You can find some of the most amazing, one-of-a-kind gifts and experiences at Tempe’s local shops. Best of all, when you shop local, you support the people right in your own community.

We all love wandering the shops on Mill Avenue, at Tempe Marketplace and in Arizona Mills, but if you prefer, you can shop online and still shop local. Local First Arizona also has an online directory to find items from small businesses throughout the state - Shop Arizona Marketplace.

Specialty shopping areas

Downtown Tempe - Mill Avenue 
Shop, eat and stroll through historic downtown Tempe. Tempe's famous Mill Avenue is lit with thousands of beautiful twinkle lights and offers about shops, restaurants and other destinations. Be sure to stop at Hackett House, where you can find beautiful ornaments and gifts from around the world, along with scones, tea and other delights. 

Arizona Mills Mall
This mall features SeaLife Aquarium and Legoland and is the state’s largest family entertainment and outlet shopping destination

Tempe Marketplace  
Check out festive events and activities, plus a tree lighting and lots more seasonal excitement.

IKEA
Have a Swedish holiday! There's an entire holiday section at Arizona's only IKEA store. Stop for meatballs and lingonberry sauce, too. 

Spend quality time with loved ones while marveling at ZooLights, strolling the Luminarias at the Desert Botanical Garden and driving through the World of Illumination at Diablo Stadium.

You can visit any of these attractions most days during the holiday season:

Las Noches de Las Luminarias at Desert Botanical Garden
Holiday Happenings at Tempe Marketplace
World of Illumination at Tempe Diablo Stadium
Zoolights at the Phoenix Zoo

There are dozens of fun events that happen just for a day or two, also. Check out this calendar of holiday events for some spectacular fun. 

Some of Tempe’s annual holiday fun events include:

Nov. 29: Native Holiday Market pressented by OXDX 

Nov. 29: Fantasy of Lights Street Parade + Tree Lighting

Dec. 5-7: Fall Tempe Festival of the Arts

Dec. 6 & 7, 13 & 14, 20 & 21: Christmas at Petersen House

Dec. 13: Fantasy of Lights Boat Parade

December (date TBD): Menorah Lighting Ceremony

Plus, check out festive concerts, performances and plays at Tempe Center for the Arts all season long!

The holidays are about love and giving. You can share your time, money and talents helping those who need it most. Pack food boxes at the Tempe Community Action Food Bank. Foster a dog at Lost Our Home Pet Rescue or donate to them to buy some pup or kitten treats. Help dozens of charities through a donation to Tempe Community Council. Or buy a Christmas Angel from the Salvation Army. 

The City of Tempe also has meaningful volunteer opportunities year round to help young children, older adults and everyone in between. Find details here. There are so many worthy causes. Find your place to give.

Happy holi-stay! Find a staycation or a holiday destination for you and yours.

Tempe is a great place to spend the holidays. Instead of going out of town, invite your close family and friends to enjoy the holidays here. They can relax poolside, hike our mountains and paddle Tempe Town Lake. Many of these hotels also offer holiday events, cocktails and menus.

Some of Tempe's destination hotels include:
Tempe Mission Palms
Marriott Tempe at the Buttes 
Canopy at Hilton Tempe
The Graduate Hotel
Omni Tempe Hotel at ASU
The Westin Tempe

The holiday season often comes with increased waste. With some simple practices, you can help care for our environment this holiday season.

• Recycle Responsibly: See what's accepted in your blue bin.
• Save your waste for Zero Waste Day: Save your holiday scraps for responsible disposal at our free, drive-thru Zero Waste Day events. Can't wait? Drop it off during business hours at the Household Products Collection Center. 
• Protect your pipes: Keep fats, oils and grease out of your drain. Recycle it at the Household Products Collection Center.

If your waste collection day falls on Christmas day or New Year's Day, your trash and recycling pickup will be affected. See holiday waste collection schedule changes. 

The winter holiday season creates a festive atmosphere in many of our homes with trees, tinsel, strings of lights, garland, candles and lots of cooking.  Keep these seasonal tips in mind while caring for your home and loved ones.

