Florissant's Christmas tree lighting closes out a full afternoon of street festival on Rue St. Francois. Who actually puts that afternoon together? This year's ceremony happens on Saturday, Nov. 28, the Saturday after Thanksgiving. It's the final act of the Miracle on St. Francois, and it only starts once a parade of golf carts has passed.
The vendors, the carts and the banners on the street all come from people who signed up. A month out, most of those sign-up windows are still open.
The tree is the last thing that happens
The Miracle on St. Francois began in 2021. The event page calls it the start of the Christmas season in the city, and it's set on Rue St. Francois in Historic Old Town Florissant. The festival's listed address is 955 St. Francois St., which is Florissant City Hall. The event is billed as outdoors and all-weather.
The event page lists the day in this order:
- Vendors. Retail, craft and food vendors set up along the street.
- Santa and Mrs. Claus. Photos with both.
- Music. Caroling by local groups, plus other music.
- The golf cart parade. The page says the event "culminates" with it.
- The tree lighting. The city's annual Christmas tree lighting ceremony follows the parade.
The page also says kids' activities "often" include the Jingle Run, pony rides and face painting. The festival ends at 7 p.m. The start time on the page is printed with a typo, so check the event page closer to the day before planning your arrival.
Because the tree lighting comes after the parade, the parade sets the timing for the lighting. If the lights are what you came for, plan to stay through the golf carts.
Most of the festival is still being signed up for
The event page runs five sign-up forms, each with its own deadline. On Thursday, Oct. 29, here's where each one stands:
| Sign-up | Deadline | Days left after Oct. 29 |
|---|---|---|
| Food vendor | Nov. 11 | 13 |
| Craft and retail vendor | Nov. 20 | 22 |
| Sponsorship and info vendor | Nov. 20 | 22 |
| Golf cart parade | Nov. 20 | 22 |
| Advent calendar | Nov. 28 | 30 |
The food vendor list closes first, nine days before the other vendor and parade forms. If you've thought about putting your own golf cart in the parade that ends with the lighting, the form is on the Miracle on St. Francois page and it's open until Nov. 20.
Two other ways to take part have already closed. This year the festival added custom banners that buyers design themselves, to hang along St. Francois. Only 60 spots were offered, and ordering ended Oct. 12. That means up to 60 of the banners on the street this year were designed by the people who ordered them. The Miracle spirit store sold Miracle train and wordmark logo items, festive tees and kids' apparel. It took orders through Friday, Oct. 23, with pickup set for Friday, Nov. 27, the day before the festival.
The tree stands at the newer of two city halls on the same street
There are two city halls on Rue St. Francois, and the festival is at the newer one. According to the city's historical sites guide, the current Florissant City Hall at 955 Rue St. Francois was built in 1970 "to conform with Historic District regulations." The same guide notes its historic landmark trees.
Up the street, the Historic City Hall at 619 Rue St. Francois dates to around 1870. The guide says it's in its second century of serving Florissant and is now a senior citizens' center. So the season starts at a building designed in 1970 to fit in with a district whose old city hall was a century older.
Old St. Ferdinand Shrine anchors the far end of the street at 1 Rue St. Francois. Coldwater Commons Park, next to the Shrine, preserves open space along Coldwater Creek, where the original village was platted. If you walk the street before the festival starts, you pass three centuries of Florissant buildings on the way to the tree.
Three November dates lead up to the 28th
The Miracle isn't the first holiday-season event on the Old Town calendar. The Florissant Old Town Partners events page and the city's Fall 2026 Spotlight guide list a run of dates before it:
- Sunday, Nov. 1: The city ice rink opens for the season, according to the Fall 2026 Spotlight.
- Sunday, Nov. 8: Florissant Veteran's Day Parade.
- Friday, Nov. 20: Holiday Market Stroll.
- Saturday, Nov. 28: Miracle on St. Francois.
Old Town Partners lists all three Old Town events as "all-day," so check its page that week for start times and routes. The Holiday Market Stroll falls on Nov. 20, the same day the craft vendor, sponsorship and golf cart parade forms close. Once the stroll is over, the Miracle's lineup is basically set.
Where to fit the rest of Old Town into the day
Thanksgiving is Thursday, Nov. 26, so the Miracle lands two days later, on a Saturday when a lot of people already have family in town. Several Old Town spots sit within a short walk of the festival.
Made. by Lia Craft Bakery, 610 Rue St. Francois. This is the earliest stop. It's open Tuesday through Saturday from 7:30 a.m. to 2 p.m., with from-scratch pastries, coffee and tea, gluten-free and vegan options, and indoor and outdoor seating. Lia opened her first storefront in August 2020. Because it closes at 2 p.m., it works best as the first stop of the day, before the tree lighting. It's just a few doors from the Historic City Hall at 619 Rue St. Francois.
Costello's Pizzeria & Subs, 1060 St. Catherine. Costello's takes online pickup orders through its Toast ordering page. The address is the Narrow Gauge Railroad Station. The city's guide says the station was built in 1878 and moved to its current spot when it was at risk of being torn down. When the restaurant was getting ready to open, Sauce Magazine reported that brothers Mariano and Anthony Costello had painted the inside of the historic station house.
Henke's Tavern, 901 N. Lafayette. Henke's posts its hours and events on its own site, which is the place to check before you go.
Hendel's, 599 Rue St. Denis. One street over, Hendel's Market dates to about 1873. The city's guide says the building "continues to serve the public as a restaurant."
If you want something to do once the lights are on, the season keeps going in the first two weekends of December at the Florissant Performing Arts Center. Its ticketing calendar lists Alpha Players' A Christmas Carol on Dec. 4 and 5, Christmas with the St. Louis Brass Band on Sunday, Dec. 6 at 3 p.m., and Northwinds' Hometown Holiday Concert on Sunday, Dec. 13 at 3 p.m.
The holidays are also when a lot of Old Town homeowners start planning a move for the new year, and the right timing depends on how the street and the market behave over the winter. If you'd like help putting that plan together, Finest Homes Network would be glad to talk through your timeline over coffee, after the golf carts have gone by and the tree is lit. Schedule a consultation whenever you're ready.
