Charlotte's holiday character comes from the surrounding region as much as from the city itself, anchored by McAdenville (one of the longest-running residential lighting traditions in America) and by the only seasonal program on a NASCAR superspeedway. The Queen City pairs banking-district urbanism with Carolina traditions.

• McAdenville (Christmas Town USA): The textile-mill town just outside Charlotte lights every tree and home on its main streets in red, white, and green, a tradition unmatched in scale among American small towns.
• Speedway Christmas: Charlotte Motor Speedway converts its banked oval into one of the country's only drive-through holiday light shows on a major race track.
• Daniel Stowe Botanical Garden: The Belmont garden's Holiday Lights program is the region's largest botanical display.
• Carolina Holiday Food: Country ham biscuits, sweet tea, and the original Winston-Salem-style Krispy Kreme doughnut anchor the season across the Carolinas, while Charlotte sits on the dividing line between Eastern (vinegar) and Western (tomato-based) barbecue traditions that mark every holiday gathering.