Beaverdale's Holiday Season Runs Down Beaver Avenue. Here's What's Confirmed for 2026 and What's Still Tradition.
November 12, 2026
November 12, 2026
Last December the snow started just as Holiday Happenings got going. The Beaverdale Neighborhood Association wrote afterward that a cold wind blew the snow down Beaver Avenue and only a few brave souls came out. Santa still read stories at Beaverdale Books and still helped light the tree at the corner of Beaver and Urbandale, and kids still drank hot chocolate next to him. Icy streets pushed the lighted bike ride back a full week.
That night shows how the season works here. Beaverdale's holidays are put on by the addresses along Beaver Avenue themselves: a parish school, a bookstore, a bike shop, a candy store, a row of bars and restaurants, and BNA volunteers who tie it all together. Everything leads to one Saturday night, and one of the storefronts that took part last December has a different restaurant inside this year.
Here's the 2026 calendar as of Thursday, November 12.
The season starts tomorrow. The Beaverdale Holiday Boutique runs Friday, November 13, from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m., and Saturday, November 14, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., at Holy Trinity Catholic School.
This year is the 49th. That makes the Boutique older than almost anything else on the Beaverdale holiday calendar. Holy Trinity calls it "our beloved community tradition." The vendors aren't first-come, first-served. Each one applies, and a committee picks a balanced mix of about 60 or more artisans, crafters, and vendors every year. The school lists woodwork, glass, clothing, and home and door décor, plus "items that our shoppers return to purchase year after year."
According to the school, food and treats will be sold on site, and Santa and Mrs. Claus are scheduled to stop by on Saturday. If you're bringing kids to see them, go Saturday. Friday evening is the better choice if you'd rather shop after work.
The weekend is put on by Holy Trinity's school community, with volunteers the organizers call "elves" handling the baking, decorating, and heavy lifting. Questions go to the committee at [email protected].
The Boutique starts the season, and Beaverdale Books keeps it going through November. Its November 2026 events calendar has several holiday-themed author events before the turkey is even out.
On Tuesday, November 17, from 6:30 to 8 p.m., the store hosts the Hayseed Press authors and their short story collection, which the store describes as "a little Iowa Christmas magic," with stories running "from the snow-dusted streets of Christmases past to the bright lights of celebrations yet to come."
On Friday, November 20, at 6:30 p.m., novelist Laura Rowley visits with a dual-timeline story that the store's listing says takes place "all in one unforgettable holiday week."
The bookstore also has events that have nothing to do with the holidays. On Monday, November 16, from 6:30 to 8 p.m., cartoonist Stephan Pastis comes in with Pearls Jubilee, a book marking the 25th anniversary of Pearls Before Swine.
Beaverdale Books plays a bigger part than its calendar. It is also one of the stops on the December night the whole street works toward.
The BNA has listed Beaverdale Holiday Happenings 2026 for December 5, from 5 to 7 p.m. Here is how that compares with last year's posted schedule.
| Holiday Happenings 2025 | Holiday Happenings 2026 | |
|---|---|---|
| Date | Saturday, Dec. 6 | Saturday, Dec. 5 |
| Posted hours | 4 to 7 p.m. | 5 to 7 p.m. |
| Lighted bike ride | Planned for the same night, moved to Dec. 13 for ice | Dec. 5, 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. |
In 2025, the afternoon events came before the 5 p.m. tree lighting. Santa read at Beaverdale Books at 3:30, with photos right after. Beaverdale Confections gave out gift bags of goodies at about 4. Santa lit the tree at 5 p.m. at the southeast corner of Beaver Avenue and Urbandale Avenue and posed for pictures there. This year the posted start time is 5 p.m., the same hour the tree was lit last year. The BNA's page is the place to check whether the reading and gift bags shift to fit the new hours.
The bike ride is set for the same Saturday this year. Beaverdale Bicycles is hosting a casual five-mile party ride through the neighborhood to see the lights on Beaverdale homes. Riders gather at 5:30 p.m. at 2706 Beaver Ave. and roll out at 5:45. The shop plans cookies and warm drinks. Its rules are written in capital letters: light up your bike and yourself, every rider wears a helmet and has lights, and anyone under 16 rides with a parent. The listing calls it an unsanctioned event and asks everyone to ride at their own risk. Last December the ride was postponed for ice, so keep an eye on the weather that week.
Holiday Happenings has more going on than the tree. Last year's Miracle on Beaver Avenue Bar Hop sold $5 wristbands outside Vinyl Cup from 4 to 7 p.m., and each wristband unlocked specials at participating businesses that night. The 2025 list included:
Franklin Barber Shop also ran a Toys for Tots collection from November 1 through December 23 as part of last year's program.
One of the addresses on that list has changed hands since then.
Motley School Tavern closed abruptly on September 4, according to the Des Moines Register. The Register reported that Beaverdale "lost more than a restaurant. It lost a neighborhood gathering place."
The space didn't sit empty long. The Register reports that East Meets West Kitchen & Bar opened at 1903 Beaver Ave. on November 3. It's an Asian-American comfort-food restaurant that mixes sports-bar staples with familiar Asian flavors. The Register's write-up describes a menu built "for broad appeal": wings, smash burgers, and onion rings next to pork banh mi, Korean crispy chicken, lemongrass chicken rice bowls, and crab Rangoon. Rice bowls are the core of the menu.
Brunch is back at the address too. The Register says it runs Friday through Sunday, with omelets, a breakfast hash, garlic-lime shrimp and eggs, and pancakes. The restaurant's website lists a full bar, dine-in, and online ordering for pickup, and it describes the business as Asian-American cooking "in the old Motley School Tavern space."
For the holidays, that gives the block a new spot for a pre-Boutique brunch, a dinner after the bike ride, or a place for a group with mixed tastes to land on Beaver Avenue in December. It also puts a new storefront on the stretch where last year's Bar Hop specials ran.
The bike ride exists because of the light displays on Beaverdale homes. Last season the BNA described a yearly display along Ashby Avenue and the Wallace Lane and Ashby Avenue area, with lights turning on December 3 and staying up through the holidays. Catch Des Moines put the 2025 display in its holiday-lights guide, describing more than 50 homes around Ashby and Wallace, on both sides of Beaver, lit from 6 to 9 p.m. through December 31.
Those are 2025 dates. If this year follows the same pattern, the lights would come on just days before December 5, when the bike ride passes the same homes.
The next date on the Beaver Avenue calendar is tomorrow at 5:30 p.m., when the doors open at 2926 Beaver Ave. For updates on Holiday Happenings, check beaverdale.org in the days before December 5.
Our team at Boutique Real Estate keeps up with Beaverdale's calendar the same way you do, one Beaver Avenue event at a time. If you have questions about the neighborhood, whether you're just curious or starting to think about a move, reach out anytime and we'll be glad to talk.
Stay up to date on the latest real estate trends.
The best way to save money on a house isn't necessarily negotiating a lower price
Want to Increase Your Home's Value? Plant a Tree This Fall.
For the best service and results when it comes to all of your real estate needs, reach out anytime.