Simpsonville's Holiday Lights Are in City Park This Year, and the Train Outlasts Them by 10 Days

Last December the City of Simpsonville centered its holiday on the tree lighting on the Great Lawn at Gracely Park. This year the city's main event is in a different park and lasts six nights. The Simpsonville Holiday Stroll fills Simpsonville City Park at 100 Park Drive on December 3 through 5 and December 10 through 12, 2026. Across town, the Jingle Bell Express at Heritage Park runs on a separate schedule that keeps going until December 22.

That split matters if you're driving in from Five Forks. The two parks overlap on four nights. Each one also has nights to itself, and the train keeps running for 10 days after the City Park lights are done.

The Next Two Weekends Happen Indoors

The outdoor season is still three weeks away, but the city's Holiday Stroll calendar starts well before the lights. Elf Jr. The Musical plays this Friday, November 13, at 7 p.m. and Saturday, November 14, at 11 a.m. It returns Friday, November 20, at 7 p.m. and Saturday, November 21, at 4 p.m.

Saturday, November 21, is the busiest day of that stretch. The Simpsonville Arts Center at 110 Academy Street has two shows of Christmas in New York City that day, at 11 a.m. and 1 p.m. The city's calendar also lists The Nutcracker on November 21 at the same two times. If your house has a dancer and a theater kid, that Saturday morning takes some planning.

Two Parks, Two Calendars

Once December starts, everything depends on which park you're headed to.

Simpsonville City Park, 100 Park Drive. The Holiday Stroll runs Thursday through Saturday on two weeks, December 3 to 5 and December 10 to 12. The city plans three main displays:

• A Christmas Fountain with warm lights, snowflakes, trees, deer and seasonal landscaping.
• Santa's Workshop & Christmas Stage, with visits with Santa, holiday performances, decorations and treats.
• Christmas Candy Land at the playground, with oversized candy-themed lights, a gumdrop field and selfie stations.

On Stroll nights the city hands out free cocoa and cookies. There are also s'mores by the fire and live music.

Heritage Park, 861 SE Main Street. The Jingle Bell Express runs Friday through Sunday on December 4 to 6 and December 11 to 13, then every day from Friday, December 18, through Tuesday, December 22. Weekday hours are 5 to 9 p.m. Saturday and Sunday hours are 1 to 9 p.m.

The Heritage Park Railway is a miniature replica steam train, and the ride lasts about six minutes. You buy tickets at the depot. The railway's regular fare is $3 per person, children under 2 ride free, and the depot takes cash and checks. The Jingle Bell Express goes back at least to 2022 as a Simpsonville Parks & Recreation event. That year it sold its own $5 "Golden Tickets," so holiday pricing may differ from the regular fare. Carry some cash either way.

Together, the two calendars sort December into three kinds of nights.

• Stroll only: Thursday, December 3, and Thursday, December 10.
• Both parks: Friday and Saturday, December 4 and 5, and Friday and Saturday, December 11 and 12.
• Train only: Sundays, December 6 and 13, and every day from December 18 through December 22.

December 5 and 6 Have the Most Going On

The first Saturday of the season has more on it than any other day this year. Here is how Saturday, December 5, lines up across Simpsonville:

1. Morning: Renovation Church holds its 5th Annual Christmas Market from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. and serves free breakfast. The city's calendar also lists Breakfast with Santa that day.
2. Afternoon: The Jingle Bell Express opens at Heritage Park at 1 p.m. on weekend hours.
3. Evening: The city's evening Christmas Market and the third night of the Holiday Stroll both take place that evening. The train runs until 9 p.m.

If you'd like to fit the most into one trip, take the train while it's still light out and walk City Park after dark. Both parks are open that night, and the evening market adds a holiday shopping stop on the same date.

Sunday, December 6, is downtown's turn. Simpsonville's Christmas Parade runs from 3 to 5 p.m. on N.E. and S.E. Main Street between S. Pliney Circle and Loma Street, and the Simpsonville Area Chamber lists this year's theme as "A Star-Spangled Christmas." The Stroll doesn't run on Sundays, but the train at Heritage Park runs until 9 p.m. That leaves four hours after the parade ends to ride it.

The Quieter Nights Are Thursdays and Sundays

Not everybody wants the busiest Saturday of the year. The schedule offers two easier options.

Thursdays, December 3 and 10, are Stroll-only nights. You get the same cocoa, cookies, s'mores by the fire, Candy Land and music as the weekend, and those Thursdays have no train, market or parade competing for your time. It's the easiest night to see the City Park displays on a school night and still get home early.

Sunday, December 13, works the other way. City Park's last Stroll night was the evening before, so Heritage Park is the only outdoor holiday stop that day. The train runs from 1 to 9 p.m. That's eight hours of riding after a weekend when the city's last evening Christmas Market was Saturday, December 12.

The week of December 11 and 12 has one more evening program. Echoes of Christmas, a young artist benefit cabaret for the Echoes Ensemble, is on the city's calendar for those two nights.

After December 12, Heritage Park Has the Season to Itself

The City Park Stroll ends Saturday, December 12. From there to Christmas, the outdoor holiday activity on the city's calendar moves to Heritage Park, and the train runs five straight days from Friday, December 18, through Tuesday, December 22.

That stretch suits families with a busy December. Monday the 21st and Tuesday the 22nd fall right before Christmas, and the train runs on weekday hours from 5 to 9 p.m. Saturday the 19th and Sunday the 20th run 1 to 9 p.m., so there's room for a midafternoon ride before dinner.

Friday, December 18, also has the season's last scheduled show. Christmas Bells Are Ringing plays the Simpsonville Arts Center at 110 Academy Street at 7:30 p.m. VisitGreenvilleSC lists tickets at $32.30. The train opens at 5 p.m. that night, so an early ride at Heritage Park before the curtain makes for a full evening.

The Whole Season at a Glance

Here are all the dates in order, so you can put them on the family calendar:

1. Fri., Nov. 13 and Sat., Nov. 14: Elf Jr. The Musical, 7 p.m. Friday, 11 a.m. Saturday
2. Fri., Nov. 20 and Sat., Nov. 21: Elf Jr., 7 p.m. Friday, 4 p.m. Saturday
3. Sat., Nov. 21: Christmas in New York City at the Simpsonville Arts Center, 11 a.m. and 1 p.m.
4. Thu., Dec. 3: Holiday Stroll opens at City Park
5. Fri., Dec. 4 to Sun., Dec. 6: Jingle Bell Express at Heritage Park
6. Sat., Dec. 5: Renovation Church Christmas Market, Breakfast with Santa, evening Christmas Market, Stroll and train
7. Sun., Dec. 6: Christmas Parade on Main Street, 3 to 5 p.m., then the train until 9
8. Thu., Dec. 10 to Sat., Dec. 12: Second and final week of the Stroll
9. Fri., Dec. 11 to Sun., Dec. 13: Jingle Bell Express
10. Sat., Dec. 12: Last evening Christmas Market
11. Fri., Dec. 18: Christmas Bells Are Ringing, 7:30 p.m., Simpsonville Arts Center
12. Fri., Dec. 18 to Tue., Dec. 22: Jingle Bell Express, final run

If you have questions about a specific event, the city takes them at [email protected] or (864) 967-9526.

We're a family too, and our December fills up the same way yours does, so we put this schedule together for our own planning first. If you're thinking about a move next year, whether that's closer to downtown Simpsonville, deeper into Five Forks or anywhere else in the Upstate, we'd be glad to talk it over after the holidays. To start, request your free home valuation from Team Inglee.