This year’s Grand Illumination at Union Station lights up the historic landmark on Friday, November 24, 2023. Festivities, including musical entertainment at Union Station, start at 4 p.m. with the lights turned on at 6:10 p.m. The annual event features entertainment by the Denver Dolls and Dickens Carolers, a visit from Santa & Mrs. Claus, carriage rides, fun atcivities and the lighting of the station and its tree.
Photo: Denver Union Station
Not only will the exterior of the train station be lit during the Grand Illumination, but there’s a 40-foot-tall outdoor Christmas tree, featuring more than 7,000 holiday lights.
Events at this year’s Grand Illumination will include:
- Favorite holiday songs performed by the Denver Dolls and the Dickens Carolers
- A visit from Santa & Mrs. Claus
- Face painting, a balloon artist, a caricature artist and more
- Horse-drawn carriage rides
- Seasonal beverage offerings from Terminal Bar and the Cooper Lounge on an extended patio with exceptional views of the Station
- Warm up with a specialty hot chocolate – spiked for adults and filled with yummy candy additions for the kids! – from Milkbox Ice Creamery
- Get your coffee fix from Pigtrain Coffee Co., who will be serving spiked coffees with a variety of flavors from Baileys Irish Cream
Local artists booked by Denver’s Youth on Record — the first entertainment company in the nation specifically designed to advance racial and social equity — will performing in the Great Hall starting at 1 p.m.
And RTD is bringing its Winter Parade Bus to Grand Illumination. Don’t miss out on seeing this one-of-a-kind bus! Enjoy a sweet treat and receive a commemorative ornament, while supplies last.
Inspired by holiday ugly sweater parties, the bus’s exterior is wrapped in a decal that resembles a cozy sweater. Warm rope lighting accents the bus’ edges, illuminating the cityscape woven into the wrap’s pattern.
If you can’t make it out on the 24th, no worries. Remember that the lights sparkle all season long.
