On Wednesday, November 25, three things happen within a short drive of each other. Race packets go out at The Big Chill from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Edward's on Main Street hands over Thanksgiving to-go orders from 2 to 5 p.m. Shades Bar & Grill in Inlet Beach finishes its second day of smoked-turkey pickups. All of it lands on Wednesday because on Thursday morning, Highway 30A belongs to the 15th annual 30A 10K Thanksgiving Day Races.
The race starts and finishes in Rosemary Beach, and its road closure runs from East Water Street to a turnaround near The Big Chill. Anyone planning a holiday around the east end of 30A has to plan around that closure. In practice, Wednesday carries the logistics and Thursday doesn't really get going until close to 11 a.m.
The first deadline is Friday
The earliest date on the Thanksgiving calendar is a price change, and it comes before the turkey orders. On the race's registration page, both the 10K and the 5K are $95, and that price goes up after 11:59 p.m. CDT on Friday, October 30. The 1-Mile Fun Run is $45. For comparison, when 30A.com announced the 2026 race in August, early-bird pricing of $75 for the 10K and 5K had already ended on August 9. Each step closer to race day has raised the price.
After that, the deadlines come in this order:
- Friday, October 30, 11:59 p.m. CDT: the 10K and 5K price goes up.
- Sunday, November 22, 3 p.m.: last call for Edward's Thanksgiving to-go orders, or sooner if they sell out.
- Monday, November 23: Shades preorders are due for its house-smoked turkeys, or sooner if they sell out.
- Tuesday, November 24, 11:59 p.m. CST: registration for the 1-Mile Fun Run closes. The registration page showed 237 spots left this week.
According to the race's own FAQ, there is no race-day registration and the organizers expect the races to sell out. Registering early also guarantees your T-shirt size.
Three documents, three closing times
The race schedule itself is simple. The 10K starts at 7:30 a.m., the 1-Mile Fun Run follows at 7:35 a.m., and the 5K starts at 9:30 a.m. The road closure is harder to pin down, because the three documents that describe it don't agree on when it ends.
| Source | Closure window on Thanksgiving Day | Stretch described |
|---|---|---|
| Race course map page | 7:00 to 10:30 a.m. | 30A from East Water Street to Bridge Lane, plus Watersound Parkway north to the Camp Creek Inn entrance |
| Race FAQ | 7:00 to 11:00 a.m. | Highway 30A |
| Walton County agenda item, June 30, 2026 | Requested 6:00 to 11:00 a.m. | 30A from Rosemary Beach to Watersound Parkway |
The county document holds the earliest start and the latest finish. It was a consent-agenda request for the Board of County Commissioners' June 30 meeting, and it describes a closure of about five hours. The organizers' application attached to it proposes splitting the morning in two, with the core of Rosemary Beach, between East and West Water Streets, closed from 6:00 a.m. and the rest of the route, out to Bridge Lane, closed from 7:00 a.m. Under that proposal, the road would reopen in stages, with the highway fully open by 11:00. The agenda item also notes that the county's Outdoor Review Committee heard the event's details in May and gave conditional approval, with life safety protocols to come from South Walton Fire District and the Walton County Sheriff's Office, and that Public Works had reviewed the signage application and approved it pending the board's vote.
All three versions agree on one point. If a driveway, a guest's rental or a breakfast stop sits on 30A between Rosemary Beach and Bridge Lane, it isn't reachable by car from early morning until somewhere between 10:30 and 11:00 a.m. Watersound Parkway is closed too, from 30A north to the Camp Creek Inn entrance, because the 5K uses it.
The turnaround sits next to The Big Chill
The 10K turns around at Bridge Lane, "just east of The Big Chill," in the words of the race's course map page. The same venue anchors Thanksgiving week in two other ways.
First, packet pickup is at The Big Chill, 7000 E. County Hwy. 30A, on Wednesday from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. The schedule states plainly that there is no race-day packet pickup.
Second, The Big Chill 30A is taking Thanksgiving to-go orders this year. According to the SoWal Thanksgiving 2026 roundup, it offers house-smoked turkey, traditional sides and pies, either as full family meals or à la carte. Orders are placed online during business hours, 11 a.m. to 9 p.m., with pickup on Wednesday, November 25, or on Thanksgiving morning.
So a Thanksgiving-morning pickup goes to a building at the far end of the race's closure, during the hours that stretch of 30A is closed. On Wednesday, one stop at The Big Chill can cover a race packet and a family meal in the same afternoon.
