Light Up Saturday 2026, hour by hour: a plan for Nov 28 in Blue Ridge

Light Up Blue Ridge’s main day is Saturday, November 28, 2026, in downtown Blue Ridge, Georgia. Entertainment starts on East Main Street at 11 a.m., Santa sees children from noon to 4:15 p.m., cars must be off Main by 4, the parade steps off at 5:30 and the Great Tree is lit at about 7. Here is the whole day in order.

The times below come from the organizer’s pages at Light Up Blue Ridge, with the railway and the Fannin County Chamber added where noted. The organizers say they are still working on the full 2026 schedule and will post times as they are confirmed, so read this as the frame of the day rather than the final program. Dates can change; confirm with Light Up Blue Ridge before you drive up. The event is free and happens rain, snow or shine.

Before 11 a.m.: the train, a market and the Art Center

The morning belongs to the things that run on their own clocks.

• 10 a.m. Holiday Express. On Light Up day the railway’s booking system lists 1-Hour Holiday Express departures at 10 a.m., noon, 2 p.m. and 4 p.m. The Blue Ridge Railway asks riders to arrive 45 minutes early, and boarding starts 30 minutes before departure, so a 10 a.m. ride means being at the depot on Depot Street by about 9:15.
• 10 a.m. Twin Cities holiday market. The Twin Cities Farmers Market holds a special holiday market that Saturday by the steel bridge between McCaysville and Copperhill. It opens at 10 a.m. One Fannin County Chamber listing says it closes at 2 p.m. and another says 3, so don’t plan around the last hour.
• 10 a.m. The Art Center. Saturday hours at The Art Center, 420 West Main Street, are 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Its Holiday Market runs Nov 20 to Dec 20, and the Gingerbread Village, open to the public since noon on Friday, is inside.

On Saturday, November 28, 2026 (Light Up day), 1-Hour Holiday Express trains are scheduled at 10 a.m., noon, 2 p.m. and 4 p.m. (Railway booking system, checked Oct 17, 2026)

11 a.m.: East Main fills up

The organizer’s home page says entertainment runs on East Main Street from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. The schedule page lists Tuba Christmas at 11 near Depot Street and the magnolia tree, then the Brasstown Big Band at noon in the same space. Both are listed by the organizer but not yet confirmed for 2026, so check the week before if either is your reason for coming.

Food vendors set up on Depot Street between East and West Main. The 2026 vendor list hasn’t been published. The Chamber also mentions a Window Decorating contest in downtown shop windows, which gives you something to look at between sets.

Noon to 4:15 p.m.: Santa

Pictures with Santa run from noon to 4:15 p.m. in the downtown park by the depot. The organizer’s pages call the spot the gazebo in one place and the pavilion in another; either way it is the downtown park. The rule that matters is this one: children already in line before 4:15 are seen until 4:30, and then Santa leaves to get ready for the parade. If a photo is the goal, go in the early afternoon, not at 4.

The Fannin County Chamber, which lists the day as noon to 7 p.m., also describes a Santa’s Mailbox where children write a letter and get a pen keepsake, with a handwritten reply by mail a few days later. That detail comes from the Chamber, not the organizer, so ask at the park where to find it.

The noon and 2 p.m. trains run during Santa hours, so a family can split the afternoon: one ride, one photo line and lunch from Depot Street in between.

4 p.m.: the street closes

This is the hour that catches people. The schedule page says all cars must be off East and West Main Street by 4 p.m. on parade day. The railway notes that Main Street parking is limited to three hours anyway and that there are paid lots near the depot. If you parked on Main for lunch, move the car before 4.

The last train leaves at 4 p.m. and runs an hour, so riders are back around 5 with half an hour to find a place along the route. It works, but it is tight with small children. Our parking and crowds plan covers what is and isn’t published about lots.

5 p.m. to 5:30 p.m.: line-up and sunset

Parade entrants must be in line by 5 p.m. Dignitaries line up at East Main and Church Streets and everyone else at East Main and Summit. The street entertainment wraps at 5. Sunset on Nov 28 is 5:26 p.m., so the parade starts in the first minutes of dark. That is the idea: the parade page encourages lights on floats and flashlights for riders.

Sunset in Blue Ridge on Saturday, November 28, 2026 is 5:26 p.m. EST, so the 5:30 p.m. parade starts just after sunset. (U.S. Naval Observatory, checked Oct 17, 2026)

5:30 p.m.: the parade

The parade starts at 5:30 p.m. at Church Street and East Main. It runs down East Main to Mountain Street, turns down Mountain and comes back along West Main. The organizer’s two pages name different end points, so we don’t. Walkers hand candy out rather than throwing it from floats, and the only Santa in the parade is the one at the end. Nothing we found mentions tickets for spectators; the route is public street. Our parade page has the route map.

6:30 to 7 p.m.: caroling and the Great Tree

Caroling around the tree starts between about 6:30 and 6:45 p.m., and the tree is lit as close to 7 p.m. as the parade’s length allows. The judged Gingerbread House winners are announced at the tree lighting. The current Great Tree went up for 2025, after the previous tree served 13 years.

Caroling around the tree starts between about 6:30 and 6:45 p.m., and the tree is lit as close to 7 p.m. as possible depending on parade length. (Light Up Blue Ridge, checked Oct 17, 2026)

The day on one card

If you only have the afternoon

Get downtown by 2, park off Main, do the Santa line before 3:30, eat on Depot Street, and pick your spot along the route by 5. After the parade, walk over to the tree for the 6:30 caroling. If Saturday sounds like too much, Blue Friday (Nov 27) has merchant discounts, food vendors, entertainment from noon to 5 and Santa in the gazebo from noon to 4:15, without the parade crowd. Both days are covered on our Light Up Blue Ridge guide, and the rest of the season is on the holiday calendar.

Questions people ask

Written by the Christmas in Blue Ridge Editorial Team. AI tools help us draft; people check every fact before it publishes.