"It's the most wonderful time of the year and the forecast shows Snow!" That's how the City of Pembroke Pines Recreation and Cultural Arts Department announces SnowFest 2026. It's set for Saturday, December 5, from 4 to 8 p.m. at the Charles F. Dodge City Center, 601 City Center Way. The listing promises tons of snow to play in, plus musical entertainment, rides, food trucks and games.
Admission costs nothing. Most of the work happens in November. SnowFest is the one big event this season that asks you to prove where you live, and you have to do that in person before the event. Nearly everything else on the calendar, at City Center and at the shopping centers along the city's west side, asks for a reservation at most. If SnowFest is on your family's December list, the event that sets your schedule is the ticket pickup.
What the Ticket Pickup Requires
The city scheduled ticket pickup to open on Tuesday, November 10, and tickets go first-come, first-served while supplies last. Here's what the city's event listing and its SnowFest announcement require:
- Go in person. Tickets aren't mailed or printed at home. Pick them up at the Pembroke Lakes Tennis Center, 10500 Taft Street, or the TownGate Recreation Center, 901 NW 155th Avenue.
- Bring two documents. You need a driver's license and a utility bill. The calendar listing specifies a Pembroke Pines utility bill.
- Count everyone who's coming. Every attendee needs a ticket, and each household can get up to six. A household with grandparents or cousins visiting for the holidays should plan around that cap.
- Get them before the event. Tickets have to be picked up ahead of December 5. The event is for Pembroke Pines residents only.
Choose whichever of the two pickup sites fits your daily drive. Questions about the event go to the number on the city's calendar listing, 954-392-2116.
Tickets are FREE but need to be picked up IN PERSON with proof of residency (Driver's License & Pembroke Pines Utility Bill) prior to the event.
The capitals in that line come straight from the city's own listing.
December 5 Fills Up on Both Ends of the Day
SnowFest runs from 4 to 8 p.m. Earlier the same Saturday, The Shops at Pembroke Gardens has Brimstone's Breakfast with Santa on its events calendar. The Gardens describes a family morning with breakfast, coloring, decorating, and kids making their own Christmas ornaments to take home. Seats are by reservation.
The breakfast uses a different kind of gate. Brimstone's asks you to reserve a seat. SnowFest asks you to show a license and a utility bill at a city recreation center weeks ahead. A family that books the breakfast and picks up SnowFest tickets in advance can do both on one Saturday. A family that left both until that week will probably have trouble getting into either.
Check the Gardens' listing for the breakfast time before you plan the rest of your day around it.
The Week Before SnowFest
The Gardens has its own early-December event two days before SnowFest. MESPA hosts an afternoon on Thursday, December 3, from 3 to 6 p.m., with champagne, shopping, spa service demos and product samples. It's by reservation too, and MESPA takes inquiries directly.
Most Gardens events work this way. The center puts its seasonal programming inside individual stores and restaurants and caps it with a sign-up. SnowFest is the only event this season that checks paperwork.
What's on Before Thanksgiving
This post goes up on a Thursday, and Thursday is the Gardens' standing night out. Its Thursday Nights at the Gardens program includes Ladies Night at Agave, with free cocktails, beer and house wine for women from 6 to 9 p.m., and extended happy hour specials for women at The Pub starting at 7 p.m.
Two days later, on Saturday, November 21, the city's Pembroke Pines Artisan Market sets up at William B. Armstrong Dream Park, 1700 NW 160th Avenue, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Admission is free, and the listing doesn't mention tickets or residency. It's the city's other holiday-season event, and the opposite of SnowFest in how you get in: show up and walk in.
On Sunday, November 22, the Gardens' #WellnessSunday series moves to lululemon for a 9 a.m. Caution Fitness workout. Registration is $5. It's a low cost, but you still have to register ahead.
Santa Moves to Center Court After Thanksgiving
Thanksgiving is Thursday, November 26. Two days later, Pembroke Lakes Mall starts its run of Photos with Santa at Center Court. It runs daily from Saturday, November 28, through Thursday, December 24. You can book a slot ahead.
The mall also runs Pet Night with Santa on Mondays and Tuesdays from 4 to 7 p.m., from Monday, November 30, through Tuesday, December 15. Those are the nights to bring the dog. Booking is available for pet nights too.
The mall's Santa calendar has room in it. The run lasts almost four weeks, so a family that misses a weekend can try a weeknight. SnowFest happens once, on one evening, and the tickets are limited.
The Season by Date, and What Each Event Asks For
- Thursday, November 19: Thursday Nights at the Gardens, with Agave ladies' night 6 to 9 p.m. and The Pub specials from 7 p.m.
- Saturday, November 21: Pembroke Pines Artisan Market, Dream Park, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Free, no ticket listed.
- Sunday, November 22: Caution Fitness at lululemon, Pembroke Gardens, 9 a.m. $5 registration.
- Saturday, November 28, through Thursday, December 24: Photos with Santa, Pembroke Lakes Mall Center Court, daily. Booking available.
- Mondays and Tuesdays, November 30 through December 15: Pet Night with Santa, Pembroke Lakes Mall, 4 to 7 p.m. Booking available.
- Thursday, December 3: MESPA at Pembroke Gardens, 3 to 6 p.m. Reservation.
- Saturday, December 5: Brimstone's Breakfast with Santa, Pembroke Gardens. Reservation.
- Saturday, December 5: SnowFest, Charles F. Dodge City Center, 4 to 8 p.m. Free, residents only, in-person ticket pickup with a driver's license and a Pembroke Pines utility bill, six tickets per household, while supplies last.
Our team lives and works in these neighborhoods, and we keep track of the local calendar the way we track the local market. If you'd like a hand planning your December around the city's events, or want our weekly look at what's opening near you, reach out to the Ramona Bautista Team. We'll gladly share what we know, in English or Spanish.
