Boston Common Tree Lighting

Boston Common · Photo: Te Liu via Google

• When: Thursday, December 3, 2026, 6-8 pm; Commonwealth Avenue Mall lights follow at about 8:15 pm
• Where: Boston Common, by the Visitor Information Center, 139 Tremont St, Boston, MA 02111
• Cost: Free
• Organizer: City of Boston Parks and Recreation Department and the Province of Nova Scotia

Official Event Page

The Boston Common Tree Lighting is the city's official holiday tree lighting, held on Thursday, December 3, 2026, from 6 to 8 pm on Boston Common, beside the Visitor Information Center at 139 Tremont Street. Mayor Michelle Wu and the Boston Parks and Recreation Department host it with the Province of Nova Scotia, and it is free.

Why Nova Scotia sends a tree

The tree is a gift from Nova Scotia, which has sent one every year since 1971 to thank Boston for its help after the December 6, 1917 explosion of a munitions ship in Halifax Harbor, when a relief train left Boston within 24 hours. This is the 55th year of the gift. The tree itself arrives on Boston Common by police escort at about 11 am on Tuesday, November 24.

Commonwealth Avenue Mall

Right after the ceremony, at about 8:15 pm, the Mayor joins the Friends of the Public Garden and the Committee to Light Commonwealth Avenue Mall to switch on the lights along the Back Bay mall, from Arlington Street to Charlesgate. It is a walk of a few blocks across the Public Garden from the Common.

Getting there

The Visitor Information Center is on the Tremont Street side of the Common, near Park Street station on the Red and Green lines. Expect crowds and some street closures around the Common that evening; the T is easier than driving.

Good to know

The event is outdoors in December, so dress for the cold. Earlier lightings in the same stretch include Copley Square on November 30.

Details checked against the City of Boston's official event page, boston.gov/calendar/boston-common-tree-lighting, on September 28, 2026. Dates and times can change; confirm with the organizer before you go.