The Williamson County Ag Expo Park sits at 4215 Long Lane in southeast Franklin. Between Nov. 6 and Dec. 31 the park's published schedule includes six separate events, and from Nov. 20 onward the FrankTown Festival of Lights runs every night beneath all of them.
That makes the park a two-shift venue for most of the season. Weekend shows fill the daytime, and the lights take over from 5 to 9 p.m. Most nights the two shifts never meet. On a few dates they share the grounds, and those are the dates worth knowing before you load the car.
One address, two shifts
Here is the Ag Expo Park's November and December calendar, set against the nightly light show.
| Dates | Event | Hours | Shares the evening with the lights? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fri.–Sun., Nov. 6–8 | 16th Annual Camelot Invitational gymnastics | Not published | No, lights not yet open |
| Sat.–Sun., Nov. 14–15 | Franklin Flea Market | Sat. 9 a.m.–6 p.m., Sun. 10 a.m.–4 p.m. | No, lights not yet open |
| Fri.–Sat., Nov. 20–21 | Franklin Stampede Pro Rodeo | Gates 5:30 p.m., rodeo 7:30 p.m. | Yes, both nights |
| Nov. 20–Dec. 31 | FrankTown Festival of Lights | Nightly, 5–9 p.m. | This is the nightly show |
| Sat.–Sun., Dec. 5–6 | Middle Tennessee Civil War Show | Sat. 9 a.m.–5 p.m., Sun. 9 a.m.–3 p.m. | Saturday ends as the lights begin |
| Sat.–Sun., Dec. 12–13 | Earth Treasures Gem and Mineral Show | Not yet posted | Hours to be confirmed |
The grounds are built for volume. The Ag Expo Park's parking page lists more than 25 acres of parking for 4,500 vehicles, plus a newer accessible lot with 64 double-spaced spots. Even so, the overlap nights put two separate crowds on one property, arriving for two different start times.
Opening weekend belongs to the rodeo
The lights open on Friday, Nov. 20, and so does the Franklin Stampede Pro Rodeo. Twisted Horn Rodeo Company runs the Stampede on Nov. 20 and 21, with gates at 5:30 p.m. and the first event at 7:30 p.m. The light route opens at 5 p.m. both nights, so the rodeo crowd starts arriving about half an hour after the first cars enter the light show.
The Stampede isn't the rodeo many longtime Franklin households have on their calendars. That one is the Franklin Rodeo, which the Franklin Noon Rotary Club presents every May. Visit Franklin says the Rotary rodeo has run since 1949 and draws more than 18,000 fans a year. The November Stampede has a different organizer and a different season, and it has been held before. Nashville Parent listed it for Nov. 21–22, 2025.
Tickets are on Twisted Horn's ticket page:
- General admission, ages 8 and up: $25
- General admission, ages 4 to 7: $20
- Ages 3 and under: free, one per paying adult
- "Behind the Chutes" VIP, Saturday only: $100
If you want both events on opening weekend, the timing allows it. Drive the 1.5-mile light route when it opens at 5 p.m., then walk into the arena before the 7:30 p.m. start. If you only want the lights, any of the 40 nights after Nov. 21 avoids the overlap entirely.
Wednesday is the walking night
Four Wednesdays in the run are set aside for people on foot. On Nov. 25 and Dec. 2, 9 and 16, the route opens to walkers from 5 to 6:30 p.m., and cars aren't admitted until 7 p.m. The organizer says the ticket price is the same and that leashed dogs are welcome.
The first of those dates is Wednesday, Nov. 25, the night before Thanksgiving. That timing works well for anyone hosting out-of-town family: a walk past more than 200 synchronized light displays, a stop at the Christmas tree for photos, and s'mores at the fire pits, all done by 6:30. The other three Wednesdays all fall on or before Dec. 16, so the last walking night comes more than two weeks before the show closes.
Ticketing is the one thing to understand before you go. The Eventbrite listing sells tickets by vehicle size, not per person. A passenger-vehicle ticket covers up to 8 walkers, and a large-vehicle ticket covers 9 to 15. On a walking night, a carload of neighbors can share one ticket, and the price is the same as it would be for driving the route. Tickets are good on any night of the run, so a family can buy early and pick the evening later.
What the lights are, and who they fund
Eventbrite calls 2026 the ninth annual FrankTown Festival of Lights. A Williamson Herald feature traces the show back to 2018 and describes organizer Kristi Sylvester greeting cars as they came into the Ag Expo grounds.
The format is drive-through. The route is a mile and a half, and the light displays are synchronized to holiday music on your car radio. There is a Christmas tree for photos, fire pits for s'mores, a food truck, and free photos with Santa.
The proceeds go to FrankTown Open Hearts, a Franklin nonprofit ministry that works with at-risk youth through mentoring, life-skills training, spiritual development and academic tutoring.
December's handoffs, on Long Lane and downtown
In December, the overlaps move from the Ag Expo grounds to the calendar as a whole, because Long Lane and the Public Square book the same weekends.
The first weekend shows it clearly. The City of Franklin's events calendar lists the Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony on the Square for Friday, Dec. 4, and the Franklin Christmas Parade downtown for Saturday, Dec. 5. That same Saturday, the Middle Tennessee Civil War Show runs at the Ag Expo Park from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Admission is $12 for adults, free for children under 12, and parking is free. The show closes at 5 p.m., the same time the light route opens. On Sunday the show ends at 3 p.m., which leaves a two-hour gap before the lights.
The second weekend follows the same pattern. Dickens of a Christmas fills historic downtown Franklin on Dec. 12 and 13, according to the city calendar. The Ag Expo schedule lists the Earth Treasures Gem and Mineral Show, linked to the Middle Tennessee Gem and Mineral Society, for the same dates. Its 2026 hours and admission aren't posted yet, so check mtgms.org before you plan around it.
For a household on Lewisburg Pike, the first two December weekends each come with a choice between a downtown event and a Long Lane event.
Before the lights: two November weekends
The two events before Nov. 20 have cash rules that are easy to miss.
The 16th Annual Camelot Invitational, hosted by Magnitude 10.0 Gymnastics, runs Nov. 6 through 8. The Ag Expo schedule lists it as the "Magnitude 10.0 Invitational," but it is the same meet. Spectator admission is $20 for ages 13 and up, $10 for ages 5 to 12, $15 for seniors, and free for ages 4 and under. Admission is cash only, and parking is free.
The Franklin Flea Market, run by Stewart Promotions, comes back Nov. 14 and 15. Hours are 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday. Admission is free, and parking costs $5, cash only. It's the last event on the park's schedule before the lights open on Nov. 20.
A season plan, in calendar order
- Nov. 6–8: If you're going to the Camelot Invitational, bring cash for admission.
- Nov. 14–15: For the flea market, keep $5 in cash for parking.
- Nov. 20–21: If you plan to go to the rodeo, drive the lights at 5 p.m. first, then head to the arena for the 7:30 p.m. start. If you're only going for the lights, choose another night.
- Nov. 25: Walk the lights with Thanksgiving guests from 5 to 6:30 p.m. Bring the dog on a leash, and buy one vehicle ticket for the group.
- Dec. 2, 9 or 16: These are the other walking Wednesdays. Dec. 16 is the last one.
- Dec. 5: Choose between the downtown parade and the Civil War Show on Long Lane. If you pick the show, the lights open as it closes.
- Dec. 12–13: Choose between Dickens of a Christmas and the gem show, once the gem show posts its hours.
- Through Dec. 31: The lights run nightly from 5 to 9 p.m., and a ticket is good any night.
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