Pullen Park's Holiday Express: Tips for those with, without tickets

Pullen Park's annual Holiday Express starts this Thursday for its eight-day run and it means some big changes for the popular Raleigh park.

For the event, Pullen is transformed into a wonderland with thousands of lights, visits with Santa and rides on the carousel and train. It runs 4 p.m. to 9 p.m., Thursday through Sunday and Dec. 11 to Dec. 14.

We have some tips for those with tickets to the nearly sold out event.

There's also some very important information for those who don't have tickets. Let's start with that.

There are some tickets available for this Thursday, Sunday, Dec. 11 and Dec. 14, but those are only for train departures at 8:30 p.m. or later. Regardless of your train departure time, you can enter the event at any time on the day that your ticket is good for. So if you get an 8:30 p.m. train departure, you can still enter the park at 4 p.m. or 6 p.m. or whenever.

Parking will be available on Pullen Park campus with overflow parking at Governor Morehead School and Cates Avenue Parking Deck. Parking attendants will direct you to available spaces. Parking is a short walking distance to the event. There will be no shuttle.

Armbands and boarding passes are available for pick up at the park from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Wednesday and Dec. 8 to Dec. 10. Ticket holders also can go to will call from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on the days of the event, when the park is closed to the public, to pick them up. Be sure to bring a photo ID with you.

You also can pick them up on the night of your event, but the city recommends that you ensure that you plan for plenty of time to park, pick up your tickets (and possibly stand in line for that) and arrive at the train depot 15 minutes before your departure time.

It looks like there is some light rain in the forecast for this Saturday and Sunday, but otherwise the weather conditions should be pretty nice. According to the city, the event could be canceled for severe weather, such as rain with extreme wet conditions, high winds, lightning or extreme cold conditions with ice or snow. Event cancellations will be made by 11 a.m. on the day of the event. Ticket holders will be notified by email. City officials also will post something on its park status page.

If the event is canceled, guests can ask for a refund or attend a rain date, according to the city.