Tidewater Cards & Collectibles caps the 2026 Carolina card-show calendar with the Raleigh 500 Sports Card, Pokémon & Collectibles Show at Dorton Arena the weekend of December 11, 12, and 13, 2026. Held at 1025 Blue Ridge Road on the NC State Fairgrounds campus, this three-day mega-show fills the iconic Dorton Arena floor with 500+ vendor tables — the largest single-venue card show in the Triangle and one of the biggest December weekends on the entire Southeast circuit. Mid-December timing is peak holiday gift-hunting season, with two weekends still left before Christmas and dealers stacking gift-ready boxed sets, sealed wax, beginner-friendly starter lots, and slab gifts specifically priced for the holiday shopping wave. This is also peak NFL playoff push timing and the heart of NBA regular season — modern football and basketball cases buzz nonstop.
The vendor footprint is enormous. Sports tables stock deep MLB, NBA, NFL, NHL, UFC, boxing, MMA, soccer, and college football across every era — vintage Topps, Bowman, Fleer, Goudey, Play Ball, and pre-war tobacco issues from the early 1900s, 1970s and 80s set-builders, 1990s junk-wax monster boxes, and modern Panini Prizm, Donruss Optic, Select, Mosaic, Topps Chrome, Bowman Draft, and premium Topps Dynasty, National Treasures, Flawless, and Immaculate. December always brings out the deep vintage hunters — pre-war tobacco, T206s, 1933 Goudey, 1952 Topps, 1957 Topps, and 1969 Topps runs fill the locked cases. Carolina-team inventory is heavily represented — Panthers, Hornets, Hurricanes, Durham Bulls, NC State, UNC, Duke, Wake Forest, ECU, and Appalachian State. Pokémon dealers fill a major section of the floor with singles and sealed product from vintage WOTC Base through modern Scarlet & Violet, plus Magic: The Gathering, Yu-Gi-Oh!, One Piece TCG, Disney Lorcana, Dragon Ball Z Fusion World, Star Wars Unlimited, Flesh and Blood, and Riftbound. PSA, BGS, SGC, and CGC graded slab walls run deep.
Hours typically run Friday 12:00 PM to 6:00 PM, Saturday 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM, and Sunday 10:00 AM to 4:00 PM Eastern — confirm exact times on tidewatercardsandcollectibles.com closer to the show. General admission and VIP early-entry tiers are sold separately, with weekend-pass options for serious shoppers. Kids enter free with a paid adult. Free parking covers the surrounding fairgrounds lots. Buy VIP early-entry passes online in advance to skip the Friday box-office line.
Dorton Arena sits at 1025 Blue Ridge Road, Raleigh, NC 27607, on the NC State Fairgrounds campus on the west side of town a few minutes off I-440 and US-1. The arena is climate-controlled, ADA-accessible, and laid out with wide center aisles around the iconic saddle-shaped roof structure that has anchored the fairgrounds since 1952. PNC Arena and Carter-Finley Stadium are next door, and Crabtree Valley Mall is a short drive east — lunch options include MoJoe's Burger Joint, Player's Retreat, Cookout, and the Hillsborough Street corridor. December timing pairs the show beautifully with downtown Raleigh holiday lights, the Glenwood South dining strip, and the WRAL Holiday Lights display at Dorothea Dix Park.
This show fits every collector profile — first-timers, families, casual fans, modern flippers, prospect hunters, vintage diggers, Pokémon players, and holiday-gift buyers shopping for kids, partners, friends, and themselves. For the best experience, buy VIP for Friday early-entry, bring cash plus Venmo and Zelle backups, carry a sorted want list with target prices, and pack a wheeled cart. Text Tidewater Cards at 804.704.4700 with vendor questions and follow them on Facebook for show updates and the early 2027 schedule preview.