Potomac doesn't have a town square, so its holiday season has collected somewhere else. This year a small lawn at 11325 Seven Locks Road holds more of the neighborhood's late-November and December calendar than any other address. Cabin John Village's Community Green has a Small Business Saturday market, a Chanukah celebration and a weekly live-music night that doesn't take a winter break. Before the season gets there, it starts this weekend on Bradley Boulevard.
Mayfield Market Opens the Season This Saturday
The first weekend belongs to Mayfield Market, Connelly School of the Holy Child's holiday sale at 9029 Bradley Blvd. Bethesda Magazine's 2026 roundup of Montgomery County holiday markets reports that the school has run the market for 22 years and that this year it has more than 40 boutique vendors, including Georgetown Paperie and Cross My Heart Designs.
The two days run differently, so pick based on who's coming:
- Saturday, Nov. 21, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Full shopping hours, plus Tiger Bakery, a community bake sale with homemade cakes, cookies, breads and pies, open this day only.
- Sunday, Nov. 22, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Shorter hours, and Santa is there for visits and photos from 10 a.m. to noon.
If you want the bake sale, go Saturday. If you're bringing small children, go Sunday morning. Neither day covers both.
After Thanksgiving, Most of the Dates Are on Seven Locks Road
The week after Mayfield is Thanksgiving week, and the Potomac Community Recreation Center closes early, at 6 p.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 25. Two days after Thanksgiving, Cabin John Village holds its Small Business Saturday Holiday Market on the Community Green, with local makers and vendors, kids' activities and live music all day.
After that, the green keeps hosting events. Here are the dates the center has posted for the rest of the season:
| Date | Event | Time | What it is |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sat., Nov. 28 | Small Business Saturday Holiday Market | 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. | Local makers and vendors, kids' activities, live music |
| Thurs., Dec. 3 | The Grove: Live Music Thursdays | 5 to 8 p.m. | Live music and extended happy hour specials |
| Wed., Dec. 9 | Glow in the Dark Chanukah Spectacular | 5 to 6:30 p.m. | Hosted by Chabad Potomac on the Community Green |
| Thurs., Dec. 10 and Dec. 17 | The Grove: Live Music Thursdays | 5 to 8 p.m. | Weekly series continues |
| Thurs., Dec. 24 and Dec. 31 | The Grove: Live Music Thursdays | 5 to 8 p.m. | Listed on the series calendar |
The Chanukah Spectacular falls on a Wednesday evening and lasts 90 minutes, which makes it an easy after-school stop. Chabad Potomac posts more details at ChabadPotomac.com.
The last two December Grove dates are Christmas Eve and New Year's Eve. The Live Music Thursdays calendar shows the series running past both into February 2027, and the center announces each week's musicians on Instagram, so check there for those two holiday nights.
Why the Green Works for This, Even Between Events
Cabin John Village has added several businesses this fall. Its own site lists Glowbar, Hammer & Nails and Macky Hair Salon as "Now Open," and Purée Juice Bar as "Coming Soon." The MoCo Show reported that Hammer & Nails, a men's grooming shop offering barbering and shaving, held its grand opening on Oct. 23 at 7735 Tuckerman Lane, Suite 650.
These are errand-and-appointment businesses, and December is full of errands and appointments. A haircut before a holiday party, a gift picked up at the Nov. 28 market and an evening set at The Grove can all happen at one address. Because the Grove series runs on a fixed weekly schedule, every December Thursday at Cabin John Village has something on at 5 p.m., whether or not there's a market.
Glenstone Follows Its Own Holiday Schedule
Every Potomac household hosting relatives eventually suggests Glenstone. It's free, and it doesn't rely on a holiday-themed event to be worth the trip. Its schedule has a few quirks this season, and they're easy to miss when you're planning around guests.
Glenstone is open Thursday through Sunday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. It closes on Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year's Day. This season, all three of those holidays land on days it would normally be open:
- Thanksgiving, Thursday, Nov. 26. Closed. Friday through Sunday of the long weekend run on regular hours.
- Christmas, Friday, Dec. 25. Closed. The museum is open Thursday, Dec. 24, and again Saturday, Dec. 26.
- New Year's Day, Friday, Jan. 1, 2027. Closed. It's open Thursday, Dec. 31, and reopens Saturday, Jan. 2.
Tickets are what trip people up. Glenstone releases tickets at 10 a.m. on the 1st of each month, for that month and the next. December tickets have been out since Nov. 1. January tickets, the ones you'd need for guests staying through New Year's, come out at 10 a.m. on Tuesday, Dec. 1. Last ticketed admission each day is 3:15 p.m.
A few house rules matter for a family group. Visitors must be 12 or older. The Café serves from 10:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. The Bookstore in the Arrival Hall doesn't require a ticket. When the wind chill falls below zero, some trails and outdoor sculptures close. That last rule makes a cold-snap visit a mostly indoor one, and on a mid-December weekend that's useful to know before you promise anyone the Woodland trail.
Potomac Village Is Changing Hands This Season
The crossroads at River Road and Falls Road is the closest thing Potomac has to a traditional village center, and this winter two of its River Road storefronts are changing hands. Sprinkles, the ice cream shop at 10148 River Road since 1989, closed at the end of June. On Sept. 30, The MoCo Show reported that permanent Playa Bowls signage was up on that storefront, with an opening expected by year-end.
Next door in the Potomac Place shopping center, Maurizio's, a modern Italian concept with what it calls a "coastal" flair, is set for the former Renato's space at 10120 River Road, according to Bethesda Magazine. That puts it alongside Duke's Grocery, The Market at River Falls and Chipotle in that center. The same report notes that one of its owners is the nephew of the owner of Tally Ho, the diner across River Road, and that he and his partners worked there.
This turnover is why the holiday calendar has shifted south. The Village is replacing storefronts, while Cabin John Village has a green, a programmed schedule and a set of new tenants that suit errands. For the next six weeks, the dated events are at Cabin John.
Two More Dates Outside the Shopping Centers
Not everything happens on the green. The Potomac Library is hosting Crafternoon, open art play for preschool and elementary-age children, on Tuesday, Dec. 8, from 5 to 6 p.m. That's the evening before the Chanukah Spectacular, so families with young kids could make a two-night week of it. The Potomac Community Recreation Center keeps its drop-in schedule going into December, including Basketball – Family Drop In for all ages on Tuesday, Dec. 1, from 2:30 to 6 p.m. That's a good rainy-afternoon option the same week January Glenstone tickets go on sale.
If you're planning a holiday open house and want a second opinion on timing, presentation or what buyers in your part of Potomac are asking about this winter, Pearlman Meekin & Co. is glad to talk it through with you, preferably before the Nov. 28 market takes over your Saturday. Book a consultation.
