FREE & Cheap Things to Do with Guests Thanksgiving Weekend in Kansas City

Are you hosting Thanksgiving dinner with overnight guests this Thanksgiving weekend? Here are some FREE and cheap ways to keep them entertained.

Watch the Plaza Lighting Ceremony

Thursday, November 22, 2018
Location: Country Club Plaza
Time: 5 to 9 p.m.
Admission: FREE

If you’ve ever been to the Plaza Lighting Ceremony, you know how spectacular it is! If you haven’t been, you’re missing out. So when you’re finished with Thanksgiving dinner, take your guests for an evening of entertainment followed by a tour of the amazing Plaza Lights. There will even be a fireworks display.

Go ice skating

Thursday through Saturday, November 22-24, 2018
Location: Crown Center Ice Terrace
Time: 3 to 10 p.m. on Thursday; 10 a.m. to 11 p.m. on Friday and Saturday
Admission: $7; FREE for adults over 60 and kids 4 and under; skate rental is $3.

The Crown Center Ice Terrace is sure to impress people who love ice skating. And Kansas City’s first outdoor skating rink is open for most of the holiday weekend.

Do Some Black Friday shopping

Friday, November 23, 2018
Location: Multiple
Time: 6 a.m. to 9 p.m.
Admission: FREE

The stores have mostly given up on their midnight madness events in favor of more sensible shopping hours. But a few of the major shopping areas in Kansas City are still offering FREE gifts cards and thousands of dollars in prizes in addition to their Black Friday deals. If you prefer to shop from home, some major online retailers are also offering big discounts for Black Friday. So if your guests like to shop, you could make a day out of it.

Take a luminary walk

Friday and Saturday, November 23-24, 2018
Location: Overland Park Arboretum
Time: 5 to 9 p.m.
Admission: $10; $9 for Friends of the Arboretum; kids 5 and under are FREE. Tickets must be purchased in advance;

The holiday luminary walk is a great Kansas City date night or family event. It includes romantic candlelit trails, light displays, horse-drawn wagon rides, hot cider around a campfire, plenty of kids’ activities, and more.

Catch a Holiday classic

November 23-26, 2018
Location: Union Station
Time: 12:30 p.m., 3 p.m., 5:30 p.m., or 8 p.m.
Admission: $3

Union Station is showing the movie Elf on the the Regnier Extreme Screen Friday through Sunday. While you’re there, you can explore the station, which is pretty impressive in and of itself, especially when it’s all decked out for Christmas.

Drive through Christmas in the Park

Thursday through Sunday, November 22-25, 2018
Location: Longview Lake
Time: 5:30 to 10 p.m. Thursday and Sunday, 5:30 to 11 p.m. Friday and Saturday
Admission: FREE; donations are accepted.

Christmas in the Park is another Kansas City must see at Christmas! This light show features more than 300,000 lights and more than 175 animated figures; and you can see it all from the comfort of your car. Tip: Lines will be long, so get there early.

Listen to live jazz

Friday through Sunday, November 23-25, 2018
Location: Multiple
Time: Hours vary
Admission: FREE

Jazz is a Kansas City tradition; so the city has a lot of great jazz musicians. And there are plenty of places to hear live jazz that don’t have a cover charge. Of course, you’ll be expected to buy food and/or drinks, but you’ll probably want to eat out once or twice while your guests are in town anyway.

Tour the art museum

Friday through Sunday, November 23-25, 2018
Location: Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art
Time: 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Friday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday
Admission: FREE

I haven’t been to the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art lately, but my best friend says it’s one of her favorite places to go in Kansas City. The museum features traveling exhibitions in addition to its own collection of more than 33,500 objects. Museum admission is FREE; they also offer FREE audio-guided tours.