Last December, a Thursday evening on US-17 could end at Poplar Grove. In 2025 Merry & Bright ran Thursday through Sunday, 5 to 9 p.m., from Nov. 28 to Dec. 21, according to Port City Daily. The 2026 schedule on Poplar Grove's festival page has no Thursday nights. The first three weekends run Friday through Sunday, and the season ends with a five-night stretch from Friday, Dec. 18, through Tuesday, Dec. 22.
Dropping Thursdays sets how many nights you have to pick from. It makes Sunday the only night the dog can come. And it puts the last two nights on a Monday and a Tuesday, when several of the closest dinner spots on the US-17 corridor are dark.
Fourteen nights, and how they fall
Poplar Grove calls Merry & Bright its most popular fundraising event of the year. The grounds at 10200 US Highway 17 North light up from 5 to 9 p.m. on these dates.
- Weekend one: Friday, Nov. 27, through Sunday, Nov. 29
- Weekend two: Friday, Dec. 4, through Sunday, Dec. 6
- Weekend three: Friday, Dec. 11, through Sunday, Dec. 13
- Finale: Friday, Dec. 18, through Tuesday, Dec. 22
Opening night falls on the Friday after Thanksgiving. Counted up, the season has four Fridays, four Saturdays, four Sundays, one Monday and one Tuesday. In 2025 a weeknight visit meant a Thursday in any of the four weeks. In 2026 the only weeknights are Dec. 21 and Dec. 22, the Monday and Tuesday just before Christmas.
The calendar is also stretched a little at each end. Opening night is one day earlier than 2025's Nov. 28, and the season runs one night past 2025's Dec. 21 finish.
What $10 gets you this year
Tickets are $10 for all ages, and children 2 and under get in free. A family pass for two adults and two children ages 2 to 11 is $35, and a season pass for the same group of four is $100. Poplar Grove's online booking link offers 10% off.
The season pass makes the most sense this year for families who want to come back during the finale. The $100 price is the same as 2025's season pass for four. The $35 family pass is the cheaper option for a single visit. In 2025, Port City Daily reported half-price children's tickets on Sundays. The 2026 page lists a flat price for every night.
Admission includes:
- The lit grounds and trees, plus the Secret Gardens
- Visits with Santa at the Gazebo
- Grinch's Junk Shop, Bumble's Snowball Party and Santa's Boot Camp
- The Spirit of '76 Tavern, tied to America's 250th
- Campfires for roasting marshmallows and outdoor holiday movies
- The manor house, decorated with scenes from A Christmas Story
- Balloon sculptures by Mr. Twister
- Vintage carnival games, food trucks and concessions, and a juried gift show
The Spirit of '76 Tavern is in its second year. Port City Daily described it as new in 2025, built in anticipation of America's 250th and raising money for the stables. If you went last year, the tavern and the A Christmas Story manor will be familiar. What's different is the calendar around them.
Santa starts hearing wishes at the Gazebo at 5 p.m. The line closes at 8:30, and the show ends at 9. Outside alcohol is not allowed.
Sunday is the only dog night
Leashed, well-behaved pets are welcome on Sunday nights only. In 2024, the StarNews listed leashed dogs on both Thursdays and Sundays. With Thursdays off the calendar, a dog owner has four chances this season: Nov. 29, Dec. 6, Dec. 13 and Dec. 20.
Sunday is also the night with the fewest dinner options nearby.
Where dinner is open, night by night
The lights close at 9, so most visits mean eating before you go. A few kitchens near Poplar Grove also stay open late enough for dinner afterward. The hours below come from each restaurant's own website. Holiday hours can change, so confirm before you head out.
| Restaurant | Location | Friday | Saturday | Sunday | Mon., Dec. 21 | Tue., Dec. 22 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cornelia's | Futch Creek Road, off US-17 | Dinner 4–9 | Dinner 4–9 | Closed | Closed | Dinner 4–9 |
| Bridgewater Wines + Dines | 178 Porters Neck Road | Until 9 | Until 9 | Closed | Closed | Until 9 |
| K38 Porters Neck | 8211 Market Street | Until 10 | Until 10 | Until 9:30 | Until 9:30 | Until 9:30 |
| Cape Fear Seafood Company Porters Neck | 140 Hays Lane | Until 10 | Until 10 | Until 9 | Until 9 | Until 9 |
| K Ramyeon Bar | 15919 US-17, Hampstead | Until 9 | Until 9 | Until 9 | Until 9 | Until 9 |
| Burrito Shak | 15489 US-17, Hampstead | Until 9 | Until 9 | Until 8 | Until 9 | Until 9 |
| LBC Bottle Shop & Beer Yard | 15670 US-17, Hampstead | Until 9 | Until 10 | Until 8 | Closed | Closed |
On Fridays and Saturdays everything on the list is open, and that's when dinner after the lights works best. K38 Porters Neck and Cape Fear Seafood Company both serve until 10 p.m. on those nights. LBC Bottle Shop & Beer Yard, where Wilmywoodie fires pizzas on site, stays open until 10 on Saturdays. If you're on the grounds until the 9 p.m. close, the late options are K38 and Cape Fear Seafood Company on both nights, plus LBC on Saturdays only.
On Sunday, the dog night, the list gets shorter. Cornelia's and Bridgewater Wines + Dines are both closed. Burrito Shak and LBC close at 8, an hour before the lights go off. K38 Porters Neck, Cape Fear Seafood Company and K Ramyeon Bar keep their usual evening hours. Bridgewater's kitchen also closes 30 minutes before its dining room on the nights it's open, so a 9 p.m. closing really means an 8:30 last order.
Monday, Dec. 21, loses the most. Cornelia's, Bridgewater and LBC are all closed. K38 is the only place on the list still serving after the lights close, until 9:30. On Tuesday, Dec. 22, the last night of the season, Cornelia's and Bridgewater are open again and LBC is still closed.
K Ramyeon Bar is the newest name here. The Hampstead ramen spot opened in October 2025, according to the StarNews, and it lists the same 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. hours every day of the week. That makes it the simplest choice on any festival night.
The only thing on Poplar Grove's winter calendar
Merry & Bright is the only event on Poplar Grove's November and December calendar. Guided manor tours close for the season from December through March. The Wednesday morning farmers market, which ran 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. starting May 20, has finished its season. For most of the winter, the holiday lights are the one way to spend an evening at Poplar Grove.
So the 14 nights are worth planning. A family that wants Santa, the dog and a sit-down dinner on the same night is limited to Sundays, and Sunday is the night Cornelia's and Bridgewater are closed. K38, Cape Fear Seafood Company and K Ramyeon Bar are the Sunday dinner choices on the list. Families coming more than once can split it up: Sunday for the dog, a Friday or Saturday for the late dinner, and the Dec. 21–22 finale for the quietest weeknight visit the 2026 calendar offers.
Ronel V.N. Austin is based in Hampstead and works the same stretch of US-17 that Poplar Grove anchors, from Porters Neck up through Scotts Hill and into Pender County. If a December evening at Poplar Grove has you thinking about a home closer to it, Ronel Austin knows this corridor well and will push hard for you. Let's Connect.
