The Christmas tree lighting gets the attention at Town Square, but the 2026 calendar runs much longer. Home for the Holidays on Saturday, November 21 opens a stretch of about six weeks. In that time a free light trail runs every night at McPherson Park, Santa's Village at Rustin Pavilion keeps a broken-up schedule through Christmas Eve, and a ticketed morning shopping event fills one Saturday in December. All three run on their own clocks. Once you know how those clocks line up, the busiest night of the year becomes one of many good options.
The tree lighting is nine days away, so start there.
November 21: the night everything opens at once
Home for the Holidays runs from 4:30 to 8:30 p.m. at 1400 E. Southlake Blvd. The tree lights at 6:00 p.m., and fireworks follow the lighting. Admission is free. The night includes Santa photos, free Craft Corner activities, and a 3-lane snow hill.
The evening has two stages, and they run at the same time. Rustin & Family Park and Frank Edgar Cornish, IV Park each have their own lineup, and both pause for the 6:00 p.m. lighting. The city kept this two-park layout in 2025 as well, according to Community Impact's coverage of last year's event. If you're coming to watch a particular group, you need to be at the right park at the right time. The 2026 schedule of events lays out both:
| Time | Rustin & Family Park | Frank Edgar Cornish, IV Park |
|---|---|---|
| 4:30 p.m. | Southlake Community Band | Artistry in Motion |
| 4:45 p.m. | Community Performances | |
| 6:00 p.m. | Tree Lighting Ceremony | Tree Lighting Ceremony |
| 6:15 p.m. | NTPA | |
| 6:30 p.m. | Walnut Grove Elementary | Covenant Christian Academy |
| 6:45 p.m. | Carroll Elementary | Dragon Youth Dazzlers |
| 7:00 p.m. | Johnson Elementary | |
| 7:15 p.m. | Old Union Elementary | Cantare Performance Choir |
| 7:30 p.m. | Rockenbaugh Elementary | |
| 7:45 p.m. | WC Youth Ensemble | |
| 8:15 p.m. | WC Adult Ensemble |
The schedule shows when the Rustin & Family Park stage is busiest. Five elementary schools perform there in 15-minute slots between 6:30 and 7:30. If your child sings at 6:45, you have no time to wait in the snow hill line after the lighting and still be at the stage for the performance. Cornish Park runs later, with its last group taking the stage at 8:15.
The city's FAQ answers the practical questions:
- Parking is free in the East Garage at 1451 Federal Way and the West Garage at 351 State Street.
- Accessible parking is on Main Street in front of Bath & Body Works and Mi Cocina, with entry from the east and west ends of Main Street.
- Coolers are allowed. Outside alcohol and glass containers are not.
- Dogs are strongly discouraged because of possible cold weather, crowd excitement, and loud noise. With fireworks scheduled after the lighting, that's sound advice.
- Lost items go to Lost & Found afterward. Questions about them go to the Southlake Police Department.
The light trail turns the opening night into a season
Holiday of Lights is the main reason the season keeps going after November 21. It returns to McPherson Park at 1297 Division St. for a second year. It opens the same day as the tree lighting and runs every night from 5:00 to 10:00 p.m. into January 2027. It's free, and you don't need a ticket or reservation.
The trail is a loop of about a third of a mile around the lake. That's short enough for a toddler in a stroller or a quick walk after dinner. The city's listing describes light tunnels, a giant polar bear, glowing gift boxes, and large photo spots set against the water. Southlake Style described the location as behind the Hilton when the trail debuted last year.
Last season it ran from November 22, 2025 to January 4, 2026, nearly six weeks of nightly hours, as Community Impact reported. The 2026 listing has a similar shape, with a start date of November 21 and January as the end month. Compare that with the tree lighting, which lasts four hours on one Saturday. For most of the season, the lit lakeside loop is the main holiday draw at Town Square, and it's open every evening.
The rhythm changes on weekends. Food vendors set up on Fridays and Saturdays only. A Tuesday walk is just the lights and the lake. A Saturday walk can double as dinner.
