Where to find the best Miami Christmas events and holiday happenings

This is your beloved Nutcracker reimagined for Miami with Art Deco pastel-hued costumes and glittering sets decked with pineapples and lime. Marvel at the scenery and spellbinding dancers (more than 100 of them!) as they express the classic story through movement to music from a live orchestra. It's a colorful, modern adaption but the purists, meanwhile, can put down the pitchforks: It’s still Balanchine and it’s still Tchaikovsky. Tickets for the Nutcracker are available for Miami, Broward and West Palm Beach. 

Cheers to the holidays! Raise your martini glass and nuzzle under the mistletoe at Deering Estate's festive annual gathering. Expect a celebration similar to what the original residents might've enjoyed during the Gilded Age, including music, strolls through the estate, hors d’oeuvres and desserts, plus a fanciful nod to Alice in Wonderland for this year. Proceeds from the event benefit the Deering Estate Foundation so don't be afraid to lean into Christmas. 

A much-anticipated precursor to the holiday season in Miami, Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden’s immersive NightGarden installation will return for a fifth season this November, promising even more psychedelic scenery, cutting-edge technology and interactive experiences running through the New Year.

Spanning 83 acres of enchanted tropical trails, the full NightGarden experience takes anywhere around 60 minutes as visitors explore a neon playground of secret sunken ponds, hidden fairy worlds, giant swaying dandelion fields and the rainbow-colored Orchid Bridge. Chock-full of photo-worthy moments, projection-mapped pitstops and holographic sculptures, NightGarden invites guests to frolic in a magical snowfall experience, and yes, Archie will be there to once again reprise his role as your favorite wise-talking tree.

Because eight nights of celebrations aren’t enough, the Society of Young Jewish Professionals is throwing the ultimate holiday singles event—think of it as an IRL JDate on steroids. Dance, drink and connect with old friends and new prospects at this annual rager, which celebrates 37 years! In 2023, the party returns to its old stomping grounds, LIV, at the Fontainebleau Miami Beach. 

Lincoln Road kicks off the festive season with its annual Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony and Holiday Parade. Expect holiday-themed crafts for kids, a parade featuring special guests, a dramatic countdown to light the tree and a few other surprises. 

Countdown to Christmas with a cocktail in hand at Miracle in Miami. The international holiday-themed pop-up bar makes a new home at Better Days in Brickell this yuletide season for a month of festive drinks and naughty fun. Expect the usual (fake) snow, holiday hits on repeat (these guys must be beating some kind of record for the most consecutive plays of Mariah Carey’s "All I Want for Christmas") and cheeky libations ike the Yippie Ki Yay Mother F****r!, made with a potent trio of rums, coconut orgeat and acid-adjusted pineapple juice.

For a ninth year running, North American drag production company Murray & Peter presents its rollicking holiday tour, “A Drag Queen Christmas.” Expect a cast of your favorite queens lip-syncing, twirling and twerking to holiday hits live on stage, plus queens from Season 15 and All Stars 8 of Ru Paul's Drag Race. Note there may be some adult content, and this year's show has been restricted to 18+.

Assemble along the 12-mile, 2.5-hour route to watch the "World's Most Watched Boat Parade," in which dazzling displays and illuminated vessels of all sizes travel down the Intracoastal Highway with the likes of Rudolph, Santa Claus and other Christmas favorites. The procession starts at 6pm, with live bands, celebrities and radio personalities providing entertainment throughout the night.

You'll also find opportunities to pose with Santa and grab a hot chocolate or a cocktail on the festival grounds. The Parade starts at Stranahan House, traveling east along the New River in Fort Lauderdale to the Intracoastal Waterway and continues north to Lake Santa Barbara in Pompano Beach.

Grammy Award-winning a capella quintet Pentatonix have performed everywhere from The White House and Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade to The Hollywood Bowl with a catalog boasting back-to-back No. 1 albums on the Billboard 200, including the platinum-certified A Pentatonix Christmas. In September, the group announced yet another Christmas compilation album dubbed The Greatest Christmas Hits, which they're following up with a fresh tour that stops at the Hard Rock for an epic night of festive tunes performed live.

Charles Deering’s waterfront home is even more beautiful during the holidays when it transforms into an illuminated Wonderland. This season, the Deering Estate celebrates its 101st anniversary by taking guests through the looking glass with décor inspired by the fantastical world of Lewis Carroll. Directed by Deering Estate Designer-in-Residence Alfredo Brito, each room of the Stone House and Richmond Cottage will feature whimsical holiday decorations by local interior designers that will bring to life the colorful characters and topsy-turvy world of Alice and her Wonderland. 

Santa's Enchanted Forest may have up and left Tropical Park, but the spirit of Christmas (and carvnival) lives on at this Palmetto-side park, albeit with a more Miami twist. There are rides, rollercoasters and the largest traveling Ferris wheel in North America. Then there are a number of other attractions like 3D-mapped igloo shows, a whole North Pole village and HoliDade, a celebration of the 305 with Instagram-worthy displays. Oh, and the lights. THE LIGHTS! There's a half-mile of holiday displays, light shows, and immersive experiences, including a light show on the hour, every hour where all six worlds of Christmas Wonderland illuminate in a synchronized manner.

If you're looking for a light show, there's nowhere better than the Frost Planetarium’s 67-foot dome. Every month's show features a different theme (from Taylor Swift to Bad Bunny), and December's is decidedly holiday. Expect a visual melody of The Nutcracker, Christmas classics and even the best of Queen and The Beatles. 1101 Biscayne Blvd; Dec 15, 7pm; $10, children $8 

The sprawling Gulfstream Park Village property gets illuminated by more than 250,000 sparkly LED lights this season, all set to the sounds of holiday favorites and jolly pop hits. Shop, dine, catch a horse race and soak in all the festive cheer through December. A 10-minute light show will begin at the top of every hour from 6 to 11pm. The kick-off event (Nov. 11, 7–10pm) features performances by DJ Chris Cruz and music from the Valerie Tyson eight-piece band. Snap photos with Santa as he joins the festivities along with his group of elves and Nutcracker stilt walkers as the snowfall commences.