Manhattan Village Tree Lighting & Santa’s Grand Entrance
Manhattan Beach, CA
Manhattan Village’s afternoon kickoff to the holiday season — a 41-foot tree lit by Santa in the open-air plaza, with live music and magic snow.
Manhattan Village’s afternoon kickoff to the holiday season — a 41-foot tree lit by Santa in the open-air plaza, with live music and magic snow.
Santa’s Grand Entrance & Tree Lighting at Manhattan Village is the city’s east-side holiday opening — a free, family afternoon at the open-air center’s plaza that anchors the start of the season. Held on the Saturday after Thanksgiving each year, it’s the day a 41-foot holiday tree is lit in the plaza with Santa as the official guest.
The afternoon runs with live music, magic-snow flurries falling over the open-air plaza, photo opportunities with the lit tree, and Santa available at the plaza after he helps with the count-down. The center stays in holiday character through the season, with the tree and decor in place until the new year — the lighting evening is the start, not the only day to see the plaza dressed.
Manhattan Village sits in the eastern Manhattan Beach flat near Sepulveda, a different geography than the downtown-and-pier corridor three-quarters of a mile west. For families in Manhattan Heights, the Tree Section, and east-side neighborhoods near the 405, it’s the close-in walking-distance landmark.
In the open-air plaza in the center of Manhattan Village — the redeveloped main gathering space at the heart of the shopping center, surrounded by restaurants and the anchor stores. Look for the 41-foot tree at the plaza center.
Saturday after Thanksgiving each year — the opening weekend of the broader season at the center. The afternoon program runs for several hours with the tree lighting mid-program.
Yes — the tree lighting, the live music, and the plaza programming are free to attend. Photos at the lit tree are open access. Shopping and dining at the center are paid separately.
Yes — the 41-foot tree and the plaza decor stay in place through the holiday season. The lighting evening is the official start with Santa and the program; return visits later in December still find the plaza in full holiday character for casual walks, dinner, and photos.
The Manhattan Beach Pier Lighting is the downtown-and-Pier kickoff in early November along Manhattan Beach Boulevard. Manhattan Village’s Tree Lighting is a separate event at the open-air regional shopping center three-quarters of a mile east of downtown — different venue, different audience tilt (the east-side neighborhoods and the Sepulveda corridor), and a later date that opens the post-Thanksgiving stretch of the season. Many South Bay families catch both.
Manhattan Village is the open-air regional shopping center at 3200 N. Sepulveda Boulevard, a half-mile east of the city’s downtown and pier corridor. The center sits in the eastern flat of Manhattan Beach near the 405 freeway, with department-store anchors and a recently redeveloped open-air plaza that doubles as a year-round community gathering space. It serves the city’s east-side residential neighborhoods (Manhattan Heights, the Tree Section) as their walkable retail anchor — a different corner of Manhattan Beach from the downtown-and-pier energy three-quarters of a mile west.
Southern California’s holiday lights and festive outings are pure magic — but nothing compares to Santa Claus himself stepping through your own front door. House of Kringle brings a real-bearded, professionally trained Santa to homes and gatherings across SoCal for an intimate live visit your family will treasure for years.