The Council of 101’s 40th annual Festival of Trees opens tomorrow at the Orlando Museum of Art with more than 50 designer-decorated trees, gingerbread, wreaths and a few very good party nights, daily Nov. 14–22.
Quick Facts
- When: Saturday, Nov. 14 through Sunday, Nov. 22, 2026 · 10 a.m.–5 p.m. daily (closes early Tuesday, Nov. 17, for a private event)
- Where: Orlando Museum of Art, 2416 N. Mills Ave., Orlando, FL 32803 (Loch Haven Park)
- Admission: $23 adults · $15 kids 3–12, seniors 60+, active-duty military and first responders with ID
- Tickets: Eventbrite in advance; general admission also sold at the door
- Parking: $8 per car in the museum lot
- Good to know: The festival is cashless
Forty years in, the Festival of Trees is still the moment the Orlando Museum of Art trades its usual gallery hush for tinsel. The Council of 101, the volunteer group that has backed the museum since 1965, fills the galleries with more than 50 designer-decorated trees, plus wreaths, gingerbread creations, holiday vignettes and tabletop displays. This year’s theme is “Forty Seasons of Joy,” and the whole thing opens tomorrow, Saturday, Nov. 14, and runs through Sunday, Nov. 22.
It works two ways. Go this weekend and you’re starting the season early. Wait until next week and you can catch it after dark or at an adults-only cocktail night before it wraps on Nov. 22.
What your ticket covers
General admission gets you the full walk-through: the trees and wreaths, the gingerbread houses, and the Entertaining and Design tablescapes, where a ticket drawing gives visitors a shot at taking items home. There’s a Holiday Boutique with pop-up vendors for early gift shopping, a stroll down Santa Claus Lane, and local entertainers performing daily. Santa himself visits on Saturdays and Sundays starting at 10 a.m.
The Festival Café serves seasonal bites and treats through 3 p.m. each day. Your ticket also covers the museum’s current exhibitions, including Hello Sophie!: The Artwork of Sophie Blackall, Floridiana: Material Culture from The Sunshine State and The Wild Path: Connecting the Florida We Don’t See, so it’s easy to turn a quick tree stroll into a full afternoon.
One thing to note: general admission tickets are good for one day only, and they’re non-refundable.
Pick your night (or morning)
The special events are ticketed separately on Eventbrite, and a few have already sold out.
Opening Night TreeView Party (tonight, Friday, Nov. 13): The dressy preview, 7–10 p.m. for ages 18+. Tickets are $160 and include a tree lighting, food, a welcome glass of bubbly, two drink tickets and complimentary valet.
- Ugly Sweater Holiday Party (Saturday, Nov. 14): 7:30–9:30 p.m., ages 18+, $40. Expect live music, a cash bar and a costume contest for the tackiest knit in the room.
- Festival After 5 (Thursday, Nov. 19): The festival after hours, 5:30–9:30 p.m., for $15 adults and $10 kids 3–12. Holiday Cookie Stops hand out free cookies, and the café stays open with wine, beer, coffee and desserts for purchase. It works for families, but it also makes an easy weeknight date.
- Reindeer Romp (Friday, Nov. 20): A kids’ holiday party from 6:30–9 p.m. Tickets are $35 per person, adult or child. It includes festival access, a photo with Santa, story time with Mrs. Claus, face painters, a sing-along and reindeer stilt walkers. A $40 VIP option gets you in at 5:30 p.m.
- Sip & Sleigh Cocktail Party (Saturday, Nov. 21): The adults-only finale party, 7–9 p.m., $35. Seasonal cocktails and entertainment among the trees, with food and drinks for purchase.
- Breakfast with Santa (Nov. 14, 15 and 21): 8:30–10 a.m., with a hot breakfast, face painting, crafts, balloon artists and a Santa photo op, plus early festival access afterward. Seats are sold by the table. The Nov. 14 breakfast is already sold out.
- Holiday workshops (Nov. 14, 15 and 21): $65 sessions that include festival admission, from White House–style decorating tips to holiday makeup to bow-making. For the Nov. 21 Baubles & Branches bow class, you bring your own wired ribbon.
Discount days
Wednesday, Nov. 18 is Seniors Day, with discounted admission for guests 60 and up and special entertainment through the day. Sunday, Nov. 22, the final day, is Heroes Day: admission is $15 for active-duty and retired military, first responders and teachers who show ID at the door.
Before you go
Leave big backpacks (anything larger than 11 by 17 by 8 inches), umbrellas and luggage in the car, or check them at the museum’s visitor desk. No flash photography, and no food or drinks in the galleries except where special events allow it. Bring a card, since the festival doesn’t take cash.
Planning more holiday outings with the kids? Browse our Family Fun picks, or see what else is happening around downtown and Central Orlando.
Why We’re Hyped
Most holiday events pick one crowd. This one covers a lot of them under one roof: a $23 daytime stroll for families, a $15 weeknight after-hours visit, a $40 ugly-sweater party and a $35 adults-only finale. It also has a nine-day window that makes it easy to fit in. And because the ticket includes the museum’s current exhibitions, you’re getting more than a room full of trees.
The Details
- Event: Festival of Trees 2026, “Forty Seasons of Joy” (40th annual), presented by the Council of 101
- Dates: Saturday, Nov. 14 through Sunday, Nov. 22, 2026
- Hours: 10 a.m.–5 p.m. daily · closes early Tuesday, Nov. 17, for a private event · Festival Café until 3 p.m. daily
- Location: Orlando Museum of Art, 2416 N. Mills Ave., Orlando, FL 32803 (Loch Haven Park)
- General admission: $23 adults · $15 children 3–12, seniors 60+, active-duty military and first responders with valid ID · single-day tickets · non-refundable · sold online and at the door
- Special events (separate tickets): Ugly Sweater Holiday Party, Sat., Nov. 14, 7:30–9:30 p.m., $40 (18+) · Festival After 5, Thu., Nov. 19, 5:30–9:30 p.m., $15 adults / $10 kids 3–12 · Reindeer Romp, Fri., Nov. 20, 6:30–9 p.m., $35 per person (VIP $40 from 5:30 p.m.) · Sip & Sleigh Cocktail Party, Sat., Nov. 21, 7–9 p.m., $35 (adults only) · Breakfast with Santa, Nov. 14, 15 and 21, 8:30–10 a.m. (sold by table) · holiday workshops, Nov. 14, 15 and 21, $65 including festival admission
- Discount days: Seniors Day, Wed., Nov. 18 · Heroes Day, Sun., Nov. 22 ($15 for active-duty and retired military, first responders and teachers with ID at the door)
- Parking: $8 per car in the museum lot
- Payment: Cashless event
- Bag policy: No backpacks or bags larger than 11″ x 17″ x 8″, umbrellas or luggage inside
- Tickets: General admission on Eventbrite · all special events (Council of 101 on Eventbrite)
- Official info: omart.org/events/festival-of-trees · councilof101.org
