The 6 p.m. parade was still two hours off on Sunday, November 30, 2025, when cars began backing up on the roads into downtown Elizabethtown. The Bladen Journal's holiday recap said people came to town early for post-Black Friday deals, and that around 4 p.m. "there was an influx of cars and people that caused traffic jams." By dark, spectators were five and six deep along both the north and south sides of Broad Street.
That was the first lighted Christmas parade ever held in Elizabethtown. The paper estimated more than 1,000 people marching in it and another 4,000 to 6,000 watching. The second one steps off Sunday, November 29, at 6 p.m. The move to nighttime turned a hometown afternoon procession into the closing night of a weekend when Christmas lights come on across Bladen County. Plan your Sunday with that in mind.
What Changed When the Parade Went After Dark
Two years ago the parade ran in daylight. In 2024 it started at 4 p.m., came down West Broad Street into downtown, and ended in the Fresh Foods parking lot on South Poplar Street, which is Highway 701. Star Communications Channel 16 carried it live from the grandstand in front of Leinwands. A Christmas Tree Lighting on Courthouse Square followed.
For 2025 the Elizabethtown-White Lake Area Chamber of Commerce rebuilt it as an evening event called "Light Up Elizabethtown." It added a Christmas Float Contest and asked groups to decorate to the lighted theme. Chamber manager Amy Hudson described it to the Bladen Journal as "one of our town's most cherished traditions" and "a time for neighbors, families, and friends to come together."
| 2024 | 2025 | 2026 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Date | Sunday, Dec. 1 | Sunday, Nov. 30 | Sunday, Nov. 29 |
| Start time | 4 p.m. | 6 p.m. | 6 p.m. |
| Format | Daytime parade | First lighted night parade | Lighted night parade |
| Ends at | Fresh Foods lot, South Poplar St. | Poplar Street, downtown | Carlie C's IGA lot |
| Afterward | Tree lighting, Courthouse Square | Carolers, cadet light show, Santa in the crowd | Tree lighting at the courthouse |
Sharonview Federal Credit Union sponsored the 2024 parade, and it is named as sponsor of the 2026 parade as well. In 2025 Santa rode through downtown on an antique fire engine. In 2024 the Bladen Journal identified his ride as the Elizabethtown Fire Department's 1929 truck.
Last Year's Crowd Shows How Big the Night Has Become
The 2025 parade had 109 entries and ran one hour and 37 minutes. The Big M Ranch brought horses, cowboys and cowgirls, a camel and a longhorn cow. The last unit passed, but the evening kept going. Children sang carols, cadets from Paul R. Brown Leadership Academy put on a lighted presentation, and Santa climbed down from the fire engine and walked through the crowd. The paper reported hundreds of people at Elizabethtown's tree lighting.
The Chamber's 2026 calendar blocks the parade from 6 to 7 p.m. Last year's parade went well past an hour, and the tree lighting comes after it. If you are bringing small children or have to be somewhere Monday morning, plan on being downtown well past 7.
The Route for Sunday, November 29
The Chamber's listing gives the route like this:
- Line up and step off at Elizabethtown Town Hall, 805 W. Broad Street.
- Head east down Broad Street toward downtown.
- Turn right onto Poplar Street.
- Finish in the Carlie C's IGA parking lot.
- The tree lighting at the courthouse follows.
The finish line is the same lot where the 2024 parade ended. In July the Bladen Journal reported that Carlie C's IGA was taking over the former Fresh Foods IGA store.
The listing's advice is to bring a chair. Based on how last year went, a few more steps help:
- Arrive by 4 p.m. Traffic built around then in 2025 because shoppers and parade-goers were arriving together.
- Pick your side of Broad Street early. Last year spectators packed both sides, so plan on getting there early for a curb spot.
- Choose by what you want to see. Spots near Town Hall see the parade first. Spots near Poplar Street are a short walk from the courthouse lighting.
- Pack for cold. Last year the parade came at the end of a frosty weekend, with a cold, stiff north wind across the county.
Groups that want to march can ask for an application by emailing [email protected] or by stopping by the Chamber office at 207 Broad Street. The Chamber's parade page invites businesses, schools, churches, civic clubs, pageant representatives and community groups to take part.
The Grand Marshal Who Explains the Format
The Chamber's choice of grand marshal for 2025 shows how it sees the night parade. The committee picked Ron Taylor, owner of Taylor Manufacturing and Lu Mil Vineyard. It cited his creation of the Festival of Lights at Lu Mil, which the Chamber said "draws thousands of visitors each year and has become a cornerstone of Bladen County's holiday celebrations." Hudson told the Bladen Journal that Taylor "has brought light and joy to our community in every sense of the word."
Choosing him tied the town's first lighted parade to the county's best-known light display. The two now share a weekend. According to Lu Mil's 2026 schedule, the drive-through Festival of Lights opens Friday, November 27, two nights before the parade. Lu Mil drew record crowds on its opening weekend last year, according to the Bladen Journal.
Thanksgiving Weekend, Night by Night
From Friday through Sunday after Thanksgiving, there are lights to see somewhere in the county every night.
Friday, Nov. 27, through Sunday, Nov. 29: Lu Mil Festival of Lights. The display is a drive-through with "hundreds of thousands of lights" set to music on your car's FM radio. Admission is $10 per person, with a maximum charge of $120 per vehicle. Children 5 and under get in free. You buy tickets at the booth the day you go, cars do not need reservations, and the booth takes cash and credit cards. The GPS address is 438 Suggs-Taylor Road, Elizabethtown. Groups who want the open-top bus tour book through Lu Mil's bus reservation page. After opening weekend, the lights run December 3 through 6 and then every night from December 10 through 23.
Saturday, Nov. 28: Goldston's Beach tree lighting at White Lake. The Grand Regal Resort lists its fourth annual Christmas tree lighting at Goldston's Beach for that Saturday. Last year's lighting there had Santa in a newly built workshop, plus dance and music troupes performing on the lakeshore. Elizabeth Cashwell emceed. Check the Grand Regal's event calendar for the start time before you go.
Sunday, Nov. 29: Light Up Elizabethtown. The parade starts at 6 p.m. from Town Hall, and the courthouse tree lighting follows.
With that schedule, you can see Lu Mil on Friday, the Goldston's Beach lighting on Saturday and the parade on Sunday. Since the parade moved to 6 p.m., Elizabethtown has closed out that weekend with a lighted show of its own.
If you are spending a Sunday night on Broad Street this year and wondering what the blocks around it are like the rest of the year, our agents at Tatum Real Estate live and work along this parade route and know downtown Elizabethtown street by street. Talk to a Local Agent Today. We'll see you on Broad Street on November 29.
