In cities big and small across the United States, Thanksgiving marks the start of holiday festival season. From European-style Christmas markets to staggering displays of holiday lights, these 10 holiday festivals were chosen as the best in the nation by USA TODAY 10Best readers.

It was a hard-fought race between the top two, but the Riverside Festival of Lights edged out San Francisco's Great Dickens Christmas Fair for the win. The festival previously won the title of Best Public Lights Display in 2014.

The top 10 winners in the category Best Holiday Festival are as follows: