Section
297 listings in 25 counties. Accessible gardens, senior discounts, community centers and quieter museums. Every listing links to its source.
Every listing links to its source · Updated
11 picks
Interactive 90-minute guided tours of the Paramount, starting 10am at the 21st Street box office entrance. Some areas are not wheelchair accessible and there is no elevator. Card payment only.
Northern California's largest antique show, with over 800 dealer booths, on the first Sunday of every month. Free parking.
Working historic farm. Patterson House tours and train rides run Thursdays, Fridays and Sundays through mid-November and are included with admission. Free parking.
11 picks
The preserve is open only on advance-reservation guided tours, by District bus from Round Valley. Tours on Nov 7 and Nov 14. There is a fee; reserve at 1-888-327-2757 (option 2, then 3).
Delta shoreline with a visitor center, a paved and relatively flat trail, and a fishing and observation pier. No parking fee.
Museum with five exhibits, including the Don Williams Automobile Gallery, and a cafe. Free parking; allow about two hours.
11 picks
Friends of the Library book sale, 10am-4:30pm.
Library talk on pollinators, 1pm.
Author talk at Mill Valley Public Library, 6:30pm.
9 picks
Nearly 150 artworks and photographs by Disney designer and art director Mary Blair, from the Walt Disney Family Museum. Through Jan 10, 2027.
Exhibition on the designers Charles and Ray Eames from the Eames Institute of Infinite Curiosity, at the Napa Valley Museum's new St. Helena location across Highway 29 from V. Sattui Winery. Through Apr 18, 2027.
Expert valuations by John Moran Auctioneers in four 90-minute sessions (10am, 11:30am, 1:30pm, 3pm); up to three items per ticket, and each ticket includes admission for two to the Mary Blair exhibition.
10 picks
Civic Center museum with docent talks and Thursday night programs. Timed tickets let you stay as long as you like.
Rare and tropical plants in the oldest public wood-and-glass conservatory in North America. Wheelchair accessible; two loaner wheelchairs at the ticket booth.
Free general admission to the permanent collection every Saturday for Bay Area residents, and for everyone on the first Tuesday of each month. Special exhibitions cost extra.
12 picks
Anniversary celebration at Pigeon Point Light Station, 1pm-7pm.
Paved multi-use trail on a former stretch of Highway 1, with benches, observation scopes and interpretive signs above the Pacific. Separate lanes for walkers and cyclists.
467 acres of woodlands and serpentine grasslands, famous for spring wildflowers, just off I-280.
8 picks
4,163 acres on a former mercury mining site, with over 37 miles of trails, historic mining remnants and the Almaden Quicksilver Mining Museum. No entry fee.
A free museum of modern and contemporary American art. Visitor parking is paid via ParkMobile.
Museum of computing history, with exhibits including Chatbots Decoded: Exploring AI. Closed Thursday, Oct 22 for a private event.
14 picks
Main-gallery exhibition at the Vacaville Museum, a center for Solano County art, history and culture. Through Nov 14.
Fine art photography in the Vacaville Museum's community gallery. Through Oct 31.
ABBA tribute show at the Empress Theatre, Friday and Saturday.
15 picks
Easy-to-moderate 2.5-mile guided hike around Lake Suttonfield with a State Park interpreter.
Forest bathing session. Listed on the park's events calendar.
Cartoonist Stephan Pastis celebrates 25 years of Pearls Before Swine in conversation, followed by a book signing.
9 picks
"All American Christmas" parade with floats, a marching band, carolers and Santa, starting on Broadway. Grand Marshal: Kris Payne. Main Street and Broadway close to traffic noon-4pm.
Old-fashioned Christmas at Marshall Gold Discovery State Historic Park: historic holiday house tours with docents, wreath making, Christmas crafts, warming fires, local gift vendors, hot food and visits with Santa.
Apple Hill farm market open year-round, with fresh pastries, pies, cider and produce, BBQ lunch, wines and hard ciders. Leashed dogs are welcome on the property, but not in the open market.
