Winterfest Has Outgrown Its Pilot Year. Planning a Night at Brown's Chapel Park Now Starts in November

When does an event at the park around the corner start asking you to plan ahead? Reston Association's Winterfest got there fast. It returns to Brown's Chapel Park for its fourth year on Thursday, Dec. 3 through Saturday, Dec. 5, from 5 to 9 p.m. each night. According to Fairfax County Times, the first edition drew about 5,000 people. In a December 2025 email, RA said more than 10,000 people came to last year's festival.

That means the crowd roughly doubled in two years, and it all happens in one neighborhood park off Baron Cameron Avenue. This much growth changes how the evening works for the people who live closest to it. Tickets, parking and the new children's area all reflect an event that RA now runs as a ticketed festival. With three weeks to go, most of the planning is done from your kitchen table, well before you put on a coat.

From a Santa in the Lake House to a Three-Night Festival

Winterfest is younger than many of the traditions it now sits beside on the December calendar, and it has grown each year.

RA called 2023 its pilot year when it previewed the second edition, and it said then that it expected 2024 to be bigger. In 2023, Santa was a separate ticketed experience indoors at the Lake House. Now photos with Santa are free and part of the outdoor event. In three years, Winterfest has gone from a trial run to what RA's Director of Recreation Services Laura Kowalski called, in the association's announcement, "one of Reston's favorite holiday traditions."

Why a Free Event Still Requires a Ticket

The biggest practical change from walking over to a park event is the ticket. Every attendee needs one, including Reston Association members and Recreation Passholders, who get in at no charge. Nonmember tickets cost $20 for adults 18 and older and $10 for children ages 3 to 17. Children 2 and under are free. Tickets went on sale at noon on Thursday, Oct. 15, through RA's Winterfest page.

A few details on RA's event listing matter for households:

• Members who reserve free tickets in advance skip registration at the gate.
• Each purchase is limited to people in your household.
• Anyone who needs extra tickets, or needs to add someone to their household, is directed to RA Member Services.
• RA may ask for proof of residency to confirm member status.

The household rule is easy to miss if you plan to bring visiting relatives or the neighbors' kids. Sorting out tickets for guests is something to do in November, before Thanksgiving visitors arrive.

The Polar Play Park Grew Out of Requests From Families

This year's addition responds directly to the crowd Winterfest now draws. The Polar Play Park brings ice carvings, interactive ice games and what RA calls "frosty fun for visitors of all ages," weather permitting. RA spokesperson Cara O'Donnell explained the reasoning to FFXnow:

"The play park will be introduced this year as a result from community feedback expressing [a desire for] additional activities for children. We also will have a DJ and snowmaking at different times of the evening in the polar play park (provided Mother Nature doesn't give us her own snow)."

The rest of the evening keeps what families already know. There's the half-mile Light Up the Park walk through thousands of lights, the Grinch's Village, free photos with Santa, and fire pits with marshmallows for roasting. Since the snowmaking runs at set times through the evening, families with young children may want to plan their route around the play park rather than finish there.

Getting to Brown's Chapel Park From North Reston

FFXnow lists the park at 1525 Brown's Chapel Road. For neighbors near Baron Cameron Avenue, Lake Anne and Lake Newport, it really is close by. That convenience shaped how RA handled traffic in earlier years. In 2024, Fairfax County Times reported that the park's own parking was closed during the event. Shuttles ran from 4:30 to 9:30 p.m. from Lake Newport Pool at 11601 Lake Newport Road and from Baron Cameron Park at 11300 Baron Cameron Ave.

That was the 2024 plan, and the crowd has grown a lot since then. RA's 2025 listing said parking details would be posted closer to the event. Check reston.org/winterfest for this year's arrangements before your night, especially if you plan to drive. For the 2024 event, Fairfax County Times also reported that Winterfest would run rain or shine, and that RA would contact preregistered guests if extreme weather canceled a night. Reserving ahead also gets you on the list RA can reach.

Eight Food Trucks, and Trees That Go to Neighbors in Need

With dinner hours right in the middle of the event, the food trucks are part of the plan. O'Donnell told FFXnow that RA had confirmed these vendors:

• Big Cheese
• Caffeine Machine
• Himalayan Soul Foods
• Kay's Mini Doughnuts
• Lupita's Taqueria
• Maryland Brat & Butcher Co
• Travelin' Tom's Coffee
• Two Smooth Dudes

The Vendor Village handles holiday shopping. RA's vendor application opened it to businesses, nonprofits, food trucks and local food businesses, and booths have to stay for all three nights. That means a stall you like on Thursday will still be there on Saturday.

The Enchanted Forest is the part of Winterfest that continues after the lights come down. Local businesses, community groups and families sponsor decorated trees. After the event, the trees are donated to Reston families in need, a program supported by Friends of Reston. RA reported that all 60 trees from 2025 were donated and distributed. Individuals and organizations can still use the tree sponsorship form. For a neighborhood group or a block of neighbors, sponsoring a tree together is a way to be part of the night that lasts past Dec. 5.

Where Winterfest Falls in Reston's Holiday Calendar

Winterfest now sits inside a busy few weeks across Reston. FFXnow's Nov. 6 report lays out the nearby dates:

1. Tuesday, Nov. 10: The new planned opening date for the Reston Town Center ice rink, moved from Nov. 6.
2. Friday, Nov. 27: The Holiday Parade and tree lighting at Reston Town Center.
3. Thursday, Dec. 3 through Saturday, Dec. 5: Winterfest at Brown's Chapel Park, 5 to 9 p.m.
4. Sunday, Dec. 6: Run With Santa 5K at Reston Town Center.

The Town Center events are in the downtown core. Winterfest happens in a neighborhood park, and RA says it's free for association members, as long as they reserve tickets first. Thursday is the opening night, and Dec. 3 is three weeks from today.

If you'll be walking the Light Up the Park loop this year and wondering how your street fits into North Reston's next chapter, I'd love to talk it over. Eve Thompson has spent more than two decades in Reston, much of it in Lake Anne. Request a free home valuation from All Reston Real Estate and you'll get a neighbor's read on your home along with the numbers.