Last Updated on November 22, 2024
Get in the holiday spirit when you take in some of the best and brightest events across North and South Carolina!
Charlotte holiday activities
Winterfest at Carowinds – Winterfest is the area’s most immersive holiday event. Nov. 15th – Jan. 4th. Details
Speedway Christmas Lights at Charlotte Motor Speedway – See more than 5 million lights in 4 miles at this amazing display! Nov. 22nd – Jan. 5th. Details
Light the Knights Festival at Truist Field – One of Charlotte’s newest events allows guests to snow tube, ice skate, and see the field all lit up. Nov. 27th – Jan. 3rd. Details
Holiday Lights Spectacular at Ballantyne’s Backyard – Witness over 1 million lights on a half-mile walking trail, plus a visit from Santa every night! Dec. 5th – 29th. Details
Gingerbread Lane at The Ballantyne Hotel – A classic family tradition, view gingerbread houses from all age groups. Dec. 15th – 28th. Details
Christmastown USA in McAdenville – One of the top attractions in NC, McAdenville is Christmastown, USA., where you can see countless homes decorated for the holidays! Dec. 2nd – 26th. Details
Kannapolis Celebration of Lights – See holiday lights and The Leonard Bearstein Symphony Orchestra. Nov. 16th – Dec. 30th. Details
Holidays at the Garden at Daniel Stowe Botanical Garden – A walking tour of gorgeous lights through the gardens. Nov. 29th – Dec. 29th. Details
Pirates Christmas Lights at High Seas Mini Golf – Mini golf and lights—what could be better? Nov. 22nd – Jan. 19th. Details
Mistletoe Market at Camp North End – Shop across 76 acres, get creative with art activities, and ice skate, and enjoy live musical performances every Saturday from Dec. 7th – 21st. Details
Go ice skating at Carowinds, Birkdale Village, Whitewater Center, and Camp North End! Check each website for opening dates and hours.
Lake Norman Lighted Christmas Boat Parade – Gaze upon boats beautifully decorated with holiday lights at multiple viewing points around Lake Norman on Dec 21st at 5:30 PM. Details
Western North Carolina holiday events
Christmas at Biltmore – See America’s largest home, all lit up beautifully for the holidays. Nov. 2nd – Jan. 5th. Details
Winter Lights at the NC Arboretum – Dubbed the brightest holiday tradition in Asheville! Nov. 15th – Dec. 31st. Details
Canton Ice Skating Rink – Head to Sorrells Street Park for some wintertime fun at “The Rink” in Canton! It opens Dec.1st, just in time for the festivities in Sorrells Street Park. Details
Waynesville’s “A Night Before Christmas” street fair – A winter wonderland featuring hundreds of luminaries lining the brick sidewalks, twinkling balls in the trees and windows of downtown shops, plus live music and carolers. The event is typically held in mid-December. Details
Downtown Waynesville’s Christmas Parade – This year’s theme is mountain traditions Haywood strong, where prizes will be given to the top three parade floats! Dec. 2nd at 6 PM. Details
Saluda Hometown Christmas – Saluda’s local businesses are the heart of this event. Experience the warmth of the holiday season with activities designed to delight all ages! Dec. 13th. Details
Light up the Night in Brevard –Experience twinkling lights, illuminated snowflakes, and beautifully decorated storefronts. Dec. 7th From 11 AM to 7 PM. Details
Highlands holiday activities
Ice skating – The town of Highlands Ice Skating is a holiday tradition that can’t be beaten! Open for the season Nov. 21st. Details
Snow tubing – Highlands Outpost is open for snow tubing until the end of the season! Details
Home for the Holidays – Celebrate the most magical time of the year at Highlands PAC with their annual holiday spectacular. Dec 6th – 21st. Details
Cashiers 50th Annual Cashiers Peppermint Stick Parade – A cherished tradition for fifty years! Saturday, Dec 7th at 3 PM. Details
Boone/Blowing Rock holiday events
Festival of Lights at Chetola Resort – Tour the Chetola Resort while it’s all decked out for Christmas! Nov. 29th – Jan 25th. Details
Choose and cut your own Christmas tree! There are many farms to choose from. Appalachian Evergreens Inc is now open for the season on select dates from Nov. 16 to Dec. 8th. Details (link to AT blog post once it’s up)
Boone Holiday Parade – Watch marching performances, decorated floats, Christmas costumes, and see Santa himself. Dec. 16th from 6 PM to 8 PM. Details
Blowing Rock Holiday Stroll – See all the shops decorated for Christmas and enjoy refreshments along the way. Dec. 13th. Details
Christmas in the Park & Lighting of the Town – Watch Blowing Rock light up and enjoy hot chocolate, caroling, and visits with Santa. Nov. 29th from 12 PM to 6:30 PM. Details
Tweetsie Christmas – Holiday activities for the whole family, including a 20-minute open-air night train ride. Nov. 29th at 5 PM – Dec. 30th at 9 PM. Details
Festival of Lights at Chetola – Enjoy thousands of dazzling illuminations throughout the resort. Nov. 29th at 5 PM – Jan. 26th at 9 PM. Details
Blowing Rock Christmas Parade – Nov. 30th from 10 AM to 11 AM. Details
Triad holiday activities
Nutcracker Ballet – See the holiday tradition at the Tanger Center in Greensboro. Dec 6th – 8th. Details
Winter Wonderlights – Experience wonderlights at the Greensboro Science Center. Open now through Dec 31st. Details
Tanglewood Festival of Lights – Tanglewood Park transforms into a shimmering Winter Wonderland with more than a million twinkling lights aglow. Nov. 17th to Jan. 1st Details
Downtown Greensboro Holiday Parade – Be a part of this cherished holiday tradition! Dec. 7th. Details.
