SouthPark's holiday calendar runs from early November to Christmas Eve, but most of it lands in two short windows. One is the first few hours of Thanksgiving Day. The other is four days in early December, Thursday, Dec. 3 through Sunday, Dec. 6. Each window needs its own plan for getting around. On Thanksgiving morning, the streets around SouthPark Mall become a racecourse and the neighborhood's free ride service is off for the day. In early December the events sit close together, and the Skipper reaches all of them.
Here is how each stretch works and what fills the weeks around them.
Thanksgiving morning runs on the mall's own roads
The Charlotte Turkey Trot is the largest single event on SouthPark's holiday calendar. SouthPark Community Partners describes an 8K, a 5K run/walk, a 1-mile fun run/walk and a Tot Trot that together draw more than 12,000 people, plus a post-race party. For 2026, the official race-day schedule puts every start line on Carnegie Boulevard and the festival in the DICK'S Sporting Goods parking lot at SouthPark Mall.
The Thursday, Nov. 26 schedule:
| Time | What happens | Where |
|---|---|---|
| 7:00 a.m. | Pre-race activation and will-call open | DICK'S parking lot |
| 8:00 a.m. | Harris Teeter 1 Mile starts | Carnegie Blvd |
| 8:10 a.m. | CPI Security 8K starts | Carnegie Blvd |
| 8:30 to 9:30 a.m. | Harris Teeter Tot Trot heats, ages 8 and under | DICK'S parking lot |
| 9:10 a.m. | CPI Security 5K starts | Carnegie Blvd |
| 10:00 a.m. | 5K awards ceremony | Novant Stage, DICK'S lot |
| 10:30 a.m. | Race activation closes | DICK'S parking lot |
Queen City News reports that all races start and finish at SouthPark Mall and describes the Tot Trot as a 50-yard dash in the festival area.
The race reaches well beyond the mall property. The official 8K map runs along Colony Road and through Selwyn Avenue, Runnymeade Lane, Barclay Downs Drive, Inverness Road, Manning Drive, Hatherly Road and South Park Drive. The 5K uses Colony Road, Runnymeade Lane, Barclay Downs Drive and South Park Drive. If you live along those streets, the morning will feel very different from a usual holiday.
Getting around that morning
The race's parking map asks drivers to stay off Carnegie Boulevard and Barclay Downs Drive from 6 to 11 a.m. According to the race FAQ, parking is free in every deck and surface lot at SouthPark Mall, which has more than 7,000 spaces. The lots closest to DICK'S are the only ones off limits, and organizers recommend entering from Fairview Road or Sharon Road.
The free SouthPark Skipper doesn't run on Thanksgiving Day, so race morning means walking, driving or another ride. For anyone close to the course, walking is usually the easiest way in.
Before the race
Registration on the official event page costs $55 for the 5K or 8K and $35 for the 1-mile through Nov. 21. From Nov. 22 until registration closes at 7 p.m. on Nov. 25, it rises to $59 and $39. Race-week packet pickup is Tuesday, Nov. 24 and Wednesday, Nov. 25, from noon to 7 p.m., at TowneBank Symphony Park at SouthPark Mall. Race-morning will-call pickup costs an extra $15, and you have until the end of the day Sunday, Nov. 23 to add it.
The event supports the CMPD Explorers Christmas Project. Participants can donate when they register or bring an unwrapped toy on race day, Queen City News reports. Toy drop-off is at the Novant Stage.
Between the holidays, the calendar fills in at the mall
After the race, the season moves inside SouthPark Mall and stays there through most of the stretch until December. Simon's Santa Photo Experience opened Nov. 6 and runs through Dec. 24, with reservations encouraged and hours that change by date. The Sunday after Thanksgiving, Nov. 29, the mall hosts Pet Photos with Santa from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. No reservation is needed, and photos are available to purchase.
Some events repeat every week, outside any holiday theme. SouthPark Community Partners lists trivia at Rhino Market on Tuesday evenings and free wine tastings on Saturdays at Arthur's and at Reid's Fine Foods. The Cinq à Sept and CADDIS trunk show at Sloan runs Nov. 19 to 21.
