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The Winter Edit: Food, Wine & Culture

Arizona’s holiday season doesn’t just arrive—it shimmers. November and December bring chef dinners that warm from the inside out, twinkle-lit festivals, makers’ markets that smell like cinnamon and pine, and a few fly-worthy escapes for when wanderlust taps your shoulder. Consider this your cheat sheet to the good stuff: intimate wine pairings, signature culinary nights, tastings and markets, and “around-the-globe” moments worth a quick flight or a road trip playlist.


Skim it, star it, and share it. New events will be added as they pop—so check back, book early, and let the season do what it does best: gather us around a table, under the lights, and out in the cool desert air.

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Wine Dinners, Signature Culinary Experiences, and Tastings

November

  • Wine/chef dinners & collabs

    • Anhelo — Fairchild “Stones” (Nov 4)

    • Stags’ Leap Winery Dinner — The Hermosa Inn (Nov 4)

    • Luna by Giada × Shafer Vineyards (Nov 6)

    • Sullivan’s Steakhouse × Duckhorn (Tucson, Nov 6)

    • COURSE — Four Top Chefs Dinner (Nov 13)

    • Fleming’s — Prime Pours “Rooted in Family” (Nov 14)

    • Rhumb Line Vineyard Pop-Up Dinner (Willcox, Nov 15)

    • Weft & Warp — Passport Wine Dinner (USA theme) (Nov 19)

    • COURSE × DANA Estates (Nov 21)

    • ADERO Scottsdale — Aperture Wine Dinner (Nov 29)

  • Tastings & beverage festivals

    • USA TODAY Wine & Food Experience (Nov 8–9)

    • WestWorld Art & Wine Experience (Nov 8–9)

    • Walkin’ on Main — Verde Valley Wine Consortium tasting (Nov 9/Sat)

    • AZ Barrels, Bottles & Brews — Salt River Fields (Nov 15)

    • Copper State Whiskey Fest — Heritage & Science Park (Nov 15)

    • Fall Sangria Social — Queen Creek Olive Mill (Nov 15)

  • Signature culinary experiences (chef-driven/seasonal menus)

    • Hearth ’61 — Sunday Supper Club: Tour of Italy (Nov 9)

    • Phoenix Pizza Festival — Hance Park (Nov 15–16)

 

December

  • Wine/chef dinners

    • Wigwam Wine Dinner — Taub Family Vineyards (Dec 2)

    • Anhelo × Fairchild Estate & Stones (Dec 4)

    • Vineyards in the Valley VIP Dinners — Francine (Dec 4) & COURSE (Dec 5)

    • Anhelo × CIRQ & CHEV (Dec 5)

    • Vineyards in the Valley: Grand Tasting — Scottsdale Waterfront (Dec 6)

    • Classic French Wine Dinner — Classic Cooking Academy (Dec 6)

    • Luna by Giada — Inglenook 5-Course (Dec 10)

    • Weft & Warp — Passport Wine Dinner: New World (Dec 17)

  • Tastings & beverage festivals

    • (See above: Vineyards in the Valley Grand Tasting, Dec 6)

  • Signature culinary experiences (holiday prix-fixe/menus)

    • Thanksgiving & Christmas resort/restaurant dinners (Biltmore, Royal Palms, The Phoenician, Talavera, LON’s, elements, Francine, Talking Stick, La Fogata, Hearth ’61)

    • New Year’s Eve chef menus (Le Âme/Global Ambassador, COURSE, Weft & Warp, elements, Tía Carmen)

Festivals, Fun, 
and 
Markets

November​

  • Major festivals & city experiences

    • Bentley Scottsdale Polo Championships (Nov 8–9)

    • Hondo Rodeo Fest — Chase Field (Nov 7–9)

    • Arizona Fall Fest — Hance Park (Nov 8)

    • Grand Avenue Festival — Phoenix (Nov 8)

  • Arts, makers, & holiday markets

    • Fountain Festival of Fine Arts & Crafts — Fountain Hills (Nov 14–16)

    • Herberger Theater Festival of the Arts — Phoenix (Nov 15)

