The doors at Inland Lakes High School open at 9 a.m. on Friday, November 27. That's the start of the Indian River Resort Region Chamber of Commerce's Holiday Craft Show, which the Chamber bills as its 46th annual. It runs until 4 p.m. Last year, downtown Christmas in Indian River began an hour before that closing time, with decorated businesses opening their doors at 3 p.m.
So Indian River's holiday season starts all at once, on one long Friday, and the schedules overlap enough that the morning crowd and the evening crowd can be the same people. In plenty of towns, the craft fair, the shop open houses, the parade and the tree lighting are spread over several December weekends. Here they all land between breakfast and the end of the parade.
A Craft Show That Has Owned the Morning for Decades
The Chamber's own page states the rule directly: the show happens "annually on the day after Thanksgiving." The Chamber is the host. Its September 11, 2026 post opened vendor applications for this year's show at Inland Lakes High School, with a registration deadline of November 20. Anyone with a table's worth of handmade goods still has until that Friday before Thanksgiving to sign up.
The Petoskey News-Review's 2024 holiday roundup gives a picture of the show's size. That year it had more than 100 vendor booths and a concession stand. Admission was $5 per person or $10 per family, children 10 and under got in free, and $1 of every door entry went to the senior class. Those are 2024 figures.
The senior-class share helps explain why the show is at the high school. A dollar from each person who walks in goes back to the school's oldest students, and that is a different arrangement from a fair held in a rented hall.
Where the Morning Hands Off to the Evening
The 9-to-4 window matters because the downtown celebration doesn't wait for it to end. The Chamber's listing for Christmas in Indian River describes the event in one sentence:
"Christmas in Indian River is a community event that is held every November on the Friday and Saturday after Thanksgiving. Enjoy story time with Mrs. Claus, lighted Christmas Parade, carolers, and see Santa arrive to light the tree and much more."
The Indian River Area Library's fall 2026 newsletter has Christmas in Indian River on its calendar for November 27, the same Friday as the craft show.
To see how the afternoon actually flows, last year's schedule is the best guide. The Cheboygan Daily Tribune laid out the 2025 Friday hour by hour:
- 3 to 7 p.m. Decorated-business open houses downtown
- 3 to 6:30 p.m. A children's Elf on a Shelf scavenger hunt
- 4 to 6 p.m. Children's crafts and cookies at the Indian River Area Library
- 5 to 5:45 p.m. Storytime with Mrs. Claus at the township hall
- 5:30 to 7 p.m. Warming stations with free soup and a fire
- 6 p.m. The Christmas parade with Santa and Mrs. Claus, followed by the tree lighting near the chamber cabin
- 7 to 9 p.m. Visits with Santa at the township hall, or an afterparty with a live band at Northland Brewery
Compare that list with the craft show's hours. The open houses started an hour before the show closed. The library crafts began right at 4 p.m. as the vendors packed up. A family could spend the morning at the high school and still be downtown before Mrs. Claus started reading.
The Parade Clock Moves, So Check Before You Park
The parade's start time has changed from year to year. In 2024, according to the Petoskey News-Review, the open houses began at 4 p.m., Mrs. Claus read stories at 5 p.m. at the township hall with punch and cookies, and the parade with Santa started at 6:30 p.m. and ended with the tree lighting. In 2025 the parade started half an hour earlier, at 6 p.m., and the open houses an hour earlier, at 3 p.m.
Here's how the two years compare:
| Piece of the evening | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|
| Business open houses begin | 4 p.m. | 3 p.m. |
| Mrs. Claus storytime, township hall | 5 p.m. | 5 to 5:45 p.m. |
| Parade with Santa | 6:30 p.m. | 6 p.m. |
| After the tree lighting | Not listed | Santa at the township hall, Northland Brewery afterparty 7 to 9 p.m. |
From 2024 to 2025, the evening started earlier and added more. Before you head out on the 27th, check the Christmas in Indian River Facebook page for this year's parade time.
Saturday Belongs to the Golf Club
The Chamber describes the celebration as two days, and in 2025 the second day began at the Indian River Golf Club. The Tribune listed a Breakfast with Santa on Saturday, November 29, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.: a buffet with seasonal dishes, a hot cocoa station, and Santa visiting tables for photos with children.
Last year's prices for that breakfast:
- $24.95 for adults
- $14.95 for children 12 and under
- Free for children 4 and under
Space was limited. Guests had to RSVP at 231-238-8515 by the Tuesday before Thanksgiving. If the club keeps the same pattern this year, that Tuesday falls on November 24. Calling early in Thanksgiving week is the safe move.
The club is also a place to eat on other days now. Indian River Golf Club says its Birdies Tavern is open to non-golfers. The posted hours are Monday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m., Sunday brunch from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., and closed Tuesday and Wednesday. Hours at a golf club can shift with the season, so call before planning a late-fall lunch there.
The Rest of the County Picks Up Saturday
Indian River is the first stop on Cheboygan County's holiday weekend. The rest of the county follows on Saturday. In 2025, the same Tribune roundup listed the Christmas Tree Ship send-off in Cheboygan that Saturday morning. The send-off party started at 9:45 a.m. in the county marina parking lot, with cookies and cocoa from local Rosie the Riveters. The Coast Guard Cutter Mackinaw was scheduled to leave around 10 a.m. with 1,200 Christmas trees for families in need in Chicago. Also that morning, Mackinaw City held its Village Tree Decorating from 8 a.m. to noon at the Mackinaw City Recreation Center, 507 W. Central Ave., and Santa attended.
Those Saturday events are spread across the county. Indian River packs its own events into one Friday stretch in one small downtown: the high school in the morning, then the library, the township hall, the chamber cabin and Northland Brewery after dark. You can do the whole thing in a day without moving the car more than once.
Planning the Friday
For anyone hosting family over Thanksgiving, the 27th lays out like this:
- Morning: Arrive at Inland Lakes High School anytime after 9 a.m. for the craft show. Bring cash for the door, since admission in 2024 was $5 a person or $10 a family.
- Midafternoon: Head downtown as the show winds down before its 4 p.m. close. In 2025, the business open houses and the scavenger hunt were already underway by then.
- Late afternoon: Children's crafts at the Indian River Area Library and Mrs. Claus storytime at the township hall filled the hours before dark last year.
- Evening: Find a spot along the parade route before the start time posted on the Christmas in Indian River Facebook page, then walk to the tree near the chamber cabin.
- Saturday morning: If you reserved breakfast with Santa at Indian River Golf Club, start there.
For a crafter still deciding whether to take a booth, the Chamber's vendor application post lists the November 20 registration deadline.
Our office is in Alanson, just down the waterway, and the Fairbairn family has spent generations of Thanksgiving weekends in these lakeside towns. If you own a home between Burt and Mullett and want to know what it's worth before the new year, Coldwell Banker Fairbairn Realty will put together a free home valuation, so you can enjoy the parade with the numbers already in hand.
