SantaCon 2024 in San Francisco

SantaCon is a flash-mob pub crawl when a large crowd dressed in the costumes of Santa Claus and other Christmas characters traverses from bar to bar.

SantaCon Highlights

Santas gather at Union Square and can then choose from six different routes based on the bars and pubs they'd like to visit. If you're in San Francisco at that time, don your Santa suit, brush up on some Christmas carols, and join the fun starting at noon. Attendees are also encouraged to bring a new, unwrapped toy for the San Francisco Fire Department Toy Program.

Participation

Participation in this SantaCon event is open to anyone aged 21 and over, and it's completely free. No tickets or registration are required to join in the festivities.

SantaCon History

SantaCon is now the ​common pre-Christmas event in different cities of the world. However, it was initiated in San Francisco. The first bar crawl took place in 1994 and was not intended to become annual, yet now it is held every year around mid-December.

Dates

SantaCons typically occur in December, though a few may happen earlier in the year. Most event dates are announced no sooner than September. This year, the San Francisco SantaCon is scheduled for December 14.