8 picks
Annual fair (formerly the Native Craft Fair) with handmade jewelry, beadwork, pottery, textiles and carvings from Native artisans; held rain or shine.
The city's Christmas tree is lit on The Square at about 6:10pm, with cookie decorating, Santa, a kids' activity zone, music and food.
Year-round PlacerGROWN Saturday market, open rain or shine (closed for winds over 20 mph).
12 picks
Sojourner Truth African Heritage Museum's free afternoon honoring Biddy Mason, with a talk, book signing and conversation for teens and adults, plus resource tables and a family craft activity in the lobby.
Museum home of the California Hall of Fame, with Museums for All low-income access.
Admission to the Capitol and its museum is free, with public tours and exhibits on California history.
10 picks
Yuba City's annual Sikh parade at the Sikh Temple Gurdwara on Tierra Buena Road, with an open house and reception at the temple the day before (Oct 31).
Screening of the documentary co-directed by Rajan Gill and Reaa Puri, a Yuba City story of community, resilience and celebration, followed by a panel with the director and others involved. Tickets at yubasutterarts.org.
A gentle walk with Ty Shaeffer around his family ranch's valley, looking into the heart of the Sutter Buttes, with little to no elevation gain. Guided by Middle Mountain Interpretive Hikes on private ranch land; registration required, and hikers drive from the meeting place into the Buttes. Not suitable for children under 12.
14 picks
The Tony-winning musical about the spirited orphan who charms Oliver Warbucks, featuring "Tomorrow", at the historic Woodland Opera House.
An all-new holiday show from Thomas Lauderdale's "little orchestra", featuring singers Ari Shapiro, Edna Vazquez and Jimmie Herrod: classic pop, big band sound and Hollywood glamour.
A holiday tradition since 2015: local farmers' tractors decked out in lights roll through downtown Winters, with a holiday vendor market and visits with Mr. and Mrs. Claus.
12 picks
Yuba College Theatre stages a modern, stylish adaptation of Molière's comedy The Hypocrite (Tartuffe), about deception, human folly and the triumph of truth over manipulation.
The Welsh singer, with a career spanning more than six decades, plays Halloween night.
An 11-piece collective known for precise recreations of classic Chicago songs, plus 1970s rock, pop and jazz-fusion hits.
13 picks
South Pacific Dance Co. presents Hawaiian singer-songwriter Kalani Pe'a, a four-time Grammy winner in Regional Roots and an eight-time Na Hoku Hanohano Award winner.
A multimedia concert by songwriter and scholar Dr. Julian Saporiti that blends original music, storytelling, archival images, field recordings and historical research about Asian American communities, refugees and immigrants.
Maestro Ming Luke leads the Merced Symphony in holiday classics and festive favorites at the historic Merced Theatre.
15 picks
The 28th annual festival celebrates the cranes' return to the Delta with presentations, workshops, an art show, vendors and conservation exhibits, plus guided tours to crane-viewing sites (tour prices vary). Opening events Friday evening.
Billed as the largest Nutcracker production in North America, the 34th annual tour launches in Stockton with an international cast, acrobatics and larger-than-life puppetry set to Tchaikovsky's score.
In its 100th year, the Symphony and conductor Peter Jaffe perform Verdi, Puccini, Rossini and Ponchielli with soprano Bianca Orsi and baritone Roberto Perlas Gomez, closing with Respighi's Pines of Rome and offstage brass.
13 picks
Conductor Nicholas Hersh leads Valerie Coleman's Seven O'Clock Shout, Rachmaninoff's Piano Concerto No. 2 with pianist Janice Carissa, and Beethoven's Symphony No. 5. About 107 minutes.
Irish music, song, dance and storytelling bring the traditions of Christmas in Ireland to the stage.
A stage production that brings Karen Carpenter's voice and The Carpenters' holiday music, including "Merry Christmas, Darling," back to the stage.
