Thanksgiving in Boston with Kids: Turkey Trots and Plymouth

Turkey trots that take kids

Three Thanksgiving-morning races. Andover's Feaster Five has its own kids' run; Franklin Park lets children 5 and under in free.

• Franklin Park Turkey Trot — BostonVisit official site →

  Start: Franklin Park Golf Clubhouse, 1 Circuit Drive, Dorchester

  The Franklin Park Coalition's chip-timed 5K through the city's biggest park, with awards for the fastest stroller and the fastest dog.

  Dates

  • Thursday, November 26, 2026
  • 5K 9am; race-day number pickup from 7:30am

  Tickets

  $34.30 through October 31, then $41.72; ages 6–17 $18, then $21; fees included. Ages 5 and under free, no registration

  Know before you go

  • Sold out each of the last five years — register ahead
  • Strollers, wheelchairs and leashed dogs welcome
  • Parking at the clubhouse, along Circuit Drive and by the zoo's rear entrance

  Who it's for

  A family doing one 5K together, stroller and dog included

  Skip if

  Your kids want a race of their own — there is only the 5K

• Feaster Five — Andover, MAVisit official site →

  Andover's Thanksgiving road race — a 5-mile run, a 5K and a walk — with Sidney's Rainbow Run, a kids' fun run, before it.

  Dates

  • Thursday, November 26, 2026
  • Kids Fun Run 7:45am
  • 5 miles, 5K and walk 8:30am

  Tickets

  Kids Fun Run $12.99; 5K and 5 miles $49.85, rising to $53.85; fees included. Kids 12 and under get $10 off the 5K

  Who it's for

  A child who wants a race of their own, with parents running the main event after

  Skip if

  Your mornings start slowly — the kids' run is at 7:45am

• Gobble Gobble Gobble — SomervilleVisit official site →

  Start: Seven Hills Park, Davis Square

  A 4-mile course that starts and finishes in Davis Square, in its 30th year.

  Dates

  • Thursday, November 26, 2026
  • 4 miles, 9am

  Tickets

  $48.70 with fee through October 31; $49 plus fee from November 1, while places last

  Who it's for

  Teens and older kids who can run 4 miles

  Skip if

  You need a kids' race — there isn't one

What is open on Thanksgiving Day

Plimoth Patuxet is the big family outing open on Thanksgiving, with sit-down dinners by ticket. In the city, the Museum of Science and Franklin Park Zoo close.

• Museum of Science: closed; it closes at 2pm the day before
• Franklin Park Zoo: closed
• Snowport: closed; open again Friday
• New England Aquarium and Boston Children's Museum: no 2026 Thanksgiving hours posted yet

• Plimoth Patuxet Museums — Plymouth, MAVisit official site →

  137 Warren Avenue

  Plymouth's living-history museum, with the Mayflower II and a grist mill as separate sites, and a Thanksgiving dinner program every autumn.

  Dates

  • Open seven days a week, 9am–5pm, through Sunday, November 29 — the season's last day
  • The Story of Thanksgiving dinner: Thanksgiving Day at 11am, 2:30pm and 6pm
  • Thanksgiving Day Homestyle Buffet: 11am, 1:30pm and 4pm

  Tickets

  Museum $35 adults, $20 children. Story of Thanksgiving dinner $131, $70 under 12, $50 under 5; buffet $100, $65 and $43

  Know before you go

  • Online museum tickets are good for the rest of the 2026 season
  • Dinners are sold ahead online, by sitting

  Who it's for

  School-age kids who have just learned the Pilgrim story in class

  Skip if

  Thanksgiving dinner is at home — the dinners are the reason to go that day

Plymouth's parade: the Saturday before Thanksgiving

America's Hometown Thanksgiving Celebration falls the weekend before the holiday. Its parade is Saturday morning, on the waterfront.

• America's Hometown Thanksgiving Parade — Plymouth, MAVisit official site →

  Downtown Plymouth waterfront

  Plymouth's Thanksgiving parade through downtown, more than 20 musical groups strong, with a Holiday Village, concerts, a Children's Pavilion and waterfront activities around it.

  Dates

  • Saturday, November 21, 2026
  • No 2026 start time posted yet

  Who it's for

  Any age — a parade and a Children's Pavilion cover toddlers to tweens

  Skip if

  You want a Thanksgiving Day outing — this is the weekend before

Thanksgiving weekend: what opens Friday

The holiday season starts the day after Thanksgiving. Snowport reopens and Boston Ballet's Nutcracker opens.

• Snowport Holiday Market — Seaport, BostonVisit official site →

  100 Seaport Boulevard

  A waterfront market of 125+ makers, with food stalls, cocktail bars and a crafting corner.

  Dates

  • Closed Thanksgiving Day; open Friday, November 27, 11am–9pm
  • Saturday 10am–9pm; Sunday 10am–8pm
  • Daily through December 27

  Who it's for

  Families who want an evening out on the waterfront

  Skip if

  You need the weekday — Monday to Thursday it opens at 3pm until December 7

• Boston Ballet's Nutcracker — Downtown BostonVisit official site →

  Citizens Opera House

  Mikko Nissinen's production, with the Boston Ballet Orchestra and 83 Boston Ballet School students on stage.

  Dates

  • Opens Friday, November 27; runs through December 31
  • Sensory-friendly performance: Friday, December 4 at 1:30pm

  Tickets

  Boston Ballet is the only official seller — buy at bostonballet.org

  Who it's for

  Four and up, if two hours in a seat is realistic

  Skip if

  Sound and light are a problem and the sensory-friendly date has gone

The Common's tree: it arrives Thanksgiving week

Boston's tree from Nova Scotia reaches the Common two days before Thanksgiving and is lit a week after it.

• Arrival: Tuesday, November 24, around 11am, under police escort
• Lighting: Thursday, December 3, 6–8pm, beside the Visitor Information Center at 139 Tremont Street — free
• Faneuil Hall Marketplace: no 2026 lighting date posted yet