Enjoy Christmas In The Park With
Your Family Starting Thanksgiving Day
Information courtesy of College Station Parks & Recreation
It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas in Stephen C. Beachy Central Park!
College Station’s beautiful Christmas in the Park displays began in 1984 when a local family funded a couple of light panels. Since then, the collection has since grown to more than one million lights and has become a holiday mainstay.
Starting Nov. 24, the lights will burn nightly from 6-11 p.m. through New Year’s Day. As you stroll or drive through the park, tune in to Bryan Broadcasting’s Christmas 97.3 FM and enjoy holiday music. Admission is free, and parking is available.
And don’t forget to bring your wish list for Santa.
Our staff has arranged with his elves to accept letters for Santa in our North Pole mailbox outside the Central Park Office. Drop your letter off from Nov. 24-Dec. 24 to ensure safe delivery.
The only nights you can’t drive through the park are Dec. 2-3, when we’re preparing for the Christmas in the Park event weekend. The drive-thru closes at 7 a.m. on event days to keep everyone safe as we set up for visits with Santa and his reindeer, hayrides, and plenty of cookies and hot cocoa.
Thank you, Santa’s helpers!
The Parks and Recreation crews spend about eight weeks diligently working around daily park operations and events to transition the park into a lighted winter wonderland. They toil in the heat, cold, and rain to ensure a radiant and festive glow when we flip the switch on Thanksgiving Day.
Here are some remarkable Christmas in the Park facts:
- The Christmas tree stands 90 feet tall and has 14,400 light bulbs.
- Santa’s Lane has 60 strands of lights.
- Snowflake forest has 36 snowflakes.
- The longest light panel is the 36-foot-long paddle board.
- Each light display is carefully crafted by park crews, with a light bulb every inch.
For many families, Christmas in the Park is a holiday institution. The Parks and Recreation family invites you to make the tradition your own and create lasting memories.