Must See Grand Forks Holiday Celebrations for Your Bucket List!

When it comes to the holidays, Grand Forks is a forktastic place to celebrate! I’m am focusing on some of the bigger holidays like, Christmas, Halloween, and the 4th of July, but don’t worry, I shall highlight the smaller ones too! With this article you can expect to be an expert in all things Grand Forks holiday celebrations!

First up we have Christmas; specifically, the Holly Dazzle winter festival. This event features a Christmas tree lighting in downtown Grand Forks. During the lighting you get to decorate cookies, drink hot cocoa, and you get to watch the Christmas Parade. In the parade they have a ton of people who volunteer to dress up as popular Christmas characters. Another thing you should do is go to Lincoln Park and look at the beautiful lights that are out. Once you drive through all  the lights you can go to a certain channel and listen to songs from Christmas movies and watch as it is playing on the lights.

Our community also has many folks celebrating Hanukkah. There are often several public lighting ceremonies, so make sure to be on the lookout for updates on social media! They are often at Lincoln Park. Places to stay up to date with include the Chabad Jewish Center of North Dakota and the B’nai Israel Synagogue.

Lastly, there are fun activities for those celebrating Kwanzaa as well! There is usually a celebration event hosted in late December by the Grand Forks Cultural Committee and/or Love in Action. Here in Grand Forks, there is something for everyone!

Next lets talk about Halloween & Diwali celebrations. During Halloween  people love to go to the Belmont street neighborhood and trick or treat because there are so many houses there and kids get a lot of candy. On Belmont they have some of the best decorated houses in Grand Forks which makes for the perfect Halloween experience.

Another thing that you should put on your bucket list for Halloween is going to Nelson’s pumpkin patch. Going to Nelson’s Pumpkin Patch is a quintessential Halloween experience because they have a haunted house, a maze to walk through with fun little things to climb, they have a bumble bee ride, and they have a barn full of pumpkins to pick from that you can carve plus they have bouncy houses! We also have Valley Corn Maize just outside East Grand Forks off of Highway 2, which is a fantastic fall activity you don’t want to miss. They have loads of activities and snacks outside of walking through the maize itself! Lastly, across the river in EGF there is also Patch on the Point. Just out past the south end of EGF, Patch on the Point offers a variety of fun family activities during the fall months!

Make sure to check out our fall themed articles on the main blog page for more detailed information on all the different fall activities you can get up to!

Grand Forks also hosts an annual Diwali celebration mainly through the University of North Dakota. This is usually around the first week of November. Its a fabulous time for Grand Forksians to come together and celebrate a joyous occasion. You can expect a bunch of delicious foods, awesome performances, and lots of music and dancing too!

The next holiday that is super fun to celebrate in Grand Forks is the 4th of July! Some things that you should put on your bucket list is going to Sertoma Park for the day and playing the fun games they have to offer to you. They have food trucks that sell hot dogs, hamburgers, and dishes from all over. When it starts getting late and it is dark enough, they shoot off fireworks and you get to sit and watch with your family as they go off. If you like to go for runs and like to run marathons, then you are going to enjoy this! Grand Forks has a 5k and a 10k run at the Family Altu YMCA. Also, at South Middle school they put on a firework show and give out bikes as prizes. That could be a fun thing to do with your family!

Valentine’s Day is not just for couples! It’s for celebrating all your loved ones! Here in Grand Forks, you can celebrate with many of the local stores on their themed treats during the month of February. Of course, for couples, there are also some awesome restaurants around town. Some include Sakura Japanese Steakhouse, Charras, and many more! There are also often family crafting events, so make sure to stay tuned in on Facebook groups for posts about those!

While Easter may be a Christian holiday, that doesn’t mean there aren’t activities for everyone here in Grand Forks. In 2025, Nelson Auto Center hosted their first annual easter egg hunt for families, which happened the week before Easter. There are also often different smaller scale activities going on like craft sessions, egg painting, and of course lots of Easter chocolates to be had around this time of year! Again, staying tuned in on social media (Facebook specifically) is important!

Other smaller holidays that us Grand Forksians still celebrate but may not be as mainstream include:

Mothers/Father’s Day: Loads of family friendly activities around the community during both of these holidays! Including discounts, brunches, and specials!

St. Patty’s Day: Don’t miss the sweet treat St. Patty’s Day celebrations around town this March! For adults, there are also lots of activities available downtown as well.

Cinco De Mayo: Don’t forget the Fifth of May! While these celebrations are mainly targeted for those 21+, you should definitely check out any specials happening at our numerous Mexican restaurants in town! YUM!

Overall, the holidays celebrated in Grand Forks are unforgettable. You get to have fun celebrating the holidays with your family all year round. Grand Forks has some of the best things to look forward to during the holidays. Happy Holidays!