two years ago, but it suggests where a curbside spot might be. As of mid-October, the downtown events calendar listed nothing after Fall Into Canandaigua on October 24, so the November details may appear there closer to the date.
The parade lands on the day after Whoville opens, so a household could spend the whole holiday weekend within a few blocks of Commons Park. Festival of Trees is also open Saturday, November 28, from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Granger, which leaves time to walk back down Main for the 6 p.m. start.
The month, date by date
- Saturday, Oct. 31: Kershaw Park and the City Pier switch to winter hours. Last outdoor farmers market of the season, 9 a.m. to noon at Mill and Beeman.
- Saturday, Nov. 7: First winter farmers market, 10 to 11 a.m. at the Mill Street Pavilion.
- Friday, Nov. 13, to Sunday, Nov. 15: Christkindl Market and the opening of the Festival of Trees at Granger, plus the Murder Mystery Weekend at Hotel Canandaigua.
- Wednesday, Nov. 18, to Saturday, Dec. 5: Festival of Trees on its regular weekly hours.
- Friday, Nov. 27: Plaid Friday and Canandaigua Kicks Off Whoville downtown, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
- Saturday, Nov. 28: Small Business Saturday, then the Illuminate Light Parade at 6 p.m. from City Hall, followed by the tree lighting at Commons Park.
For homeowners in Canandaigua, the north end of Main and the blocks around Commons Park are where most of November happens. If you're thinking about how close you'd like to live to those blocks, or whether to plan a move around the city's busiest season on Main Street, Deanna & Steve Nissen would be glad to talk it through with you. Get in Touch.
