WINTER LANTERN FESTIVAL

Holiday lights are the bright spot of late fall days that get dark super early. Whether you want to drive through millions of lights or walk around some of the most spectacular displays, New Jersey has all the holiday lights you could ever want and then some! We’ve rounded them up here to help you get into the spirit of the season. Make sure you check for weather and event updates before heading out.

North Jersey

Winter Lantern Festival
American Dream, East Rutherford
Thursdays-Sundays, Oct. 25-Jan. 2, 2024
Spend one to two hours walking through pathways of more than 1,000 handcrafted Chinese lanterns and lights. The lanterns are made with hand-painted silk cloth and LED lights. There will be gorgeous displays of Chinese myths, legends and zodiac-inspired lanterns designed as an animal kingdom, a sea world and a theme park.

Christmas Light Show & Village at Skylands
94 Championship Pl., Augusta
Nov. 22 – Dec. 30
The Sussex County Miners baseball stadium gets transformed for the holiday with more than 2 million lights in their drive-thru show. Afterward, you can walk through their village, ice skate and make s’mores.

Orchard of Lights at Demarest Farms
244 Wierimus Rd., Hillsdale
Nov. 22 – Dec. 29
Take a ride through shimmering lights at Demarest Farms. Their Orchard of Lights Drive-Thru traverses their 32-acre plot of land. Santa is only visiting through Dec. 24, when he has to leave for the North Pole.

Holiday Lights Spectacular
Essex County Turtle Back Zoo, 560 Northfield Ave., West Orange
Nov. 17 – Dec. 31
This special event throughout the zoo includes an evening stroll outdoors through light displays and photo ops with friends and family, featuring some fun seasonal activities such as a s’mores station, Grinch weekend and photos with Santa.

Let It Glow: A Holiday Lantern Spectacular
Bergen County Zoo, 216 Forest Ave., Paramus
Thursdays – Sundays, Nov. 9 – Jan. 14
More than 30 lanterns will be handcrafted in the shapes of your favorite zoo animals. While you’re there, take the train ride, too, which is also covered in beautifully lit lanterns.

Winter Walk
Millburn
Nightly, starting November 12
The town will be lit up nightly with a beautiful lights display, but this year Taylor Park’s lights will be off for the season.

JOEL NOUFE / Six Flags Great Adventure Holiday in the Park

Central Jersey

Six Flags Holiday in the Park
1 Six Flags Blvd., Jackson
Nov. 24 – Jan. 1, 2024
The mega amusement park transforms into a massive winter wonderland. Enjoy all of the festivities with food, fire pits, hot cocoa and cool light displays. 

The Winter Wonderlights Spectacular
655 Cranbury Rd., East Brunswick
Nov. 24-Dec. 31
The Winter Wonderlights Spectacular is, well, spectacular. Though their trail is only half a mile long, they’ve crammed in 1.5 million lights. They’re open seven days a week, so there’s no excuse not to stop by.

ANNE ELLEN CHRISTMAS TREE FARM

The Village at Anne Ellen
Anne Ellen Christmas Tree Farm, Manalapan
Wednesdays-Sundays, Nov. 11-Dec. 30
You’ll be surrounded by over 100,000 Christmas lights as you take the hayride from the farm market down to the holiday lights display. Visit Santa’s house, the train room, the life-sized igloo, the gingerbread house, the old school tree lot, the wall of lights, the post office, the cherry blossom field, the maple sugar shack. There’s a shooting range where you can take aim at holiday-themed targets using Orbeez ammunition. New for this year is Santa’s Coal Mine, where you’ll enter the mine’s tunnels to see the coal that fuels Santa’s sleigh – and is the same coal reserved for those on Santa’s naughty list. Also new is the Candy Cane Factory, where you’ll see the elves on the machines hard at work.

Magic of Lights
PNC Bank Arts Center (116 Garden State Parkway), Holmdel
Nov. 17 – Dec. 30
The drive-thru is 2.5 miles long and full of classic holiday scenes. You can also check out the Mega Tree Spectacular to see the tallest and brightest trees in NJ.

JONATHON PETER PHOTOGRAPHY / Historic Smithville

South Jersey

GLOW! Light Show and The Dazzling District
217 Berlin-Cross Keys Rd., Washington Twp.
Through December 31
This lights display is epic – and so epic that the family moved it offsite from their house (formerly known as Deptford Dazzling Lights), and won an episode of The Great Christmas Lights Fight TV show this season! The video game-themed lights drive-through and walk-through also feature a 45-foot LED snowman, Ferris wheel, carnival games, food trucks and time with Santa.

Historic Smithville & Village Green
E. Moss Mill Rd., Smithville
Nov. 23 – Jan. 6, 2024
This quaint South Jersey shopping town gets all decked out for the holidays with a talking Christmas tree and “dancing” trees on Lake Meone.

Allaire Christmas Light Spectacular
1923 Baileys Corner Rd., Wall Twp.
Nov. 10 – Dec. 23

Allaire Community Farm invites you to a tractor-drawn hayride Christmas light show and poinsettia sale. Stop inside the market for hot chocolate and cider donuts. Tickets for 2023 are not on sale yet.

Night of Lights at Creamy Acres
448 Lincoln Mill Rd., Mullica Hill
Hayrides aren’t just for Halloween anymore! The folks at Creamy Acres are going all out with their holiday light display this year. Bundle up and take a hayride through their display while you sing along to all of the Christmas classics. Tickets for 2023 aren’t available yet.

DiDonato’s Magical Holiday Express
1151 S. White Horse Pike, Hammonton
Select dates, Nov. 17-Dec. 23
You’ll have to get out of your car to hop in one of the trains, but then they’ll drive you through the light show themselves. Hop aboard their Magical Holiday Express train and gaze at the millions of lights around you.

Christmas Fantasy with Lights
Storybook Land, 6415 E. Black Horse Pike, Egg Harbor Twp.
Nov. 18-Dec. 30
Storybook Land will be covered by 1 million lights! Plus, you’ll get to meet Santa and Mrs. Claus on select nights.

Light Show Hayride at Johnson’s Corner Farm
133 Church Rd., Medford
Nov. 24-Dec. 23
It’s not your typical drive-thru, but we still think that hayrides count. Take a leisurely ride through the farm. Even the barn and the tractors will be decorated. The ride is set to a jolly Christmas playlist to keep your holiday spirits high.

DENNIS NIERZWICKI / Holidig

Holidig Light Show
100 Pinedge Dr., West Berlin
Starts Nov. 17
Diggerland USA is decked out in Christmas lights. Explore this one-mile drive-thru with your family. Construction vehicles will be lit up and animated holiday scenes will shine bright. Visit on weekends for Winterfest fun, with Santa pics, parades and more.

Holiday Lights Trolley Ride
526 Washington St., Cape May
Nov. 17 – Jan. 1, 2024
Hop onto one of Cape May’s festive trolleys. As you listen to holiday tunes, you’ll glide past the historical Victorian houses of South Jersey. This ride will blast you into the past. It’s an open-air trolley, so don’t forget to bring a blanket. 

Sea of Lights
Jenkinson’s Aquarium, 300 Ocean Ave., Point Pleasant Beach
Dec. 9 and 16
Visit the sea creatures at the aquarium but stay for dazzling holiday lights spectacular at night. On select dates, you can meet Santa, or even watch him dive into a tank! There will be treats, games, crafts and holiday entertainment.

Holiday Light Show
Holly Beach Park, Wildwood
Dec. 8-mid-January 2024

During the Winter Wonderland kickoff on Dec. 8 and 9, watch the dazzling lights and enjoy complimentary hot chocolate and popcorn, as well as a visit from Mr. & Mrs. Claus! Lights and decorations will be on display nightly through mid-January.

Holiday Lights Walk
Sunset Park, Wildwood Crest
Dec. 19
Walkers meet at the corner of Rambler Road and New Jersey Avenue to take an approximately 30-minute walk along Sunset Lake and the surrounding neighborhood to view the various holiday and Christmas light displays. You should wear warm clothes and bring a flashlight. Everyone will get a small holiday gift!

Winter Wonderland Illuminated Walking Trail
Indian Acres Tree Farm, Medford
Select nights, Nov. 24-Dec. 30
Your night begins with a stroll through the woods filled with fun snowmen and trees, illuminated boxes with miniature scenes, and a fairy garden box. Further down the trail, you might even pass a secret gnome village. The path flows out of the woods and into the live Christmas Tree fields. You’ll pass by a penguin igloo town, “fly by” BirdHouse Row, and watch out for a runaway toboggan! The trail is draped and decorated with tens of thousands of lights. After the trail, make sure to stop by the bonfires for some hot chocolate and s’mores!

KALEIDO ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT GROUP / NYC Winter Lantern Festival

New York

NYC Winter Lantern Festival
Queens County Farm Museum, 73-50 Little Neck Parkway, Queens, NY
Nov. 17-Jan. 7. 2024
The farm will be covered in more than 10,000 LED Chinese-inspired lanterns created by more than 100 artists, along with live performances and on-site food vendors. Some of the LED lights can reach up to 30 feet high across a total of 60 acres!

LuminoCity Festival
Eisenhower Park, Long Island, NY
Nov. 9 – Jan. 7, 2024
This spectacular light show has several acres of new light art installations and sculptures inspired by nature, history and magic.

Shine Bright at Hudson Yards
Hudson Yards, Manhattan
Holiday decor will illuminate the Public Square and Gardens, The Shops at Hudson Yards, Vessel and Edge with white lights set against evergreen trees and one-of-a-kind set pieces.