Downtown in December – A variety of festive holiday events happening Downtown in the month of December with some continuing into January. Details
Winterfest – This event will feature numerous vendors, bounce houses, game trucks, Santa, and of course, the amusements of City Lake Park. Dec. 14th Details
Triangle holiday events
Downtown Raleigh’s Annual Tree Lighting – Nov. 22nd from 5:30 PM to 8 PM. Details
Winter Wonderland at Park West Village – Kids can enjoy storytime with Santa, train rides, face painting, crafts, and a showing of The Polar Express on Saturday. Nov. 22nd – 24th. Details
Downtown Durham Holiday Tree Lighting – Nov. 23rd from 1 PM to 7 PM. Details
The RINK at Red Hat Amphitheatre – Ice skating from Nov. 23rd to Jan. 20th. Details
Lake Myra Christmas Lights – Experience this spectacular, drive-in-style light show, featuring more than 400,000 total lights synced to holiday music. Nov. 22th to De.c 31st Details
NC Chinese Lantern Festival – Come see Koka Booth Amphitheater in Cary transformed into a magical setting of all-new illuminated lanterns. Nov. 16th to Jan. 12th. Details
Christmas Carousel Holiday Gift Market at NC State Fairgrounds – A Triangle tradition for over 37 years. Nov. 29th to Dec. 1st. Details
Holidays in the Park – Head to the Museum of Life and Science to see the park all lit up in celebration of the holiday season! Select nights in Dec. Details
The Cary Night Market – Shop holiday markets on select nights until Dec. 12th. Details
Siler City Christmas Parade – The theme this year is “Songs of the Season!” Dec. 5th at 7 PM. Details
Cary’s Annual Gingerbread House Competition – Visit Downtown Cary as it is transformed into a walking gallery of amateur gingerbread houses. Dec. 7th -15th. Details
Upstate holiday activities
Christmas Lights & Hometown Nights in Woodruff – Celebrate the holidays at the McKinney Park Lighting on Dec, 5th, and participate in various holiday activities until Dec. 15th. Details
A Dickens of a Christmas – Join the City of Spartanburg for our 30th Annual A Dickens of a Christmas this winter! Dec. 3 from 6 PM to 9 PM. Details
Christmas at the Farm–Where picking your tree is a holiday event with cocoa, vendors, games, crafts, and more! Nov. 29 – Dec 1st, and Dec 7th – 8th from 10 AM to 3 PM. Details
Ice on Main– An open outdoor ice skating rink in the heart of downtown Greenville. Returns Nov. 25th! Details
Night of Lights – Watch Main Street light up while you rock around the 30-foot Christmas tree adorned with 25,550 LED lights. Dec 6th. From 5:30 PM to 8:30 PM. Details
Poinsettia Christmas Parade – For more than 75 years, the parade has signaled the start of the Christmas season in Greenville! Dec. 7th at 6:30 PM. Details
Greenville Christmas Market–Experience the charming festivities of a European Christmas Market blended with Southern holiday traditions. Nov. 29th to Dec 31st. Details
Hilton Head holiday events
Holiday Lights & Tree – Festive lights and a beautiful 28′ tree will be on display from Thanksgiving week through Jan 7th. Great for photos! Details
Gallery of Gifts – Shop for gifts handmade by local artists. Weekly on Monday, Nov 26th to Jan 3rd from 10 AM to 4 PM. Details
The Salty Dog’s Christmas Village in South Beach – An unbeatable Lowcountry Christmas lights display, letters to Santa, holiday treats, and more. Nov 29th to Dec. 22nd. Details
Santa at Shelter Cove Harbour & Marina – A special shopping day train rides and a visit from Santa. Nov 29th from 11 AM – 2:30 PM. Details
Christmas Brunch with Santa at The Westin – Celebrate the season with brunch and photos with Santa, letters to Santa, ornament decorating, and more. Dec. 15th from 10 AM – 1 PM. Details
Winter Wonderland Festival at Shelter Cove Community Park – Play carnival games, watch the children’s parade, go on a golden candy cane hunt, and more. Dec. 6th from 4 PM to 7 PM. Details.
Polar Pines Express Holiday Wagon Ride – All aboard this festive wagon full of holiday fun at the Sea Pines Resort! Dec. 21st at 1 PM. Details
Allen Tate is the Carolinas’ largest real estate company with more than 70 offices and 1,800 Realtors in the Charlotte, Triad, Triangle, High Country, Upstate SC, Highlands/Cashiers and Asheville/Mountain regions. Allen Tate is a partner of Howard Hanna Real Estate, the largest privately held real estate broker in the U.S., with 500 real estate, mortgage, insurance, title, and escrow service offices and 15,000 sales associates and staff across 13 states. For more information, visit www.allentate.com and www.howardhanna.com.
