Cheekwood's Holiday LIGHTS opens to the public on Friday, November 20, and runs through January 3, 2027. It is open seven nights a week except Thanksgiving and Christmas, and it operates on New Year's Night. Most people come for one evening and buy the ticket that covers everything. That means the gardens, the Mansion and whatever night their calendar allows.
If you live a few minutes away in Belle Meade, you can split the visit. This year's Mansion installation, An Enchanted Noel, is open during daytime hours too, with the same Gardens + Mansion ticket type. For a Cheekwood member, daytime admission is already included. Once the Mansion moves to a weekday morning, the evening only has to cover the lights. Cheekwood prices the lights alone most cheaply on Monday-through-Thursday nights.
What is inside the Mansion this year, and when you can see it
The 2026 installation is French-inspired, and each room tells a different part of the story. Cheekwood's page describes château celebrations, Versailles-inspired rooms, intimate salons, garden retreats and a nod to Marie-Antoinette's Hameau. It was conceived by Holiday Artistic Director Laura Dowling, a former Chief White House Floral Designer, with Guest Designer Mauricio Clavero Kozlowski. In the Loggia, a vintage-style hot-air balloon by Studio Cera Marie hangs over Le Carrousel Parisien. That carousel was created by Glitterville's Stephen Brown for the 2024 White House Blue Room Christmas display. According to the Visit Music City press release, the rooms also feature Baccarat crystal and tableware and a collaboration with Paris's Le Meurice.
The daytime details matter if you want to see it in a quieter setting:
- Hours: Cheekwood's holiday daytime schedule is Tuesday through Sunday, 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.
- Ticket type: The installation is included with Gardens + Mansion tickets, not Gardens Only.
- Guided look: Mansion Holiday Décor Tours start at 11 a.m. from November 24 through January 3 and are free with admission.
- Same-day caution: Daytime and evening admission are separate. If you hold both for the same day, Cheekwood asks you to leave the garden by 3:30 p.m. and return at your evening entry time.
The 11 a.m. tour on a Tuesday in early December is a very different visit from a Saturday 6 p.m. entry slot. During the evening event, the Mansion is one stop on a one-mile walking path.
How Cheekwood prices the nights
Every Holiday LIGHTS guest needs an advance ticket for a 30-minute entry window between 4:30 and 8:30 p.m., including children 2 and under. Everyone has to be off the grounds by 10 p.m. Prices depend on two things: whether the night is peak, and whether the ticket includes the Mansion. Cheekwood lists the peak nights as Fridays, Saturdays and the week leading up to Christmas.
| Ticket | Non-Peak, Gardens Only | Non-Peak, Gardens + Mansion | Peak, Gardens Only | Peak, Gardens + Mansion |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Adult | $26 | $29 | $29 | $32 |
| Youth, 3 to 17 | $20 | $23 | $23 | $26 |
| Member adult | $17 | $20 | $20 | $23 |
| Member youth | $13 | $16 | $16 | $19 |
Ages 2 and under are free. There is a $2 service fee on each advance ticket and $3 on any walk-up ticket that is still available. Nonmembers pay $5 to park, first come, first served. Members park one car free.
Late Night LIGHTS is the cheapest way in. These tickets are sold for 8:30 p.m. Gardens Only entry on select Monday-through-Thursday nights and are not offered on peak nights. They cost $20 per nonmember of any age, $17 per member adult and $13 per member youth. Because the tickets are discounted, holders cannot enter before 8:30. That leaves 90 minutes on the path before the 10 p.m. close.
The math for a household of four
Here is one household of two adults and two children ages 3 to 17, counting ticket prices, the $2 per-ticket service fee and parking:
- Nonmembers, peak night, Gardens + Mansion: $116 in tickets, $8 in fees and $5 parking, for $129.
- Members, peak night, Gardens + Mansion: $84 in tickets and $8 in fees, with parking included, for $92.
- Members, Late Night LIGHTS: $60 in tickets and $8 in fees, for $68. The Mansion is then seen on a daytime visit that membership already covers.
Cheekwood's Family Two membership covers two named adults and up to five youth for $150 a year. Membership comes with complimentary general admission and parking for one vehicle per visit, with advance reservations.
For nonmembers the split adds cost. Daytime Gardens + Mansion admission runs $26 to $29 for adults and $19 to $22 for youth. At night, adding the Mansion costs $3 per ticket. For a nonmember, the evening Gardens + Mansion ticket on a non-peak weeknight is the lower-cost way to see both.
