Salina Downtown will ring in the holiday season this weekend. Two of the biggest events of the year are on Saturday.

Historic Salina Downtown’s signature event, the annual Christmas Festival and Parade of Lights are an all day family-friendly event sure to entertain the young and old alike.

The day begins with a the Frosty 5 K Run, and ends with the parade of lights.

In between are a wide variety of activities. Enjoy cookies with Mrs. Claus, pictures with Santa, antique fire truck sides, horse drawn carriage rides, train rides, face painting, letters to Santa, and a live nativity.

With construction complete, the parade will be on Santa Fe, heading south from Elm Street to Prescott.

To celebrate the conclusion of the downtown construction the City Manager, City Commission, Salina 2020, Salina Downtown Inc., the Salina Area Chamber of Commerce, and Smoky Hill Construction, LLC (contractor) will hold a plaque dedication and ribbon cutting ceremony at Philips Plaza, (between Iron Street and Ash Street on Santa Fe Ave.), on Saturday at 4:30 p.m.

The four overhead structures located on Santa Fe Ave. will be lit with colored lights for the first time at 6 p.m. to coincide with the beginning of the Parade of Lights.