Friday
Dine Downtown Naperville / Come early. Plan to shop and dine before the Holiday Parade of Lights when Santa arrives to visit with local youngsters. Find treats, sweets and eats to please every appetite at downtownnaperville.com/dine.
Holiday Parade of Lights / 7PM – Downtown Naperville / The downtown Naperville parade with all the bright ideas about the community when Santa comes to town, hosted by the Rotary Club of Naperville. Local Special Olympians will serve as Grand Marshals for the annual Parade of Lights set to begin at 7PM Fri., Nov. 29. Bundle up! Perhaps bring an extra blanket. Everybody’s welcome to come early to discover all the sights as well as places to shop and enjoy dinner. Happy holidays!
Saturday
Happy Birthday, Jim Crookston! / Our heartfelt birthday wishes go to one of our best friends in Muncie, Indiana. Ever since he served in the Navy in Vietnam, sending letters to his older sister, Jim has been an appreciated master of wit and whimsy, a certified punster. As Dad would have said, “Go, Go, Go!”
Small Business Saturday / All day in downtown Naperville / Keep the holiday shopping traditions alive and support Downtown Naperville’s many wonderful small businesses. Shop locally and find wonderful and unique gifts at downtown’s many quaint, family-owned businesses. Special savings and surprises await you in downtown’s small business community of shops. Gift certificates are available, too. Come downtown on Small Business Saturday.
Reserve a Table at Mesón Sabika / 11:30AM to 9PM – Almost Any Day / Find a choice in dining rooms and private spaces at Mesón Sabika to sample Spanish tapas and delicious sangria for lunch and dinner every day. Located just west of downtown Naperville at 1025 Aurora Avenue, Mesón Sabika has been serving the community since 1990. Built in 1847, the historic mansion with eight air-conditioned dining rooms is set in a beautifully landscaped four-acre estate, providing a welcoming sight with plenty of parking for lunch, dinner, special events, benefits, weddings, meetings and family gatherings throughout the year.
End of Construction Celebration Event / Noon / Bundle up and visit the corner of Jackson Avenue and 245 S. Washington Street, outside at Bev’s Patio, for a festive End of Streetscape Construction Celebration! The fun kicks off at 12PM and runs until 3PM, featuring lively live music. Lucky attendees will receive a FREE Downtown Naperville gift card—one per person, while supplies last. Band members will be playing around downtown and passing out gift cards throughout the event, so shoppers can show off their best dance moves to snag one. Celebrate the end of construction with a little shopping downtown, too. Come for the music, stay for the fun!
Remember to Book a Naperville Trolley Holiday Lights Tour / See the long list of times and places for public and private tours at www.napervilletrolley.com. Trolley la la la, la la la! Ding, ding, too!
NaperLights along Water Street / At dusk along Water Street in downtown Naperville / NaperLights, the dazzling free holiday light display, is a gift to the community from the Rotary Club of Naperville Sunrise and sponsors including Marquette Companies and Gerald Cares. It features more than 150,000 lights and a growing collection of giant lighted holiday figures including skating polar bears, penguins sliding on an igloo, skaters, snow men, carolers, gifts, baubles, and dancing trees. By day, find plenty of photo opportunities with seating near the taller-each-year Holiday Tree.
Sunday
Enjoy Every Day at Quigley’s Irish Pub / Quigley’s Irish Pub is located at 43 E. Jefferson Ave in downtown Naperville / Quigley’s Irish Pub features live music Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays. The pub also offers a variety of spaces for all types of special events and fundraisers. Meanwhile, stop by for honest pub fare and a cold pint in the cool pub EDAQ, Every Day at Quigley’s. Patio is open for lunch, dinner and beverages, weather permitting. (Alert! Save the date and BYO camera for Santa’s return to visit with families from 11AM to 2PM Sun., Dec. 1.)
Rumba Sunday Brunch at AltaVida / 10AM to 3PM / Housed in a 10,000 square-foot, multilevel complex at 16 W. Jefferson Ave., AltaVida features three distinctive floors, unveiling the sights, sounds, and tastes of sensational cultural expression with inspired music, food and drink of Barcelona, Havana, Old San Juan, Guadalajara, Buenos Aires, and Rio de Janeiro. AltaVida is open daily.
Century Walk Tours Every Day / Around the Clock – Daylight / The recently published 88-page Naperville Century Walk Public Art Guide to more than 50 locations featuring local stories with public art by renowned artists is now available at the Naperville Art League Gallery, Naper Settlement, Hotel Indigo and the Naperville Municipal Center. Pick up a free copy today. Then take a self-guided free-winding tour throughout downtown.
Looking for additional events and so on?
Check PN’s recently updated event link to find more concerts, entertainment and local happenings. Plus, event planners can post upcoming things to do. Find the “EVENTS” link available 24-7 on the navigation bar.
Every day… Dine Naperville!
TubaChristmas returns to downtown Naperville and Fox Valley Sat., Dec. 7 / Gather to hear jolly holiday songs and Christmas carols at 10AM on the lawn at US Bank, Jefferson Avenue at Washington Street. Soon after, at noon, a second 45-minute concert will take place at the Fox Valley Mall, Round 1 Event Area (east side of mall, lower floor, near entrance #2), 195 Fox Valley Center in Aurora.
Naperville Municipal Band Holiday Concert / 7:30PM / “Home for the Holidays” will take the stage at Wentz Concert Hall at 7:30PM Fri., Dec. 13, presenting a program of 13 seasonal favorites including a Christmas Sing-A-Long and Auld Lang Syne. Note the change to a Friday evening performance. Concert is free of charge and open to the public. No tickets needed.
Did you know? Downtown Naperville features plenty of other things to do all month. Kindly note Small Business Saturday is Nov. 30. Take a stroll to discover all that’s new and coming soon.
Recently, the Rotary Club of Naperville-Sunrise and high school Interact Clubs volunteered to turn Water Street into a spectacular holiday display of lights, music and magic beginning at Main Street and running toward Jaycees Park along the Riverwalk. From now through the New Year, NaperLights will accent all the tiny bright white lights throughout downtown Naperville celebrating the holiday season.
Then…Begin to wrap up the year by shopping and dining throughout the City during Small Business Saturday on Nov. 30. Visit shopping destinations N.E.W.S. and in the central business district, aka “Downtown Naperville.”
Every day… Visit Naperville!
One more thing… From now through mid-December, look for the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve Toys for Tots logo marking the collection sites throughout the community where new UNWRAPPED toys can be donated to serve requests of less fortunate young boys and girls. Need a local toy store? Find Treasures at 121 S. Washington Street and Anderson’s Toyshop at 111 W. Jefferson Avenue, both in downtown Naperville. For more info, visit dupage-il.toysfortots.org.
