Union Square Great Tree 2026: Lighting Status, Rink, Windows and Muni

This page is for one question: is the Union Square tree lit yet, and what is around it if you go? It covers what is next to the tree this season, how to get there and what last year looked like. For every other light in the city, see our San Francisco holiday lights guide.

The Tree at a Glance

Tree Facts, as Reported for 2025

The numbers below describe last year’s tree. We show them so you know what to expect, and we label them until an official 2026 figure appears.

What Is Around It This Season

• Safeway Ice Rink, 333 Post Street

  4 Nov 2026 – 18 Jan 2027. Hour-long sessions start every 90 minutes.

  Cost: $22; $17 for ages 8 and under; skate rental included

  Checked on the rink’s own site, 6 November 2026. It names Drag On Ice, Silent Skate and Polar Bear Skate but lists no 2026 dates for them (our Polar Bear Skate page has its date). Unconfirmed The rink’s page now says only that hour-long sessions start every 90 minutes. We could not re-confirm the earlier 10am to 11pm daily hours. Do this: Call (415) 295-1588 or check the rink’s site before you go. Source: Union Square ice rink · Checked 6 November 2026.

• Macy’s and SF SPCA Holiday Windows, Macy’s Union Square

  20 Nov – 31 Dec 2026, Wednesday to Sunday, noon to 5pm. Macy’s is closed 26 Nov and 25 Dec.

  Cost: Not stated

  Confirmed. Last checked 12 October 2026 (the SF SPCA’s 40th-year release).

• Free Plaza Programs

  Daily amenities from 4 Nov, 10am to 6pm: Kids Zone, recess cart, big games. Winter crafts on select Thursdays to Sundays, 5 Nov – 17 Jan (Thu and Fri 3–6pm, Sat and Sun 11am–2pm).

  Cost: Free

  Checked on the Alliance’s park programs page, 6 November 2026. The plaza was closed 21 Oct – 3 Nov for the rink load-in. The schedule can change.

• Ornament Trail

  6 – 24 Dec, daily 11am to 6pm. Pick up the guide at the Powell and Market cable car turnaround and find 11 ornaments.

  Cost: Free

  Unconfirmed The Ornament Trail page says December 6 to 24, daily 11am to 6pm, with no year. The Alliance has not announced 2026 dates. Do this: Check the Alliance’s Ornament Trail page before you go. Source: Union Square Alliance · Checked 6 November 2026.

• Bill Graham Menorah

  Chanukah in Union Square, 4 – 11 Dec. First lighting Friday 4 Dec; Menorah Day Sunday 6 Dec.

  Cost: Not stated

  Unconfirmed The Menorah’s own site lists Chanukah in Union Square on December 4 to 11 with no year. Friday 4 December and Sunday 6 December fit 2026. Do this: Check the Menorah’s own site for times before you go. Source: Bill Graham Menorah · Checked 6 November 2026.

• Winter Walk, Stockton Street

  Two blocks of Stockton Street become a holiday market. Last year it ran 13 – 24 December, 11am to 7pm Monday to Wednesday and 11am to 9pm Thursday to Sunday.

  Cost: Free to walk through

  Unconfirmed The Alliance’s news item says Winter Walk returns December 13 to 24 but prints no year, and the same dates ran in 2025. No 2026 dates are announced. Do this: Check the Alliance’s Winter Walk page before you plan around these dates. Source: Union Square Alliance · Checked 6 November 2026.

A Short Evening Plan

1. Afternoon. See the Macy’s and SF SPCA windows before 5pm (Wednesday to Sunday), then let the kids use the free plaza games, open until 6pm.
2. Dusk. Look at the tree from across the plaza, with the rink in front and Macy’s behind it. Book a rink session if you want to skate (sessions start every 90 minutes).
3. After dark. Ride a Powell cable car from Powell and Market, or walk Maiden Lane, where the Alliance’s visitor guide mentions light installations. From 13 December, check Winter Walk on Stockton Street.

Photo spots, our suggestions and not an official list: the plaza edge opposite the rink for the tree and Macy’s in one frame; the Powell and Market turnaround for cable cars; Maiden Lane for its light installations. Go close to dusk, when the sky is still blue.

Getting There

• BART: Powell Street Station, 899 Market Street. BART’s station page says it sits near the cable cars and Union Square. (BART, read 6 November 2026)
• Cable cars: the Powell/Hyde and Powell/Mason lines both start at Powell and Market. SFMTA says you must buy your fare before boarding at Powell and Market (it says this applies from 8am to 8pm daily). See SFMTA cable cars and our cable car guide.
• Bus: the 38 Geary runs 24 hours. Heading outbound it stops at Geary and Kearny, Geary and Stockton and Geary and Powell; inbound it uses O’Farrell Street, with stops near Powell and Grant. (SFMTA 38 Geary, read 6 November 2026)
• Lighting night: SFMTA has posted no 2026 changes. For the Friday-after-Thanksgiving lighting in 2018, its notice said the 2, 3, 38 and 38R would reroute near the event and the Powell cable cars would run as bus shuttles. That is a past notice, not a 2026 plan. Unconfirmed No Muni reroutes or cable car changes are posted for a 2026 lighting. Do this: Check SFMTA’s travel updates on the day. Source: SFMTA travel updates · Checked 6 November 2026.
• Driving: Unconfirmed We have not confirmed garage prices or holiday parking-meter rules for Union Square. Do this: Take BART, Muni or a cable car, or check SFMTA’s parking pages and the garage’s own page. Source: SFMTA parking meters.

More: our Muni and BART guide to events and the Muni one-pager.

What Past Years Looked Like

This is last year’s pattern, not a promise for 2026. The lighting has not always happened on the same day or in the same way.

More Holiday Guides

Also this season: Thanksgiving in San Francisco, the SF Ballet Nutcracker and New Year’s Eve fireworks. Skating, shows and light displays all run on the December calendar.

Sources, all read on 6 November 2026: Union Square Alliance, annual events, park programs, Union Square ice rink, SFMTA, BART, Bill Graham Menorah and the SF SPCA.

Update history

6 November 2026: page created. Read the Union Square Alliance annual events, home and park programs pages, the rink’s own site, SFMTA’s travel updates and 38 Geary pages, BART’s Powell Street page and the Menorah’s own site. No 2026 Great Tree date was published on any of them.