The Ainsley House opens its holiday rooms today, Thursday, November 12, for the 32nd year in a row. Most of Campbell's holiday calendar comes back year after year in the same places. The Carol of Lights returns to East Campbell Avenue. Heritage Theatre fills up with dance companies. The Sunday market keeps going right through the holidays. What has changed this year is where you eat between all of it. Several downtown addresses that longtime residents knew by one name now have a different one on the door, and those restaurants sit right beside this season's events.
So this guide lays out the calendar alongside the new places to eat on the same blocks.
The 32nd Ainsley House season starts today
This year's theme is "Hollywood Holiday." Each room of the historic house is decorated around a holiday classic: Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, Elf, The Polar Express and It's a Wonderful Life. Tours are self-guided. A Holiday Boutique sells ornaments, jewelry, scarves and home décor, and it's open whenever the house is.
Here's what to know before you head to 300 Grant St.:
- Tour dates: November 12 through December 20, Thursday to Sunday, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.
- Admission: $12 for adults 18 to 64, $10 for seniors 65 and up, $8 for youth 7 to 17. Museum members get in free.
- One closure: The house is closed on Thanksgiving Day, November 26.
- Photos with Santa: Saturday, November 21, 9 a.m. to noon. The cost is $20, by reservation.
- Holiday Tea & Tour: This is the 32nd annual tea, held December 4 to 6 and December 11 to 13, noon to 2 p.m. Tickets are $70 and you need a reservation.
Tours run from 11 to 3, so the Ainsley House fits best as a late-morning stop, which makes lunch the next question. That's where the downtown changes come in.
Same addresses, different names
The San Jose Blog wrote in late August that downtown Campbell "has spent the past year swapping nameplates faster than a Friday night reservation list." For anyone whose holiday routine includes a sit-down meal downtown, these are the changes that matter.
276 E. Campbell Ave. is now Elia. Opa! left this space, and Elia, a Greek and Mediterranean group that started in Pleasanton, moved in. Its OpenTable listing shows weekend brunch from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. and weekday lunch from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Dinner runs until 10 p.m. Monday through Thursday, until midnight on Fridays and Saturdays, and until 9 p.m. on Sundays. The menu has mezze such as tzatziki, spanakopita and dolmathes, along with grilled octopus, lamb dishes, seafood paella and lobster bucatini.
33 S. Central Ave. is now Honō Izakaya & Sushi. A Bellagio served Italian dinners at this address for more than two decades before it closed. Honō now has the space, with a bar in the middle of the room and a Japanese fusion menu. Honō is set up as an izakaya, built for sharing, with sushi, small plates and charcoal-grilled cooking. It takes reservations online and promotes the space for group dinners. That's handy in December, when office parties and visiting relatives all want a table on the same weekends.
368 E. Campbell Ave. is TRIAL|ERROR's address. Lira, which opened in January 2025, closed after New Year's Eve. Palo Alto Online reported in July that Jason Seele of Los Gatos Soda Works is building TRIAL|ERROR in the old Lira room. It's a modern cocktail bar with small plates to share, and chef Manuel Santillan runs the kitchen. The room seats 110, patio included.
Taken together, the season's familiar events now come with mezze brunch, charcoal-grilled skewers and a new cocktail room nearby, all at addresses that held other restaurants this time last year.
December 5 is the busiest day on the calendar
Saturday, December 5, is the most packed day of Campbell's season. Three separate events cover nearly the whole day, and all three are on or just off Campbell Avenue.
- Noon to 2 p.m.: Holiday Tea & Tour at the Ainsley House. December 5 falls during the first weekend of the tea, so it's a midday option if you've booked a seat.
- 4 to 7 p.m.: Carol of Lights. The free festival takes over downtown at E. Campbell Ave. and N. First St. It has Santa visits, a petting zoo, donkey rides, bounce houses, craft tables, face painting, carolers, free festival snacks and community performances.
- 7:30 to 9 p.m.: Holiday Rockfest at Heritage Theatre. San Jose Rocks presents Holiday Rockfest featuring December People. The theater is at 1 W. Campbell Ave.
The festival ends at 7 and the concert starts at 7:30, both on Campbell Avenue, so you can go straight from one to the other. On a Saturday, Elia's dinner service runs until midnight. That leaves time for a late meal after the show, or an early one before the festival.
The Carol of Lights is worth understanding beyond its schedule. The Downtown Campbell Business Association produces it independently with a group of volunteers, and the event is paid for entirely by donations. Per the organizers, it can only continue because the community supports it. The listing also says the date or time could change, so check the Carol of Lights page the week of the event.
Heritage Theatre fills the rest of December with dance
After December 5, most of the season's evenings happen at Heritage Theatre, mostly with dance. According to the City of Campbell calendar, here's the lineup:
- South Bay Dance Center's Coppélia: Saturday, November 14, 6:30 to 9:30 p.m., and Sunday, November 15, 12:30 to 3:30 p.m.
- Academy of Classical Ballet's A Winter Wonderland: Saturday, December 12, 7 to 9 p.m., and Sunday, December 13, 3 to 5 p.m.
- World Ballet Company's The Nutcracker: Wednesday, December 16, at 7 p.m.
December 12 and 13 is also the second weekend of the Ainsley House tea, which runs noon to 2 p.m. all three days. That makes the Sunday the easiest of the two to fill: tea at noon, then the 3 p.m. Winter Wonderland matinee. The Wednesday Nutcracker is the only big weeknight event of the season. It's also a quieter night to try a downtown table than any weekend in December.
Sunday mornings keep going through every holiday
Even on the downtown blocks that have changed the most, the Sunday Campbell Farmers Market hasn't missed a beat. It runs 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., year-round and rain or shine, on E. Campbell Ave. between Central Ave. and Third St. Urban Village Farmers' Markets says on its updates page that all of its Saturday and Sunday markets stay open on the Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year's weekends. Some vendors may take the day off. For Campbell, that means Sunday, November 29, Sunday, December 27, and Sunday, January 3, all go ahead as usual.
The market ends at 1 p.m. and Elia's weekend brunch runs until 3, so a Sunday market run can end with a sit-down brunch a short walk up the avenue.
The Saturday before the Thanksgiving-weekend market is Small Business Saturday. Downtown Campbell lists it for November 28, 10 a.m. to 11:59 p.m., centered on E. Campbell Ave. and N. First St. The association says it will post a list of deals later in November. The Ainsley House boutique is open that Saturday as well, from 11 to 3, so you can add it to a downtown shopping day.
One detour on the creek trail
If your holiday routine includes walking off a big meal on the Los Gatos Creek Trail, plan around a closure south of town. Santa Clara County Parks lists a closed segment at Vasona Lake County Park, from the fishing-dock area to the junction nearest the Circle Group Area, because a culvert failed. Detour signs are up. Separately, a 100-foot stretch at Los Gatos Creek County Park is closed for unsafe conditions, with a short detour around it. The County Parks closures page was last updated October 28. For current trail status, you can call (408) 355-2200 and press 3.
Planning your Campbell holidays around new restaurants, or wondering how the changes on your block affect your home's value? Brianna follows this part of town year-round and is always happy to talk Campbell, Spanish or English. Reach out to Homes by Brianna and get your free home valuation.
