Lighting of the Sonoma Plaza

The night Sonoma switches on the holidays. On the Saturday before Thanksgiving, the town gathers on the historic Sonoma Plaza for local music and dance, food trucks, hot cocoa and cookies, and wine and beer, all leading up to the moment thousands of lights blink on across the square's trees.

The Sonoma Valley Visitors Bureau presents the evening, which begins at 5 p.m. Once lit, the Plaza glows every night through the holiday season.

This is the valley at its most neighborly. The stage belongs to local singers, dancers and bands, and the crowd is mostly Sonoma itself: families, winemakers, shopkeepers, all waiting for the same moment. For a visitor, it is a rare look at a wine town celebrating for its own sake.

It also opens a season worth staying for. The lit Plaza frames every evening stroll through the holidays, and one week later the same square hosts the Lighted Tractor Parade, so a single trip can catch both.