In Avon, Thanksgiving Week Gets Decided the Weekend Before

Thanksgiving week in Avon fits into four days this year. Beaver Creek is scheduled to open on Wednesday, November 25. The Town of Avon's Turkey Trot goes off in Nottingham Park on Thursday morning. Friday brings the Holiday Market to Beaver Creek Village, and on Saturday the tree lighting closes out the week with fireworks.

A locals' discount ends, a holiday dinner order closes, and a race fee goes up, all before the lifts start turning. As of Thursday, November 5, Opening Day is 20 days away, and the deadlines that need a plan fall between Saturday, November 21 and noon on Monday, November 23.

The weekend before is when things close

Here are the dates that come before the holiday, in order:

1. Friday, November 20. Grouse Mountain Grill's website says it reopens on this date after its offseason closure.
2. Sunday, November 22. The Lookout Bar at The Westin Riverfront Resort and Spa offers a 20% locals' discount on the whole bill from 3 to 7 p.m., and it runs through this date, according to the Vail Daily's fall deals roundup. The Westin's current dining listing shows the Lookout Bar closed Sundays and Mondays and open Tuesday through Saturday from 3 to 9 p.m. If that schedule holds, Saturday, November 21 is the last evening you can actually use the discount. Call ahead to check.
3. Monday, November 23, at noon MST. Orders close for Colletta's Thanksgiving to-go meal. It costs $205, feeds three to five people, and you pick it up at Gondola Market on Thanksgiving Day.

The Westin Riverfront appears twice on that list and comes back later in the week. During this stretch, one Avon property hosts the discount that expires, the dinner order that closes, and the sit-down buffet on Thursday.

Wednesday: the lifts and the buses change together

Beaver Creek's signature events page puts the start of the 2026/27 season on Wednesday, November 25, with an Opening Day party from 1 to 5 p.m. It promises fresh tracks, the resort's signature cookies, swag, and live music from DJ Pippen. The resort also notes that the date can change depending on weather and conditions.

Avon Transit moves to its winter schedule that same day. Discover Avon reports that this includes the Skier Express Shuttle, which runs every 30 minutes between Avon Station and Beaver Creek Village. Opening Day, the Holiday Market, and the tree lighting all happen in Beaver Creek Village, so the shuttle from Avon Station reaches three of the week's four big days. Our earlier post on how Avon's winter buses arrive in pieces in late November covers the regional and town systems in detail.

Thursday: a 3K in the morning, dinner in the afternoon

The 2026 Avon Turkey Trot starts in Nottingham Park on Thursday, November 26. Check-in opens at 8 a.m., the race starts at 9:30 a.m., and the event wraps up by 11 a.m. The course is about 3K, looping around Nottingham Lake and onto the Eagle River Trail. Discover Avon says part of the route also follows Riverfront Lane. The town has posted a 2026 route map that marks the start, finish, and bib pickup.

Pre-registration is $20. On race day it's $25, and kids five and under run free. Part of the proceeds goes to YouthPower365. Registration goes through Avon Recreation's online portal, and the town hasn't posted a cutoff for the advance price. Walking counts, and the town encourages costumes. Light refreshments and prizes are handed out after the race.

Thanksgiving dinner options that have posted 2026 details so far look very different from one another:

Colletta's buffet opens at 1 p.m., three and a half hours after the Turkey Trot starts and two hours after the event wraps up. The Ritz-Carlton's listing for WYLD says menu details are coming, and Splendido's holiday page says its 2026 menu will be available soon. Both prices and menus could still change.

Friday: the market, and the cookie date question

The week moves up the hill on Friday, November 27. Discover Avon lists the Holiday Market in Beaver Creek Village from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., with artisan vendors and the village lit up for the season. Charter Steakhouse's website lists the same Friday as its reopening date. That page appears to be older and updated, so check with the restaurant before you plan around it.

The Beaver Creek Cookie Competition has two dates depending on where you look. Discover Avon puts it on Opening Day, with the final judging wave at 4 p.m. and winners announced at 5 p.m. The resort's own events page lists it for Friday, November 27. That page also says guests can check in as official judges, kids can take part as "Judges in Training," and judging spots are limited, so arriving early helps. Since the competition is the resort's event, check Beaver Creek's page in the days before.

Saturday: the skating is in the Village this year

The Beaver Creek Tree Lighting & Ice Spectacular takes place on Saturday, November 28. It runs all day with free ice skating, visits with Santa, holiday crafts, and family entertainment. In the evening there's a skating performance at the rink, then fireworks and the tree lighting. The resort also lists a Retro Skate Party at the village rink during opening weekend, with a live DJ and free hot cocoa, but hasn't given it a date.

That explains why the holiday skating is up the hill. Last winter, Avon didn't open its own rink at all. On February 5, 2026, the town announced there would be no ice skating on Nottingham Lake that season. After an above-average-temperature fall and winter, measurements at the end of January found only three to four inches of white ice under snow and slush. The town's standard, set when lake skating returned in 2020, requires at least 10 inches of black ice before the rink opens to the public.

The same release said the temporary rinks the town once built on the upper athletic field and the west lawn at the Avon Recreation Center will no longer be a standard backup, because of concerns about long-term turf damage. Recreation Director Michael Labagh explained the problem in the announcement: "Natural‑ice rinks require sustained cold periods in order to create safe and dependable ice." The town said it is still committed to skating on Nottingham Lake in future years.

No 2026–27 opening date for Nottingham Lake skating has been announced. The lake needs a long cold stretch, and Thanksgiving comes early in the winter, so the free skating at Beaver Creek on November 28 is the skating you can count on that weekend. The Skier Express runs between Avon Station and Beaver Creek Village.

Five days later, the races start

The Stifel Birds of Prey World Cup comes back to Beaver Creek, with the men's races December 3 to 6 and the women's races December 11 to 13. Our post on why Birds of Prey hits Avon twice this December picks up from there. Until then, the dates to put on the calendar are Saturday, November 21 for the Lookout Bar discount and noon on Monday, November 23 for the Colletta to-go order.

If hosting family over Thanksgiving week has you wondering how a different Avon home, a lock-and-leave condo, or a rental property near the Skier Express route would fit your winters, Michael Ayre is glad to talk it through. We're happy to start that conversation before Opening Day. Schedule a personalized consultation.