Starting Monday, October 5, Silver Bell Square trims its schedule to what Santa Claus House calls "Destination North Pole & Park Only." It will be open daily from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. through December 31. The summer attractions are done for the year. Antler Academy's last day was September 13. Wrapped and Sugarplums kept Wednesday-through-Sunday hours, and the Pole-in-One! Mini Golf was open on weekends. Those summer schedules end today.
That change is the visible one. Less visible is where North Pole's calendar goes next. Between now and the middle of December, most dated events in 99705 happen away from the summer attraction strip. They take place in a church hall on St. Nicholas Drive, in two school buildings, at a mall on Santa Claus Lane, and out at Chena Lake, which gets a new front door this month. Santa Claus House is part of that calendar too, but only as one stop.
What stays open on St. Nicholas Drive
Santa Claus House at 101 St. Nicholas Drive keeps the same hours it has had since September 14, daily 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. through December 31. It closes on Thanksgiving, November 26, and again December 25 through 27. Silver Bell Square follows the same closures.
Santa himself starts later. His posted 2026 schedule has him at the House daily from November 9 through December 31, apart from those closure days. Santa Claus House adds that the schedule can change without notice. Anyone planning a visit with small children on a specific day should check that schedule the week of the visit.
Letters from Santa follow a looser timeline. The House says personalized letters go out in the first part of December and doesn't publish an exact 2026 mailing date. Ordering in November keeps you clear of that window.
Chena Lake is getting a new entrance as the winter season opens
Most of North Pole's winter outdoor life happens at Chena Lakes. This fall, the Alaska Department of Transportation & Public Facilities is building a new way in. Its Chena Lake Access project adds a new entrance off Plack Road, a 30-space parking lot, and a paved nonmotorized path that connects to the existing facilities on the south side. It also paves Plack Road between Nelson Road and Gordon Road.
The contract sets October 31, 2026 as the completion date. A Borough Parks & Recreation update, reprinted in the Interior Alaska Trails Network's August 2026 newsletter, expected work to start in mid-July and wrap up by the end of October. The latest roadwork record shows crews, trucks and flaggers on Plack Road between Nelson and Gordon, Monday through Saturday from 7 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. In other words, the project is still underway, and we haven't seen an official announcement that it's finished. If you use Plack Road, expect flaggers this month, and check DOT's project page before assuming the new lot is open.
The timing matters because the winter season starts right behind it. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, which runs the Chena River Lakes Flood Control Project, keeps the area open year-round. It charges no general winter fee, but it doesn't maintain the campgrounds and picnic areas in winter. Snowmachines are allowed November 1 through March 31 when there's enough snow, and the Chena Lake multi-use and cross-country trails are groomed under the same condition.
The Borough's winter trail pamphlet separates the trails by use:
- Lake Park, motorized: the Mike Agbaba Multi-Use Trail, including Businessman's Loop and the longer loops beyond it
- River Park, nonmotorized ski routes: Cutoff Loop, Nature Trail, Green Loop and River Loop
So a skier and a snowmachiner can both head to Chena Lake on the same Saturday and end up on different sides of the area.
The ice houses run on the ice's schedule
The Borough rents four ice houses on Chena Lake. They open only once the ice is safe, and the last rental date each year is March 31. Last winter shows how much the start date can move. On December 5, 2025, the Borough's notice said Chena rentals were still waiting on safe ice. On January 7, 2026, it said Ice Houses 3 and 4 were open at a new location. No opening date for 2026–27 has been posted yet.
According to the most recent Borough winter pamphlet, a hut costs $30 a day and comes with pre-drilled holes and a bundle of firewood. Extra firewood is $5 a bundle. That pamphlet carries no print date, so confirm the price when you book.
The same pamphlet says Chena Lake is stocked with rainbow trout, silver salmon and Arctic char. The Alaska Department of Fish and Game's Tanana area fishing report dated September 2, 2026 says nearly 14,000 rainbow trout were stocked this season. That total covers four waters together: Chena Lake, the Chena Hot Springs Road mile 47.9 pond, Cushman Lake and Olnes Pond. The report doesn't give a count for Chena Lake alone.
