The 2026 Fitchburg Holiday Lights Tour runs December 11 to 13. This year the sign-up notice spells out a rule up front: "Previous favorites will appear on the map but will not be included on the voting ballot." The rule was already used on tour weekend last year, and the result shows what it takes to win in Fitchburg. Taking a winning house off the ballot doesn't take its street out of the running.
Sign-up is open now on the City of Fitchburg's announcement page. If you've ever looked at your own roofline and thought you could compete with Hollyhock, the record suggests bringing your neighbors along.
Three years, one street
The tour began in December 2020, according to the Fitchburg Star, and by 2023 it had grown into a citywide event. Here's how voting has gone since then:
- 2023. The favorite house was on Osmundsen Road. Hollyhock Street won favorite street, and 52 homes took part, the Star reported.
- 2024. The favorite display was a home on Hollyhock Street, according to the Star's preview of the following season.
- 2025. A different Hollyhock Street home was named Favorite Display. Hollyhock also took Favorite Street "for another year."
So the street prize went to Hollyhock in 2023, again in 2025, and the Star's "for another year" wording points to a streak. The top display came from Hollyhock two years running, and from two different houses. Whatever the neighbors on that block are doing in late November, it works.
Hollyhock didn't win every category, though. The Star's 2025 results story also listed voter favorites on Colleen Circle, Timber Land Circle, Longwood Lane, Sahara Circle, and Romain Road. City staff also told the Star that many decorated homes not on the map "looked ready to join the tour." Plenty of displays are out there, and the ballot rule gives them a shot at the top line.
How the ballot rule works
Last year's preview told entrants their display would go on both the map and the voting ballot. By tour weekend, the Star's event-day story explained it more precisely. Each participating home had a numbered sign for voting, and "returning favorites will have a sign only." That same story counted nearly 50 homes and businesses on the 2025 tour. The 2026 notice puts that practice in writing at sign-up. Past favorites still show up on the map, so they stay part of the drive. They just can't be voted for.
Under that rule, Hollyhock's 2024 winner sat out the 2025 display vote, and a neighbor down the same street took the prize. The prize is a gift basket from local businesses, presented by the Fitchburg Chamber. Removing one house left the block's strength intact.
The notice also pushes the street contest: "Encourage your neighbors to participate and help your street compete for 'Best Street.'" That's where a cul-de-sac like Colleen Circle or Sahara Circle can make its move. Winning the street title means out-registering and out-lighting the most organized block in the city. For your street to compete, your neighbors have to register too, not just decorate.
Getting your house on the map
Registration runs through the city's Holiday Lights Tour Form. It's short, and it asks for:
- Name, Fitchburg address, email, and phone
- Whether you've taken part before
- Your neighborhood
- An optional description of your display and what stands out about it
- Your agreement to a yard sign placed before the event and picked up after
The yard sign is how the voting works. Organizers put a numbered sign at each participating home so visitors can match the house in front of them to the ballot. The spectator map goes online December 9. Last year's form closed Sunday, December 7, a few days before that year's map went live. Plan on a similar window this year and register before the lights go up, not after.
If you're recruiting the block, the fill-in-the-neighborhood question helps. When three or four houses on one circle list the same neighborhood, they show up together on the map, and that cluster gives drivers a reason to turn down your street.
Planning the weekend around the drive
Holiday Jubilee events fill the rest of the weekend around the drive. Last year's preview in the Fitchburg Star quoted Lisa Sanford, executive assistant at the City of Fitchburg, on how people describe the tradition: "They have holiday memories as a child of being piled into the station wagon with their siblings to drive around and view the holiday lights. They're excited to be able to share this tradition with their own families."
Here's the 2026 schedule from Visit Fitchburg and the Chamber:
| Day | Time | Where | What |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fri., Dec. 11 | 5 to 8 p.m. | Agora Fitchburg, 5500 E Cheryl Pkwy | Get Festive with Agora, free |
| Fri., Dec. 11 | 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. | Fairway Lounge | Live music |
| Fri., Dec. 11 | 7:30 p.m. | Four Winds Farm | Madison Bach Musicians' 16th annual holiday concert |
| Sat., Dec. 12 | 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. | Me & Julio | Brunch with the Grinch |
| Sat., Dec. 12 | 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. | Noble Knight Games | Nerd Made Holiday market, 20+ makers and artists |
| Sat., Dec. 12 | Noon to 5 p.m. | Yahara Bay Distillers | Mini market, 24 vendors |
| Sat., Dec. 12 | 6 to 8 p.m. | Fire Station 1, 5791 Lacy Road | Santa and decorated city vehicles |
| Sat., Dec. 12 | 8 p.m. | Thirsty Goat | Karaoke |
| Sun., Dec. 13 | Noon to 2 p.m. | Great Dane | Holiday Drag Bingo & Brunch with Bianca Lynn Breeze |
Friday at Agora is the kickoff. The Chamber's event listing promises carriage rides, cookie decorating, fire pits and s'mores, craft beer and mulled wine, and local vendors in a large heated tent. Since the map is already live by then, you can start the drive from Cheryl Parkway once the s'mores are gone.
Saturday has the most going on. A morning market and an afternoon market add up to more than 40 makers and vendors between Noble Knight Games and Yahara Bay Distillers. After that, the Fire Station 1 event on Lacy Road runs 6 to 8 p.m., right when the lights look their best. The Star reported a record turnout at that event last December despite frigid temperatures. If you want to see Santa without much of a line, get there close to 6.
Sunday is the last day to vote, since spectators can vote "through the weekend." Brunch at Great Dane, followed by the map stops you haven't gotten to yet, leaves time to finish your ballot.
A second Fitchburg vote with an earlier deadline
The lights ballot isn't the only thing Fitchburg is asking residents to weigh in on before the holidays. The city's Park Commission wants names for two new park facilities in the Terravessa neighborhood, at 2788 Frisee Drive and 4783 Romaine Road. Applications and comments go to Parks & Forestry Manager Eric Schreiner by 4 p.m. Friday, November 27. The commission reviews the names December 3, and the Common Council takes up its recommendation December 8, with public comment at both meetings, according to the Fitchburg Star. The application and naming policy are on the city's Terravessa park naming page.
That council vote comes three days before the lights tour kicks off at Agora. If your household is putting up lights and proposing a park name, both sets of paperwork need to be in before the first carriage ride.
Our office is in Fitchburg, so these are our streets too. Whether you're registering your own display or just working out which circles to drive on Saturday night, the team at Accord Realty is happy to talk Fitchburg anytime. If you're also thinking about which part of town you'd like to call home next, we can help with that conversation as well.
