One date on Slidell's holiday calendar comes before almost all the others. Thursday, Dec. 3, is the last day to register a golf cart for the Krewe of Kringle Christmas Golf Cart Parade. That is ten days before the parade rolls through Olde Towne and a week before Christmas Under the Stars opens at Heritage Park.
Much of what makes up a Slidell Christmas works this way. Decorated trees in the City Hall Courtyard, craft booths at Heritage Park and lit-up carts behind Santa's fire truck all come from local groups and neighbors. Each piece has its own window to sign up. This guide follows the season from Olde Towne to Heritage Park and back, with every date confirmed for 2026.
Before Thanksgiving, the season starts at City Hall
On Friday, Nov. 6, the Slidell Art League holds an opening reception from 6 to 8 p.m. at the George Dunbar Gallery in the Slidell Cultural Center at City Hall. The exhibit then runs Nov. 9 through Dec. 17. Two days later, on Sunday, Nov. 8, the Northshore Community Orchestra plays a free Veterans Day concert from 4 to 5 p.m. at the Slidell Municipal Auditorium.
The holidays themselves start on Wednesday, Nov. 25, back at City Hall. That day the Olde Towne Slidell Parade of Trees goes up in the City Hall Courtyard, where local organizations decorate the trees. Decorating runs from Nov. 25 through Dec. 5, and the trees stay up until Jan. 6, 2027. So the courtyard looks different from one visit to the next. Early on, some trees are still bare. By the first weekend of December, all of them should be finished.
Thanksgiving morning offers one more outing close to home. A Thanksgiving Day 5K and 2K is listed for Thursday, Nov. 26, at John Slidell Park, 105 Robert Road. The run benefits the feeding ministry at Mt. Olive AME.
Shop Small weekend fills First and Erlanger
On the weekend after Thanksgiving, the season moves a few blocks into Olde Towne. The 15th annual Olde Towne Slidell Christmas Market runs Saturday and Sunday, Nov. 28 and 29, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at First and Erlanger Streets. According to the Visit the Northshore event listing, admission is free, Antique Umbrella Alley presents this year's market, and it is billed as a Shop Small Saturday event.
In past years, the Slidell Historical Antique Association put on the market. Its market page says the association funds the event itself. That page lists antiques, vintage and retro pieces, collectibles, arts and crafts, refurbished goods, jewelry, food and music. Those categories describe last year's market, but they give a fair idea of what the booths have offered.
Olde Towne has added a few small makers since last Christmas. One is BraveLyttle Pickle Company, which started in Slidell in July 2026. Fox 8 reported that it sells its handcrafted pickled products at Bare Good Market in Olde Towne. Market weekend is an easy time to look for it, since the stores and booths share the same few blocks.
Heritage Park holds Christmas Under the Stars again
For the second year running, the city's biggest holiday event is held away from Olde Towne's center. Last December, the City of Slidell moved Christmas Under the Stars to Heritage Park and said it would be held there "while Griffith Park undergoes renovations." The City's 2026–2027 cultural season calendar lists Heritage Park again this year.
| 2025 | 2026 | |
|---|---|---|
| Location | Heritage Park | Heritage Park |
| Nights | Dec. 12–13 and 19–20 | Dec. 11–12 and 18–19 |
| Hours | 6 to 9 p.m. | 6 to 9 p.m. |
| Admission | Free | Free |
The calendar shifted forward a day this year. Last year the event ran on Fridays and Saturdays, and it still does. This year those fall on Dec. 11 and 12, then Dec. 18 and 19, so the second weekend ends almost a week before Christmas.
The City's 2026 event listing promises holiday lights and decorations, Santa and Mrs. Claus, life-size Christmas cottages, Slidell's Nativity and live entertainment. Last year's lineup also featured Big Santa, cottages made by Lori Anselmo, Christmas Playhouses by the Rosies, and a Community Christmas Tree. That list came from the City's 2025 announcement, and the 2026 listing doesn't include a night-by-night stage schedule.
Residents shape this event too. The City is taking registrations for arts-and-crafts vendors, with room for up to 25 vendors each night. For a local maker, a booth at Heritage Park is the second big selling chance of the season after the Olde Towne market.
Dec. 13 is the night residents become the parade
The busiest day of the season falls between the two Heritage Park weekends. On Sunday, Dec. 13, Olde Towne hosts both the golf cart parade and a free concert, two hours apart.
The City announced the Krewe of Kringle Christmas Golf Cart Parade on Oct. 15 and called it "one of Slidell's newest holiday events." Decorated golf carts escort Santa and Mrs. Claus, who ride through Olde Towne Slidell in an antique fire truck. Mayor Randy Fandal put the invitation this way in the City's announcement:
"Christmas is a special time in Slidell, and this parade is a great way for our community to come together and celebrate the season. I encourage everyone to either decorate their golf carts and be a part of the parade, or bring your family and friends to join us for a fun night in Olde Towne."
The terms are simple, but there aren't many spots. Registration is free. Only the first 100 golf carts get a place, and the City must approve each entry before it is confirmed. Sign-ups close Thursday, Dec. 3, 2026, through the Krewe of Kringle registration page. That page still shows some text left over from last year's parade. The City's Oct. 15 notice is the one to trust for the 2026 date and deadline.
Here is how the evening runs for a family that wants to do all of it:
- By Thursday, Dec. 3: register the cart and wait for approval.
- Sunday, Dec. 13, at 5 p.m.: the parade moves through Olde Towne behind Santa's fire truck.
- At 7 p.m.: the Christmas Spectacular! with Vince Vance and the Valiants starts at the Slidell Municipal Auditorium. Admission is free.
The City's notice does not include a route or a staging spot for carts. Questions about the parade go to the Department of Cultural and Public Affairs at (985) 646-4375.
Where everything sits
From Thanksgiving through Christmas, the city's holiday events are spread across a short list of places:
- City Hall Courtyard: Parade of Trees, Nov. 25 to Jan. 6
- George Dunbar Gallery, Slidell Cultural Center at City Hall: Slidell Art League exhibit, through Dec. 17
- First and Erlanger Streets: Olde Towne Slidell Christmas Market, Nov. 28 and 29
- Heritage Park: Christmas Under the Stars, Dec. 11 and 12, then Dec. 18 and 19
- Olde Towne streets: Krewe of Kringle parade, Dec. 13 at 5 p.m.
- Slidell Municipal Auditorium, 2056 Second Street: Vince Vance and the Valiants, Dec. 13 at 7 p.m., and the Northshore Community Orchestra holiday concert, Sunday, Dec. 20, from 4 to 5 p.m.
The orchestra concert on Dec. 20 is the last event on the City's holiday calendar. It brings the season back to the same auditorium where November's Veterans Day concert took place.
One familiar stop is closed for the holidays
Camp Salmen Nature Park will look different for anyone planning a December visit. The Kids Unlimited Playground there is closed from Nov. 2, 2026, through Jan. 1, 2027, for new shade structures, swings and turf. The notice on St. Tammany Parish's Tammany Trace page covers the playground only. It does not close the whole park. Once the work is done after Jan. 1, the playground will have the new shade structures, swings and turf.
The lights, parade and concerts are free, and the City runs most of them. The deadlines come from the parts residents build themselves: the courtyard trees, the craft booths and the golf carts. Of those, the Dec. 3 cart registration is the one most likely to sneak up on people.
At Century 21 Action Louisiana, we help Northshore families buy and sell homes all year, and holiday events like these are part of what we share about Slidell. Contact Us if you're planning a move to Slidell, or if you'd like a few tips on the Olde Towne blocks we know well.