The bazaar calendar inside 99705
Explore Fairbanks published its holiday market guide on September 24. It lists about three dozen market days across the borough between now and mid-December. Four of them are in North Pole. In order:
- Saturday, October 10. Frost & Fall NPMS Bazaar, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., North Pole Middle School, 300 E 8th Ave.
- Saturday, November 7. St. Nicholas Holiday Bazaar, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., St. Nicholas Catholic Church, 707 St. Nicholas Drive.
- Saturday, November 21. North Pole High School Christmas Bazaar, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., North Pole High School, 601 NPHS Blvd.
- Winterfest Bazaar, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. with fireworks at 6 p.m., North Pole Plaza Mall, 301 N Santa Claus Lane #2. The date is covered in the next section.
The spacing is useful. North Pole's markets fall about a month apart, so there's one hometown option in October, two in November and one in December, with no need to drive to the Carlson Center or Bentley Mall. The November 7 bazaar is on St. Nicholas Drive, the same road as Santa Claus House. Since Santa doesn't start his daily visits until November 9, that Saturday falls just before them.
On November 21, the Fairbanks calendar is crowded. Ryan Middle School, the Bentley Mall Fall Bazaar and the Northern Light Winter Market at the Centennial Center are all running the same day as the North Pole High School bazaar. For shoppers on the east end of the borough, that's the Saturday when staying in town saves the most driving.
Winterfest has two published dates
Winterfest is the high point of North Pole's December, and its 2026 date isn't settled in public listings yet.
The Explore Fairbanks guide lists the Winterfest Bazaar for Saturday, December 12, with fireworks at 6 p.m. The Last Frontier Events listing for "Winterfest 2026" has a different schedule over two days. It puts the bazaar at North Pole Plaza Mall on Saturday, December 5, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., followed by fireworks over Hotel North Pole. On Sunday, December 6, it lists a 2 p.m. celebration in the North Pole High School auditorium with performances, a reading and the coronation of the Winterfest King and Queen. As of early October, neither date appears on the North Pole Community Chamber of Commerce's own calendar.
Last year's edition doesn't settle it either. A Festivals in America listing for 2025 put Winterfest on December 13–14, which doesn't match either 2026 schedule. Until the North Pole Chamber posts a date, the safe plan is to keep both December weekends open. The December 5 Saturday also overlaps the Tanana Valley Farmers Market Holiday Bazaar at the Carlson Center and Weller Elementary's first Winter Bazaar, which may affect your plans if the earlier date turns out to be right.
The temporary welcome center on Santa Claus Lane
One more change is easy to miss on a drive down Santa Claus Lane. The old North Pole welcome cabin, about 60 years old, was torn down after mold was found in it. A temporary center is operating nearby while the Chamber raises money for a 2,200-square-foot replacement on a lot off Santa Claus Lane near North Pole Plaza. Plans call for a historical museum and space where new business owners can try out ideas. As of Alaska's News Source's August 12 report, $1 million to $1.5 million was still left to raise.
The report estimated it could take two to three years to raise the rest before the project moves forward. The planned site is also close to North Pole Plaza Mall, where Winterfest's bazaar sets up in December. Like the Plack Road entrance at Chena Lake, it's an investment in parts of town people use all year.
If you want to keep track of these dates through the season, the City Council's next regular meeting is Monday, October 5, at 6:30 p.m. The agenda includes a user fee schedule, a budget adjustment and an ordinance on access to trash and refuse containers.
Knowing a town's calendar is part of knowing what a home there is like across the whole year: which roads get busy on a Saturday in December, how far it is to Chena Lake once the new entrance opens, and what's within a short drive in the dark months. If you're weighing a move within North Pole or a sale before spring, Daniel Larranaga can walk you through what each part of 99705 is like from October through March. Schedule a free consultation, and bring your questions about the winter months.
