At 631 South School Street in Boerne, the tunnel of greenery and red, white and green lights won't go up this December. First Baptist Church Boerne has announced that Boerne Bright, its free walkthrough Christmas light display, will not be held in 2026 because of ongoing construction on the campus. The church plans to bring it back in December 2027.
Losing one free evening outing changes more than it seems. Boerne Bright gave families a lights evening that cost nothing. The display that now fills that role closest to Boerne runs on a fixed set of nights, charges admission, and puts most of its schedule on the same weekends as Main Street's three big holiday events. From Thanksgiving through mid-December, each weekend evening near Anaqua Springs comes down to a choice between downtown and the ranch on Highway 46. The weeknights only open up in the last week before Christmas.
The lights now run on a ranch schedule
Old West Christmas Light Fest at Enchanted Springs Ranch, 242 State Hwy 46 W, will be lit from 5 to 10 p.m. on 15 nights in 2026. Those nights fall into a clear pattern:
- Friday, Saturday and Sunday, November 27 through 29
- Friday, Saturday and Sunday, December 4 through 6
- Friday, Saturday and Sunday, December 11 through 13
- Every night from Friday, December 18 through Wednesday, December 23
The ranch's own directions start from San Antonio: north on I-10, exit 540, left on Highway 46, and about three miles to the entrance on the right. The organizer advertises Santa, live music, falling snow and millions of lights.
The cost is the part that differs most from Boerne Bright. General admission is $25 for ages 6 and up, $20 for military and first responders with ID, and free for children 5 and under. A family five-pack works out to $20 per ticket, and online purchases add fees. Tickets are tied to a specific date. The organizer recommends buying online, and full-price tickets may be sold at the gate if there is still room.
Every downtown weekend is also a Light Fest weekend
Put the ranch calendar beside the Hill Country Mile calendar and you'll see the first nine Light Fest nights land on the weekends downtown Boerne has already claimed.
| Weekend | Downtown Boerne and nearby | Old West Christmas Light Fest |
|---|---|---|
| Nov 27 to 29 | Dickens on Main, Fri and Sat | Fri, Sat, Sun, 5 to 10 p.m. |
| Dec 4 to 6 | Weihnachts Weekend, Fri and Sat; Oma's Christmas Fair, Sat | Fri, Sat, Sun, 5 to 10 p.m. |
| Dec 11 to 13 | Kinder Fest, Fri through Sun | Fri, Sat, Sun, 5 to 10 p.m. |
| Dec 18 to 23 | No festival listed | Every night, 5 to 10 p.m. |
Thanksgiving weekend opens the season on both sides at once. Dickens on Main runs Friday, November 27 and Saturday, November 28 along the Hill Country Mile. The City of Boerne owns the event. The event page promises live music and performers, lights, food, kids' activities and snow on Main Street. It also tells visitors to check back for this year's full details, so public hours are still to come. Old West opens its season that same Friday night.
Sunday is where the two calendars split. Dickens on Main and Weihnachts Weekend both end on Saturday. Old West stays open on Sunday, November 29 and Sunday, December 6, which makes those two evenings the easiest times to see the lights without giving up a downtown event.
December 5 is the busiest day of the season
The Weihnachts weekend packs the most into the shortest window. On Friday, December 4, the Weihnachts in Boerne Wassail Walk and Caroling Contest runs along the Hill Country Mile. Participating businesses serve their own versions of wassail, and carolers sing for votes from 4 to 8 p.m. That same Friday, the City of Helotes holds its Lighting of the Lights from 6 to 7:30 p.m. at Helotes City Hall, 12951 Bandera Road, with the city's Christmas tree lighting. So three lit events compete for the same Friday night: Boerne, Helotes and the ranch.
Saturday, December 5 asks even more of one day:
- 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Oma's Christmas Fair at the Kendall County Fair Grounds, 1307 River Road, presented by the Kendall County Fair Association. Admission is $5 at the door.
- 5 p.m. The gates open at Old West Christmas Light Fest.
- 6 p.m. The 39th annual Weihnachts Parade, with nearly 100 floats on Main Street.
The parade begins one hour after the ranch opens. The organizers suggest bringing a chair for the parade route. They also note that downtown shops, breweries and bistros stay open late, and they recommend booking dinner reservations early for those nights. Pairing the fair and the parade fits a Saturday well. Fitting the lights in too means heading to the ranch on Sunday, December 6.
The weekend has one more deadline that comes much earlier. The Stocking Stroll runs Friday and Saturday, December 4 and 5, and it is a limited-ticket event. Tickets go on sale November 5 through the Boerne Parks & Recreation portal. That sale date is the earliest action item on the whole holiday calendar.
Kinder Fest is the weekend where day and night fit together
The third weekend works differently because almost all of Kinder Fest happens in daylight. The Boerne Retail & Restaurant Owners Association sponsors the event, which runs Friday, December 11 through Sunday, December 13.
- Cookie Crawl: December 11 and 12, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., at participating downtown merchants. $30 per child per day.
- Santa Scavenger Hunt: December 11 and 12, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., at participating merchants. Free.
- Christmas Market Days: Main Plaza, 100 N. Main. Saturday, December 12, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Sunday, December 13, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Free.
Most of these wrap up at 5 p.m., which is when Old West opens. On Sunday, December 13, Market Days closes at 4 p.m., an hour before the ranch gates open. That makes the Kinder Fest weekend the one stretch of the season where downtown in the afternoon and the lights in the evening don't compete. A family can do both in one day without choosing.
December 18 through 23 is the only weeknight stretch, and it gets busier
After Kinder Fest, the downtown calendar goes quiet and the ranch stays open every night for six nights straight, Friday, December 18 through Wednesday, December 23. That run includes Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, the only weeknights all season with the lights on.
Weeknights don't mean empty, though. The organizer says it gets more active around the Old West town as Christmas gets closer. Arriving when the gates open at 5 p.m. is generally quieter than coming later, and the grounds leave room to spread out. So the last stretch of the season is the most flexible on the calendar and likely the most crowded at the gate. Gate tickets depend on how much capacity is left, which matters most on those final nights.
The ticket options suit a household that visits more than once. A season pass is $37.50, compared with $25 for a single admission. If you go once on a festival Sunday like November 29 or December 6, and again on a weeknight in the last week, the pass costs less than two single tickets. For a larger group visiting once, the five-pack brings the price to $20 a person.
Here's how the season sets up from the Anaqua Springs gate. Boerne Bright is on pause until December 2027. Three downtown weekends share their nights with the ranch. Stocking Stroll tickets go on sale November 5. Lights on a weeknight wait until December 21, 22 and 23.
Plenty of people plan their holidays the way I plan a listing launch, with dates mapped out well ahead and no last-minute scramble. Whether you're hosting family over Weihnachts weekend or thinking about what your home near Anaqua Springs would show like during the season, Kristina Guzman is glad to help you plan the timing with care. Let's Connect.
