In Belle Meade, the Holiday Season's Best Nights Fall on Weeknights

This evening, Thursday, November 12, the decorated Mansion at Belle Meade Historic Site & Winery is free to walk through from 5 to 8 p.m. Eight days later, a little over a mile up Harding Pike, Cheekwood starts charging as much as $32 per adult for an evening in its lit gardens and Mansion. Both estates reward a weeknight visit, and Cheekwood builds that into its pricing. Fridays, Saturdays, and the whole week before Christmas cost more there and drop the discounted late entry. Outside that week, Monday through Thursday are the cheaper nights.

So if you live close enough to choose your night, you have more control over the cost of the season than the calendar suggests. It starts tonight.

The First Week Belongs to the Historic Site

From November 3 through 19, Cheekwood's Mansion and museum of art are closed while staff set up Holiday LIGHTS. Both reopen November 20 at 9 a.m. For those first weeks of November, the only decorated historic house on this stretch of Harding Pike is at 5025 Harding Pike.

The Holiday Open House at Belle Meade is the one dated evening this season when you can walk through the decorated Mansion. Walkthroughs are first-come, first-served. The evening also includes Santa and Mrs. Claus, carolers and live holiday music, crafts for kids, wine and bourbon tastings with food pairings, holiday cocktails, and the gift shops and restaurants staying open late. Part of the event is outdoors, so the venue suggests dressing for the weather.

A week later, on Thursday, November 19, Belle Meade holds The Wine Workshop pt. 2 from 6:30 to 8 p.m. Tickets are $35, the workshop is for ages 21 and up, and charcuterie add-ons cost $15 or $30. Part of the session covers pairing sparkling wines with food, including which bubbles go with Thanksgiving dishes. With the holiday a week away, the timing is useful. It's also the night before Cheekwood opens to the public.

For families who'd rather go during the day, Belle Meade runs a Holiday Family Tour of the Mansion from mid-November through December. It covers the history of Christmas room by room, and kids take home crafts like paper ornaments and letters to Santa. The site is open daily from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., with Mansion tours every 30 to 45 minutes from 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. A standard Mansion Tour costs $32 for adults, $30 for seniors 65 and up, and $20 for ages 5 to 17.

How Cheekwood Prices a Night

Holiday LIGHTS runs November 20, 2026 through January 3, 2027, from 4:30 to 10 p.m. Every guest needs a timed ticket bought in advance online. Cheekwood sets two prices, and the night you pick decides which one you pay.

Children 2 and under get in free, but they still need a ticket. Every ticket also carries a $2 service fee when bought in advance or $3 at the gate, and parking is $5 per vehicle.

Here's how that works out for two adults and two kids with Gardens + Mansion tickets:

1. Non-peak weeknight: $104 in tickets, plus $8 in advance fees and $5 for parking, comes to $117.
2. Peak Friday or Saturday: $116 in tickets, plus the same $13 in fees and parking, comes to $129.
3. Late Night LIGHTS, select Monday through Thursday nights outside Christmas week: $80 for four Gardens Only tickets, since adults and youth both pay $20, plus fees and parking, comes to $93.

The Late Night option has limits. Entry is held to 8:30 p.m., the Mansion isn't included, and it isn't sold on peak nights. All guests have to leave by 10 p.m., so an 8:30 entry gives you about 90 minutes on the path. If you live a few minutes away, an after-dinner walk on a Tuesday is about the best value Cheekwood offers all season.

Military Mondays fall on November 23 and 30 and December 7 and 28. Active-duty and retired military personnel get 50% off for up to five people with valid ID.

What the Weeknight Ticket Buys This Year

Most of what's new for 2026 is inside the Mansion, which comes with the Gardens + Mansion ticket. The theme is Un Noël Enchanté, or "An Enchanted Noel." It's a French-inspired installation by Laura Dowling, the former White House Chief Floral Designer, with Mauricio Clavero Kozlowski as Guest Artistic Advisor. The plans include rooms inspired by French periods and a hot-air balloon by Studio Cera Marie.

The Visit Nashville press release describes a one-mile garden path that passes the Peppermint Path, the Star Field, the Enchanted Esplanade, and the Sparkling Serpentine, which uses 600 linear feet of color. Also on the list for this year are a 28-foot Pixel Pine, a "North Pole Butterfly Garden" theme for the TRAINS! exhibit, and new collections in the Holiday Marketplace.

The priciest new feature is a heated private igloo for up to eight people. It costs $350 and includes blankets, a charcuterie or dessert board from Perenn, a bottle of champagne, and Garden tickets. It's booked in two windows, 5:30 to 7 p.m. or 7:30 to 9 p.m. The Merry & Bright package is a smaller step up. It costs $130 for members or $155 for nonmembers and includes two adult Gardens + Mansion admissions, two drinks, two s'mores kits, and 10% off in the Holiday Marketplace.

You don't need a night ticket to see the Mansion. Docent-led décor tours run at 11 a.m. Tuesday through Sunday from November 24 through January 3, and they're included with daytime admission.

The Calendar From Thanksgiving to January 3

From late November on, the two estates' calendars overlap, and the weeknight pattern still holds. The busiest stretch is the peak week before Christmas.

The wreath workshop at Belle Meade welcomes all ages, and the venue says it sold out last year. Each ticket includes grounds and walking-path admission, self-guided visits to the historic structures, and access to the two restaurants and Coop 'N Scoop. Mansion admission isn't included. The workshop falls on a Sunday, the weekend before Cheekwood's Santa days begin.

Before You Head Up Forrest Park Drive

• Arrive about 15 minutes before your entry time. Holiday LIGHTS entry slots run every 30 minutes from 4:30 to 8:30 p.m.
• Parking is limited and first-come, first-served. Cheekwood suggests rideshare and uses Lot A for drop-off and pick-up. Members park one vehicle free per visit. While construction is underway, Lot A is also the accessible parking area.
• Sold-out times stay sold out. Cheekwood doesn't sell them by phone or at the gate, though cancellations sometimes show up online.
• Plans change? You can move tickets to another date for $5 each, as long as you do it before your original entry time and the new time isn't sold out.
• Weather. The event runs rain or shine. If conditions become unsafe, Cheekwood will email ticket holders and post updates on its social channels.
• The Sculpture Trail is still closed. Cheekwood lists the Ann & Monroe Carell Jr. Family Sculpture Trail as closed until further notice due to construction.

If you spend a holiday afternoon at Belle Meade Historic Site, it helps to know when each place on the grounds is open. The Belle Meade Meat & Three serves daily from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., Bonnie's Bourbon and Wine Bar is open daily from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Coop 'N Scoop is open daily from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Fox Run Cafe is open only Friday through Sunday, 11 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Complimentary tastings at Belle Meade Winery run daily from 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.

If you're mapping out a holiday season on Harding Pike this year, maybe with family coming to town, we're glad to share what we know about the area over coffee. Reach out to Kim at Oak Leaf Real Estate and pick a weeknight that suits you.