Holiday Activities
Join us for these special programs and watch as Carillon Park comes alive with your favorite holiday traditions! All locations have been marked with a holiday icon on your map and they are open between 5:00pm and 9:00pm.
Visit with Santa
Through Dec. 23rd
Did you know that Dayton was the toy manufacturing capital of the United States in the 1920s? Visit Santa in the Heritage Center, in front of the Dr. Richard and Dorothy Cummings Collection of Dayton-made toys. Bring your own camera to take a complimentary picture.
Letters to Santa
Write a letter to Santa in Newcom Tavern (Est. 1796), Dayton’s oldest standing structure. It contains the original Van Cleve cabinet which served as Dayton’s first post office.
Wright Brothers National Museum
John W. Berry, Sr. Wright Brothers National Museum, including Wright Cycle Company and Wright Hall, tells the world-changing story of the Wright brothers and showcases their original 1905 Wright Flyer III, the world’s first practical airplane and a National Historic Landmark. The Museum is a privately owned and operated unit of Dayton Aviation Heritage National Historical Park.
Chestnuts & Gingerbread at Morris & Hetzel Bakery
Learn about historic hearth cooking with our costumed interpreters. Purchase a homemade gingerbread cookie and a cone of roasted chestnuts in the Morris & Hetzel Bakery.
A Visit From St. Nicholas
The Night Before Christmas
Enjoy a special presentation of this classic Christmas poem featuring hand-painted glass slides produced by NCR. These slides were accompanied by a special reading of A Visit From St. Nicholas during children’s Christmas programs NCR put on from 1916 until the early 1930s. A booklet featuring the poem and slides can be purchased in the Museum Store.
The Rike-Kumler Company
Toy Parade & Christmas Cartoons
Beginning in the 1920s through 1942, the Rike-Kumler Company held a Toy Parade on Thanksgiving Day to ring in the start of the Christmas season. Experience the spectacle through actual films of the parades taken in the 1930s and 1940s. You can also watch excerpts of popular Christmas cartoons from that time.
The Tailor of Gloucester, Puppet Show
Every half hour, starting at 5:30pm
Enjoy a Christmas-themed Puppet Show based on The Tailor of Gloucester (1903) by Beatrix Potter. This tale, from the author of Peter Rabbit, was published only a few months prior to December 17, 1903, when the Wright brothers achieved First Flight in Kitty Hawk, North Carolina.
Carousel of Dayton Innovation
Take a ride on our beautiful, one-of-a-kind carousel, built right here in Ohio in 2011. From planes to trains to automobiles and beyond, each hand-carved figure represents a unique aspect of Dayton’s colorful past. (Cost: $1 per person, per ride; any riders under 42” tall need to be accompanied by an adult)
Gem City Letterpress
Visit the nation’s only complete 1930s letterpress job shop operating in a museum! The equipment in this shop was typical during an era when Dayton was home to 77 printing companies.
Carillon Park Railroad
5:00pm to 9:00pm*
Ticketing Location: Dixon & Shafor Junction
Take a ride on a magical train through a winter wonderland of lights reminiscent of a trip to the North Pole.(Cost: $1 per person, per ride)
*Must be in line one hour before closing
The Midnight Express Train Rides
6:00pm to 9:00pm*
Ticketing Location: Transportation Center
Enjoy a narrated, mile-long ride on a replica of one of the first trains to arrive in Dayton. (Cost: $5 per person, per ride)
*Must be in line one hour before closing
Holiday Shopping
Whether you are looking for something Dayton-related or holiday themed, you’ve come to the right place for Christmas shopping! Visit our Museum Store locations in the Kettering Family Education Center and Gem City Letterpress to find the perfect gift!
Holiday Treats & Drinks
Enjoy a light meal, delicious snacks, holiday treats, beverages and more!
Seating is available throughout the park.
Locations: Carillon Christmas Café, Roundhouse Café, the Peppermint Mill, Culp’s Café, and Carillon Brewing Company.