Every Highland Park Lights Tour Starts Somewhere Else. Pick the Pickup First.
November 5, 2026
November 5, 2026
Visit Dallas tells first-timers to start their Highland Park lights drive at Armstrong Parkway and Preston Road, and many guides stop there. For a resident hosting family in December, the bigger question is where the ride begins. Every carriage, trolley and double-decker tour of Highland Park's residential streets loads its passengers somewhere else: on Turtle Creek Boulevard, Wycliff Avenue or Oak Lawn Avenue, at a gas station on Monticello and Cole, or on Twin Sixties Drive by Mockingbird Station.
Each company also sets its own parking rules, start dates and cancellation terms. Two tours can cover the same blocks of Armstrong and Lakeside and still give your guests very different evenings. If you're booking for visitors, start with the pickup and the terms, then pick a vehicle.
The operators fall into three groups. Two carriage companies work from the Turtle Creek and Oak Lawn side. A third works from Monticello and Cole. The two motorized tours share a departure street near Mockingbird Station.
| Operator | Where you board | Ride | Published price |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brazos Carriage Company | Turtle Creek area, with the exact spot sent by email | Horse-drawn carriage or wagon, 1 hour | $225 for 2 to 4 riders up to $550 for a 12 to 14 passenger wagon |
| Whitehaven | The Shops of Highland Park, 4200 Oak Lawn Ave. | Horse-drawn carriage, 1 hour | Not published |
| DFW Carriages | Texaco at Monticello and Cole | Carriages and wagonettes | $205 to $650, by vehicle size |
| TopView | 5340 Twin Sixties Dr. | Double-decker bus, about 1 hour | $29 to $45 per ticket, by date |
| Big D Fun Tours | Twin Sixties Drive at Mockingbird Station | Heated trolley, 1 hour | $25 per ticket, or $30 for the 21-and-over BYOB ride |
Brazos is in its 21st Highland Park season, and it is changing how pickups work this year. For 2026 the company expects to run carriages from several spots around the Shops at Turtle Creek Village area instead of one central location. Each rider's exact pickup comes in a reservation reminder email. Two locations are posted. One is the Transwestern Building at 3811 Turtle Creek Blvd., which has free guest parking in its garage. The other is St. Seraphim Orthodox Cathedral at 4208 Wycliff Ave., where bookings marked "CC" are sent. Brazos added the cathedral site to cut down on crowding at busy times.
Whitehaven's riders meet in the breezeway by Coupes Champagne Bar at The Shops of Highland Park. Complimentary valet parking is offered only on select days. Its drivers use Lomo Alto, Armstrong, Douglas, Versailles and sometimes Lakeside, and routes can change with traffic and with which houses are lit.
DFW Carriages picks up at the Texaco at Monticello and Cole. Its fleet runs from a Classic Open carriage for up to six riders at $205 to $425 to a 16-passenger wagonette at $395 to $650. A Cinderella carriage, a nine-passenger limo carriage and a 12-passenger wagonette fill out the range between.
The two Twin Sixties operators share a parking warning. TopView and Big D both tell riders not to park in the DART Park and Ride lot. Big D adds that free surface and garage parking is available at Mockingbird Station.
The calendars don't line up. DFW Carriages lists Highland Park rides from December 1 through December 30, closed Christmas Day. TopView's double-decker has November 2026 departures from November 20 through November 30, more than a week before that carriage window opens.
TopView prices change by the night, which matters if Thanksgiving guests are still in town:
So the cheapest seat on the bus falls on the two nights before Thanksgiving, when a lot of households already have visitors. All TopView guests sit on the upper deck, which has a glass ceiling, and parties may share a table. Riders can bring their own drinks and cups, the bus has a restroom on board, and departures leave on time, so TopView asks guests to arrive 15 minutes early.
Timing matters on the carriage side too. DFW Carriages offers a 5 p.m. slot but says it won't be fully dark when the ride starts. At Brazos's Transwestern pickup, guests can't arrive at or enter the garage before 6 p.m., because the property owner doesn't allow early entry. The site has no public restrooms. If your guests include small children, those two details decide which hour and which operator will work.
Carriage fares overlap. Brazos starts at $225 for two to four riders, and DFW's two smaller carriages start at $205 and $225. The bigger differences show up when plans change.
Brazos sells its rides as nonrefundable. The one exception is when the company cancels for hazardous weather, and in that case it contacts riders by 3 p.m. on the day of the ride and offers a reschedule or a refund. Riders who need a new date can reschedule with 24 hours' notice for a $50 fee.
DFW Carriages starts its weather cancellations at 2 p.m. on the ride date.
Whitehaven needs reschedule requests 20 days before the tour, and new dates depend on availability.
Brazos also lists smaller rules that are useful to know before you book for a group. Rides last one hour, with a 15-minute break between rides so the horses can drink and rest. A late party gets a shorter ride, because Brazos won't cut into the break or the next booking. The company doesn't provide blankets, and riders can bring hot chocolate and snacks. Every carriage now has a Bluetooth speaker, so you can bring your own holiday music.
Brazos also says why its fares rose this year. It cites inflation, higher insurance costs, Highland Park taxes, and the cost of extra on-site security. Security staff watch the Transwestern pickup all evening.
The tours bring visitors into the residential streets from outside. Highland Park's own holiday events happen on foot, at the Village, at the church on Mockingbird and at a pecan tree on Armstrong Parkway. A few of these are tied together by one toy drive.
The Village stroll is one evening only, and it falls on a Wednesday. Select boutiques add promotions, treats and gifts with purchase during those three hours. Last year's stroll also fell on a Wednesday, December 10. The Village's 2025 announcement put the Highland Park High School Orchestra on the program from 5 to 5:45 p.m.
The Town has its own tradition at the Landmark Pecan Tree, 4202 Armstrong Parkway. Last December's Holiday Tree Lighting ran from 6 to 8 p.m. on Thursday, December 4. It offered sweet treats, warm drinks, Santa and Mrs. Claus, and a new-toy collection for the Holiday Toy Drive. The Town posts the ceremony on its calendar at hptx.org.
The tree sits on Armstrong Parkway, the same street Visit Dallas suggests for starting a lights drive and one Whitehaven's drivers use. Beverly Drive and Lakeside Drive were also on People Newspapers' holiday-lights map in 2021. The streets on the visitor routes are the same streets the Town gathers on for its own tree lighting.
If December brings houseguests, the Mark Bradford Group team knows these Highland Park streets in every season and can help with the details, from where your guests should board to which nights leave room for the Village stroll. If you're also curious what your own home is worth heading into the new year, request a free home valuation.
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