When family comes to Sea Pines for Thanksgiving, why does the week build toward Friday the 27th instead of Thursday the 26th? On Friday evening Santa comes to Harbour Town, the Harbour Town Christmas tree is lit, and Gregg Russell plays his Thanksgiving concert under the Liberty Oak. Most of the hosting work is due well before Friday, though. The first deadline is Thursday, November 19.
The Countdown Starts Thursday, November 19
The Sea Pines Resort's holiday dining page sets the order dates, and they come earlier than many hosts expect.
| Date | What closes or happens | Where |
|---|---|---|
| Thursday, November 19 | Last day to preorder Thanksgiving pies | Harbour Town Bakery & Café, in person or [email protected] |
| Monday, November 23 | Last day to order Thanksgiving To Go | Order online through the resort |
| Wednesday, November 25, 5 p.m. | Reservations close for the Thanksgiving Scavenger Hunt | seapines.com/events or 843.842.1979 |
| November 25 to 26, by 2 p.m. | Preordered pies ready for pickup | Harbour Town Bakery & Café |
| Thursday, November 26, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. | Thanksgiving To Go pickup | Harbour Town Clubhouse |
If you miss the pie deadline, you still have a chance. The bakery sells pies to walk-in customers while supplies last through Thanksgiving Day. The Thanksgiving Buffet in the Champions Ballroom at the Harbour Town Clubhouse is marked sold out. Two sit-down options remain, and both take reservations. Links, an American Grill, serves a Thanksgiving prix fixe menu from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m., and Quarterdeck serves its prix fixe menu from 11:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Those hours set the shape of Thursday. If dinner is at Quarterdeck, you will be done by late afternoon. Links stays open into the evening for families who want a slow day first. With Thanksgiving To Go, the meal comes home from the Clubhouse by 4 p.m.
Getting Guests Through the Gate
Gate passes are the other early task, and they are easiest to handle before anyone gets in the car. Sea Pines CSA's guest pass page says owners can request passes by calling the Gate Pass Office at 843.671.7277 or by using CSA360, the online request portal. If you call, have your confidential passcode ready. The pass is generated almost instantly. It carries the guest's name, your name and address, and the length of the stay.
When guests arrive, the steps are:
- Drive to the drive-through window of the Sea Pines CSA Gate Pass Office, inside The Sea Pines Resort Welcome Center at 32 Greenwood Drive.
- Pick up the pass that was arranged for them.
- Go on to the gate entrance.
CSA360 asks for each guest's name and arrival and departure dates, with one entry per guest who needs a pass. Requests can be made up to 60 days ahead, so Thanksgiving passes can be set up today. Each residence has one CSA360 login.
Fees matter most for friends who come in for the day. CSA raised the daily visitor gate fee from $9 to $10 on March 1, 2026. A casual weekly pass costs $30. Both are listed on the visitors page and are sold at the Greenwood and Ocean gates from 7 a.m. to 11 p.m. A daily pass is good only for the date printed on it. At those prices, the weekly pass costs less than daily passes after a visitor's third day. For bicycles, CSA does not allow daily visitors who are not staying in Sea Pines to ride in. The community's gate policy does let owners request a free bicycle pass for a house guest. Fees and pass terms can change, so check the details for your own visitors with the Gate Pass Office.
There is one more thing to know if your guests will drive toward Harbour Town. CSA's Deer Island Bridge project is replacing the bridge between Deer Island Road and Lighthouse Road. The work is expected to continue through December, on weekdays from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., excluding major holidays.
Monday Through Thursday, Before the Big Night
With the food ordered and the passes set, the early part of the week fills itself. The resort's Thanksgiving guide lists events every day, and many of them need a reservation or registration.
- Thanksgiving Wagon Rides, daily from Monday, November 23, through Saturday, November 28, starting at 10 a.m. from Heritage Farm. The rides go through the fall colors of the Sea Pines Forest Preserve.
- Pre-Turkey Day Sea Pines Dolphin Dash 5K, Wednesday, November 25, at 9 a.m. from the Sea Pines Beach Club. The course runs on the hard, flat beach. Registration is online only and closes at 8:45 a.m. on race day.
- Thanksgiving Scavenger Hunt, Thursday, November 26, at 9 a.m. in Harbour Town. Reservations are required.
- Thanksgiving with Stan Smith, Thursday, November 26, through Saturday, November 28, from 9 a.m. to noon at the Sea Pines Racquet Club. Smith is a former U.S. Open and Wimbledon champion and a former U.S. Olympic men's tennis coach. To reserve, call the club at 843.363.4495.
The scavenger hunt finishes in the morning, so it fits around any dinner plan. That includes the Thanksgiving To Go pickup at the Clubhouse, which opens at 11 a.m.
Friday, November 27, Hour by Hour
Friday is the busiest day on the resort's calendar, with something on it from morning until night.
- 10 to 11:30 a.m. The 23rd Annual Fishing Tournament at Fish Island in the Forest Preserve, with prizes for bass, bream and catfish. Reservations are required.
- 1 to 3 p.m. The Caramel Apple Festival at Heritage Farm, with caramel apples, games, crafts and a bounce house.
- 5:30 to 7 p.m. Santa visits Harbour Town.
- Just before 7:30 p.m. The official lighting of the Harbour Town Christmas tree.
- 7:30 to 9 p.m. The Gregg Russell Thanksgiving Concert under the Liberty Oak. Admission is free.
This year's concert has more weight than usual. The Island Packet reported in April that Russell first came to Hilton Head in 1977 on what was supposed to be a two-week job. After 50 straight years under Harbour Town's 300-year-old Liberty Oak, he plans to stay on a full-time schedule through 2026 and 2027 and move to a limited schedule in 2028. He told the paper that his audiences are now on their "third or fourth generation of family members." That puts this Thanksgiving concert, and next year's, among the last on his full-time schedule.
After the Tree Is Lit
The lights stay up after the holiday weekend. Harbour Town Lights runs from November 27 through January 1, with lighted seasonal figures along the harbour around the tree. The Deep Well Project, a volunteer-run nonprofit that has served people in need on Hilton Head Island since 1973, collects canned goods and new, unwrapped children's toys all season. Donations go in the well by the Liberty Oak stage. If your guests bring something for the well on Friday night, they are giving to the same cause the season's visitors support through New Year's.
Guests who stay into Saturday have one more option. Coast, Oceanfront Dining at the Sea Pines Beach Club holds oyster roasts every Saturday from 1 to 4 p.m., weather permitting. The oysters are roasted on site and come from Maggioni Oyster Company on St. Helena Island. Mark Husbands plays live music, and peel-and-eat shrimp is also on the menu. Russell returns to the Liberty Oak for his Christmas concert on December 23 from 7:30 to 9 p.m. Admission is free, and Santa is scheduled from 5:30 to 7 p.m. and again after the show. The next ball drops from the Harbour Town Lighthouse come on New Year's Eve, at 7 p.m. and midnight.
If family is coming to Sea Pines this Thanksgiving and you'd like a hand planning around the Liberty Oak, the tree lighting, or anything else in Harbour Town this season, Karen Ryan would be glad to share what she knows of the island. Let's Connect.
