"We aren't moving as much as we are making the experience more accessible and growing this tradition that has become uniquely Wisconsin's!" Sarah Sarbacker told WMTV15 News in September, after announcing that the Christkindlmarket her company produces would leave Paoli for Verona this year.
She turned out to be right, though not in the way the headline suggested. The market is coming to Century School Park on Dec. 11–13. Paoli kept its holiday season anyway and stretched it to four weekends, and one of those weekends is Dec. 11–13. So the move gave the Verona area a second market. For anyone in Verona planning December, that changes how the month's weekends fill up.
Three Decembers at Seven Acre, Then a Park in Verona
The Christkindlmarket started in Paoli. Its first year was Dec. 8–10, 2023, at Seven Acre Dairy Co. on the Sugar River Flats. It was back at Seven Acre Dec. 13–15, 2024, and again Dec. 12–14, 2025. The producer is Cherry Blossom Events, and its website still uses a Paoli domain. Sarbacker told WMTV that "Paoli is a big part of our origin story and now, it's Verona's turn to get in on the tradition."
The 2026 market has the same draws as before: holiday shopping chalets, mulled wine, and Santa and Mrs. Claus with their live reindeer. A portion of proceeds goes to Porchlight of Dane County. The new part is the setting. It's a city park a short walk from Verona's Main Street, and it's already on most residents' December calendar.
Paoli Filled the Weekends Itself
Paoli had a holiday market before the Christkindlmarket arrived, and it still has one. Christmas in Paoli bills itself as "Four Weekends of Christmas Magic" and runs Nov. 27 through Dec. 20, 2026. The hamlet becomes a Christmas Village with shopping, holiday food and drink, and winter activities. According to Seven Acre Dairy Co., the market includes Paoli's 13 brick-and-mortar merchants plus eight European-style chalets, with different artisans and makers in the chalets each weekend.
The four weekends are Nov. 27–29, Dec. 4–6, Dec. 11–13 and Dec. 18–20. Hours are Fridays 4 to 8 p.m., Saturdays 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. and Sundays 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Paoli's businesses aren't treating the Verona market as competition. Paoli Road Mercantile, at 6904 Paoli Road, lists its "Wisconsin's Christmas Village!" weekends and asks shoppers to stop in Paoli on their way to or from the Christkindlmarket in Verona on Dec. 11, 12 and 13. Paoli is pitching itself as a second stop on the same trip.
The Weekend of Dec. 11–13
Both markets are open all three days of that weekend. Here are the published details side by side.
| The Christkindlmarket, Verona | Christmas in Paoli | |
|---|---|---|
| Location | Century School Park | Paoli's merchants and chalets |
| Friday, Dec. 11 | 3 to 7 p.m. | 4 to 8 p.m. |
| Saturday, Dec. 12 | 10 a.m. to 7 p.m., with VIP early entry 9 to 10 a.m. | 10 a.m. to 7 p.m., Cookie Crawl at 11 a.m. |
| Sunday, Dec. 13 | 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. | 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. |
| Vendors | 65 makers on the vendor list, plus food trucks | 13 permanent merchants plus 8 rotating chalets |
| Santa | Santa and Mrs. Claus, with reindeer | Santa meet-and-greets Saturday and Sunday |
Paoli closes an hour earlier than Verona on Sunday and opens an hour later on Friday. On Saturday the two have the same hours. Seven Acre Dairy Co. is also holding Santa Brunch seatings on both Dec. 12 and Dec. 13, and a Holiday Butter Making Class with Anna Landmark on Dec. 13.
Century School Park Hosts Two Events in Eight Days
The Christkindlmarket is the second big December event in Century School Park this year. A week before the market, on Dec. 4, the Verona Area Chamber of Commerce's Hometown Holidays Kick-Off runs from 4 to 7 p.m. in the park and the Verona Senior Center. The Holiday Express Trolley shuttles people between the two.
