The Arizona Biltmore's Nutcracker Tea was sold out before Thanksgiving week. It takes place in the historic Grand Ballroom with performances from The Arizona Nutcracker, and tickets cost $135 for adults 13 and older and $85 for children 3 to 12. The resort's Nutcracker Tea page now says plainly that "both showtimes on November 29 and December 13 are officially sold out."
The Nutcracker Tea had only two dates, and that's why it sold out. Most of the rest of the resort's 2026 holiday calendar repeats every week, on Thursdays, Saturdays, Sundays or every weekend from late November on. If you live a few minutes from 24th Street and Missouri Avenue, that's the useful part. You don't need one lucky reservation. You can drop in a few times between now and New Year's.
Two dates, so it sold out first
Every event on the Arizona Biltmore holiday page has a schedule, and the scarcest ones went first. The Nutcracker Tea had two Sunday afternoons. The resort calls the Teddy Bear Tea, which also has two dates, "a festive afternoon tea experience" for families, and it's still on sale.
The recurring events are the others. The resort holds gingerbread decorating classes on four Saturdays: November 28 and December 5, 12 and 19. Letters to Santa starts November 28. Sparkle & Stroll: Sip & Shop runs every Friday through Sunday starting November 27. A gingerbread house stands in the lobby all season, and the resort promises live music throughout the property.
The season, sorted by weekday
Put on a weekly grid, the resort's holiday calendar fills almost every day from Thursday through Sunday.
| Day | What's on | Dates and details |
|---|---|---|
| Thursday | Hormel Jazz Series at Wrigley Mansion | Thursdays, 7 to 8:30 p.m., $50 per person, prepaid; no jazz Nov. 26, Dec. 24 or Dec. 31 |
| Friday | Live music at The Wright Bar; Sparkle & Stroll | Bar open nightly 4 p.m. to midnight; Sparkle & Stroll from Nov. 27 |
| Saturday | Gingerbread classes; Wright Bar music; Sparkle & Stroll | Classes Nov. 28, Dec. 5, 12, 19 |
| Sunday | Teddy Bear Tea; Sparkle & Stroll | Tea Dec. 6 and 20, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. |
Thursday takes you up the hill. Wrigley Mansion bills the Hormel Jazz Series as jazz in an intimate living-room setting, with cocktails and food sold separately. December has three regular Thursdays of music, and there's no show on Christmas Eve or New Year's Eve. If you have a Thursday night free in the first half of December, this is the cheapest seat on the resort's holiday calendar.
On weekends the action moves to the main building. The Wright Bar is open nightly from 4 p.m. to midnight and has live music on Friday and Saturday nights, so an early drink there still leaves time for dinner somewhere else on Camelback.
Sparkle & Stroll covers the same three days each week, and the shops behind it have their own hours. The Biltmore Shops are open daily from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., and The Shop runs from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. A Saturday gingerbread class, a walk through the shops and a seat at the Wright Bar as the music starts all fit into one afternoon at the same address.
The tea still on sale, and where the bears go
The Teddy Bear Tea is at Renata's Hearth on Sundays, December 6 and December 20, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Seatings last 90 minutes and cost $129++ per adult and $70++ per child ages 5 to 12. The menu mixes sweet and savory holiday dishes.
The Arizona Biltmore donates a teddy bear to Phoenix Children's for every ticket sold, and guests can keep their own bear. A table of four sends four bears to the hospital.
Next to the Nutcracker Tea's $135 adult ticket, the Teddy Bear Tea comes in slightly lower per adult before the "++" charges. The Nutcracker Tea also had two dates, and both are gone. The Teddy Bear Tea is the resort's other family tea with only two dates, so it's the next one likely to fill.
Christmas dinner leaves from Missouri Avenue
The resort's Christmas Dinner To Go is the one holiday event you take home. It serves four to five people, with a choice of brown sugar-glazed Kurobuta ham or smoked beef brisket, seasonal sides and holiday cookies. The package costs $270 to $299+, including taxes and fees, and you must preorder through OpenTable.
The OpenTable menu lists the sides as a Brussels sprout salad, whipped Yukon potatoes with peppered gravy, Noble sourdough stuffing and green bean casserole. Brisket is a $29 upgrade over the ham.
Pickup is at 2400 E. Missouri Ave. Christmas Eve, a Thursday, has pickup slots from noon through 4 p.m. Christmas Day, a Friday, has a shorter window, from 10 a.m. through 1:30 p.m. For households a short drive away, a Christmas morning pickup has dinner home well before the afternoon.
The resident rate for a night out without leaving town
The Arizona Biltmore runs a Southwest State & Arizona Resident Offer with up to 40% off stays through January 5, 2027. That covers the whole holiday season, New Year's Eve included. Book it by requesting the "Southwest State Offer" or plan code AZLC.
Under the terms, the resort charge drops to $14, self-parking is free, and guests show a valid ID from Arizona or one of the other listed states at check-in. Blackout dates may apply, availability is limited, rates are for single or double occupancy, and cancellations need 72 hours' notice. The offer doesn't apply to existing reservations or groups of 10 or more rooms.
A one-night stay on December 5 or 19 puts a Saturday gingerbread class, Wright Bar music and Sparkle & Stroll within walking distance of your room, with breakfast the next morning before the Sunday crowd arrives. The resort also says all seven of its pools are heated for winter.
Where the season ends
New Year's Eve has two options. The Spire Bar hosts a 21-and-over night with a live DJ and a countdown. The Grand Ballroom holds an evening of live entertainment, dancing and a midnight toast.
The Grand Ballroom is the same room where the Nutcracker Tea sold out this year, and it's the last big ticket on the resort's 2026 calendar. If you're planning ahead, go to the resort's holiday page for the New Year's Eve plans, then Renata's Hearth for the December 20 tea, then OpenTable for a Christmas morning pickup slot.
Hosting family in December is when many of our neighbors around the Biltmore start wondering what the house is worth now. Phoenix Living can give you that number between the gingerbread class and the Wright Bar's evening set. Get your instant home valuation, then get back to the season.
