Powder Springs' 2026 holiday season starts with chili on Broad Street on Saturday, Nov. 7, and ends with a reindeer hunt that runs into early January. In between, most of the season happens at two downtown addresses. One is 4181 Atlanta Street, where the Ford Center sits and where the city lists its Veterans Day ceremony. The other is Thurman Springs Park on Marietta Street, where the tree goes up.
On Friday, Dec. 4, the Christmas Parade uses both of them. Floats line up at the Ford Center, then the parade steps off on Marietta Street and finishes at the park. Following that same path also works for planning the next eight weeks.
Two Addresses Hold Most of the Calendar
Here is the 2026 season as the city and its downtown development site list it, grouped by which end of downtown each event uses.
| Date | Event | Listed location | End of downtown |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sat., Nov. 7, noon–3 p.m. | Chili Cook Off | Skint Chestnut Brewery, 3886 Broad St. | Broad Street |
| Wed., Nov. 11, 11 a.m. | Veterans Day Ceremony | Veterans Memorial at the Powder Springs Library | Atlanta Street |
| Sat., Nov. 14, 6 p.m. | Live Band Karaoke | Thurman Springs Park | Marietta Street |
| Fri., Dec. 4, 6:30 p.m. | Christmas Parade and Tree Lighting | Ford Center lineup to Thurman Springs Park | Both |
| Early Dec. to early Jan. | Reindeer Scavenger Hunt | Throughout Powder Springs | Citywide |
Two events on that list go beyond Atlanta Street and the park. The chili event opens the season on Broad Street, and the reindeer hunt closes it citywide.
November Opens at Skint Chestnut, Then Moves to Atlanta Street
The Chili Cook Off runs from noon to 3 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 7. The city calendar lists the address as 3886 Broad St., and the event graphic credits Skint Chestnut Brewery as the city's partner. Downtown Powder Springs gives the brewery as the location. It's a midday Saturday event, so it fits in before evening plans.
Four days later, on Wednesday, Nov. 11, the Veterans Day Ceremony runs from 11 a.m. to noon. The downtown events page places it at the Veterans Memorial at the Powder Springs Library. The city calendar gives its address as 4181 Atlanta St. You'll see that address again on Dec. 4.
On Saturday, Nov. 14, the season moves to the park. Live Band Karaoke starts at 6 p.m. at Thurman Springs Park. The city calendar runs it until 9 p.m. and lists 4485 Pineview Street for the address. Cobb Travel & Tourism lists the park at 4426 Marietta St. Both addresses point to the same park. Pineview is the address on the city's event listings, and Marietta Street is the side that faces downtown.
December 4 Uses Both Ends
The 2026 Christmas Parade and Tree Lighting falls on the first Friday in December, the same slot the city gave it in 2023. Parade lineup is at the Ford Center, 4181 Atlanta St., which is the address the city lists for the Veterans Day ceremony. The parade sets off on Marietta Street and finishes at Thurman Springs Park.
Here's the evening in order, from the city's 2026 listings:
- Floats and participants line up at the Ford Center on Atlanta Street.
- The parade steps off at 6:30 p.m. and travels down Marietta Street to Thurman Springs Park.
- A program and the tree lighting follow at the park.
- Complimentary cocoa, cookies and photos with Santa are offered, and Christmas Village activities open after the tree is lit.
- The event listing runs until 10 p.m.
The full 2026 route hasn't been posted. The 2023 route, published in a city press release that the Cobb County Courier ran, started at the Powder Springs Library. It turned onto Marietta Street via Old Austell Road and ended at Thurman Springs Park. That year's tree lighting took place at the Hardy Family Automotive Amphitheater around 7:30 p.m. The same release introduced the Christmas Village as new for 2023. The 2026 listing brings it back after the tree lighting again this year.
Plan on road closures that night. The event listing says Marietta Street and the roads around the park will close, with parking in lots around downtown. The city hasn't named specific lots or closure times. If you live along the route or just commute through it, get home before lineup.
There's also an earlier deadline. Registration for parade entries closes Nov. 30, 2026. Volunteer signups for students and adults close the same day. Adult shifts include the Parade Team at the Ford Center and greeting guests at Thurman Springs. Businesses, church groups or neighbors who want to be in the parade need to sign up before Thanksgiving weekend ends.
The Marietta Street Block Where the Parade Ends
The parade ends at the park, and two of downtown's most useful holiday stops sit just a few street numbers away on Marietta Street.
- Thurman Springs Park, 4426 Marietta St. Tree lighting, Santa photos and the Christmas Village.
- The Book Worm Bookstore, 4451 Marietta St. Where hunters picked up their prize bags at the end of the 2023 reindeer hunt.
- Vesuvio Pizzeria Napoletana, 4469 Marietta St., Suite 130. The newest dinner option on the block.
This is Vesuvio's first holiday season downtown. The Marietta Daily Journal reported that the fast-casual Neapolitan pizzeria is open for business in downtown Powder Springs. Owners Massimo and Lindsay Andreozzi opened their first Vesuvio in Kennesaw in January 2022. They chose a space of nearly 2,300 square feet on Marietta Street for their first expansion. "The location [in Kennesaw] went really well, so we want something bigger and a better place," Massimo told What Now Atlanta. The same report describes a menu built around margherita, diavola and Pompeii pizzas, plus pasta, calzones, focaccia and a larger gelato selection than the Kennesaw location offers.
On parade night, Marietta Street will be closed, so plan to walk to the block from wherever you parked. That timing works best with an early dinner before the 6:30 p.m. step-off.
The Reindeer Hunt Runs Into January
The tree lighting is over in one evening, but the Reindeer Scavenger Hunt runs for about four weeks after it. Cobb Travel & Tourism lists the 2026 hunt from Dec. 7, 2026, to Jan. 3, 2027. The listing says Santa's reindeer are hidden around town. Participants get a scavenger hunt card, follow the clues to each reindeer, write down where each one is and then follow the clues to a special treat. Downtown Powder Springs lists the dates one day later at each end, Dec. 8 through Jan. 4. To be safe with either schedule, start after Dec. 8 and finish by Jan. 3.
The 2026 listings don't say where this year's treat is. In 2023, the city sent anyone with a completed card to The Book Worm Bookstore at 4451 Marietta St. for a prize bag, between the park and Vesuvio. A city clue card from an earlier hunt asked players to find nine reindeer. The count and the prize stop may change this year, so check the city's Christmas Holiday Fun page once December starts before you plan a route.
Because the hunt covers the whole city, it's the one event that takes you past downtown. If this year's version works like 2023's, it still finishes on the same Marietta Street block where the parade ends.
At Sterling Realty Partners, we keep track of what's happening around Thurman Springs Park and Marietta Street because these blocks shape daily life for anyone who owns a home nearby. If you'd like to know how downtown's year-round calendar affects homes nearby, from parade-night closures to which streets sit closest to the park, we're happy to go through it with you. Schedule Your Consultation.