What's happening at each site:
- Century School Park: ice skating, fire pits, concessions and trolley rides from 4 to 7 p.m. The official tree lighting is 5 to 5:30 p.m., with caroling by Resurrection Lutheran Church.
- Verona Senior Center: a chili supper made by the Verona Fire Department, live music, crafts with the library, a scavenger hunt and a hot cocoa and cider truck, all 4 to 7 p.m. Santa visits and cookie decorating run 5 to 7 p.m.
The Chamber asks people to register for the chili supper at 608-845-7414.
The park already gets winter use. Vandewalle & Associates, which designed it, describes a chilled seasonal rink that the city parks department installs over the great lawn. The rink opened for its first season on Dec. 7, 2024. The tree lighting on Dec. 4 and the chalets and reindeer pasture on Dec. 11 will both be set up in that same small downtown park.
Getting Into the Verona Market
Organizers say parking near the park is limited and recommend the shuttles from two Verona lots:
- VAHS Baseball & Softball Lots, 234 Wildcat Way
- VADS Admin Building, 700 North Main St.
Shuttles run Friday 2:30 to 7 p.m., Saturday 8:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. and Sunday 9:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. Each day's service starts before the gates open.
General admission is $5 online in advance plus service fees, or $10 at the gate. Children 10 and under get in free, and one ticket covers the whole weekend. Destination Madison lists a $35 VIP ticket for early entry, a limited one-hour session on Saturday from 9 to 10 a.m. Tickets and the full itinerary are on the Christkindlmarket website.
The reindeer are Dasher, Dancer and Prancer. They'll be in a grazing pasture where children can meet and pet them, with Santa's sleigh nearby for photos.
The Rest of December
The two markets get the most attention, but plenty of smaller events fill the weeks around them.
In Verona, the Verona Area Chamber of Commerce lists:
- Badger Prairie Needs Network community meals on Nov. 21 and Dec. 19
- A Miller & Sons Holiday Open House on Dec. 4–6
- Breakfast with Santa at Lake Ridge Bank, 108 N. Main St., on Dec. 5
Also on Dec. 5, the DECA Holiday Makers Fair runs from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. in the Verona Area High School Atrium, 234 Wildcat Way. That makes Dec. 4–6 a busy weekend in its own right, and it's also Paoli's second market weekend.
In Paoli, Christmas in Paoli starts with a Winter Wine Walk on Friday, Nov. 27, from 4 to 7 p.m., followed by a tree lighting on Saturday, Nov. 28. Santa meet-and-greets are scheduled every Saturday and Sunday of the season. A scavenger hunt is set for Saturday, Dec. 19. Paoli Road Mercantile is open for Small Business Saturday on Nov. 28 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Seven Acre Dairy Co., at 6858 Paoli Road, no longer hosts the Christkindlmarket, but its December calendar is full:
- Santa Brunch: seatings from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Nov. 27–29, Dec. 6, Dec. 12–13 and Dec. 19–24. Prices are $35 for adults, $29 for seniors 65 and up, $15 for kids 4 to 17, and free for kids 3 and under. Reservations are required.
- Holiday Butter Making with Anna Landmark: $85 per person, ages 12 and up. Remaining dates include Nov. 22, Nov. 28, Nov. 29, Dec. 13, Dec. 20, Dec. 22, Dec. 23 and Jan. 3.
- Roth Cheese Fondue Nights: Thursdays, with bookings for Dec. 3, Dec. 10 and Dec. 17.
Seven Acre is offering Santa Brunch every day from Dec. 21 through Christmas Eve. Paoli's last market weekend ends Dec. 20, so families in the area can still find a Santa visit the week after both markets have closed.
Want to know what December weekends mean for a home sale in Verona, when buyers are spending their Saturdays at Century School Park or in Paoli? Talk to Flat Fee Pros. Schedule a free consultation and we'll walk you through timing a winter listing, what our all-inclusive flat fee covers, and how much more of your equity you keep.
