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Nights of a Thousand Candles at Brookgreen Gardens, 2026: dates, tickets and the drive from Charleston

Brookgreen Gardens in Murrells Inlet is lit by more than 2,700 hand-lit candles and millions of lights on 21 evenings from November 27, 2026 to January 3, 2027, 4 to 9pm. Tickets are $40 for adults and $20 for ages 4 to 12, and the drive up US 17 from Charleston takes about an hour and 40 minutes.

Strings of white lights hang like curtains from the branches of live oaks at night, and visitors walk along the path beneath them.

Photo: DiscoA340, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Nights of a Thousand Candles is Brookgreen Gardens' holiday evening event, when the sculpture garden in Murrells Inlet is lit by more than 2,700 hand-lit candles and millions of lights, with holiday music along the paths. The 2026 season runs on 21 evenings, from Friday, November 27, 2026 to Sunday, January 3, 2027, from 4 to 9pm each night.

Brookgreen sits off US 17 between Murrells Inlet and Pawleys Island, about 79 miles north of Charleston, so from the Lowcountry it is an afternoon drive and an evening on the grounds.

Dates
Nov 27 to Jan 321 evenings
Hours
4 to 9pmLast entry 8:30pm
Tickets
$40 adult$20 ages 4 to 12
Drive
1 hr 40 minFrom Charleston

Dates and Hours

The event runs Thursday to Sunday through most of December, with a stretch over New Year. Gates open at 4pm and visitors can arrive any time after that. The main gate closes at 8:30pm and the gardens close at 9pm.

The tree lighting is at 6pm every night in the Arboretum and lasts about 15 minutes. Live music runs in five 45-minute sets, at 4, 5, 6:15, 7:15 and 8:15pm, with two acts sharing each evening.

EveningsEntertainment
Fri, Nov 27 and Sat, Nov 28Joshua Alan Solo and The Accelerators
Sun, Nov 29Three Day Weekend and The 100 Grand Band
Thu, Dec 3 to Sun, Dec 6Paul Grimshaw Band and Gullah Christmas with Ron & Natalie Daise
Thu, Dec 10 and Fri, Dec 11Joshua Alan Solo and The Accelerators
Sat, Dec 12 and Sun, Dec 13Three Day Weekend and The Jazz Standard
Thu, Dec 17Paul Grimshaw Band and Painted Man
Fri, Dec 18 to Sun, Dec 20Paul Grimshaw Band and Bill Oberst, Jr.
Tue, Dec 29 and Wed, Dec 30Three Day Weekend and Matt Parker & The Deacons
Thu, Dec 31Three Day Weekend and Channel Bluff
Fri, Jan 1 to Sun, Jan 3Paul Grimshaw Band and Raglan Road
Candles in glass bowls float on a dark pool at night beneath a live oak lit with white lights.
Floating candles under a lit live oak at the 2022 event.Photo: DiscoA340, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Tickets

Tickets are sold by date, and only through Brookgreen's website or Leap, its ticketing partner.

AdultChild, 4 to 12
Non-member$40$20
Member$35$15
  • Availability. The availability shown on Brookgreen's site is current. A sold-out date stays sold out until an exchange returns tickets to it. Members and non-members now draw on the same tickets.
  • Exchanges. Tickets can be exchanged through Leap to another date that has tickets available. All sales are final and non-refundable.
  • At the gate. Tickets show on a phone or on paper. One barcode covers every ticket in an order, so a group split across two cars tells the gate attendant how many people are in each car.
  • Member pricing. A new membership number takes 24 to 48 hours to activate for the member price.
  • Groups. Groups of 20 or more adults book through Brookgreen's group sales for special pricing, and motorcoach groups coordinate their arrival with Brookgreen.

The Drive

Every route from the Lowcountry reaches Brookgreen on US 17 north. These are Google's drive times without traffic:

FromDistanceDriveLeave by
Mount Pleasant75 miles1 hr 33 minabout 2:30pm
Charleston79 miles1 hr 40 minabout 2:20pm
Summerville86 miles1 hr 57 minabout 2pm
Beaufort153 miles2 hr 59 minabout 1pm
Bluffton175 miles3 hr 29 minabout 12:30pm
Hilton Head Island180 miles3 hr 34 minabout 12:30pm
Savannah189 miles3 hr 32 minabout 12:30pm

The leave-by times put a car at the gate around 4pm, when it opens. Sunset at Brookgreen falls between 5:09pm on November 27 and 5:21pm on January 3, so an arrival near 4 sees the gardens at dusk, the candles coming up as the light goes, and the tree lighting at 6. Brookgreen's tips say traffic is sometimes heavy and suggest carpooling.

On the way home, a car leaving at the 9pm close reaches Charleston around 10:40pm and Summerville around 11pm. Beaufort is about three hours back, so around midnight, and Bluffton, Hilton Head Island and Savannah about three and a half, so around 12:30am.

Rows of lit candles in glass cups stand in tiers on a stand in a brick-paved courtyard at night.
Tiers of candles in a courtyard at the 2022 event.Photo: DiscoA340, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Packing and Booking

  • The ticket, for a set date, on a phone or printed.
  • Warm layers. "Dress warmly" is Brookgreen's first tip, and the evening is spent outdoors on foot.
  • A rain jacket or umbrella. The event runs rain or shine.
  • A dinner reservation at Harvest, the restaurant by the Rainey Galleries inside the gardens. Brookgreen recommends booking, online or at 843-235-6030, and dining there on an event night needs an event ticket.
  • The Sparkle & Fun package, a glass of wine or cider with a pair of holographic glasses, picked up on the north terrace of the Purdy Center.

Food and Drink

Food trucks park near the Entertainment Stage from 4 to 8:45pm and change from night to night. Fish Shak, Let's Ride BBQ and EZ Cheezy are there every listed evening. Beverage stations and The Old Kitchen are open from 4 to 8:30pm. Outside food and drink are not allowed.

A live oak is wrapped in white lights from its trunk to the tips of its branches, and visitors stand beneath it taking photographs.
A lit live oak at the 2022 event.Photo: DiscoA340, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

On the Grounds

The Keepsakes Museum Store, the Rosen Galleries and the Brown Sculpture Court stay open until 9pm on event nights. The Lowcountry Trail, the Lowcountry Zoo, the Floyd Family Farm, the Bleifeld Gallery and the Offner Center are closed during the event.

Parking is free, with accessible parking in the main lot. The gardens are wheelchair accessible, and visitors bring their own wheelchairs or scooters, as none are provided. Ride share drop-off and pick-up are in the main parking area, and drivers collecting a fare need to be inside the gates before 9pm.

Visitor Rules

  • Stay on the lighted paths.
  • Artwork and lighted displays are not for touching or climbing.
  • No picking plants.
  • No smoking or vaping.
  • No pets, in the gardens or left in cars.
  • Trained service animals are welcome.
  • No outside food or drink.

The event goes ahead in rain, and a cancellation for dangerous weather is posted in the alert banner on Brookgreen's website and on its social pages.

Three evergreen trees lit in white and blue lights stand beside a path at night as families walk past them.
Lit evergreens at the 2022 event.Photo: DiscoA340, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Brookgreen Gardens, 1931 Brookgreen Drive, Murrells Inlet, SC 29576 · off US 17 Bypass between Murrells Inlet and Pawleys Island · 843-235-6000 · Event page and tickets · Know before you go