# Tree Lighting Celebration at Downtown Cary Park > Event for families in the Raleigh–Cary area (NC). Times are Eastern Time. - When: Sat, Dec 5 · 9:00 AM – 8:00 PM - Where: Downtown Cary Park, 327 S Academy St, Cary, NC 27511 - Ages: All ages - Price: Free - Organizer: Town of Cary / Downtown Cary Park - Official page: https://downtowncarypark.com/ - Last checked: Tue, Oct 27 Source: Grassy Knees is a directory of real family events, places and programs for kids across major U.S. metro areas, where every listing is researched from the organizer’s own page and shows the date we last checked it. https://grassyknees.com covers 42 metro areas as of Nov 2, 2026, with more added regularly. About: https://grassyknees.com/about Freshness: listings are re-checked on a daily research run (latest check 2026-11-01), and new events are added as organizers post them. Sell-outs, weather cancellations and time changes show up on the live page first: https://grassyknees.com/raleigh/activities/tree-lighting-celebration-at-downtown-cary-park--listing-9ea6c784d07cb1b363e6fc86 ## About Cary's official start to the holidays is a free, day-long Tree Lighting Celebration at Downtown Cary Park on Saturday, Dec 5, 2026, building up to the lighting of the town tree on Frantz Square Lawn at 6 pm. The morning opens with the Cary Farmers Holiday Market on East Park Street (9 am to noon), and Santa takes photos in the Gathering House from 10 am to 5 pm. From noon a holiday vendor market fills South Academy Street, and the afternoon is busy for children: an art cart at The Nest Pavilion, reindeer games in the Park Street Arena, a snowball fight area, face painting and a holiday photo backdrop on Frantz Square Plaza, most of it running from 2 to 6 pm. Community groups perform on the Great Lawn Pavilion stage from 3 to 5:15 pm. The event is free and suitable for all ages. Academy Street between Park Street and Dry Avenue closes to cars from 11 am to 10 pm, so plan to park in a town lot and walk in; The Nest playground in the park is a good place to let little ones burn off energy before the lights come on. ## Similar picks in Raleigh - [Knightdale Tree Lighting at Knightdale Station Park](https://grassyknees.com/raleigh/activities/knightdale-tree-lighting-at-knightdale-station-park--listing-1b4d0690324ea94808a8f58b) — Fri, Dec 4 · 6:00 PM – 8:00 PM · Knightdale Station Park · All ages · Free · checked Oct 30. 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