At 6 p.m. on Friday, November 20, parade units will gather at TSYS Way and Downtown Elementary School. Half an hour later they will step off from Country's at 14th Street and TSYS Way, turn down 13th, and head along Broadway from the 1300 block to the 900 block. At 7 p.m. the mayor will light the city Christmas tree, and carolers, Santa Claus and hot chocolate will close out the evening, according to Uptown Columbus's parade page.
The format is the same as last year. The date is not. In 2025 the Uptown Broadway Holiday Parade and tree lighting were on Friday, December 5, according to WTVM's holiday schedule from that week, with a 6:30 p.m. parade, a 7 p.m. tree lighting and a route along the 900 to 1200 blocks of Broadway. This year the tree goes up two weeks earlier, in the third week of November, and the rest of Columbus's holiday calendar now falls into place behind it.
The Tree Goes Up Before December
The Columbus Georgia Chamber of Commerce's young professionals group, CVYP, has signed up to join this year's parade and will decide a week ahead whether its members walk or ride. Its registration listing puts the event on Friday, November 20, 2026, from 6:30 to 8 p.m., and calls it Uptown's annual Christmas parade, meant to "commemorate the start of the holiday season."
That timing matters. Last year the city tree was lit on the same weekend as most of the region's other parades. WTVM's December 4, 2025 roundup covered three days that also included the LaGrange Christmas Parade, Opelika's parade and SNOPELIKA, and the Aflac Christmas Tree Lighting in midtown. Moving to November 20 gives Uptown's evening its own date, well ahead of that early December cluster.
It also means Broadway hosts a parade on three separate dates within about three weeks. The two city parades share a Saturday 10 a.m. slot, and Uptown's is the only one held after dark.
Three Parades, One Street, Different Clocks
The City of Columbus announced its two parades on September 21, 2026. Both are run by the Columbus Parks and Recreation Department and both are on Broadway in Uptown. Uptown Columbus runs the Friday evening parade.
| Date | Parade | Start | Organizer | Route |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Saturday, Nov. 14 | Veterans Day Parade | 10 a.m. | Columbus Parks and Recreation | Dillingham Street to 9th Street |
| Friday, Nov. 20 | Broadway Holiday Parade and tree lighting | 6:30 p.m. step-off, 7 p.m. tree | Uptown Columbus | 14th and TSYS Way, down 13th, 1300 to 900 Broadway |
| Saturday, Dec. 5 | Christmas Parade | 10 a.m. | Columbus Parks and Recreation | Dillingham Street to 9th Street |
The Veterans Day Parade on November 14 is the Saturday after Veterans Day. In its press release, the city lists local veterans' organizations, marching bands, JROTC units, civic groups and community leaders among the participants, and invites residents to line Broadway to show their appreciation. For families tied to Fort Moore, this is the morning on the list that is about service rather than the season.
The two Christmas events are built differently. Uptown's runs on a Friday evening and ends at the tree. The city's runs on a Saturday morning, with floats, marching bands, dancers and Santa, and community organizations, schools and businesses can enter a float or a performance group. Entry forms for both city parades are on the Columbus Parks and Recreation site, and the department's number is 706-225-4658.
The Last Weekend of November Turns On Everything Else
With the city tree already lit, the last weekend of November is when the rest of the season starts.
The Columbus Botanical Garden's Shine opens Friday, November 27, and runs on select nights through December 27, with entry times of 6 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. The Garden's Shine page promises new themed light displays throughout the grounds, plus Santa, a Walk of Stars, kids' activities, concessions and s'mores over a fire.
The next afternoon, the Springer Opera House at 103 10th St. opens Disney's Frozen the Musical, which runs November 28 through December 20. According to Fountain City News's holiday calendar, opening weekend has shows at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. on November 28 and at 2 p.m. on November 29. Later evening shows fall on December 3, 4, 5, 11, 12, 18 and 19, with matinees on December 6, 12, 13, 19 and 20. The same calendar advises buying tickets only through the Springer's website or its box office, 706-327-3688.
So the tree lighting is on November 20, the lights at the Garden start on the 27th, and the main stage show opens on the 28th, all before December begins.
December 5 Is Still the Big Saturday
That Saturday is now the city's day, and it fills up early. The Fountain City News calendar calls it the biggest Saturday of the season.
- Breakfast with Santa, 8 to 11 a.m., at the Columbus Convention & Trade Center, 801 Front Ave. This is the 11th year. It includes pancakes, holiday crafts, live performances and one digital photo with Santa, and children make cards for young patients at Piedmont. Adult and child tickets are sold separately.
- The Columbus Christmas Parade, 10 a.m., from Dillingham Street to 9th Street.
- Holidays with The WAVE, 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., in the lobby of the RiverCenter for the Performing Arts, with holiday music and the return of the Gingerbread Village.
- Frozen at 7 p.m. at the Springer.
All four are close together in Uptown, so a family could easily walk from breakfast to the parade to the RiverCenter lobby. The Thursday before has an evening event of its own: Uptown's Golf Cart Cruise Through Holiday Lights at 6 p.m. on December 3. Uptown lists it among its signature events but had not posted a route as of late October. Shine members get their own night at the Garden on Sunday, December 6.
Mid-December Moves Indoors and Uptown
After the parades end, most of the calendar moves to stages, and the second Saturday of December is almost as full as the first.
- Friday, December 11: The Springer opens its second holiday show, the comedy The Twelve Dates of Christmas. Performances run December 11 through 13 and December 17 through 20.
- Saturday, December 12: The Columbus Ballet's The Nutcracker plays RiverCenter at 7:30 p.m., with a live orchestra and the Voices of the Valley singers, and has a second show Sunday, December 13, at 2:30 p.m., according to the Columbus Ballet. At 7 p.m. that same night, Uptown's free, family-friendly Merry Movie Night shows a Christmas movie at TSYS Green Space. That morning, Columbus Parks and Recreation holds KidFest 2026 from 10 a.m. to noon in the City Hall Courtyard on Broadway.
- Tuesday, December 15: A Celtic Christmas at RiverCenter, 7:30 p.m.
- December 17 through 23: Cookies and Cocoa with Santa at the Columbus Botanical Garden, 5 to 6 p.m. Tickets are $30, children 24 months and under are free, and admission includes the 6 p.m. Shine entry, so one ticket covers both Santa and the lights.
- Saturday, December 19: The Big Dog Jingle 5K starts at 9 a.m. at 12 W. 11th St.
Last year's Cookies and Cocoa with Santa was a single evening, December 12, 2025. This year it runs seven nights in the week before Christmas, so families who miss Santa during the busy early weekends of December still have time to see him.
Still Waiting on a Date
A few familiar events had not posted 2026 dates as of late October. Skate with Santa at the Columbus Ice Rink, 400 Fourth St., was held December 13 last year. In 2025, Santa also visited the Columbus Public Library and the North Columbus, Mildred L. Terry and South Columbus branches, plus a sensory-friendly visit at North Columbus. The Chattahoochee Valley Libraries events calendar is where this year's library dates will appear. Uptown's signature events page also lists a Holly Jolly Market on November 28 from 9 a.m. to noon, but the listing shows no year, so confirm it with Uptown Columbus at 706-596-0111 before planning around it.
If family is visiting for the tree lighting or a Fort Moore move happens to land during the holidays, and someone starts asking what living near Broadway, the RiverWalk or the Garden would actually be like, I'm happy to talk it through without any pressure. Tiffiney Graham has been helping families settle into Columbus for more than twenty years, through a lot of holiday seasons. Let's Connect.
