Gadsden's Christmas Season Runs on Two Clocks This Year

"We want to be known as Alabama's top Christmas town," Mayor Craig Ford said in a city release when Gadsden put up its 78-foot tree at Riverside Park. The city has split that goal between two places. Christmas at the Falls fills Noccalula Falls Park on Noccalula Road with lights. Christmas on the Coosa runs an ice rink on the overlook above the river. Each site opens on its own date, closes on its own date, and sells tickets its own way. If you live here, the nights when the two schedules don't match are what you plan around.

How the river site caught up to the falls

For years, Christmas at the Falls was the base of the city's holiday events. The Anniston Star called it "an enormous money generator" for the park and campground, and it was ranked No. 95 on a 2023 Mixbook list of the 100 most popular Christmas light displays in the country.

Christmas on the Coosa started in 2023 as a second venue. Skaters found the synthetic ice on the first, rented rink disappointing, so the next year the city commissioned its own 60-by-100-foot rink with real ice. Ice bumper cars came in 2025. The city looked at renting them, but buying 12 cars cost only about 20 percent more, and officials expected the purchase to pay for itself in less than two seasons.

The tree followed the same path. The new 78-foot tree at Riverside Park came from Jubilee Decor in Andalusia. It replaced a 72-foot tree, and that older tree moved up the mountain to become part of the Falls display. So the city now runs two sites, both large enough to fill an evening, and it schedules each one differently.

The rink's 2026 evening has two halves

The biggest change on the river side this year is the schedule. In 2025, the city said the bumper cars would run from Nov. 13 until Thanksgiving, and then the rink would switch to full-time skating. The Anniston Star reported that skaters would take the ice on Nov. 26 and the bumper cars would come back the day after Christmas. Last year, the bumper cars and skating mostly ran in different weeks.

The 2026 Greater Gadsden listings put both on the same night. They show bumper cars from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. and skating from 7 to 10 p.m. every day from Nov. 19, 2026, through Jan. 5, 2027. That listing calls the bumper cars a "debut," but they actually started in 2025. It's best to read this year's page for its dates and times, and to check the city's own channels before you make a special trip for the early slot.

Here's how an evening at Riverside Park, 344 1st Street, breaks down on paper:

The prices tell you two things. Buying ahead saves $5 per skater no matter which night you go. And a Monday-through-Thursday skate bought in advance costs $8 less than a Friday-through-Sunday skate bought at the door. Skates come in adult sizes 4 to 15, and kids' adjustable skates cover sizes 8.5 to 12.5 and 1 to 4. The listing also promises a Polar Bear Club with life-sized polar bear statues, food trucks and vendors every day, live music, and visits from Santa Claus, the Mean One, and Cindy You Know Who. Last season's coverage also mentioned fire pits and a bar called Frosty's.

The 30 minutes between the end of bumper cars and the start of skating means a family can do both in one visit. Younger kids can ride the cars before dinner, and older kids can stay for the skate.

The Falls asks you to commit early

Christmas at the Falls works differently. Tickets are sold only online, and they went on sale Oct. 1. Each ticket comes with a time slot. You need to arrive during your slot, but you can stay as long as you want until the park closes at 10 p.m. Every ticket includes a ride on the park's train. The listing gives admission as $12 to $18.

The rink lets you decide that evening, with a door price if you skipped buying ahead. The Falls asks you to pick a date and an arrival time before you leave home. Inside the gates, though, there's no hurry. You can walk the paved trails under millions of lights for as long as you like.

Three more details from the Falls calendar can shape your plans:

• The Grinch appears Nov. 20 through Dec. 27 only.
• Santa is there Nov. 27 through Dec. 23 only.
• Pets are allowed on Dec. 1 and Dec. 30 only. Registered service animals are welcome any night. No pets are allowed on the train or in the animal habitat areas on any night, and the park notes that emotional support animals don't count as service animals under the ADA.

The pet nights fall on a Tuesday and a Wednesday. For anyone who wants to bring the dog, those are the only two dates on the calendar.

Where the calendars don't overlap

Both sites run from Nov. 20 through Jan. 2. Outside that stretch, the schedules split apart:

1. Nov. 13 to 15, Friday through Sunday. Only the Falls is open. It's an opening weekend, followed by a four-day break before the regular run starts.
2. Thursday, Nov. 19. Only the river is open. The rink's season starts a day before the Falls returns.
3. Friday, Dec. 4. The City of Gadsden Christmas Parade steps off at 5:30 p.m. and runs down Broad Street from 7th Street to 2nd Street. Lineup starts at 4:30 p.m. Watching is free. Floats cost $25 per unit to enter, and a new sponsored float contest pays $500, $300, and $200. Weekend skating prices apply at the rink that night.
4. Dec. 24 and 25. The Falls is closed. The rink listing doesn't mention a holiday closure, so check before heading downtown.
5. Jan. 3 to 5, 2027. Only the river is open. The Falls closes after Jan. 2, and the rink stays open through Jan. 5.

Last season, the Falls ran through Jan. 3. This year it ends a day earlier, on Saturday, Jan. 2. That leaves Christmas on the Coosa as the only holiday venue in town for the first Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday of 2027.

October 24 is a preview of the split schedule

The two-schedule pattern starts before the lights go up. On Saturday, Oct. 24, Noccalula Falls Park hosts Trick-or-Treat Village from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., with games, candy, and costumes. The same night, it hosts Fright Night at the Falls from 6 to 10 p.m. on the park's trails after dark. The park closes from 3 to 6 p.m. between the two events.

On the checkout page, Trick-or-Treat Village costs $10 for adults and $8 for children ages 4 to 12, and kids 3 and under get in free. Seniors 55 and older and military members pay $8 for the Village. A combo ticket for both events costs $16.49, including $1.49 in fees. The Greater Gadsden listing shows a $9 to $17 range, so go by the checkout page when budgeting. A week later, Downtown Gadsden Trick or Treat runs from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Broad Street on Saturday, Oct. 31, and it's free.

If you're mapping out the season around the Falls' timed tickets, the rink's 4:30 bumper car slot, and the parade on Dec. 4, I'm glad to share what I know about getting around Gadsden in December. And if a move is on your calendar for next year, Rachel Hicks can help you plan it around the holidays too. Let's Connect.