Holiday Festival of Lights 2026: Charleston's James Island Light Show Guide
Every November, James Island County Park changes character after dark. At 5:30 p.m. each night the Holiday Festival of Lights opens: a three-mile driving route through the park lined with more than 750 illuminated displays and millions of lights. Charleston County Parks has confirmed that the 2026 festival, the 37th season, runs nightly from November 13 to December 31, 2026.
For anyone on James Island or around Charleston, the festival is a fixed point of the holiday calendar, and a little planning helps. This guide covers the 2026 dates, admission, what is inside, traffic tips, history and a few nearby stops. Dates, hours and prices below were checked against official Charleston County Parks pages as of October 2026.
2026 Dates and Hours at a Glance
According to the festival's Discover the Magic page, the essentials for 2026 are:
Dates: November 13 to December 31, 2026, every night of the run.
Hours: 5:30 to 10 p.m. nightly, including Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.
Location: James Island County Park, 871 Riverland Drive, Charleston, SC 29412.
Visits with Santa: November 13 to December 23, first come, first served.
Admission: How Green, Yellow and Red Nights Work
Admission is charged per vehicle, not per person. Charleston County Parks uses expected attendance data to sort nights into three tiers: Green nights (lighter traffic), Yellow nights (moderate traffic) and Red nights (heavy traffic and crowds). Buying online in advance costs less than paying at the gate on every tier.
As of October 2026, the official admission and ticket page lists these rates for a standard vehicle carrying up to 15 people:
Green night: $15 online or $25 at the gate.
Yellow night: $25 online or $35 at the gate.
Red night: $30 online or $45 at the gate.
These are the same rates Charleston County Parks announced in its news release for the 2025 festival, and the ticket page does not yet label them by year. Treat them as the current posted rates, and confirm the price and color for your specific night on the ticket page before you buy.
Large vehicles, tour buses and passes
Larger groups pay by vehicle size. The ticket page lists $50 (Green) or $75 (Yellow and Red) for vehicles carrying 16 to 30 people, and $150 (Green) or $175 (Yellow and Red) for vehicles carrying 31 or more. Tour buses are asked to call the park office at 843-406-6990 ahead of time and use the middle lane at the gatehouse.
Each ticket is good for one vehicle entry on the booked date only. Gold Pass members get a one-time free admission in a standard vehicle at the gate, and gift passes covering 1 to 15 guests are sold through the same ticket site.
What Is Included Beyond the Drive
The three-mile driving route
The heart of the festival is the drive: three miles of road through the park, more than 750 displays and millions of lights. You are welcome to loop the route as many times as you like on the same visit.
Winter Wonderland and the walking area
The festival is a driving tour with a self-guided walking portion where you can park and see more lights and amenities on foot. Charleston County Parks' history of the festival describes how Santa's Village and the Winter Wonderland area were added over the years as the walk-through side of the event, with gift shops, the train, marshmallow roasting, hot chocolate and the sand sculpture. Highlights in the walking area include:
The holiday sand sculpture, built from more than 50 tons of sand with a new design each year.
Reindeer Workshop, where children choose a plush animal and build it themselves.
Gift shops with ornaments and holiday items, open during festival hours.
Train, carousel and climbing wall
The Festival Express train costs $5 per person and each trip lasts about 15 minutes. It runs nightly from 6 to 10 p.m., with ticket sales ending at 9:40 p.m., and a child under two can ride free in an adult's lap. The carousel is $2 per person and starts at 6 p.m.; children under 42 inches ride with an adult, and the standing adult rides free. The climbing wall is $4 for two climbs.
S'mores, cocoa and snacks
Marshmallow roasting is part of the tradition. The concession stands sell family s'mores kits (each makes four), marshmallow sticks and hot cocoa, along with kettle corn, Bavarian pretzels, sandwich wraps and ice cream. You are also welcome to bring your own marshmallows and sticks.
Visits with Santa
Santa is on site from November 13 to December 23, 2026. Visits are free on a first come, first served basis, with digital photos available for an added fee. Charleston County Parks also offers scheduled daytime sessions called Mingle with Kringle and private inclusive visits for guests with disabilities; check the festival site for 2026 booking details.
The Fun Run and Walk
Since 1994, the festival has hosted a Fun Run and Walk that lets participants see the lights on foot before the season opens to cars. Charleston County Parks' Fun Run and Walk listing shows it on Wednesday, November 11 and Thursday, November 12, the two nights before the 2026 opening. It is a two-mile run and walk past more than 200 light displays, and participants receive a glow necklace. Plan to arrive by 6 p.m., since park gates close to all traffic at 6:30 p.m., and a chaperone is required for participants 15 and under. Ticket sales opened August 1; check the listing for current availability and pricing.
Timing Your Visit and Avoiding Traffic
The fun facts sheet notes that the record year, 2015, brought 244,795 people through in more than 65,000 vehicles. A few practical moves help:
Use the color tiers as a crowd forecast. Green nights are, by definition, the nights the park expects lighter traffic, and they are also the least expensive.