Member pricing starts before opening night. The Member Preview Night is Thursday, November 19, from 4:30 to 10 p.m. It is ticketed separately at $17 per adult and $13 per youth for Gardens Only, or $20 and $16 with the Mansion.
What to know about the evening itself
Onsite parking is limited, and the parking team may direct you to a spot some distance from the start of the path. Lot A is the rideshare drop-off and pick-up point. Cheekwood says guests who show proof of a rideshare at check-in get a ticket discount and have the parking fee waived. The walk is self-guided, and there is no shuttle.
Along the route you will pass the Peppermint Path, the Star Field and a 28-foot Pixel Pine over the Bradford Robertson Color Garden. The permanent TRAINS! exhibit gets a holiday treatment called Dancing Lights of TRAINS! The press release adds the Enchanted Esplanade, a 600-foot Sparkling Serpentine and a new North Pole Butterfly Garden theme for TRAINS!
The Frist Learning Center is the place to stop and warm up. The Holiday Marketplace there carries new décor collections, winterwear, Jellycat plush and a new Mansion snow globe. S'mores kits are sold for the firepits on the Frist terrace. Perenn at Cheekwood serves hot chocolate, spiced cider and cookies until 8 p.m. in the evening. Late Night ticket holders entering at 8:30 will find it closed. The press release names two seasonal cocktails, the Candy Cane Cocoa and the Red Hot Rudolph.
For a booked evening for a group, Cheekwood added heated igloos this year. Each seats up to eight and includes blankets, a charcuterie and sweets board, a bottle of champagne and garden admission. Igloos cost $350 for a 5:30 to 7 p.m. or 7:30 to 9 p.m. seating.
For a gift, the Merry & Bright package is $130 for members and $155 for nonmembers. It includes two adult Gardens + Mansion passes, parking for one vehicle, two drink tickets, two s'mores kits and 10% off at the Marketplace. It is valid any night and at any time, with no reserved slot. Active-duty and retired military get 50% off for up to five people on Military Mondays: November 23 and 30, and December 7 and 28.
If a time slot sells out, Cheekwood does not sell tickets by phone or at the door. Any returned tickets go back online. Tickets can be moved to another date once, in advance, for $5 each. They cannot be moved to a slot that is already sold out.
More daytime dates at Cheekwood
Several of the season's other events are daytime events too, so a member's daytime visits can cover more than the Mansion:
| Date | Event | Detail |
|---|---|---|
| Sat., Nov. 21 and Sat., Dec. 5 | Live Greenery Wreath Workshop | Taught by Abigail Boroughs in Botanic Hall; registration required |
| Dec. 12 to 24 | Daytime Visits with Santa | Historic Stable and Tack Room, Frist Learning Center; Tue.–Fri. 10 a.m.–2 p.m., Sat.–Sun. 10 a.m.–3 p.m.; timed entry given on arrival |
| Sun., Dec. 13 | Dog Visits with Santa | 10 a.m.–3 p.m. |
| Tue., Dec. 22 | Dog Visits with Santa | 10 a.m.–2 p.m. |
Visits with Santa are included with either daytime ticket type. Cheekwood's Santa page notes that dogs will be there on December 13 and 22, so families who would rather avoid them can pick another day.
Down the road, a free evening first
Before Cheekwood's lights come on, Belle Meade Historic Site & Winery opens its own season. The Holiday Open House is Thursday, November 12, from 5 to 8 p.m., and it is free. The evening includes Santa and Mrs. Claus, carolers and live holiday music, family crafts, wine and bourbon tastings, food pairings and holiday cocktails. The decorated Mansion is open for walkthroughs on a first-come, first-served basis, and the restaurants and gift shops stay open all evening. The event is partly outdoors, so dress for the weather.
There is a second wreath class nearby. Belle Meade's Deck the Halls Holiday Wreath-Making Workshop is Sunday, December 6, with sessions from 10 a.m. to noon and from 1 to 3 p.m. Apple and Dove Flower Co. leads it, and tickets start at $95. Materials include fresh-cut boughs and greenery from a local Christmas tree farm, and Mansion admission is not included. With Cheekwood's class on December 5, there are wreath workshops at both estates on back-to-back days.
Being this close to both estates means you don't have to fit the holiday season into one crowded evening, and I enjoy helping neighbors make the most of it. If you are hosting family this December and would like help planning the visits around your own calendar, or you simply want to talk about the neighborhood, Barbara-Keith Payne is glad to hear from you. Schedule a free consultation, and we can start with which weeknight works best.