    • Phoenix Flea (Holiday Market) — Heritage Square (Nov 29)

    • Scottsdazzle — Shop Scottsdale Saturday (Nov 29)

    • Scottsdale Sparkle Christmas Market — Arizona Boardwalk (Nov 29–30)

    • Holiday Market at The Grounds — Mesa (Nov 29–30)

    • Hometown Holiday Market — Surprise (Nov 29)

    • Prescott Holiday Light Parade & Bonfire — Prescott (Nov 29)

    • Holiday Arts & Crafts Fair — Tucson (Nov 29–30)

    • Made in Tucson Market — 4th Ave/7th St (Nov 30)

  • Lights & holiday attractions

    • Christmas at the Princess — Fairmont Scottsdale Princess (opens Nov 21; runs into Jan)

    • ZooLights — Phoenix Zoo (opens Nov 26; through Jan)

    • Las Noches de las Luminarias — Desert Botanical Garden (Nov 28–30 + Dec)

    • Glendale Glitters Kickoff — Murphy Park (Nov 28–29)

    • Fantasy of Lights Street Parade — Downtown Tempe (Nov 29)

    • Holiday Light Experience + Santa’s Village — Salt River Fields (select nights late Nov–Dec)

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December

  • Arts, makers, & holiday markets

    • Tempe Festival of the Arts (Dec 5–7)

    • Made With Love Market — Merry & Bright at Night (Dec 5–6)

    • Scottsdale Sparkle Christmas Market — Arizona Boardwalk (Dec 7–8)

    • Phoestivus — AZ Center (Dec 12)

    • Phoenix Festival of the Arts — Hance Park (Dec 13–14)

    • Merry Merchantile Market — Scottsdale Civic Center (Dec 13–14)

    • Mesa Christmas Market — Downtown Mesa (Dec 12–14, evenings)

  • Lights & holiday attractions

    • Las Noches de las Luminarias — DBG (Dec 1–30, select nights)

    • Glendale Glitters: Illuminate the Season — Murphy Park (Dec 1–Jan 6)

    • Vertuccio Farms Christmas Fest — Mesa (Dec 1–23)

    • Merry Main Street Ice Rink — Downtown Mesa (daily in Dec)

    • Skate Westgate — Glendale (Nov–Jan)

    • Riparian After Dark — Gilbert (Dec 12–22)

    • Tempe Fantasy of Lights Boat Parade — Tempe Town Lake (Dec 13)

  • Pop-up holiday bars

    • Miracle at Floor 13 Rooftop — Downtown PHX (seasonal)

    • Sippin’ Santa at Bitter & Twisted — Downtown PHX (seasonal)

Sunday Market
Mexican Street Decoration

Around 

the 

Globe

United States

  • San Diego Bay Wine + Food Festival (San Diego, mid-November) — Coastal grand tastings, chef demos, and taco-to-tuxedo energy.

  • Art Basel Miami Beach — Culinary Collabs (Miami, early December) — Michelin guest chef pop-ups, champagne lounges, and art-meets-mixology nights.

  • NYC Feast of the Seven Fishes (Various Italian icons, Christmas Eve) — Course-by-course seafood rituals

  • Christkindlmarkets with Sip Spots (Chicago/Denver/KC, late Nov–Dec) — Glühwein, pretzels, raclette stands

  • Napa & Sonoma Holiday Open Houses (select wineries, Dec weekends) — Library pours, winemaker meet-ups, cocoa-and-cabernet pairings.

​​

International

  • European Christmas Markets (Vienna, Munich, Strasbourg, Prague) — Mulled wine, sausages, pastries; lights reflected on old-world squares.

  • London — Hyde Park Winter Wonderland — Alpine bars, street food chalets, seasonal cocktails.

  • Paris — Holiday Bûche de Noël Trail — Pâtisserie crawl: Pierre Hermé to neighborhood gems; add a 24-hour gourmand route.

  • Tokyo — Illumination Season & Depachika Tastings — Department-store food halls + winter light shows = foodie heaven.

Got an event we should know about?

Email us at krista@eatlovetravelplay.com. we love a good tip!
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