Keystone does the holidays better than almost anywhere in Colorado, and it does it for families specifically. A snow fort the size of a castle at 11,600 feet, a chocolate village made from three and a half tons of imported chocolate, Santa leading a parade through the village, and mountaintop fireworks.
Here is what is on for the 2026/2027 holiday season, what it costs, and how to plan around it.
A note on dates and pricing. Keystone confirms exact holiday dates and current pricing closer to the season. Below is what happens each year, with typical timing and recent pricing as a guide. Verify current details on the resort site or by calling activities on (970) 496-3000 before you build a day around anything.
The Headline Events
Kidtopia Spectacular
When: Typically mid to late December, historically running around December 15 to 24
Where: River Run Village and the summit of Dercum Mountain
Cost: Free, though mountain access requires a pass, lift ticket or scenic foot-passenger ticket
This is Keystone's holiday centrepiece and the reason a lot of families book here rather than Breckenridge. It kicks off the season with the grand opening and lighting ceremony of the world's largest mountaintop snow fort, then runs a week of festive programming.
What typically happens across the week:
- Ripperoo's Village Parade at around 4:00pm, with Santa Claus and Keystone's mascot Ripperoo leading a procession through River Run Village before boarding the gondola to the summit
- The snow fort lighting ceremony and a mountaintop fireworks display, typically around 4:30pm to 7:00pm
- Free snow tubing during the celebration
- Photos with Santa, cookie decorating, hot chocolate and live music
- Meeting the Ski Patrol avalanche rescue dogs, which is reliably the highlight for anyone under ten
- A Winter Wonderland bounce party at the Keystone Lodge & Spa, with a fireworks display at Lakeside Village
Local tip: the parade and the summit lighting happen on different days in most years. Check the schedule so you do not miss one assuming it is part of the other.
The World's Largest Mountaintop Snow Fort
When: Opens with Kidtopia Spectacular in December, then daily through the ski season, typically 9:00am to 4:00pm
Where: Summit of Dercum Mountain, at the top of the River Run Gondola, above 11,600 feet
Cost: Free with lift access — a season pass, lift ticket, or a scenic foot-passenger gondola ticket
This is the single best free thing at Keystone and it genuinely lives up to the name. Recent seasons have used over 40,000 pounds of ice, carved into tunnels, slides, climbing nets, castle towers, a snow maze, ice sculptures and a mini tubing hill.
The part most visitors miss: you do not need to ski to get there. A scenic gondola ticket gets non-skiers, grandparents and small children to the summit, which makes this an easy outing for a group where not everyone is on snow.
During the holiday festival the fort is lit up at night, which is worth timing a visit around.
Keystone Chocolate Village
When: Typically from around December 21 into early January
Where: Lobby of the Keystone Lodge & Spa
Cost: Free
A hand-crafted holiday tradition at Keystone for more than twenty years, and genuinely extraordinary. The resort's executive pastry chef uses more than 7,500 pounds of imported chocolate to build a miniature Keystone, complete with a working chocolate gondola, a cascading chocolate waterfall, a four-foot chocolate Christmas tree and a series of winter scenes.
It costs nothing to visit, takes twenty minutes, and is exactly the kind of thing that makes a holiday trip memorable. Confirm this year's dates before you go.
On-Snow and Village Activities
Mountaintop Snow Tubing at Adventure Point
Where: Top of Dercum Mountain, directly behind the Kidtopia Snow Fort
Check-in: Adventure Point Tubing Hut in River Run Village, across from the gondola, 45 minutes before your reservation
Reservations: (970) 496-3000. Sessions run hourly and on the half hour
Cost: Charged per person per hour. Confirm current pricing when booking
Eight lanes at the top of the mountain, with a conveyor lift so you never walk back up. Lanes vary from gentle to properly steep, and you tube as many times as you can fit into your hour. Disco tubing nights add lights and music, and are the version to book if your kids are old enough to stay up.
Requirements to know before you book: riders must be at least 42 inches tall, typically aged 4 and up, with a 350 lb weight limit. Not suitable if you are pregnant or have significant injuries, and you must be able to walk and stand on the magic carpet.
What to wear: snow boots, snow pants, a jacket and a beanie at minimum. Warm socks, a base layer and goggles if you want to be comfortable rather than merely present.
Book early. Holiday-week slots sell out, and capacity per session is deliberately limited so the hill does not get crowded.
Ice Skating on Keystone Lake
Where: Lakeside Village
Cost: Skate rentals available. Confirm current rates
A five-acre Zamboni-maintained outdoor rink, and one of the largest of its kind in the country. Skating on a frozen lake with mountains on every side is a genuinely different experience from a municipal rink, and it is one of the best-value family activities in Summit County.
Snowcat Tours
When: Tours typically depart at 3:00pm daily
Check-in: River Run Tubing Hill Check-in Hut, to the right of the lift ticket office, by 2:45pm. Meet at the Summit House fireplace at 3:00pm
Duration: 45 to 60 minutes, or around two hours including check-in and gondola rides
Capacity: Maximum 13 guests per tour
Cost: Recent seasons have run around $38 adult and $30 child. Confirm current pricing
A guided ride into terrain you would not otherwise reach, and a good option for a non-ski afternoon.
