← Back to articles

Planning your show season? Create your free ThePetAdvisor account — track your dogs and never miss a closing date.

What is Orlando Championship Week?

Every December, the American Kennel Club takes over the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando for a full week of competition. The headliner is the 26th AKC National Championship presented by Royal Canin on Saturday, December 12 and Sunday, December 13, 2026 — the largest dog show in the United States and the only conformation event hosted by the AKC itself, where one dog is crowned America's National Champion.

But the week is much bigger than two days. Three all-breed cluster shows lead in (Space Coast, Brevard, and Central Florida kennel clubs), Friday belongs to the AKC/Royal Canin National All-Breed Puppy and Junior Stakes for dogs 6 to 18 months, and the AKC National Owner-Handled Series Finals run alongside the championship for the top owner-handled dogs in the country. Around it all: the AKC Agility Invitational, the AKC Obedience Classic, the RACH (Rally Champion) Invitational, junior competitions, dock diving, and roughly 90 breed specialty events across the week.

The week, day by day

The schedule builds all week toward championship weekend:

• Tue, Dec 8 — Space Coast Kennel Club of Palm Bay all-breed show (closing date and full panel not yet published)
• Wed, Dec 9 — Brevard Kennel Club all-breed show (closing date and full panel not yet published)
• Thu, Dec 10 — Central Florida Kennel Club all-breed show (closes November 11), plus the Pekingese Club of America National Specialty in the afternoon (judge Janet Allen; Sweepstakes Heather Ginochio; Juniors Janet Allen)
• Fri, Dec 11 — AKC/Royal Canin National All-Breed Puppy and Junior Stakes (dogs 6–18 months) — the break day, no all-breed show — plus group shows for Terrier, Working, and Herding breeds
• Sat, Dec 12 — National Championship Day 1: Sporting, Hound, Toy, and Non-Sporting breeds, plus Junior Showmanship — NOHS Finals Day 1
• Sun, Dec 13 — National Championship Day 2: Working, Terrier, Herding, and Miscellaneous breeds, closing with Best in Show — NOHS Finals Day 2

Show hours for the championship weekend run 7:00 AM to 11:00 PM. Roughly 90 AKC-verified specialty events — designated specialties, independent specialties, and puppy specialties — run across the week at the convention center.

Can you still enter?

Yes. As of mid-October 2026, entries are still open. The National Championship, the Puppy and Junior Stakes, and the NOHS Finals all close at 3:00 PM Central, Wednesday, November 4, 2026, through Jack Onofrio / AKC Annually Licensed Superintendents at onofrio.com. Championship fees are $100 for Best of Breed/Variety and $50 for Regular and Veteran classes, with no entry fee for Limited Junior Showmanship. The Puppy Stakes are $35 per dog. The NOHS Finals are invitation-only: the top ten ranked dogs (plus ties) in each breed or variety for the 2026 qualifying year.

The Thursday Central Florida Kennel Club show closes Wednesday, November 11, 2026 through MB-F (InfoDog) — the exact closing time is not yet confirmed. Closing dates for the Space Coast and Brevard shows had not been published as of mid-October 2026.

See the full show page for the day-by-day schedule, the verified judge list, the official premium lists, and the breed judge finder.

Who's judging

Best in Show: Dr. Thomas M. Davies, per the official 2026 premium list. The group judges:

• Saturday: Sporting — Mr. Frank Kane; Hound — Dennis B. Sprung; Toy — David Fitzpatrick; Non-Sporting — Ms. Grace M. Fritz
• Sunday: Working — Mr. Robin L. Stansell; Terrier — Ms. Kathleen J. Ferris; Herding — Mr. James E. Noe

Junior Showmanship finals at the championship are judged by Mary Dukes, with preliminaries by Adam Peterson and Caroline Clegg.

Planning your visit

The official 2026 premium list names 13 host hotels within about a mile of the North/South building. The Hyatt Regency Orlando ($182/night) is the only true walk-to-the-rings option, connected by skybridge. Nine of the 13 properties charge no pet fee; four charge a $60 non-refundable deep-cleaning fee for rooms housing dogs. Room blocks are held until November 24, 2026, or until sold out — book by phone, as rooms cannot be booked online, and a one-night deposit is charged at booking.

Flying in? Orlando International Airport (MCO) is 12–13 miles from the convention center, typically 15–25 minutes by car. OCCC parking is cashless (about $20 per entry for a standard vehicle). No overnight parking is allowed at the convention center, but AKC offers on-site overnight RV parking for championship week — reserve by November 4, 2026. On-site reserved grooming spaces are $175 per 8×10-foot space, reserved through Onofrio only, with a deadline of November 4.

Why go

This is the one week of the year when the whole dog world lands in one building. The National Championship is the biggest entry in American dog shows — thousands of dogs, every breed, the top owner-handlers in the country, and the finals of the puppy stakes that preview next year's stars. The lead-in shows mean you can show Tuesday through Sunday without moving your setup, and the specialty lineup — roughly 90 events, including national specialties like the Pekingese Club of America's — makes it the deepest single week of breed competition on the calendar.

The championship show hours run 7:00 AM to 11:00 PM, and the week also hosts the AKC Agility Invitational, the Obedience Classic, the RACH Invitational, junior competitions in every sport, and the ever-popular dock diving. If you can only do one week a year, this is the week.

Frequently asked questions