The tour's own history page calls its 1980 start "a small neighborhood fundraiser for a pioneering daycare." Forty-six years later, the Grant Park Candlelight Tour of Homes takes place Saturday, December 12, from 6 to 10 p.m., and Sunday, December 13, from 5 to 9 p.m. It is still built mostly by the neighborhood. Homeowners apply to open their houses. Residents who volunteer get in free. The ticket money goes to three local groups, and two of them serve the same young families the original daycare was raising money for.
That sets it apart from the rest of December in Grant Park. The zoo's lantern festival and Oakland Cemetery's holiday weekend are both good evenings, and both are run by large institutions with paid staff. The Candlelight Tour depends on people who live a few blocks from St. Paul United Methodist Church.
Where Your Ticket Money Goes
The tour's website says every ticket supports St. Paul United Methodist Church, the Grant Park Cooperative Preschool, and the Grant Park Parents Network. St. Paul UMC hosts the event at its building at 501 Grant St.
The beneficiary list is the clearest line from 1980 to now. The tour began as a fundraiser for early childhood care, and a co-op preschool and a parents' group are still two of the three organizations the tickets support. When you buy a ticket, your money goes to groups within walking distance of where you buy it.
The homeowners who open their doors are thanked out of a separate fund. The tour's sponsor page offers a $250 "Friend of the Tour" donation that pays for thank-you gifts for homeowners, such as flowers and candles.
The Houses Come From Down the Street
The first home named for 2026 is the Burns Mansion at 622 Grant St. The Porch Press, Grant Park's neighborhood paper, calls it the neighborhood's "signature 1868 Queen Anne Victorian." The paper points to its restoration story, original woodwork, period wallpaper, sweeping porches, grand stairwells and "a surprising well in the middle of the kitchen." The same article says the committee's lineup reflects a neighborhood "where beloved Victorians and distinctive single-family homes sit alongside thoughtful newer builds."
The rest of the lineup comes from residents who apply. The tour's homes page asks Grant Park owners to apply for the 2026 tour, and the bar for entry is broad:
"Whether you've restored a historic treasure, completed a thoughtful renovation, created a beautiful garden, or simply built a home filled with warmth and memories, your experience helps tell the larger story of our neighborhood."
A careful renovation or a garden qualifies alongside a full restoration, and the page says participants help "inspire neighbors with creative ideas for preservation, renovation, design, and everyday living."
Volunteering works the same way. The tour's volunteer page offers free tour admission to residents who give their time. Between the homes and the volunteer shifts, a lot of the people walking through other people's houses that weekend will be neighbors who helped put it on.
Two Evenings Built Around 501 Grant St.
Apart from the VIP walk at Oakland, the weekend's activities begin at St. Paul UMC. The church is where you pick up your Tour Booklet, and it hosts most of the extras. You can make a full evening of it before stepping into a single house.
| Time | Saturday, Dec. 12 | Sunday, Dec. 13 |
|---|---|---|
| 3–4 p.m. | St. Paul Choir Candlelight Concert | |
| 4 p.m. | VIP walk at Oakland Cemetery | |
| 4–5:30 p.m. | Winter Wonderland for kids | |
| Afternoon into evening | Artists Market & Bake Sale, 4–9 p.m. | Artists Market & Bake Sale, 4–8 p.m. |
| Food | The Mad Greek Food Truck, 5–9 p.m. | The Mad Greek Food Truck, 4–8 p.m. |
| Home tour | 6–10 p.m. | 5–9 p.m. |
The Artists Market fills the church sanctuary with more than 15 artists. The bake sale serves hot drinks and sweets for donations. Saturday's Winter Wonderland is the children's hour, and the events page hints that Santa will stop by. On Sunday, the choir concert ends an hour before the homes open, so you can go straight from one to the other.
The event listing invites you to finish on Sunday if you run out of time on Saturday. If you're planning to see every house, Saturday's four-hour window plus a return trip Sunday is how the tour is set up.
Getting Tickets Before the Weekend
Advance tickets went on sale Friday, November 13. Here is how the ticket page lays it out:
- Advance, $35. Buy online through midnight Friday, December 11.
- Pick up your booklet. Bring your printed confirmation to the Ticket Table in the St. Paul UMC sanctuary, open 5:30 to 9 p.m. Saturday and 4:30 to 8 p.m. Sunday.
- At the door, $40. Once online sales close, tickets are sold at the same table during those hours.
- Groups of 10 or more. Buy ahead with cash or check to get 10 percent off. The order has to be finished before the tour weekend.
- VIP, $45, online only. This adds a one-hour guided walk through Historic Oakland Cemetery at 4 p.m. Saturday, and the home tour ticket works on either night.
VIP guests meet at the Oakland Cemetery Visitor Center at 3:45 p.m. and check in with Jeff McCord, the tour's ticket co-chair, to collect their Tour Book. The walk covers the history, gardens and architecture of the Victorian garden cemetery. Because it ends before the homes open at 6, the VIP option fills a Saturday from late afternoon to 10 p.m.
The Rest of Grant Park's December
The Candlelight Tour is the last of three holiday events in or next to the neighborhood. Listed by date, the season looks like this:
- Saturday, November 21: IllumiNights opens at Zoo Atlanta. The lantern festival runs on select nights through January 17, 2027, from 5:30 to 9:30 p.m., with last entry at 8. The November 21–22 preview nights carry the season's deepest member discount and value pricing for nonmembers. Zoo Atlanta sells it as a separate ticket from daytime admission and strongly recommends buying ahead because capacity is limited.
- December 4–5: Holiday Spirit at Oakland Cemetery. The two days include candlelit tours of Eternal Homes, a tree lighting and a holiday market, according to Oakland's events calendar.
- December 12–13: The Candlelight Tour of Homes, with its own 4 p.m. Saturday walk through Oakland for VIP ticket holders.
The zoo describes IllumiNights as a mile-long stroll past hundreds of artisan-made lanterns. It serves cocoa, holiday cocktails for guests 21 and up, and marshmallow roasts, and the Endangered Species Carousel runs at night. Most of the animals are inside after dark, so "the lanterns are the wildlife," in the zoo's words.
On Sunday mornings in between, the Grant Park Farmers Market runs from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at 1040 Grant St. SE at The Beacon. The market and the tour hub are both on Grant Street, so a December Sunday can start at the market in the morning and end at St. Paul for the 3 p.m. choir concert.
Oakland, the zoo and the farmers market all run on their own calendars. The Candlelight Tour is still filling its lineup with neighbors' houses, and the door to apply is open on the homes page.
If you're weighing whether to put your own restoration or renovation on the tour, or you'd like to talk through what a house like the Burns Mansion takes to keep up, the team at Golley Realty Group works with older homes in Grant Park every season and is glad to share what we know. Talk to a Decatur Neighborhood Expert.
