When does the holiday season start in Brookhaven? Light Up Brookhaven at Blackburn Park on Thursday, Dec. 3, is the obvious answer. This year the earlier date is Saturday, Oct. 31. That's the registration deadline for the Brookhaven Holiday Tinsel Trail, a program that will put decorated trees at four locations across the city: three parks and the Peachtree Creek Greenway. Residents, businesses, organizations and community groups will decorate those trees, not a city crew.
Explore Brookhaven runs the program with the City of Brookhaven. The idea is simple. Participants sign up, get assigned a tree, and decorate it for neighbors walking by during the season. What gets hung on those trees in late November depends on who registers in the next nine days.
The dates that matter
The Tinsel Trail runs on a longer timeline than most holiday events, and the important step happens first. Here's the 2026 calendar from the Explore Brookhaven event page:
- Oct. 1: Registration opened.
- Oct. 31: Registration closes.
- Nov. 16 through Dec. 1: Trees are installed between 9 a.m. and 6 p.m.
- Dec. 1: Installation deadline.
That leaves about two weeks between the registration deadline and the first installation day. For a family, a scout troop, a small business on Dresden Drive or a book club, that's time to plan a theme and gather materials. After Oct. 31, though, there's no way to claim a spot.
Each participant gets a designated tree and installation space from Explore Brookhaven and the City, and decorations have to stay within that space. Registration happens through an online form linked from the event page. The form asks participants to acknowledge and sign a participant agreement with rules and guidelines. Anyone planning a tree should read that agreement for the practical details before committing.
Aiming for a tree in every council district
Where the trees go explains the program. Explore Brookhaven says the goal is a participating location in each City Council district, which spreads the season across the city instead of concentrating it in one place. The 2026 locations are:
- Blackburn Park 2
- Skyland Park, 2600 Skyland Drive
- Langford Park, 1174 Pine Grove Avenue NE
- Peachtree Creek Greenway, on the Police Department side
The organizers say locations may still change for accessibility, parking, public safety, park operations or visibility, so check the event page again before a visit in late November.
Spreading the trees out puts more of Brookhaven within reach of one. They'll sit in parks and on a trail with walking paths, rather than at a single destination you'd drive to once.
Walking the trail you already walk
All four sites are built for walking, which suits trees meant to be seen on foot.
Skyland Park has complimentary parking and a walking loop, according to Explore Brookhaven, and the City's facility page lists a parking lot and path. A decorated tree on that loop becomes part of an ordinary lap around the park.
Langford Park on Pine Grove Avenue also has complimentary parking and a walking loop, so a stop at the tree fits into a lap around the park.
Blackburn Park has complimentary parking and trails, per Explore Brookhaven. The Tinsel Trail lists its site as Blackburn Park 2, so look for signage or updates on the event page to find the exact spot.
Peachtree Creek Greenway has three trailheads with free parking, according to the City of Brookhaven: 2036 North Druid Hills Road, 1801 Corporate Boulevard NE and 1793 Briarwood Road NE. The Tinsel Trail tree will be on the Police Department side of the Greenway.
Seeing all four in one outing takes a short drive, but each one works as a stop on a walk you'd take anyway. A tree on the Greenway sits along the trail, and a tree at Langford Park sits by the loop.
Filling the weeks before installation
Between today and Nov. 16, when the first trees go up, Brookhaven's calendar already has plenty on it. These events are spread across the city like the trees will be.
Thursday, Oct. 22: Oglethorpe University's Fall Music Gala features university ensembles playing video-game music, 8 to 10 p.m. at the Conant Performing Arts Center, 4484 Peachtree Road NE. It's an easy evening out on the Peachtree corridor.
Oct. 23–24 and Oct. 30–31: The last two weekends of Petite Violette's Murder, Mystery, and Mayhem. The restaurant at 2948 Clairmont Road serves a four-course French dinner with live actors and audience participation, Fridays at 7:30 p.m. and Saturdays at 7 p.m. The run ends Oct. 31, the same day Tinsel Trail registration closes. Booking details are on Petite Violette's mystery dinner theater page.
Nov. 8: The 2026 Memory Walk at Blackburn Park, 3493 Ashford Dunwoody Road, runs 10:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. It's an annual, family-friendly event with a short walk, grief support and memorial activities, live entertainment and lunch. Registration includes food, an event T-shirt and access to all activities, and all proceeds benefit Kate's Club, a nonprofit that supports children, teens, families and young adults after the death of someone important to them. Tickets are on the Memory Walk registration page.
Nov. 16: Tinsel Trail installation begins.
Nov. 22: The Oglethorpe University Museum of Art's Skylight Gallery concert series presents "Voices Within," 3 to 5 p.m. at 4484 Peachtree Road NE. It's free for museum members and $10 for general admission. Trees will be going up across the city that weekend, so an afternoon concert followed by a stop at one of the parks fits easily into one day.
Dec. 1: Installation deadline. Every tree should be in place by the end of the day.
Where it all leads: Blackburn Park on Dec. 3
Two days after the installation deadline, the City of Brookhaven holds Light Up Brookhaven on Thursday, Dec. 3, from 6 to 9 p.m. at Blackburn Park, 3493 Ashford Dunwoody Road. Details are on the City of Brookhaven calendar.
By Dec. 3, the Tinsel Trail trees should all be up, and one of the listed sites is Blackburn Park 2. Light Up Brookhaven has its own listing, but the lighting comes two days after the last tree is installed.
For anyone thinking about entering, the nine days until registration closes are the decision point. A neighborhood association, a local shop, a group of families from one street or a team of coworkers could register by Oct. 31, plan in early November, decorate between Nov. 16 and Dec. 1, and have a tree up before Light Up Brookhaven on Dec. 3. Details may change, so check the Tinsel Trail page and each event's listing as the dates get closer.
If your household or business takes on a Tinsel Trail tree this year, I'd love to see it. Send me a photo, or tell me which location you were assigned, and I'll make a point of walking by. Let's Connect with Laura Dew.