Santa's Village keeps the most irregular schedule
Santa's Village at Rustin Pavilion opens with the tree lighting on November 21 and runs through December 24. It has paid packages starting at $19.99. The trail opens every night. Santa's Village has gaps in its dates, and its hours change from day to day, so check the date before you go.
The Town Square schedule divides into four stretches:
- Thanksgiving week. Opening night runs 4:30 to 8:30 p.m. on November 21. November 22 through 25 runs 11:30 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. Santa's Village is closed on Thanksgiving Day, November 26. It reopens 10:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. on November 27 and 28, then 11:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. on Sunday, November 29.
- Early December, in pieces. Santa isn't scheduled from November 30 through December 3. He returns Friday, December 4, from 3:30 to 7:30 p.m. Saturday, December 5 runs 10:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m., and Sunday, December 6 runs 11:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. Monday and Tuesday, December 7 and 8, are evening sessions from 3:30 to 7:30 p.m. December 9 and 10 are off.
- Mid-December. December 11 is a 3:30 to 7:30 p.m. evening. December 12 runs 10:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m., and December 13 runs 11:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. December 14 through 16 are evening sessions from 3:30 to 7:30 p.m.
- The final week. From December 17 through 23, Santa's Village opens daily at 11:30 a.m. and closes at 7:30 p.m. The exception is December 19, which opens at 10:30 a.m. Christmas Eve runs 11:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
On every day that opens before mid-afternoon, Santa takes a milk-and-cookie break from 2:30 to 3:30 p.m. On Christmas Eve the break moves earlier, to 2:00 to 2:30 p.m. A family that shows up at 2:45 on a Saturday will wait, while a family that arrives at 3:30 on one of the December weekday evenings will find Santa already there.
The weekday evening sessions line up well with Holiday of Lights. On those days Santa's Village runs until 7:30 p.m., and the trail lights come on at 5:00. You can see both on one weeknight without fighting the November 21 crowd.
December 5 is the one day all three overlap
Holly Jolly Sip & Shop fills the morning of Saturday, December 5, from 9:00 a.m. to noon. Town Square sums it up as "Holiday shopping is less stressful with mimosas!" The page says tickets go on sale this fall.
That Saturday is also one of Santa's Village's longest days, 10:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. Because it's a Saturday, Holiday of Lights has its weekend food vendors when the trail opens at 5:00 p.m. So one day can include shopping in the morning, Santa in the afternoon around his 2:30 break, and dinner from the vendors at McPherson Park. It's the most complete version of the Town Square season, and it falls two weeks after the tree lighting.
The Square also has a new place to warm up between stops. Ascension Coffee opened at 100 State St., Ste. C1, in October. It has a full espresso bar, seasonal coffee flights, and a slow bar where baristas make pour-overs from rotating single-origin coffees, per Community Impact. The menu also includes lattes, cold brew, tea, pastries, granola, sandwiches, wraps, and salads, enough for an early lunch between Sip & Shop and a visit to Santa. State Street is also where the West Garage sits, at 351 State Street, so you can park there and use the café as a meeting point.
Putting the calendar to work
Once you see how the season fits together, planning gets simpler:
- For school performances, go on November 21 and pick your park by the time slot in the table above.
- For Santa on a weeknight, look at the December weekday evenings: December 4, 7, 8, 11, 14, 15, and 16, each from 3:30 to 7:30 p.m.
- For a quiet walk under the lights, pick any weeknight on the McPherson Park loop between 5:00 and 10:00 p.m.
- For dinner at the trail, go on a Friday or Saturday, when the vendors are there.
- For a full day on the Square, pick December 5, starting with Sip & Shop at 9:00 a.m.
If you'd like to see these schedules in one place as the dates change, the city's Southlake Holidays hub gathers the season's events, including the carriage rides and toy drives it lists alongside Santa's Village.
At the Jeannie Anderson Group, we enjoy watching Town Square's holiday calendar fill out, and we love being part of it each December. If this year's lights have you thinking about how your own home will look in holiday photos, or what it's worth before the new year, we'd be glad to talk. Request a Luxury Home Valuation, and we'll bring the same attention to detail that Southlake brings to its season.