TISHMAN SPEYER

The Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree
Rockefeller Center 
Nov. 29-Jan. 13 2024
The magnificent tree will be lit daily from 6 am to midnight after the yearly beloved lighting celebration on Nov. 29. On Christmas Day, the tree is lit for 24 hours and on New Year’s Eve it is lit from 6 am to 9 pm.

Harlem Holiday Lights
125th St., Manhattan
Each holiday season, Harlem’s 125th Street is illuminated with more than 10,000 festive LED lights across nine blocks, from Broadway to Fifth Avenue. The iconic thoroughfare lights up with festive light and window displays, as well as a caravan of decorated floats traveling around Harlem to greet participating buildings and businesses.

RICHARD HAUGHTON / Lightscape

Lightscape
Brooklyn Botanic Garden, Brooklyn
Nov. 17-Jan. 1, 2024
Walk the mile-long illuminated trail filled with beautiful plants, trees, water features, and architecture of the gardens, along with 18 installations by international light artists and design collectives. It’s all set to a playlist that includes Taylor Swift, Elton John, Philip Glass, Viter Ukranian Folk and others.  There’s also a Brooklyn hip-hop zone to celebrate the 50th anniversary of hip-hop with music by Mos Def, MC Lyte, Digable Planets and more.

Luminaries at Brookfield Place
230 Vesey St., Manhattan
Nov. 24 – Jan. 6, 2024
Lower Manhattan’s Brookfield Place will feature a canopy of colorful lights emanating from hundreds of lanterns suspended among the shopping center’s palm trees. Touchless, motion-activated stations allow visitors to make a wish and prompt a magical display of lights and colors.

GLOW at New York Botanical Garden
2900 Southern Blvd., The Bronx
Select nights, Nov. 17 – Jan. 13, 2024
The New York Botanical Garden will present a gorgeous outdoor light show, illuminating its landmark gardens and the Haupt Conservatory. As part of the experience, visitors will also be able to enjoy artistic ice sculptures, music, roving dancers and more outdoor fun.

BRONX ZOO

Holiday Lights at Bronx Zoo
2300 Southern Blvd., The Bronx
Nov. 17 – Jan. 7, 2024
During this festive celebration, visitors can enjoy five animal lantern safaris, as well as holiday-themed music, ice-carving demonstrations, costumed characters, stilt walkers, souvenirs, and seasonal treats like hot chocolate and s’mores.

Holiday Lights at Arthur Avenue
Arthur Ave., The Bronx
Beginning Nov. 27
Come walk the Bronx’s “Little Italy” and take in the bright lights strung along Arthur Avenue, as well as the area’s holiday windows. A neighborhood Christmas tree at Ciccarone Park will be festively lit, beginning Nov. 27.

Lighting of the Largest Menorah in Brooklyn
Grand Army Plaza, Brooklyn
Dec. 7-14
The annual lighting of Brooklyn’s largest Menorah at Grand Army Plaza will take place each night of Hanukkah, kicking off with a concert at 5 pm Dec. 7.

SESAME PLACE

Pennsylvania

A Very Furry Christmas at Sesame Place
100 Sesame Rd., Langhorne, PA
Nov. 17-Jan. 7, 2024
The park is transformed into a one-of-a-kind Christmas wonderland with millions of twinkling lights and festive decorations all around. Get to Sesame Street for all the kids’ theme park fun. There are also celebrations planned for Hanukkah, Kwanzaa and New Year’s Eve.

STAFF PHOTO / Koziar’s Christmas Village

Koziar’s Christmas Village
782 Christmas Village Rd., Bernville, PA
Nov. 4 – Jan. 1, 2024
There are more than a million lights that illuminate the Koziar property. Follow the arrows around the pathways to check out every corner of this dazzling scene. You’ll see storyboards, giant inflatables, barns decorated in various scenes, versions of Christmas from everything from the jungle to the ocean to prehistoric times, and train sets. The gift shops and snack shops are set up beautifully, too, with Christmas decorations literally everywhere – even in the restrooms.

Shadybrook Farm Holiday Light Show
931 Stony Hill Rd., Yardley, PA
Nov. 18 – Jan. 27, 2024
Grab timed tickets to see more than 3 million lights on display across this farm. You can ride in your own car or opt for an open-air wagon ride. After, snag holiday treats and make s’mores at the campfire. There are 5K and Breakfast with Santa events planned throughout the season.

EILEEN TURCHA / A Longwood Christmas

A Longwood Christmas
1001 Longwood Rd., Kennett Square, PA
Nov. 17 – Jan. 7, 2024
This magical Christmas spot is a favorite, with a beautiful greenhouse filled with gorgeous holiday flowers and a shining tunnel of lights, and don’t miss the amazing miniature trains of the Garden Railway that travel around the greenhouse.

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