Pokemon GO Update: Christmas event X2 XP plus forecast

News of the latest Pokemon GO update before Christmas paves the way for the final event of the season. This is the hour of our discontent – those of us waiting for double-XP and Stardust, that is. What if there is no event before the end of the year – what if Santa Hat Pikachu is all there is? Lucky you, Pokemon GO fans and trainers alike, there's still room for an event during Holiday Break.

We know now that Niantic is targeting the last week of the year – Christmas to New Years. We know they're not covering up the fact that they're in the Santa spirit, as they seemed to do somewhat with Thanksgiving. This next event, as such, could be longer than either that've come before it.

If Niantic follows their previous Pokemon GO Event series rules, they'll announce their holiday event just a couple days before it begins. Thanks to our anonymous source familiar with the matter, we're to understand the following. If Niantic decides to follow their past event announcement rules strictly, they'll announce their next event this Monday.

That's Monday, the 19th of December, 2016. On this day, Niantic is tipped to likely announce their holiday break event which starts the 21st of December. This event could potentially last as long as a week and a half, depending on when Niantic flips the switch.

• Halloween Event: Announced 24th, Event 26th• Thanksgiving Event: Announced 21st, Event 23rd• Christmas Event: Announcement 19th, Event 21st**Obviously the Christmas event is not yet confirmed, but this fits the bill. Both the Halloween and Thanksgiving event announcements came 2 days before their respective events began and both fell on a Monday. If Christmas follows this pattern, the 19th is the most obvious day to announce.

In the past, Niantic has left XP and/or Stardust bonuses turned on beyond their announced end-date for events. Pokemon Events have not yet been hard-and-fast releases, just very close to being on-time for starts and finishes. Starting somewhere in the area of the 21st of December gives Pokemon GO users the opportunity to play with double-XP and double Stardust through their entire Christmas/holiday event break.

Will Niantic include one or more new Pokemon from Gen 2 in this event? Have a peek at our most recent Pokemon GO Christmas event changes article to see how one very special holiday Pokemon might be perfect for the part. Especially since he's not all that useful at any other point in the year!