17 picks
Emmet Cahill, Neil Byrne, Damian McGinty and Ronan Scolard, backed by the Celtic Thunder band, perform songs celebrating their Irish and Scottish heritage on the group's 18th North American tour.
The Texas singer, composer and actor, a four-time GRAMMY winner, performs with his Small Large Band, drawing on country, swing, jazz, folk, gospel and blues.
GRAMMY-nominated singer-songwriter Perla Batalla performs her tribute to her longtime friend and mentor Leonard Cohen, with small-table cabaret seating in Sunset Center's Studio 105.
17 picks
Pianist Helen Sung's Oracles Quartet at Kuumbwa Jazz, Santa Cruz's nonprofit jazz venue.
Ride the Redwood Forest Steam Train through the winter redwoods to Bear Mountain, sip hot cider with Santa Claus, then enjoy winter-themed activities in town. 75-minute train ride.
The official kickoff to the holidays downtown, with about 1,200 participants from Santa Cruz County schools, youth organizations and local nonprofits, and over 3,000 spectators. Rain or shine.
7 picks
Grammy-nominated singer-songwriter Lacy J. Dalton, a North American Country Music Association International Hall of Fame inductee, kicks off the holidays with Christmas music and her country songs. Open seating; beer and wine available.
A holiday tradition of angelic singing, instrumental wizardry and championship Irish step dancing, with vocalist Amelia Hogan and Molly's Revenge fiddler John Weed. Open seating; beer and wine available.
A Christmas holiday show of classic 1950s and '60s rock and roll, fronted by Frankie Adele, former lead singer of the original Sha Na Na. Open seating; beer and wine available.
13 picks
The author of The Joy Luck Club talks about her life, career and creative process in a conversation moderated by Chico writer and storyteller Bonnie Pipkin.
Fall lectures on local history: California's Last Grizzly Bear with Pete Moak and Dave Nopel (Nov 7), Backyard Circus with Terry Allread (Nov 14) and The Maidu: Myths, Magic, and Archaeology with Paul Bowman (Dec 5). The Oct 31 talk is full (waitlist only).
Downtown Chico merchants kick off the holiday season with decorations, entertainment and a visit from Santa for family photos.
10 picks
Free classic film screenings: The Maltese Falcon (Oct 27), Casablanca (Nov 10), Arsenic and Old Lace (Nov 24), Forrest Gump (PG-13, Dec 8) and Beauty and the Beast (G, Dec 22). Doors 5:30pm; concessions for purchase; assistive listening devices available.
Northern California Old Time Fiddlers Association players jam in the red barn on the first Sunday of each month; burgers, hot dogs, beer, wine and soda from the grill.
The theatre hosts the Pomo Culture Series. Pomo jewelry sale and Indian taco sales start at 5pm; the presentation begins at 6pm.
15 picks
Guided walks from the Kelley House Museum. Haunted Mendocino visits the town's well-known ghost stories; the Murder, She Wrote tour visits landmarks from the TV series. Advance tickets recommended.
Writer, librarian and visual artist Melissa Eleftherion reads at 7pm, followed by an hour of open mic starting around 8pm.
Mendocino Theatre Company stages Joe Landry's adaptation as a live 1940s radio broadcast, directed by Ricci Dedola. Thu Nov 12 is pay what you will. Box office 707-937-4477.
11 picks
Five-time Billboard Top World Music Artist Celtic Thunder (Emmet Cahill, Neil Byrne, Damian McGinty and Ronan Scolard) sings traditional Irish and Scottish music, classic ballads and contemporary hits.
A free community conversation on legacy giving and the future of arts and culture in Nevada County, with panelists Janice Dunn, Huck Ingram, Scott Beesley, Julie Baker and Robin Garcia. Pizza by Bicycle Thief and wine by Szabo are provided.
Solas, called "the finest Celtic ensemble this country has ever produced" by the Boston Globe, plays its 30th anniversary tour with founders Séamus Egan and Winifred Horan.