Ongoing Initiatives
Santa Series
Rochester NH's holiday lineup: Shop Small Saturday with Santa, the cookie raffle, and Elf Off The Shelf, late November through December.
When the holidays arrive, downtown Rochester lights up with the Santa Series, our lineup of seasonal traditions including Shop Small Saturday, Elf Off The Shelf, and more, with Santa himself making the rounds of downtown shops.
Shop Small Saturday with Santa
The series opens on Small Business Saturday, when Santa helps kick off the holiday season downtown from 1 to 4 pm with visits and photo opportunities. Local businesses take the lead with deals, treats, and activities of their own, and the cookie raffle replaces the old cookie crawl: bring Santa a cookie to taste and you’re entered to win, so the whole district gets a little sweeter without the queue.
Elf Off The Shelf
From early to mid December, elves hide in public places, inside businesses, and in windows all over the downtown. Grab a passport, write down where you find each elf, and trade the passport in to Santa for raffle tickets, one per elf, five more if you bring a new toy for Holiday’s On The Hill. It’s the Bigfoot Scavenger Hunt’s winter cousin, and it sends families into every corner of the district.
Why the series matters
The Santa Series gives families a reason to spend the season on Main Street and gives our small businesses their most festive, and busiest, stretch of the year. Every tradition in it exists to put foot traffic past local storefronts in the months they need it most.
Businesses that want to host an elf or join the Santa lineup can contact us; the Promotion Committee plans the series each fall.
Santa Series: your questions answered
When is Santa in downtown Rochester?
On Shop Small Saturday, the Saturday after Thanksgiving, Santa is on site from 1 to 4 pm for visits and free photos. He's back on Central Square in December, when Elf Off The Shelf passports get traded for raffle tickets.
How does Elf Off The Shelf work?
From early to mid December, elves hide in downtown businesses and windows. Write down where you find each one on a passport and each elf earns a raffle ticket; bring a new toy for Holiday's On The Hill and earn five more.
More ongoing initiatives
Clean-ups
Rochester Cares each spring plus year-round litter sweeps, Riverwalk weeding, and graffiti cleanup keep downtown Rochester NH welcoming.
Halloween Decorations
Scarecrows on the lamp posts and seasonal decor turn downtown Rochester NH into a Halloween destination all October long.
Student Art Walk
A two-part program with local schools that hangs student art in downtown Rochester NH storefronts and hides painted rocks across the district.
