San Rafael events, November 2026 to February 2027

San Rafael's winter calendar runs on two engines: downtown, where the city and the business district fill Fourth Street with holiday events, and the Civic Center, where Marin County lights up the fairgrounds every night for five weeks. In between there are gallery openings, a monthly art walk, library programs and the farmers markets that carry on rain or shine. Every date below comes from the organizer's own page; check it again before you go, since winter weather can change plans.

November

• Falkirk's fall exhibitions, through December 15. Three new shows opened on November 6 at the Falkirk Cultural Center on Mission Avenue: paintings by the nine-artist New Moon Artists Group, a multigenerational family collection from Maura Harvey and her relatives, and Adrienne Biggs's sculptures of folded, pleated book pages. The free opening celebration is Friday, November 13, from 5 to 7:30 p.m. Gallery hours can shift around private events, so the city suggests calling ahead.
• 2nd Friday Art Walk, November 13 and December 11. On the second Friday of each month, Art Works Downtown opens its galleries and studios on Fourth Street from 5 to 8 p.m., with neighbors such as the Marin Jewelers Guild joining in. It is free. The November walk includes the closing reception for the Ceramic Art Center of Marin's show.
• Under the Stars with Marin Stargazers, November 14. The library and the Marin Stargazers bring telescopes to Jean and John Starkweather Shoreline Park from 5 to 6:30 p.m., with Spanish interpretation. Meet at Portsmouth Cove and Spinnaker Point Drive.
• Farmers markets, every week. The Agricultural Institute of Marin's Thursday and Sunday markets at the Marin County Civic Center run from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m., rain or shine. Thanksgiving week, the Thursday market moves to Wednesday, November 25.
• Shop Small Saturday and the Elf Hunt, from November 28. The Downtown San Rafael Business Improvement District lists Shop Small Saturday on November 28, with a Holiday Window Walk past decorated storefronts. Its Elf Hunt runs from November 28 to January 10, with elves hidden in downtown businesses for families to find. Copperfield's Books on Fourth Street is one easy place to start.

The Holiday Light Spectacular

From November 27, 2026 through January 3, 2027, Marin County turns the Marin Center fairgrounds at the Civic Center into a walk-through light show, open from 5 to 9 p.m. every night, holidays included, rain or shine. Admission is free. Opening night has extra entertainment, food and drinks are sold nightly, and the Showcase Theater screens family films on select Saturdays: Hook on November 28, Ghostbusters on December 19, and a double bill of James and the Giant Peach and The NeverEnding Story on December 26. The county notes the event can be canceled for lightning or high winds and will post any cancellation on its page.

Next door in the Bartolini Gallery, Industrial Art & Magic, from November 19 to January 29, shows new work by more than a dozen former members of Industrial Light & Magic's Marin model shop: paintings, sculpture, scale models and creatures. Parking is free in the Veterans' Memorial Auditorium and Exhibit Hall lots, and the SMART train's Civic Center station is a short walk away.

December downtown

• First Wednesday Art Talk, December 2. A library docent talk at City Hall's Council Chambers, from 1 to 2 p.m., on three California modernist painters: Agnes Pelton, Henrietta Shore and Helen Lundeberg.
• Winter Wonderland, December 5. San Rafael's holiday celebration turns 45 this year and moves to a new date and time: Saturday, December 5, from 1 to 6 p.m. on Fourth Street. The city's Recreation team is producing it with the downtown business district, and it is free and family-friendly.
• Giant Menorah Lighting and Gelt Drop, December 6. Chabad of Marin and the city light the menorah on the first Sunday night of Chanukah, from 5 to 6:30 p.m. in the downtown plaza at 1000 Fourth Street, with music, dancing and a chocolate gelt drop from a San Rafael Fire Department ladder truck. Bring a non-perishable food item for the Marin/SF Food Bank and get a hot chocolate and latke.
• Happy Lane Children's Theater: The Wizard of Oz, December 10 to 12. Young performers stage the Young Performers Edition at the San Rafael Community Center on B Street, with evening shows December 10, 11 and 12 and a matinee on the 12th.
• Carol-oke in the Plaza, December 12. The downtown business district's first Carol-oke, a holiday sing-along, fills Court Street Plaza on Saturday, December 12, from 1 to 4 p.m.

January and February

After the holidays the calendar turns quieter and more bookish, with most events at the renovated Downtown Library on E Street.

• Read to a Dog, January 23 and February 27. Marin Humane Society therapy dogs listen to emerging readers in grades one to three, from 10:30 to 11:30 a.m. Spaces are limited; sign up by emailing the library.
• Author event with Nina Schuyler, January 28. An evening talk at the Downtown Library from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m.; the library says more details are coming.
• Filmmakers in Focus: Colette Ghunim, February 25. An evening with the filmmaker at the Downtown Library from 6 to 8:30 p.m., with details to follow.
• The 2nd Friday Art Walk continues on the second Friday of each month at Art Works Downtown; check its page for the 2027 schedule.

Before you go

Winter in San Rafael this year comes with an El Niño warning. The City Council declared a local emergency in October to prepare for heavy rain and high tides, and outdoor events can be postponed. The organizers' pages listed in this article's sources are the place to check on the day. The Library and Recreation events calendar at sanrafael.gov, the downtown district's holiday page and Marin County's Holiday Light Spectacular page are the three to bookmark.