• Watch out for fire starters. Never leave candles and fireplaces unattended. Keep a fire extinguisher in the home
• Decorate safely if you have pets and kids. Secure décor and keep glass and tinsel out of their reach
• It’s a big cooking season – never leave food unattended while cooking, turn off appliances when not in use and keep pan tucked handles away from young children.
• Drive safe! If you’re drinking, plan to park your sleigh and take public transit or rideshare.

Read more tips from Tempe Fire Medical Rescue.

There are many ways people in our community celebrate the winter season, from religious observances to festivals and more. Here are a few of those celebrations.

Hannukah: Jewish

Begins previous sundown at 6 p.m. Hanukkah is a Jewish festival that is a commemoration of the recovery of Jerusalem and the re-dedication of the Second Temple at the start of the Maccabean Revolt of the 2nd century. This holiday is also known as Chanukah, and it’s often referred to as the Festival of Lights.

During this holiday, candles on the Menorah (candleholder) are lit each day of this religious festival to commemorate the Hanukkah Miracle — an event where the olive oil in the Second Temple’s menorah burned for eight days, although there was only enough oil for the candles to burn one day.

Bodhi Day: Buddhist

Bodhi Day is an important event in the Buddhist religious calendar. It marks the day that Siddhartha Gautama reached enlightenment after meditating under a Bodhi tree for 49 days. After he reached enlightenment, he became known as the Buddha.

Bodhi Day is celebrated by Buddhist all over the world and is one of the main festivals of Buddhism, which is one of the five World Religions. The religion is practiced by roughly 500 million people worldwide

Our Lady Guadalupe: Mexico

The Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe, is celebrated to honor the belief that the Virgin Mary appeared before a man in Mexico City, in 1531. According to the Basilica’s recorded history, “The Perfect Virgin Holy Mary Mother of God, our Queen, miraculously appeared out at Tepeyac, widely known as Guadalupe.”

For Mexicans and Mexican-Americans as well as other Latinos, Our Lady of Guadalupe is a powerful symbol of devotion, identity, and patriotism. Her image inspires artists, activists, feminists and the faithful. Catholics all around the globe celebrate Our Lady of Guadalupe Day in parishes with Mass, dancing, and celebration. 

Yule: Wicca

This observance occurs during the winter solstice - the longest night of the year – and the rebirth of the sun, which is life sustaining, is celebrated. In the northern hemisphere, the winter solstice has been celebrated for millennia. The Norse peoples, who called it Jul, viewed it as a time for much feasting and merrymaking. Traditional customs such as the Yule log, the decorated tree, and wassailing can all be traced back to Norse origins. Candles were lit on the tree to represent the sun. 

Christmas: Christian

This day celebrates Jesus Christ’s birth over 2,000 years ago. The earliest celebration of Christmas, or the Feast of the Nativity was held in the year AD 336 in Rome. The term “Christmas” comes from the Old English Cristes Maesse, which means Christ’s mass. Customs include lighting candles, exchanging gifts, and using evergreen decorations to celebrate this day, the most widely observed Christian festival of the year. 

Kwanzaa: African American/Canadian, USA

An annual African American and Pan African holiday celebrated Dec. 26 to Jan. 1, culminating in a communal feast called Karamu, usually on the sixth day. This non-religious holiday was created by activist Dr. Maulana Karenga. It is rooted in both the cultural values and practice of Africans on the Continent of Africa and in the U.S. with strict attention to cultural authenticity and values for a meaningful and productive life.  Kwanzaa was first celebrated in 1966. Families exchange gifts and have African-style feasts. Kinaras (seven-pronged candleholders) are lit on each consecutive night for the seven principles: unity, self-determination, working together, sharing, purpose, creativity, and faith. 

Omisoka: Japan

Omisoka, the Japanese word for New Year’s Eve, is observed on Dec. 31 to celebrate the beginning of a new year with new possibilities. To prepare for the new year many people purify their homes and remove clutter from the last year. This is a time to do a deep cleaning, called “osoji”. People celebrate with giant feasts of traditional Japanese food with family and friends. Then at 11 p.m. many gather to have one last meal of toshinoshi-soba (noodles). This stems from the belief that eating long noodles will give you a long life and help cross from one year to the next. As midnight approaches, Shinto temples around the country begin ringing out the old year, sounding the temple bell 108 times, signifying the 108 human worldly desires removed by the striking of the bell.