Things To Do

Thanksgiving in Cheyenne: Parade, Lights and Where to Eat

Date Published

Illustration of Thanksgiving in Cheyenne with a holiday parade, Depot lights and a harvest table

At a glance

  • Where: Downtown Cheyenne, Wyoming, plus Little America on West Lincolnway
  • Biggest tradition: The Cheyenne Christmas Parade, usually the Saturday after Thanksgiving at 5:30 p.m.
  • Cost: The parade and Capitol Avenue wreath ceremony happen on public Downtown streets with no tickets listed; the Little America buffet is priced per person
  • Heads-up: Thursday is quiet: city offices, buses (in past years) and state museums are closed

Thanksgiving in Cheyenne is a quiet Thursday followed by a busy weekend. The meal happens at home or at a reservation-only buffet such as Little America's, and the public celebration comes on the Saturday after, when the Cheyenne Christmas Parade rolls through Downtown at 5:30 p.m. and the city's Old West Holiday season begins.

This guide is grouped by when things happen: Thanksgiving week, the meal, then the long weekend. Dates for this year sit in one section near the end, because the pattern repeats every year but the exact days move.

Where do I start? The short version

Start with three anchors: the Thanksgiving meal (book early), the Saturday-after parade, and one way to give back. Everything else is a bonus.

  • Meal: Little America's Thanksgiving buffet on West Lincolnway.
  • Giving back: COMEA Shelter, Needs, Inc. and The Salvation Army.
  • Weekend: Lighting the Legacy on Capitol Avenue, the Depot lighting, and the Christmas Parade.

Is there a Thanksgiving morning turkey trot in Cheyenne?

Not one we could confirm. The Cheyenne race that carries the turkey-trot name is the COMEA Turkey Trot 5K and Kids Gobble Wobble, which usually runs on a Saturday in early November, not on Thanksgiving Day, and raises money for the COMEA Shelter. The 5K usually starts at 9:00 a.m. with the kids' Gobble Wobble (ages 3 to 12) at 8:45 a.m., both at the COMEA Shelter, 1421 W. Lincolnway.

The Windy City Striders Turkey Trot does run on Thanksgiving Day, but that club is based in Casper, well north of Cheyenne, so it is a road trip rather than a local option. If you want a Thursday-morning walk, the grounds at the Cheyenne Botanic Gardens are open dawn to dusk and admission is free. The Gardens are at 710 S. Lions Park Drive.

Check the COMEA race page for the current year's date, and see the Cheyenne weather page before you commit to an outdoor start.

Thursday morning: pick one

The morning option is the Botanic Gardens grounds, a free stroll. The Botanic Gardens conservatory has its own hours (typically Tuesday to Saturday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., September to May), so do not count on it being open Thursday; check the official site first.

If you would rather help, call COMEA Shelter at (307) 632-3174. The shelter serves dinner at 6 p.m. daily and its site lists volunteer and donation pages, but it does not post a Thanksgiving schedule, so ask what the holiday needs are.

The meal: where to eat on Thanksgiving in Cheyenne

Little America Hotel & Resort Cheyenne

Little America, at 2800 West Lincolnway on the west side near the I-80 corridor, lists a Thanksgiving buffet in its Grand Ballroom. The hotel's holiday page describes a festive buffet of holiday favorites and seasonal specialties on Thanksgiving Day. The buffet page lists reservations from 10 a.m. with last seating at 4 p.m., separate adult and child pricing (children under 4 eat free), bottomless mimosas included, and complimentary photos with Santa in the ballroom. Yes, Santa shows up in Cheyenne before the turkey is even carved. Book by phone at 307-775-8400 or through OpenTable. Prices and times change, so confirm on cheyenne.littleamerica.com.

Cook at home, shop ahead

Most Cheyenne restaurants and shops close or cut hours on Thursday, and we could not confirm any other Cheyenne restaurant's Thanksgiving menu from its own site. Call before you plan on a place. Our food and dining listings are the place to browse for the long weekend once regular hours resume.

Free community meals

We could not confirm a public Thanksgiving Day community dinner on any official Cheyenne page. The Salvation Army's Cheyenne Corps Community Center, at 601 E. 20th Street, does not list one online, so call 307-634-2769 for this year's plan rather than assuming. COMEA Shelter serves dinner to its guests at 6 p.m. every day of the year.

How can I volunteer at Thanksgiving in Cheyenne?

Start with these three Cheyenne organizations, and ask early, since holiday slots fill.

  • COMEA Shelter, 1421 W. Lincolnway: serves dinner at 6 p.m. daily, and its site has volunteer and donate pages at comeashelter.org.
  • Needs, Inc., 900 Central Avenue: a food pantry with a volunteer page and Holiday Meals and Holiday Gift Assistance programs listed at needsinc.org. Needs, Inc. is closed Friday to Sunday and on federal holidays, so drop donations Monday to Wednesday of Thanksgiving week or earlier. Its pantry typically runs Monday to Thursday, and the office closes for an hour at lunch.
  • The Salvation Army Cheyenne corps, 601 E. 20th Street: call 307-634-2769 about Thanksgiving help.

The statewide Food Bank of Wyoming, part of Food Bank of the Rockies, lists giving and volunteering options on its official site, though we found nothing specific to Cheyenne there.

