Cherry Creek's Holiday Season Starts Twice, Once on Each Side of First Avenue

Tonight Cherry Creek North switches on more than a million lights across its 16 blocks. Fillmore Plaza opens as the 7th annual Cherry Creek Holiday Market, and the Giving Machines go live at 2nd Avenue and Fillmore Street. On the south side of First Avenue, Cherry Creek Shopping Center's season has been running since Saturday, November 14, when Santa lit the center's tree after an afternoon Holiday Bazaar.

These are two separate programs from two separate organizers, opening five days apart. Cherry Creek North's business improvement district runs "A Holiday Less Ordinary," and Simon runs the mall calendar. Each has its own dates, hours and parking rules. The two come together at First and Fillmore. Planning December around that corner works better than treating Cherry Creek as one holiday destination.

Five days apart, on opposite sides of one street

The mall's season starts earlier, and most of it happens indoors. The district's season starts later, happens outdoors, and runs on a fixed daily schedule until Christmas Eve.

Saturday's bazaar was a Denver BAZAAR event at 3000 E. 1st Ave., the mall's address. It ran from 2 to 7 p.m. and listed up to 80 Colorado makers along with food and drink. After the tree lighting, the mall's program moved inside with cookie decorating, complimentary hot chocolate, performances and Santa visits. The rest of the mall's season follows that pattern. Nearly everything after opening night happens indoors, on set dates, and much of it is planned around kids and pets.

Cherry Creek North built its program on the opposite assumption, that people will walk the blocks outside. The BID describes "A Holiday Less Ordinary" as a set of free outdoor events. It includes Windows Less Ordinary, a decorated-storefront program; a Holiday Cherry Hunt; and Festive Sips, which is spread around the district. All three send people along the sidewalks, past shop windows, and back out onto the street.

Fillmore between First and Second is where the two seasons meet

From tonight through December 24, Fillmore Street is closed to traffic between 1st and 2nd Avenues for the market. The plaza sits just north of 1st Avenue and the shopping center. The market's operator describes the plaza as 45-plus rotating local makers, and the market is free and open to all ages.

The block has a clear layout. Mistletoe Lounge, the market's main bar, is near 1st and Fillmore, the end closest to the mall, and serves hot drinks and non-alcoholic options along with cocktails. On its 2026 vendor-application page, the operator describes an upgraded après-ski-themed lounge with gondolas, fire pits and new décor. The Giving Machines are at the other end, at the 2nd Avenue entrance, and run around the clock. Purchases there go to organizations including Women's Bean Project, Special Olympics Colorado, Urban Peak and Young Americans Center.

The lounge at the south end faces the mall across First Avenue, and the machines at the north end lead into the district. That makes this one block the easiest place to do both seasons in a single outing, and the market's hours decide when that works:

• Monday to Wednesday: noon to 7 p.m.
• Thursday to Saturday: 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.
• Sunday: 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.
• Final week, Dec. 18 to 23: 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. every day
• Thanksgiving, Nov. 26, and Christmas Eve: noon to 3 p.m.

Thursday through Saturday are the late nights. From 7 to 9 p.m. on those evenings, the market is still open and the district's million lights are on overhead. Until the final week, Monday through Wednesday visits end at 7. From December 18 to 23, every night runs until 9.

The day after Thanksgiving, the district's calendar shifts from the plaza to the storefronts. Small Business Weekend runs Friday, November 27, through Monday, November 30, across the district, and the BID suggests checking each shop's hours before you go.

One more seasonal stop sits a few blocks west, on a rooftop. Rare Bird at the Halcyon opened its Alpine Village on November 6 with alpine cabins and winter food and drinks. It's open 4 to 10 p.m. Monday through Thursday and 3 to 10 p.m. Friday through Sunday. Between the lounge's gondolas on Fillmore and the cabins at Rare Bird, the neighborhood has two separate après-ski settings this year.

Getting there now that the west-side lots are fenced

Earlier holiday seasons had parking that this one does not. The Cherry Creek West site runs from University Boulevard to Clayton Lane and from 1st Avenue to the creek. The developer's January update said its surface lots would close to public parking once fencing went up. It also said demolition-phase construction parking would stay inside the fenced site, out of nearby neighborhoods and the mall garage. The Denver Post reported in March that demolition had started. It also reported that road, utility, above-ground and creek work was expected to continue until late 2027. The west edge of the shopping district will remain a work site through this season and next.

That leaves holiday visits relying on Cherry Creek North's garages and meters. The district lists more than 4,500 parking spaces. Meters cost $2 an hour from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m., Monday through Saturday, with a three-hour maximum, and are free on Sundays and select holidays. Posted garage rates vary by more than double:

• 100 Saint Paul: $5 for evenings and weekends
• 210 University: $12 on weekends
• 2nd & Josephine: $12 on weekends

For the market, the Giving Machines page lists the Fillmore Plaza, North Creek and Fashion Plaza garages as the closest options. The market's FAQ notes reduced-fee district parking after 5 p.m. Together with the meters' 7 p.m. cutoff, that makes a Thursday-through-Saturday evening visit the cheapest way to see the lights while the market is still open.

Two blocks north, 3rd Avenue is changing hands this winter

Walk north from the Giving Machines past 2nd Avenue and you reach 3rd Avenue. That's where several Cherry Creek North businesses are changing hands this winter, and a holiday walk that ends there passes a block in transition.

• Sushi 37, 2817 E. 3rd Ave. SYC Concepts' Cherry Creek North restaurant is set up with sushi and a bar on the first floor and a reservation-only omakase counter upstairs. Westword describes the menu as fresh sushi and izakaya dishes. The group also opened Blossom by SYC in the Highlands this year.
• 3003 E. 3rd Ave. The former Sweet Izzy space is set to become BoxBox, a fast-casual salad concept from Tim and Laurie Martin, in early 2027, BusinessDen reported.
• 2625 E. 3rd Ave. Cherry Creek Dance plans to leave at year-end and move about two miles to 720 S. Colorado Blvd. in Glendale, according to BusinessDen.

The district's east side has more on the way, all set for after the holidays. Diana Flores plans to open Butterdrop Bakeshop, her first Denver storefront, at 250 Detroit St. in 2027. PopUp Bagels has leased space at 299 Milwaukee St. in the Oasis Apartments building. Across First Avenue, BusinessDen reported that Pottery Barn plans to take over the 13,400-square-foot former Arhaus space inside Cherry Creek Shopping Center.

The mall and the district are making changes on both sides of First Avenue. The district's are spread along 3rd Avenue and the streets east of Fillmore, and the market's block between 1st and 2nd connects them with the mall. That connection runs every day until Christmas Eve, and the Giving Machines at the north end stay on until January 4.

If seeing the 3rd Avenue turnover up close has you wondering what your own Cherry Creek property would be worth this season, Lara Property Group can give you a number. Get your instant home valuation, and I'll follow up with what's selling within walking distance of Fillmore Plaza.