Wednesday carries the rest of the load
Edward's, at 66 Main St. in Rosemary Beach, is the in-town option. Chef Josh and his team are preparing oven-roasted turkey breast and honey-baked ham, with sides like mac and cheese, sweet potato casserole, and cornbread and sausage dressing, plus apple, pecan and pumpkin pies. The 2026 menu lists the turkey breast at $25 a pound, the ham at $20 a pound, pies at $50 each and yeast rolls at $12 a dozen. According to Edward's Thanksgiving page, you order by phone at 850-231-0550 or in person. Payment is due when you order, all sales are final, and the restaurant schedules your pickup slot for Wednesday between 2 and 5 p.m.
Shades Bar & Grill, at 10952 E. County Hwy. 30A in Inlet Beach, spreads its pickups across two days. Shades' Thanksgiving page offers Chef Rob's house-smoked turkeys, 14 to 16 pounds and enough for up to six people, with a quart of giblet gravy for $80 plus tax. Pickup runs Tuesday and Wednesday, November 24 and 25, from 11 a.m. to midnight.
Put those windows together and Wednesday has a natural order. The Big Chill opens packet pickup at 11 a.m., Edward's runs from 2 to 5, and Shades stays open until midnight for anyone running late.
Thursday reopens at 11
Thursday morning in Rosemary Beach is the race's. The post-race party and awards ceremony take place in Barrett Square, with a DJ, local vendors, breakfast, and complimentary Mimosa and Bloody Mary bars for adults. Finishers get a race shirt and a 30A 10K, 5K or 1-Mile medal. For a sense of scale, a 30A.com sponsor article published in August 2025, ahead of last year's race, described the event as drawing more than 3,350 runners and over 6,000 spectators, from at least 34 states and three countries.
Parking is limited. The race FAQ points drivers to 30Avenue, north of Highway 98, and the underground path that leads on foot to Rosemary Beach.
30Avenue is also home to one of the area's sit-down Thanksgiving meals. Cuvee 30A is serving Thanksgiving Day dining from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. at $99.99 per adult and $49.99 for children under 10. Reservations are highly recommended, and it isn't offering turkey to-go. A car left there for the race is already at the restaurant when lunch starts.
West along 30A in Seacrest, LaCo at 10343 E. County Hwy. 30A is bringing back its traditional Thanksgiving buffet from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Chef Tim's spread includes roasted turkey with gravy, honey-glazed ham, fried Gulf shrimp, mac and cheese and cornbread dressing, with pumpkin and pecan pie for dessert. It costs $64.50 per adult and $29.50 per child under 12, and children 3 and under eat free with a paying adult. Reservations go through [email protected] or the restaurant at 850-231-4021, and walk-ins are welcome as space allows. LaCo's own Thanksgiving page lists both November 26 and November 27 in different places. Thanksgiving falls on Thursday, November 26, and that is the date the SoWal roundup gives.
Both Thanksgiving meals start at 11 a.m., the time the county request has 30A fully reopening.
Where the race money goes
The 30A 10K Thanksgiving Day Race Series is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit. It says its races have raised more than $1 million for charity partners over 15 years. Walton County's agenda item gives a similar figure, about $1 million over the previous 14 years. This year's beneficiaries are all local:
- Children in Crisis
- Bailey Brigade
- Children's Volunteer Health Network
- Habitat for Humanity of Walton County
Friday evening, still pending
The town's own events page at rosemarybeach.com still shows last year's tree lighting. That ceremony was Friday, November 28, 2025, from 6:00 to 6:30 p.m. in South Barrett Square, with the Charles Dickens Carolers, Santa, the lighting and carriage rides. A third-party events calendar lists the 2026 ceremony for Friday, November 27, at 6 p.m. in South Barrett Square, but the town hasn't posted it yet. The town's page is where a confirmed time will appear.
The next confirmed date in Barrett Square after Thanksgiving is Saturday, December 5, when the 2026 Rosemary Beach Holiday Tour of Homes runs from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., listed at 28 N Barrett Square.
If you're hosting family in Rosemary Beach for the holiday and want a second opinion on the timing, from packet pickup to where guests can park on race morning, I'm glad to help. My family's roots on 30A go back to 1981, and I'm always happy to compare notes with neighbors. Chip McCraney. Let's Connect.
