On the night of Friday, November 27, the line at the Twin Falls County Fairgrounds in Filer will be full of families carrying toys. Nobody is selling tickets. To get into the 35th annual Christmas in the Nighttime Sky, each family brings one new, unwrapped toy for a child up to age 16. The organizers then serve a free chili and Idaho potato dinner, put Santa out, and fire off a fireworks show set to music.
That trade, where you bring a gift and the community covers the rest, runs through almost everything on the Twin Falls calendar from now until the Main Avenue tree lighting on December 4. The newest park on the Canyon Rim Trail got $500,000 from a company program whose employees vote on where the money goes. The parade's theme this year is "Season of Giving," and a hometown bank is handing out the hot chocolate. Most of what you need is a date, a parking plan and something to give away.
The Next Five Weeks at a Glance
| Date | Event | Where | What you bring |
|---|---|---|---|
| Open now | Chobani Wellness Park | Canyon Trail Junction, Pole Line Rd. and Eastland Dr. N. | Walking shoes |
| Thu., Nov. 26, 9 a.m. | Thanksgiving 5K Turkey Trot | CSI Expo parking lot | Same-day registration opens at 8 a.m. |
| Fri., Nov. 27, 5:30 p.m. | Christmas in the Nighttime Sky | Twin Falls County Fairgrounds, 215 Fair Ave., Filer | One new, unwrapped toy per family |
| Tue., Nov. 24 | Parade float entry deadline | Festival of Lights Parade | A float, if there's space left |
| Fri., Dec. 4, 6 p.m. | Festival of Lights Parade and tree lighting | Main Ave., Dierkes St. to Jerome St., then the Commons | A spot along the curb |
The Park That Opened First Was a Gift by Ballot
The season's first gift opened in late October, at the Canyon Rim Trail's Pole Line end. The Chobani Wellness Park sits at Canyon Trail Junction, on the corner of Pole Line Road and Eastland Drive North. That puts it far from the Perrine Bridge and Visitor Center end that out-of-town guests usually see first. The ribbon cutting was at 3 p.m. on Wednesday, October 28.
The money came from Chobani's Legacy Project, which lets the company's employees vote on which community projects to fund. Cooper Smith, Chobani's community impact manager, told KMVT that the park was picked as a two-year project and that Chobani put in $500,000. Twin Falls Parks and Recreation Director Wendy Davis told the station the park took about 10 years to come together.
"I think this is a really unique space, and it's certainly a new kind of space that we're offering to Twin Falls." Wendy Davis, speaking to KMVT
If you used the junction over the summer, it looks different now. A KMVT report from August said the project, which was nearing completion and didn't have an opening date yet, would replace a dirt lot with artificial turf, climbing rocks and wellness playground equipment. The finished park also has outdoor fitness equipment, open green space, several shade pavilions, restrooms and its own parking lot. That's the part that changes a cold-weather walk. You can park, use the trail, and have a restroom waiting when you get back. We wrote about the junction's quiet reopening back in August. Now it has the amenities to go with it.
Programming will take longer. Davis told KMVT she hopes to add fitness classes, yoga and other wellness programs, possibly starting in spring. For November, that means the park is equipment, turf and trail, with no schedule to work around.
The same August report named three other city projects. At Twin Falls City Park, crews were installing a custom 22-foot playground structure with a 14-foot slide. At Harmon Park, the resurfaced courts had reopened with two tennis courts and four pickleball courts, with lighting and landscaping still to come. Vista Bonita Park was also on the list.
Thanksgiving Morning Starts at the CSI Expo Lot
The holiday weekend itself opens with a run. The College of Southern Idaho's General Education Department and its GNED 101 students are holding a Thanksgiving 5K on Thursday, November 26. The race starts at 9 a.m. from the CSI Expo parking lot, and same-day registration opens at 8 a.m. inside the Expo Center. One line near the bottom of the CSI Foundation's event page mentions November 27. The event heading and date fields both say Thursday, November 26.
A 9 a.m. start leaves plenty of time to get the turkey in the oven. It also means the 5K and the fairgrounds fireworks fall on back-to-back days, so the two biggest events of the weekend don't overlap.
The Fairgrounds Night, in Its Second Year Out in Filer
Christmas in the Nighttime Sky has been a Magic Valley tradition for 35 years, and it has moved before. A Times-News photo caption shows the event at Kimberly Nurseries in Twin Falls on November 29, 2019. Last year it moved to the Twin Falls County Fairgrounds for the first time in its 34-year history. According to KMVT's 2025 coverage, organizers made the move because crowds kept growing. The fairgrounds offered easier parking and did away with the shuttle that used to carry people to the event.
This year is the second at 215 Fair Ave. in Filer, so the drive west on the Friday after Thanksgiving may already be familiar. Here's the organizer's posted schedule:
- 5:30 to 7 p.m. Free chili and Idaho potato dinner, cooked by Creative Cravings
- All evening Visits with Santa and friends, bonfires, and indoor seating for dinner
- On stage A live performance by Julian's Christmas Vision and live music by Eli Howard
- About 7:30 p.m. Fireworks set to Christmas music broadcast on KOOL 96.5 FM
The toy is the price of admission, and it goes further than the gate. Every toy collected goes to local children in need. Sponsor locations take drop-offs before and after the event, and the organizers accept cash donations online. If the Friday after Thanksgiving is already booked, you can still contribute. Kimberly Nurseries and Elite Accounting present the event.
If you sit in the car for the fireworks, tune to KOOL 96.5 so the music matches the show.
December 4 on Main Avenue, Hour by Hour
A week after Filer, the season moves downtown. First Federal Bank presents the 2026 Festival of Lights Parade on Friday, December 4, and this year's theme is "Season of Giving." Based on the Times-News event listing, the evening runs in this order:
- 5 p.m. Santa's live reindeer go on display at the Commons Stage, sponsored by Standlee. They stay until 8 p.m.
- 6 p.m. The parade steps off on Main Avenue and runs from Dierkes Street to Jerome Street, with Santa riding in it.
- After the parade The annual tree lighting begins at the Commons across from City Hall, and Santa shows up there too.
- At the bank First Federal Bank gives out free hot chocolate and cookies.
Food is in two spots. Mini DohNuts!, Big Foot Corn Dogs and Creative Cravings set up at the Commons near Hansen Street East and Main Avenue East. A Comer serves Mexican-influenced food, some of it traditional and some reinterpreted, at the corner of Eden Street and Main Avenue. Creative Cravings also cooks the Filer dinner on November 27, so you can catch the same caterer on both Fridays.
To be in the parade, the deadline is close. Float entries are due Tuesday, November 24, or sooner if the lineup fills up. That's less than three weeks after this post goes up, and it falls during Thanksgiving week, when a lot of people are already busy.
Small Errands in the Same Spirit
Two everyday notes fit the season. The Daily Drip on Addison Avenue East held its grand opening September 25. It's a drink shop built around employment inclusion, serving coffee, teas, sodas and energy drinks. It opens at 7 a.m., six days a week. That's an easy stop before a cold morning on the rim trail.
At home, the city says utility customers can set out up to six bags of leaves and small yard debris on their regular collection day at no extra charge, as long as each bag weighs 35 pounds or less, according to the City of Twin Falls. If your yard is finished before Thanksgiving, those weekends are free for the calendar above.
Whether this season has you thinking about which part of Twin Falls puts you closest to the rim trail or Main Avenue, or you just want someone local to talk it through, Matthew Canterbury and our team are happy to help. You can find more about the city on our Twin Falls neighborhood page, and when you're ready, we'd love for you to Work With Us.