Dec. 3 to Dec. 6 is the busiest stretch, and the Skipper reaches all of it
The first weekend of December has the most events of the season. Over four days, they move between Phillips Place, a local gallery, a brewery, a baking shop and two courts inside the mall:
- Thursday, Dec. 3, 4 to 7 p.m. The annual Phillips Place Holiday Stroll brings photos with Santa and Mrs. Claus, traveling carolers, face painting, balloon art, a flower truck, seasonal treats and drinks, and shopping and dining offers. Anne Neilson Fine Art holds an opening reception the same day with complimentary wine and beer.
- Saturday, Dec. 5, 9 to 11 a.m. The mall management office hosts the RSVP-only Jingle Bell Bash at Suffolk Punch Brewing, with brunch, crafts, train rides and Santa.
- Saturday, Dec. 5, later in the day. King Arthur Baking Co. runs a hands-on drop-in baking activity for kids 5 and up, with a treat to sample. The mall's holiday calendar also lists Deans Duets classical music in Circle Court that day.
- Sunday, Dec. 6, 8:30 to 10:30 a.m. Caring Santa is a reservation-only, sensory-friendly visit in SouthPark Mall's Center Court for children with special needs and their families. Photos are available to purchase.
This is the stretch where the SouthPark Skipper helps most. The service is free and point to point anywhere in the SouthPark district, every day from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., with the last ride requests taken at 8:45 p.m. SouthPark Community Partners funds it, Freebee operates it, and the fleet is all electric. Some practical details:
- Book through the Ride Freebee app by choosing "SouthPark, Charlotte," or call 855-918-3733.
- You can only request a ride from inside the district.
- Riders 12 and younger need an adult with them, and each car carries one booster seat.
- Accessibility accommodations and car seats can be requested when booking.
Dec. 5 shows why this helps. The Jingle Bell Bash at Suffolk Punch ends at 11 a.m., and the Skipper starts at 9, so a family can leave the brewery and ride to the King Arthur baking activity or Circle Court without moving a car out of a mall deck on one of the busiest Saturdays of the year.
Mid-December events take place indoors, a few at a time
After Dec. 6 the calendar thins out. South Charlotte Ballet performs the Nutcracker in Circle Court on Saturday, Dec. 12, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., and Deans Duets returns to Circle Court on Dec. 19. SouthPark Regional Library offers its watercolor-in-a-sketchbook class with artist Marco Franco on Dec. 12.
Between stops, look for SouthPark Community Partners' Window Walk, which pairs five local artists with business windows across the neighborhood. Beth Cox Stephens's work appears at Suffolk Punch, Paco's Tacos and The Golden Carrot, and Heather Kostell's at Rhino Market. Javon Jeter's displays are at The Craic and Copain, Nadia Ogunfowora's at Studio Fire, and Natalie Daratony's at Sassy Nails, Sabor and Winston's Boutique.
Santa photos end Dec. 24. The Skipper is off on Christmas Day, as it is on Thanksgiving.
Symphony Park's role is about to change
The Turkey Trot uses TowneBank Symphony Park for race-week packet pickup, but on race morning the action is on Carnegie Boulevard and in the DICK'S lot. SouthPark Community Partners says it will finish final design and permit review for the rebuilt park through late 2026, so construction can begin soon. Its development plan includes new trail links, boardwalks, play areas, public art and restaurant space. The park's planned programming includes yoga, farmers markets and movie nights, along with the Charlotte Symphony's Summer Pops, SouthPark After 5 and the Charlotte Turkey Trot.
Whether you're planning to run the 8K or walk from Phillips Place to Circle Court on Dec. 3, local knowledge makes the season easier, and that kind of on-the-ground SouthPark detail is how Aralena Paulette approaches every client conversation. If the holidays have you thinking about your own corner of SouthPark and what it might be worth next year, Schedule a Consultation and we'll go through it together.
