Hendersonville marks the first weekend of December with a lighted boat parade on Old Hickory Lake on Saturday and a Christmas parade with a tree lighting on Sunday. Both are run by HolidayFest, a Sumner County nonprofit. This guide lists the 2026 dates and times the organizers have posted, notes what is still to come, and adds a few larger shows within a drive. Confirm the details on each organizer's page before the day.
Deck The Hulls on Old Hickory Lake, Saturday, December 5
- Date:
- Saturday, December 5, 2026
- Time:
- 5:30 pm to 8:00 pm
- Place:
- Drakes Creek to Sander's Ferry Park, Old Hickory Lake
- Cost:
- Free
HolidayFest's Deck The Hulls boat parade takes to the lake on Saturday, December 5, 2026. Boats head out at 5:30 pm, and the listing runs until 8:00 pm. The route begins in Drakes Creek and ends at Sander's Ferry Park, with the judges stationed at Mallard Park along the way. Watching costs nothing.
The sun sets early in December, so the boats are out after dark. Find a spot along the route and watch the lit boats move across the water.
Christmas Parade and Tree Lighting, Sunday, December 6
- Date:
- Sunday, December 6, 2026
- Time:
- 2:00 pm to 6:00 pm
- Place:
- Main Street, then Memorial Park for the tree lighting
The next afternoon, the HolidayFest Christmas Parade and Tree Lighting comes down Main Street on Sunday, December 6, 2026, at 2:00 pm. This year's theme is "A Storybook Christmas." Expect more than 80 entries, from floats to dancers, and Santa brings up the rear. Once the last float passes, the crowd moves to Memorial Park for the tree lighting, and the listing runs until 6:00 pm.
Festival of Lights: 2026 date not yet announced
The City of Hendersonville lists a Festival of Lights among its annual events, but no 2026 date has been posted yet. Watch the city's Special Events page for dates, hours and a map.
More holiday lights within a drive
- Christmas at Gaylord Opryland: A Country Christmas starts November 6, 2026 and ends January 2, 2027, and this year's ice! is themed on "Home Alone." Details are on the resort's Christmas site.
- Date:
- November 6, 2026 to January 2, 2027
- Place:
- Gaylord Opryland
- Glow Wild, Nashville Zoo: evenings from 5 to 9 pm, November 13, 2026 to January 3, 2027, and Santa is on hand each night through December 24, starting November 27. See the Glow Wild page.
- Date:
- November 13, 2026 to January 3, 2027
- Time:
- 5 to 9 pm nightly
- Place:
- Nashville Zoo
- The Dancing Lights of Christmas in Lebanon: a drive-through light show set to music. It runs November 7, 2026 to January 3, 2027, Sunday to Thursday from 5 to 10 pm and Friday and Saturday from 5 to 11 pm. See the show's site.
- Date:
- November 7, 2026 to January 3, 2027
- Time:
- 5 to 10 pm Sunday to Thursday, 5 to 11 pm Friday and Saturday
- Place:
- Lebanon
The Nashville-area holiday lights calendar has all of these, plus parades and tree lightings in nearby towns.
Lake houses and street houses
By the city's count, Hendersonville has about 26 miles of Old Hickory Lake shoreline. Boats, docks and the opposite bank all look at a waterfront house, not only the road out front, so the roofline wants light on the back and sides too. On boat parade night, the side facing the water is the side most people see.
A house on an inland street is seen from one direction, and a single continuous line along the eave does the work. A roofline system follows whichever edges matter for that house.
Permanent roofline lighting for Hendersonville homes
Our installers put in permanent LED lighting that lives in a slim channel under the eave year round and answers to an app. Choose red and green for the parade weekend, schedule the lights to come on at sunset, and they are lit for both nights with no ladder and no extension cords.
At 6 to 12 hours a day, the system works out to about 10 to 20 years. Install day runs 8 to 10 hours, and the system comes with the manufacturer's 5-year product warranty and our installers' workmanship warranty.
The Hendersonville permanent lighting page goes deeper on homes here. To get started, use the quote form, and an installer will call you.