Old Tappan's Holiday Calendar Gets Decided in November

Old Tappan's holiday programs are small, and many cap out at 20 seats or even 10. The library's online Holiday Appetizers class on November 6 had a 20-person cap. Before it ran, the listing showed no seats left, and anyone still interested could only join a waitlist. Most of what makes the season feel local here is run by small operators: a family farm on Dewolf Road, the library on Russell Avenue, the Woman's Club of Old Tappan and Chabad of Old Tappan. They all work at the scale of a small town. In practice, the dates to watch are the order deadlines and registration openings, and most of them land between now and Thanksgiving.

The Deadlines Come Before the Events

Here is the 2026 season sorted by when you have to act, not by when each event happens.

After the two small November programs, the rest of November is about deadlines, registration openings and pickup windows. Most of the bigger events happen in December, and by then the sign-ups and orders are already behind you.

Stokes Farm's Thanksgiving Runs on a Two-Day Pickup

Stokes Farm at 23 Dewolf Road has wrapped up pumpkin picking and hayrides. The farm stand is still open for produce and seasonal treats, Tuesday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., and closed Sunday and Monday. The farm notes that hours can change for weather and holidays.

The Thanksgiving pre-order menu has apple, apple crumb, pumpkin, pecan and blueberry pies at $27 each, plus carrot cake at $15 to $35. Pickup is Tuesday, November 24, from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., and Wednesday, November 25, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday's pickup opens an hour earlier than the stand's usual 10 a.m. start. Wednesday's closes two hours earlier than usual, on the busiest cooking day of the week. If the pies are coming home with a full produce order, Tuesday is the more forgiving day.

The farm also packs a Thanksgiving Box. Customers choose their produce and pickup day, and Stokes packs the order for a $10 convenience fee. Orders close Sunday, November 22, a day the stand itself is closed, so the order has to go in online before the weekend ends. The same page lets customers donate a Thanksgiving pie to Social Services.

November 19 Is the Library's Busiest Day of the Season

The Old Tappan Library at 56 Russell Avenue runs most of the season's ticketed programming. Its capacity limits explain why the calendar fills up so early.

The children's programs are the smallest. Cranberry STEM on November 17 runs from 3:30 to 4:15 p.m. It is open to Old Tappan residents in grades 1 through 5, requires registration, and lists 10 seats. Handprint Trees on November 10 had the same format and the same 10-seat count. The online adult classes cap out at 20. On Thursday, November 12, the History of Thanksgiving talk runs from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. with 20 seats.

Registration for the two December programs opens on Thursday, November 19, in two separate windows:

1. 9:00 a.m. Sign-ups open for the Holiday Resin Art Frame Workshop, held Tuesday, December 1, from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. in the Community Room.
2. 6:30 p.m. Sign-ups open for the Chanteur Holiday Concert, held Thursday, December 17, from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m., also in the Community Room.

Neither listing shows a fee. Since the Holiday Appetizers class was already waitlisted before its date, it makes sense to register on the morning and evening of the 19th rather than later that week.

December Belongs to the Volunteers

After Thanksgiving, the season moves from the library's sign-up pages to groups that have run the same events for years.

Breakfast w/Santa is listed on the borough calendar for Saturday, December 5, at 8 a.m., with Saturday, December 12, as the rain date. The Woman's Club of Old Tappan has hosted this breakfast for decades. In 2024 it was held at the Old Tappan Fire House. The club's recap of that year describes children ages 2 to 7 talking with Santa, getting a goodie bag and making a craft to hang on their tree, while adults socialized over breakfast. Donations came from Butterworth's Bagels of Old Tappan and ShopRite. Daily Voice gave the firehouse address as 231 Old Tappan Road in its coverage of an earlier year. That edition required children to be registered and accompanied by an adult.

Chanukah at Stone Point is on the borough calendar for Monday, December 7, at 6 p.m. Stone Point Park is on Westwood Avenue. In the borough's December 2025 mayor's update, it was the annual Menorah Lighting marking the start of Chanukah, hosted by Chabad of Old Tappan.

The 2nd Annual Old Tappan Library Winter Craft Fair takes place Saturday, December 12, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. It is a library fundraiser. Vendor tables range from a 3-foot square at $30 to a 6-foot rectangle at $60, and they are assigned first-come, first-served. Deposits are due by 5 p.m. on Friday, December 11, and setup starts at 9 a.m. on the day of the fair. Since the fair falls on the Breakfast w/Santa rain date, a wet December 5 would put both events on the same Saturday morning, two hours apart.

Last Year's Borough Traditions

Two more December events came from the borough itself in 2025. The mayor's December update invited residents to a Tree Lighting Ceremony on Friday, December 5, at 6:30 p.m. on the front lawn of Borough Hall, with light refreshments, holiday songs from the Girl Scouts and an appearance by Santa. On Sunday, December 14, Santa rode through town with an escort from the Fire Department and Emergency Medical personnel. The update told residents to listen for the sirens as the procession moved through the neighborhoods.

The borough posts its holiday dates on the Town Events page. That page is also where the 2026 Breakfast w/Santa and Chanukah at Stone Point listings appeared.

Breakfast After the Breakfast

The Woman's Club breakfast starts at 8 a.m. and is meant for young children, so families with older kids or no Santa plans will need breakfast somewhere else that Saturday. Turning Point at 200 Old Tappan Road is open daily from 7:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. Its hours cover the morning of December 5, and on December 12 they cover the whole craft fair window, from the 10 a.m. opening to the 2 p.m. close.

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