Smyrna gets its Christmas tree glowing on the Tuesday before Thanksgiving, at the Train Depot, then fills Lowry Street with a parade on the first Sunday of December. This guide has both 2026 dates and events in La Vergne and Murfreesboro. Any organizer can revise a time, so confirm on its page close to the date.
Smyrna Christmas Tree Lighting: Tuesday, November 24
- Date:
- Tuesday, November 24, 2026
- Time:
- 6:00 to 8:00 pm
- Place:
- Smyrna Train Depot, Depot District
- Cost:
- Free
The Town's Christmas Tree Lighting takes place on Tuesday, November 24, 2026, at the Smyrna Train Depot in the Depot District, starting at 6:00 pm and wrapping up by 8:00. Entry costs nothing, and the evening brings music, treats and performances around the moment the tree is switched on, plus a sing-along for kids and a chance at a photo with Santa.
Thanksgiving falls on Thursday, November 26 this year, so Smyrna's tree is lit two days before the holiday. Anyone weighing whether that is too early for a house of their own can read Christmas lights before Thanksgiving, which takes up that question for the Nashville area.
Smyrna Christmas Parade: Sunday, December 6, 2:00 pm
- Date:
- Sunday, December 6, 2026
- Time:
- 2:00 pm
- Place:
- Lowry Street
The Smyrna Christmas Parade travels Lowry Street on Sunday, December 6, 2026, beginning at 2:00 pm, according to the town's annual events page. Groups can enter at no charge but must register by Friday, November 20, 2026, and pick up packets on November 23, 24 or 30. The Town asks entrants to bring a nonperishable food donation when they collect their packet.
More Rutherford County lights
- Spirit of Christmas Parade, La Vergne: on Saturday, December 5, 2026, the parade runs from City Hall to Veterans Memorial Park, and a tree lighting follows. La Vergne's parade page gives a 3:00 pm start, but the city calendar still shows 5:00 to 6:00 pm, so confirm on the parade page first.
- Date:
- Saturday, December 5, 2026
- Time:
- 3:00 pm on the parade page, 5:00 to 6:00 pm on the city calendar
- Place:
- City Hall to Veterans Memorial Park
- Celebrate Christmas Downtown, Murfreesboro: the Rutherford County Christmas tree is lit beside the historic courthouse on Friday, December 4, 2026, with the evening starting at 6:00 pm. Public Square parking closes at 4:00 pm. See Main Street Murfreesboro's page.
- Date:
- Friday, December 4, 2026
- Time:
- 6:00 pm
- Place:
- Beside the historic courthouse, Murfreesboro
- Murfreesboro Christmas Parade: exactly one week after Smyrna's, on Sunday, December 13, 2026, with floats, bands and dancers on Main Street from 2:00 until 4:00 pm. See the parade listing.
- Date:
- Sunday, December 13, 2026
- Time:
- 2:00 until 4:00 pm
- Place:
- Main Street, Murfreesboro
All three, along with Smyrna's own dates, are listed on the Nashville-area holiday lights calendar, next to the parades and tree lightings in towns farther out.
Twelve days from tree to parade
From the Depot tree lighting on November 24 to the parade on December 6 is twelve days, with Thanksgiving in between. A roofline that comes on for the first evening keeps going for the second without anyone touching it, and it is still lit when the Murfreesboro parade rolls a week later.
Ready before the Depot tree
Smyrna houses get a closer look on the Smyrna permanent lighting page, and you can ask for an estimate if you want your roofline lit before the Depot tree on November 24.