Night Skiing
When: Typically daily during the holiday period, historically around December 20 to 29, then weekends and holidays from January into late March. Usually 4:00pm to 8:00pm
Cost: Included with a pass or lift ticket, or available as a night-only ticket
Keystone runs one of the largest night-skiing operations in Colorado, across around 15 lighted trails. During the holidays it typically runs every day rather than just weekends, which genuinely changes the shape of a family trip: little ones ski in the morning, everyone rests in the afternoon, and the teenagers go back out under the lights.
Keystone Nordic Center
Around 10 miles of groomed trails for cross-country skiing, skate skiing and snowshoeing. A calm alternative on a busy holiday week, and considerably cheaper than a lift ticket.
River Run Village
The pedestrian heart of the resort, with a tree in the plaza lit with thousands of bulbs through the holidays. Shops, restaurants, the gondola and the world's highest Build-A-Bear Workshop, where kids can make a bear kitted out in Keystone gear.
Kidtopia Headquarters sits next to the Dercum ice skating rink in River Run Village, and is where to go for the daily activity schedule.
Free Kidtopia Activities, Every Day
Beyond the signature events, Kidtopia runs free daily programming throughout the season. Recent seasons have included:
- Giant snowball launches
- Family movie time
- Scavenger hunts
- Daily cookie time
- Meet-and-greets with the avalanche rescue dogs
- Kids' yoga and hands-on learning activities
- Family game nights and ice cream parties
- Parades and fireworks
Pick up the current schedule at Kidtopia HQ when you arrive, since it changes daily.
Key Dates for the 2026/2027 Holidays
| Date | What |
|---|---|
| Early November | Keystone typically opens |
| Late November | Lighting of River Run |
| Thursday November 26 | Thanksgiving |
| Mid to late December | Kidtopia Spectacular and snow fort opening |
| Around December 21 | Chocolate Village opens |
| Thursday December 24 | Christmas Eve |
| Friday December 25 | Christmas Day |
| December 20 to 29 | Daily night skiing, typically |
| December 26 to 30 | Peak week. Busiest of the season |
| Thursday December 31 | New Year's Eve |
Planning Your Holiday Week
Keystone is on the Epic Pass, as is nearby Breckenridge. Buy passes and lift tickets early, since prices climb as the season approaches.
Book activities the day you book lodging. Tubing sessions, snowcat tours and ski school all sell out during the holidays, and capacity is deliberately limited.
Plan Christmas Day meals at home. Most restaurants close entirely on the 25th, and grocery hours are limited on Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and New Year's Day. Shop before the 24th. See our Keystone takeout and delivery guide for the nights you would rather not cook.
Christmas morning is quiet on the mountain, because plenty of people are opening presents. If your group wants an uncrowded ski morning, that is the window.
Know the afternoon closing times. Keystone's back side closes progressively, with the bowls typically shutting around 1:30pm and North Peak around 3:30pm. Ski the bigger terrain in the morning.
Respect the altitude. Keystone's base sits at 9,280 feet. Plan a light first day, drink far more water than feels necessary, and go easy on the holiday drinks that first evening.
Colorado enforces a traction law during storms. Book AWD with snow tires, and check COtrip.org or dial 511 before you drive up.
Beyond Keystone
Summit County puts four resorts within about 30 minutes of each other, connected by the free Summit Stage bus.
Breckenridge runs its Race of the Santas and tree lighting in early December, plus a Christmas Eve torchlight parade, Ullr Fest in January and the International Snow Sculpture Championships in late January. It is also on the Epic Pass. Copper Mountain is on the Ikon Pass, with terrain naturally divided by ability.
See our local events calendar, things to do guide and Summit County restaurant guide.
Where to Stay for the Holidays
Where you stay decides which events are easy. Most of the programming above centres on River Run Village and the summit above it.
- River Run Village is the obvious pick. Walk to the parade route, the gondola, Kidtopia HQ and the restaurants. See Silver Mill, Red Hawk Lodge, Expedition Station, Dakota Lodge and Lone Eagle.
- Lakeside Village puts you beside the skating lake and the Keystone Lodge & Spa, where the Chocolate Village and the bounce party happen. See Lakeshore and The Pines.
- Mountain House is the calmer base and often the easier ski school drop-off with young children.
- East Keystone and West Keystone for larger homes with real bedrooms, including Ski Tip Townhomes and Clearwater Lofts.
Want to ski to your door? See our ski-in ski-out rentals. Travelling as a crowd? Our group rentals, whole homes and luxury properties have the kitchens and dining tables for a proper holiday dinner. Also see rentals with hot tubs and pet-friendly options.
By size: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 or 6+ bedrooms. Browse all our complexes.
Book Early
Christmas and New Year are the two most sold-out weeks of the Keystone year, and large homes go furthest ahead because there are fewer of them. If your dates are set, book now rather than waiting for a deal that will not come.
Check current specials, see why booking direct is better, read our guest testimonials, or browse all our rentals.
Summit County Mountain Retreats
22869 US Hwy 6, Suite 204, Keystone, CO 80435
Phone: (970) 368-4800
Email: Contact us here
Questions: Guest FAQs
Tell us your dates and which events you care about, and we will put you within walking distance of them.
Event dates, times, activity pricing and operating schedules are set by Keystone Resort, confirmed closer to each season, and subject to change or cancellation due to weather and conditions. Pricing shown reflects recent seasons and is indicative only. Confirm current details with the resort on (970) 496-3000 before building travel plans around a specific date or activity.
