If you are looking to find up to date information about Christmas in Paso Robles, you just hit a jackpot! Our family are locals, so we can provide you with all the best advice, tips and insights on the topic (and feel free to ask any questions in comments too, that’s why I am here – to be a helpful resource!)
If you are not sure yet about Christmas in Paso Robles, I would like to change your mind 😉 I am willing to bet that after reading this article you will fall in love with this charming city, the way I did.
Major holiday activities in Paso Robles start the Friday after Thanksgiving so if you think, darn it, I would love to visit Paso Robles but I have already booked my Christmas vacation, you can do it on Thanksgiving break and get lots of holiday vibes.
Below is a list of my absolute favorite things to do during the holidays in Paso Robles.
Christmas in Paso Robles #1: Downtown Lighting Ceremony
The Downtown Lighting Ceremony takes place in Paso Robles on the Friday after Thanksgiving in the Downtown City Park. The event includes caroling, some freebees (candles are given out to participants), costumed characters and the pinnacle of it all – the lighting.
I bet that you have not seen a Christmas lighting like this. There is no just 1 Christmas tree, there is no traditional Christmas tree at all. What is being lighted is all the oak trees and other decorations in the city park. You see, oaks are a symbol of Paso Robles. The proper name of the town is “El Paso Des Robles” which means the Path of Oaks. So you are in for a big treat.
Christmas in Paso Robles #2: Christmas Lights Parade
The first Saturday in December is a traditional time for the Christmas Light Parade in Paso Robles. I have seen a lot of Christmas parades in my time, in big cities and small villages and every town in between. Paso Robles’ parade is the cutest thing ever. You will see an eclectic combination of participants that you probably won’t see anywhere else: farmers, schools, army, regular citizens, clubs, some animals, and the list goes on. I personally adore it!
Christmas in Paso Robles #3: Royal Christmas on the Farm
California Lavender Honey Farm in San Miguel (the Northern suburb of Paso Robles) is starting a new holiday tradition this year – a 2 day event called Royal Christmas on the Farm (scroll down the linked Tours and Events page for the detailed info). The event is part tour and part a unique experience that will take place the first weekend of December (both on Saturday and Sunday morning) and it is focused on royal and Christmas traditions and how lavender is a centerpiece of it all.
As part of the tour you will be putting together a Christmas gift for someone special (or for yourself, we don’t judge), which is included in the price of every adult ticket. And you will be able to take adorable family and friends holiday photos with the Farm’s Christmas décor.
At the end of the tour you will have an option to participate in a splendid and delicious activity – Royal Tea. Royal Christmas on the Farm is part of a bigger charitable event, Toys for Tots drive, organized by Pleasant Valley Wine Trail (see more information below), the organizers request that you donate a new, unwrapped toy as a token to participate in the Royal Tea experience. 1 toy will give access to Royal Tea experience for up to 4 members of your group but if you are feeling extra generous and would like to donate more toys, the organizers and ultimately the local underprivileged kids will be overjoyed.
Christmas in Paso Robles #4: Holidays on Pleasant Valley Wine Trail
The one thing Paso Robles is famous for besides oaks is its wineries, a couple of hundreds of them to be exact. The is no holiday celebration without a good bottle of wine so this is a perfect time to get one, or two or more 😉
How convenient is it that Pleasant Valley Wine Trail is also running a special Christmas event the first weekend of December? It is a charitable event as I mentioned above and an unwrapped toy will be your pass to free tastings, discounts and other specials.
This is also the time when wineries do their holiday releases. On the trail you can get superb bubblies, old world style Ports and more! Let me know in comments if you would like me to recommend a winery or two based on your interests and tastes.
Please, note that all Pleasant Valley Wine Trail wineries are family friendly. Watch the Trail’s Events page for details on what is happening at each winery.
There will be special events at other wineries in Paso Robles too, you will just need to check their individual websites.
Christmas in Paso Robles #5: Vine Street Christmas Victorian Showcase
Vine Street in Paso Robles is famous for its Victorian houses. And the owners of these houses, businesses and residents, came up with a glorious Christmas event. That takes place on the 2nd Saturday in December.
Each house is wonderfully decorated and a lot of them also provide some special activities such as carolers, storytellers, costumed characters, etc. You can count on meeting Mr. Scrooge himself! It is a great, beautiful community event.
The image below is from Paso Robles Press. Watch this spot for the detailed video of the event coming soon.
Christmas in Paso Robles #6: Lights at Sensorio
Christmas is all about the beautiful lights and I bet you won’t find more lights than at the Field of Light at Sensorio. Stroll the trails in a breathtakingly lit field, listen to music performers and enjoy your time together with friends and family.
Sensorio is open year round but I think it is a very special experience specifically at Christmas time. Watch my short video bellow that gives you a sense of Sensorio experience:
Christmas in Paso Robles #7: Cambria Christmas Market
Cambria is a small coastal town located just about 40 min drive from Paso Robles. It hosts one of the most spectacular Christmas events in the area: Cambria Christmas Market. It is a pretty traditional German Christmas market with German food, mulled wine, vendors of cute Christmas gifts, Santa, train rides and of course a million of shimmering lights.
You can check out the details of this fabulous Christmas experience in my video:
Christmas in Paso Robles #8: Hearst Castle Holiday Tours
The lavish Hearst Castle is located in a tiny village of San Simeon a little North up the coast from Cambria. It one of the historical and architectural gems in California. Imagine the whole huge castle all decked for the holidays! The holiday tour includes several rooms: the rooms where the guests would have stayed when they came to spend the holidays at the Castle, the kitchen, the grand room with 2 gigantic Christmas trees (one for boys and one for girls) and more.
During the tour you will learn about holiday traditions at Hearst Castle during its golden years. It does give you a feeling of what it would be like if YOU were invited to spend the holidays here. This is an amazing Christmas experience to remember.
Christmas in Paso Robles #9: Madonna Inn
Madonna Inn is located just 30 min drive from Paso Robles, right off highway 101 in the town of San Luis Obispo. The Inn is famous for its unique whimsical architecture but during the holidays it goes all the way out with fairy tale decorations. Each year the decorations are done according to a certain theme so if you saw them one year you will see something very different the next. The ones we saw were: Candyland and Woodland Christmas.
If you can stay at the Inn, great, but you don’t have to in order to experience the Christmas spirit here. The majority of Madonna Inn’s Christmas decorations are around the communal areas: the fireplace, Gold Rush Steak House and Copper Café.
Just come enjoy a holiday meal at Madonna Inn between Thanksgiving break and Christmas (the Steak House has special Christmas menu), gawk at this fairy tale land and even send a letter to Santa. The meals here are delicious! You can choose a full meal at the steak house or just a piece of yummy cake and tea or coffee at the café depending on how much money you can spend. I have a short video of our experience of Madonna Inn at Christmas:
Christmas in Paso Robles #10: Day Trip to Solvang
Solvang has a holiday bonanza of its own and on a huge scale. Solvang is a town with Danish heritage that celebrates its heritage and European Christmas traditions every year. If you are staying in Paso Robles and if you have time, Solvang is 2 hours drive South of Paso which will make it a doable day trip.
I have a detailed Christmas in Solvang itinerary for you to help plan your trip.
Conclusion
This list of my favorite Christmas events in Paso Robles is just the beginning. I am planning to add more to it once I am able to check them out and share my experience with you. I suggest saving this page for future references.
If you found this article useful, please, share it with friends as it may help them in planning their trips too.
If you are generally looking for an awesome Christmas itinerary, I have a bunch of them on my blog that cover different U.S. states: Best Christmas Itineraries
Happy Travels!
