In Des Peres, the Holiday Season Starts With a Registration Deadline

In Des Peres, a family's December mostly depends on what they sign up for in November. Most of the city's holiday programs at The Lodge Des Peres have registration deadlines that come well before the events. The busiest stretch at West County Center starts in the same two weeks and needs no sign-up. You can walk in when you like, but expect a crowd.

The city's October 2026 newsletter has the full schedule, and below it is sorted by deadline instead of event date.

The Calendar, Sorted by When You Have to Act

Here is the season listed by the date that requires something from you, starting with the earliest:

1. October 27: Registration closed for Puzzle Palooza at The Lodge, ten days ahead of the November 6 event.
2. November 10: The Cheesecake Factory is scheduled to open at West County Center.
3. November 12: Santa photos start at West County Center.
4. November 24: Registration closes for the North Pole Express, which runs December 5.
5. December 8: Registration closes for the Holiday Lights Contest.
6. December 29: Registration closes for New Year's Eve at Noon, which runs December 31.

The North Pole Express deadline is the one that sneaks up. It falls in Thanksgiving week, eleven days before the event.

What The Lodge Has Planned

Puzzle Palooza, November 6, 6 to 8 p.m. This is the one Lodge event this fall whose registration window has already closed. It's a 500-piece puzzle contest for teams of four, and the newsletter lists it at $50 per resident or member team.

Dive-In Movie, November 13. Check-in and open swim start at 5:30 p.m. Sonic the Hedgehog 3 plays from 6 to 8 p.m. It's the last indoor-pool evening on the calendar before the holidays.

North Pole Express, December 5, 9 to 11 a.m. This is the city's main holiday morning for young kids. The newsletter lists a trackless train, reindeer, Santa and Mrs. Claus, and crafts. Registration is due November 24.

The fourth annual Holiday Lights Contest. It's free for Des Peres residents, and it runs on three dates. Registration closes December 8, online voting runs December 18 through 20, and winners have to pick up their prizes by December 31. Anyone hoping to enter should have lights up and working before the registration deadline, since voting starts about ten days after it.

New Year's Eve at Noon, December 31, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. It's a family pool event timed for kids who won't make it to midnight. Registration is due December 29, two days ahead. It's the shortest gap between deadline and event this season, but the newsletter still says advance registration is required.

One date on the city calendar has nothing to do with the holidays. The city has scheduled its second Comprehensive Plan community workshop for November 30. The October newsletter says it will focus on future planning scenarios and draft goals, and that more details will be posted at DestinationDesPeres.com. It's the Monday after Thanksgiving, so it lands in the same busy stretch.

At West County Center, You Just Show Up

The mall's season follows the opposite rule. Its biggest event this year is a restaurant opening, and the only thing a diner has to plan is when to go.

West Newsmagazine reported that The Cheesecake Factory is scheduled to open on November 10. It's the chain's first West County location since its restaurant at Chesterfield Mall closed in 2024 to make way for demolition. Alethea Rowe, the company's senior director of public relations, told the paper the chain has been part of the St. Louis area since 2002 and had been looking for a new West County spot ever since. Des Peres Mayor Mark Becker told West Newsmagazine the return is a boost for the whole community. The old mall site has been changing in its own way, as our post on the Chesterfield Mall site's smaller parking garage covers.

The new restaurant takes over the former McCormick & Schmick's space in Restaurant Village. Des Peres' August 10 meeting minutes list the address as 17 West County Center, Suite A101, and record the board's approval of its liquor-by-the-drink license. In the company's description, the room will have herringbone floors, walnut-clad ceilings, clusters of blown-glass light fixtures and a custom mural above the cook's line. The company has also said it plans to hire up to 280 people for this location.

The planned hours suggest how the restaurant will fit into a mall trip. Citing documents filed with the city, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch lists 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 11 a.m. to midnight Friday and Saturday, and 10 a.m. to 11 p.m. on Sunday. The 10 a.m. Sunday start makes it the earliest opening of the week, which fits a late-morning meal before shopping.

Two days after the opening, Santa arrives. Santa photos run November 12 through December 24, and the photo operator lists packages starting at $42. The mall has also scheduled Pet Photos with Santa on Mondays from November 16 through December 14. Monday is the only day for pet sessions, so families planning to bring the dog have five chances.

Some stores are still on the way. In June, the mall's owner CBL announced that Levi's, L'Occitane, Perfumania and Urban Outfitters would hold grand openings at West County Center in 2026. The announcement didn't give dates.

The Stretch of Manchester in Between

Most trips between The Lodge and the mall use Manchester Road, which has more new places to eat than it did last holiday season and an active MoDOT work zone.

According to St. Louis Magazine's October openings roundup, CAVA opened at 12340 Manchester on September 17, and Sourdough & Co. opened in the same building three days later. Both places are counter service, which suits a quick stop between errands.

Farther west, Sauci Pasta has taken over the former Porano space at 13323 Manchester, in the Trader Joe's-anchored center just west of I-270. St. Louis Magazine reported in May that this second location of the fast-casual fresh-pasta concept from brothers Ben and Adam Alagna would open in the fall. After a soft-opening period, it plans to keep the flagship's hours of 11 a.m. to 9 p.m., Tuesday through Sunday. The magazine's October roundup still lists it as coming in the fall, with no opening date.

Off Manchester, the board approved a coffee shop for Cortado Coffee at 1171 Colonnade Center on August 10. The proposal calls for 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. daily, plus occasional evening coffee tastings. No opening date has been announced. Colonnade Center has seen this kind of turnover before, as we covered in our look at Des Peres' restaurant wave.

The road itself is still under construction. MoDOT's two-year Route 100 project covers Manchester between Ballas and Route 141. It includes resurfacing, ADA updates to sidewalks and crosswalks, and new signals at many intersections. MoDOT says box-culvert work may mean several daytime lane closures, but one lane in each direction will stay open. During part of that work, eastbound drivers will have to detour to reach northbound Barrett Station. MoDOT's tentative resurfacing schedule puts Route 141 to Dietrich in fall 2026 and Dietrich to Barrett Station in spring 2027. That means the west end of the corridor could see paving crews during the holiday shopping season.

The city's mid-December schedule is light. Lights Contest voting runs December 18 through 20 and Santa photos continue at the mall, so the second half of the month has the fewest deadlines on the Des Peres calendar.

If the holidays are also when you start thinking about a move in the spring, we're glad to talk through timing with you. That includes how a listing fits around events like the Holiday Lights Contest and a Manchester Road still under construction. Jill Azar & Jacque Mileusnic can start you with a free home valuation, so you have a number in hand before the new year.