Five Great Free Things to Do in Omaha for the Holidays
By: Patricia

By Corrie Oberdin

Are you going to be in Omaha, Nebraska for the holidays and want to know what to do with your family while you’re here? We’ve collected just some of our favorite free things to do during the holidays.

1- First up is the Holiday Lights Festival, which lights up Omaha’s downtown. Forty blocks twinkling with more than one million lights creating a spectacular display that has been an Omaha tradition for over 10 years. The Festival kicks off with a special lighting ceremony on Thanksgiving evening, November 24th at 6 pm. For more information on the Holiday Lights Festival, visit www.holidaylightsfestival.org.

Photo By Asten

2- After the Thanksgiving lighting ceremony, you can go to the Nebraska Wind Symphony Concert at the Holland Center. This free concert featuring more than 85 musicians will treat audiences to festive holiday music and a holiday sing-a-long! The concert takes place on November 24th at 7 pm. To learn more, visit www.nebraskawindsymphony.com

3- Dickens in the Market will give your holidays a cool, old world feel. On December 10th from 10 am – 4 pm, the Old Market in downtown Omaha will be transformed into a Victorian-era village. Costumed characters right out of Dickens’ novels will roam the streets singing and performing snippets from his classic books. To learn more, visit here.

4- Ring in the holidays with a Christmas at Boys Town On December 4th at 7:45 pm, carolers will welcome Santa, the Boys Town tree will be lit and everyone can join in the holiday sing a long! Throughout the season you’ll be able to step inside the historic Father Flanagan home as it brings a traditional Irish Christmas to life. For more information, click here.

5- The Holiday Lights Fireworks on December 31st will help you ring in the New Year! As the finale to the Holiday Lights festival, the events caps off the year with a fireworks spectacular - the largest in the region. To learn more, visit www.holidaylightsfestival.org.

Photo by Expide

Looking for something else to do? Visit the Visit Omaha website at www.visitomaha.com. There you’ll find even more holiday happenings – free and otherwise – as well as a lot of information about events, attractions, shopping and places to stay. You can also stay up to date on Omaha information by following us on Twitter @VisitOmaha or by liking us on Facebook.