The long weekend: how the holiday season opens

The public traditions are concentrated on the Saturday after Thanksgiving, with a kickoff the weekend before. They are branded as Old West Holiday by Visit Cheyenne.

Lighting the Legacy, Capitol Avenue

Visit Cheyenne's Old West Holiday page describes Lighting the Legacy as an early-evening Saturday event on Capitol Avenue in which the Mounted Marshals ride and volunteers place wreaths on Cheyenne's bronze statues. It happens on the street, so it pairs well with a walk through Downtown.

Depot lighting ceremony and holiday night market

The Downtown Development Authority lists a lighting ceremony at Depot Plaza on the same Saturday as Lighting the Legacy, paired this year with a holiday night market, a 17th Street stroll and a wreath-laying procession. Details are at downtowncheyenne.com/events. The Depot itself holds the Cheyenne Depot Museum at 121 W. 15th Street.

The Cheyenne Christmas Parade

The Cheyenne Christmas Parade is held Downtown on the Saturday after Thanksgiving, typically at 5:30 p.m., and Visit Cheyenne bills it as the debut of Santa for the season. Arrive early, dress for a Wyoming November night and check for a current route map on Visit Cheyenne's parade page, since the posted map has been an older edition. You watch from the Downtown sidewalks, and the official page lists no tickets.

Later in the season

Photos with Santa, letter writing with his elves, a chance to meet Santa's horses and the Running of the Santas (a 21-and-over costumed run) fill December Saturdays, listed on the same Visit Cheyenne and Downtown Development Authority pages. See events and this weekend for what is on now.

What is open and closed on Thanksgiving Day?

Assume most public services are closed on Thursday and reopen Friday or Saturday.

  • Cheyenne Transit Program (CTP): the city's notices for the last two years said offices were closed on Thanksgiving and the day after and that buses did not run. We could not confirm this year's notice, so call 307-637-6253.
  • Wyoming State Museum, 2301 Central Avenue: its site says it is closed on state holidays, so plan on it being shut for Thanksgiving and call ahead about Friday. It is typically open Monday to Saturday, 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
  • Cheyenne Depot Museum, 121 W. 15th Street: regular hours run seven days a week (shorter on weekends), but the official site does not mention Thanksgiving. Call 307-632-3905.
  • Cheyenne Frontier Days Old West Museum, 4610 Carey Avenue: lists daily 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. hours but does not state a Thanksgiving closure. Call (307) 778-7290.
  • Nelson Museum of the West, 1714 Carey Avenue: from November 1 to May 1 it is open only for special events.
  • Needs, Inc.: closed federal holidays.

This year's dates

These come from the official Visit Cheyenne and Downtown Development Authority pages and apply to this year only.

  • Thursday, November 26: Thanksgiving Day and the Little America buffet; Cheyenne Transit has not posted a holiday notice yet, so call ahead.
  • Saturday, November 21: Lighting the Legacy at 4:30 p.m. on Capitol Avenue, and the Cheyenne Depot lighting ceremony and holiday night market at Depot Plaza.
  • Saturday, November 28: Cheyenne Christmas Parade at 5:30 p.m.
  • Saturday, December 12: Running of the Santas, with registration at 3 p.m. and the start at 4 p.m. at Railspur, 707 W. Lincolnway.

Save this: a Thanksgiving week checklist

  1. Book the buffet at Little America (307-775-8400) or plan your home meal.
  2. Drop pantry donations at Needs, Inc. on a weekday before Thanksgiving.
  3. Call COMEA Shelter and The Salvation Army about holiday volunteering.
  4. Check Cheyenne Transit status if you rely on the bus.
  5. Saturday before: Lighting the Legacy on Capitol Avenue, then the Depot.
  6. Saturday after: stake out a parade spot Downtown before 5:30 p.m.

How we chose

We included only Cheyenne places and events whose own sites or official event pages confirmed they exist and are active. Where an official page was silent about Thanksgiving, we say so and give a phone number instead of guessing. We left out restaurants we could not confirm from their own sites.

Last verified: November 2026.

Frequently asked questions

When is the Cheyenne Christmas Parade?

The Cheyenne Christmas Parade is held Downtown on the Saturday after Thanksgiving, typically at 5:30 p.m. Visit Cheyenne bills it as Santa's grand debut for the season, and you watch from the Downtown sidewalks.

Is there a turkey trot in Cheyenne?

The COMEA Turkey Trot 5K and Kids Gobble Wobble benefits the COMEA Shelter at 1421 W. Lincolnway, but its registration page shows a Saturday in early November rather than Thanksgiving Day. Check the race page for the current date.

Where can I eat Thanksgiving dinner in Cheyenne?

Little America Hotel & Resort Cheyenne, at 2800 West Lincolnway, lists a Thanksgiving buffet in its Grand Ballroom, with reservations by phone at 307-775-8400 or OpenTable. Call any other restaurant first, since we could not confirm others from their own sites.

How can I volunteer on Thanksgiving in Cheyenne?

COMEA Shelter, Needs, Inc. and The Salvation Army all have Cheyenne locations and volunteer or donation contacts. Contact them a few weeks ahead to ask about holiday needs.

Do Cheyenne buses run on Thanksgiving?

In the last two years the City of Cheyenne announced that Cheyenne Transit Program buses did not run on Thanksgiving. Call 307-637-6253 to confirm this year's schedule.