Buy online, ahead of time. Advance tickets cost $10 to $15 less per standard vehicle than gate prices on the current rate card, and your night is locked in.
Plan your approach. The Getting Here page recommends coming from Folly Road (SC 171), turning onto George L. Griffith Boulevard or Grimball Road, then right onto Riverland Drive and left into the festival. Larger vehicles should take Folly Road to Camp Road to Riverland Drive to avoid low-hanging branches.
Arrive with the walking area in mind. The train and carousel start at 6 p.m. and train ticket sales end at 9:40 p.m., so arriving after 9 leaves little time for the on-foot attractions.
A Short History: From 18 Displays to More Than 750
The festival grew out of recovery. According to Charleston County Parks' fun facts sheet, Hurricane Hugo destroyed 90 percent of James Island County Park's trees in 1989. The following year, in 1990, the Holiday Festival of Lights premiered with only 18 light displays over a two-mile route and drew 85,000 visitors. Santa added the festival to his schedule in 1996.
The park's history of the festival notes that those first 18 displays were made by an engineer in Wheeling, West Virginia. Park staff member Rich Raab, who worked in park maintenance as an electrician, learned the craft and began building displays on site, starting with a Santa on the roof of the Park Center building. Today a single display takes six to ten weeks to build from rebar, solder and wound strands of lights.
A few numbers from the fun facts sheet: an estimated 23 miles of rebar has gone into the displays, the Ravenel Bridge display stands 30 feet tall, the giant lighted oak tree uses 10,000 lights and takes 80 hours to complete, and volunteer campground hosts check or replace about 180,000 bulbs each year.
The 2025 news release put lifetime attendance at more than five million people, and the festival is presented by Boeing and South Carolina Federal Credit Union.
How the Park Fits Into James Island
James Island County Park sits on Riverland Drive, and the rest of the year it is a working everyday park: miles of paved trails, disc golf, a dog park, one of the Southeast's tallest outdoor climbing walls, the summer Splash Zone waterpark, fishing and crabbing spots, boat and bike rentals, and campsites and cottages overlooking the marsh along the Stono River.
Elsewhere on the island, Riverland Terrace is one of James Island's older neighborhoods, dating to the 1940s and known for streets lined with old oaks. Folly Road, the island's main commercial corridor, carries you to Folly Beach in a short drive, so it is easy to pair an afternoon at the beach with an evening at the lights.
For a daytime stop with real historical weight, McLeod Plantation Historic Site is also on James Island and also run by Charleston County Parks. The 37-acre Gullah Geechee heritage site, established in 1851, honors those who lived and worked there during and after slavery, and the historic McLeod Oak is believed to be more than 300 years old. Guided tours run at 9:30 a.m., 11 a.m., 12:30 p.m. and 2 p.m. on a first come, first served basis, so it pairs well with an evening at the lights.
Other Charleston-Area Holiday Lights in 2026
Many Charleston-area holiday events had not posted 2026 dates when we checked in early October. One that has: the 31st annual Mount Pleasant Christmas Light Parade is set for December 13, 2026, from 5:30 to 8 p.m. It opens with fireworks at 5:30 p.m., then rolls from Live Oak Drive down Coleman Boulevard to Patriots Point Road with marching bands, illuminated floats and Santa arriving on a Mount Pleasant fire truck. If you live in or near Mount Pleasant, it is an easy evening close to home.
FAQ
When is the Holiday Festival of Lights in 2026?
The festival runs nightly from November 13 to December 31, 2026, from 5:30 to 10 p.m. at James Island County Park, 871 Riverland Drive. It is open on Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.
How much does admission cost?
Admission is per vehicle and depends on the night's color tier. As of October 2026, the official ticket page lists $15 online or $25 at the gate on Green nights, $25 or $35 on Yellow nights, and $30 or $45 on Red nights for a standard vehicle of up to 15 people. Confirm the rate for your date on the ticket page before you go.
Can I walk or bike through the festival instead of driving?
The festival is a driving tour with a walking area once you park. To see the route on foot, look for the Fun Run and Walk on November 11 and 12, before opening night.
Can I drive the route more than once?
Yes. Charleston County Parks says you are welcome to drive around the light show as many times as you like during your visit.
How long has the festival been running?
The festival premiered in 1990, the year after Hurricane Hugo, with 18 displays. The 2026 season is the 37th, with more than 750 displays along a three-mile route.
Conclusion
The Holiday Festival of Lights started as a response to a storm and grew into one of the Lowcountry's biggest annual events. For 2026, it runs November 13 to December 31 from 5:30 to 10 p.m. Pick a Green night if you can, buy online, and arrive early enough for the walking area, the train and a round of s'mores.
If an evening on James Island has you curious about living closer to the lights, browse our neighborhood guides, take a look at our current listings, or reach out to our team with any questions about James Island and the older neighborhoods around it.