Piney Acres Farm in Fortville, Indiana is bringing back its holiday lights experience for the 2025 Christmas season: Glimmer Lights. After debuting in 2024, Glimmer Lights returns for its second year beginning November 20, 2025, with a Christmas train ride, Santa visits, and walk-free holiday lights just a short drive from Indianapolis.
Families can visit this 73-acre Christmas tree farm in Hancock County for a cozy, small-town holiday night built around lights, nostalgia, hot cocoa and a magical ride through the trees. The idea behind Glimmer Lights is simple: warm cocoa, glowing lights, happy kids and a memory that feels like “old-fashioned Christmas,” only bigger and brighter.
Related Article: Looking for more holiday trains? Check out our guide to the 10 best holiday trains in Indiana.
Piney Acres Farm owner Rex Zenor built Glimmer Lights out of his own childhood memories of piling into the family car and driving around to look at Christmas lights. Now he’s recreating that feeling for today’s families, complete with his very own holiday train, the Piney Acres Express.
Piney
The Piney Acres Express Train Ride
The centerpiece of Glimmer Lights is the Piney Acres Express, a festive, trackless train that welcomes both kids and adults to ride together.
Here is what families can expect from the train experience:
- A magical 20-minute holiday train ride “to the North Pole.”
- Guests board the Piney Acres Express with a cup of Piney Acres signature hot cocoa and a freshly made holiday cookie.
- The train travels through a glimmering wonderland of twinkle light displays set throughout the Christmas tree fields on the farm.
- The lights and displays are placed across the property, so riders are surrounded by glowing scenes as they ride.
- The Piney Acres Express is part of the Glimmer Lights experience, presented by Gateway Hancock Health.
This is not a thrill ride. It’s calm, cozy and designed for “sit together and look out the window.” Parents can sit with their children, slow down and enjoy the lights without needing to walk long distances in the cold.
Accessibility note: At this time, the train cars are not wheelchair accessible. The train seats both adults and children. Infants who are not yet walking can typically sit on a parent’s lap during the ride.
Santa at Piney Acres
On select evenings, Santa will be in his Piney Acres Cabin and ready to visit with families. Kids can say hello, share wish lists and take photos after (or before) riding the train. Because Santa is not guaranteed every night, families who want that visit should confirm his appearance schedule for the evening they plan to come.
Glimmer Lights Dates and Schedule (2025)
Glimmer Lights is a timed, ticketed event.
- Season run: November 20, 2025 – December 21, 2025
- Operating days: Thursday – Sunday evenings
- Format: Each train ride has a specific departure time
Guests should plan to arrive at least 30 minutes before departure time. This allows time to park, check in, use the restroom, get cocoa, settle kids and be ready to board. Trains leave at their scheduled times.
If a family misses its assigned time, Piney Acres may try to move that group to a later train that same evening, but only if there is an open spot. This is not guaranteed. No refunds are offered for missed train rides. Missed train rides are not transferable or refundable.
Weather and What to Wear
Glimmer Lights takes place outdoors on a working Christmas tree farm. The train loads and travels outside through the light displays.
- The experience runs in winter weather, including light rain and snow.
- The farm will make the final call on severe weather on the day of the event.
- Families should dress for the weather at the time of departure: coats, hats, gloves, boots and warm layers are strongly encouraged.
The hot cocoa helps keep everyone warm, but Indiana evenings in late November and December can still feel very cold, especially for young children who are sitting still on the ride.
Glimmer Lights Tickets and Who Needs a Ticket
Glimmer Lights uses timed tickets. Every rider needs a ticket for their scheduled ride time.
- Any child who is walking age or older will need a ticket.
- All adults riding the train also need tickets.
- Infants who are not yet walking can typically ride on a parent’s lap.
Again, please note there are no refunds for missed scheduled times.
Find more ticket information here.
Current Pricing
- Piney Acres Express (trackless train)
$15.00 ticket price + $1.32 fee
Total: $16.32 per person - Holly Jolly Tractor Ride (hayride)
$12.00 ticket price + $1.23 fee
Total: $13.23 per person
The Piney Acres Express is the signature Glimmer Lights train experience that includes cocoa, a holiday cookie and a “North Pole” style ride through the lights. The Holly Jolly Tractor Ride is a separate, festive hayride-style tractor ride option on the farm. Because Glimmer Lights only runs Thursday through Sunday evenings from November 20 through December 21, 2025, prime slots are expected to sell out quickly, especially closer to Christmas.
Location
Piney Acres Farm
1115 E 1000 N
Fortville, Indiana 46040
Why Families Will Love Glimmer Lights
Glimmer Lights is designed to feel personal and relaxed. Families are not walking a long loop in the cold or weaving through a huge downtown crowd. Instead, they sit together on a train, sip hot cocoa, watch the lights and enjoy the Christmas tree farm at night.
For kids, it’s three big wins at once: a real train ride “to the North Pole,” twinkling light displays across a Christmas tree farm and a holiday cookie and cocoa. For parents, it’s that slower, classic style of Christmas outing that’s getting harder to find. After a sold-out first season in 2024, Glimmer Lights at Piney Acres Farm is on its way to becoming a yearly holiday tradition for Central Indiana families.
