Top Places To See Holiday Lights
How can we get in the holiday spirit here on the West Coast when it’s warm in December? Well, first of all, it’s cold—by L.A. standards, at least. And second, there’s also plenty of holiday cheer if you know where to see Christmas lights in Los Angeles. In between a deluge of Christmas events, festive movie screenings and frantic shopping trips, take the time to check out these twinkling neighborhoods and ticketed events.
THE GROVE CHRISTMAS LIGHTS
November 20th Price: Free
189 The Grove Dr Los Angeles, CA 90036
L.A.’s shopping mall metropolis lights up its Christmas tree with fireworks and a slew of special guests, including Santa himself (may we humbly suggest that you ask Santa this year for a prime spot in that mammoth parking garage). Gloria Estefan will host an evening that includes performances by Andy Grammer, Little Big Town, David Foster and Kat McPhee. Stick around for the fireworks finale (and we’ll reiterate that, yep, anxious Angelenos, those are indeed fireworks that you’re hearing on November 20).
CANDY CANE LANE
Candy Cane Lane is a group of homeowners at Lubao & Oxnard Streets in Woodland Hills who collectively decide each year to put on an amazing holiday display of lights and decorations.There is no contact information for Candy Cane Lane, as it is an informal decision of homeowners. As a service to our community, here is the information the West Valley~Warner Center Chamber of Commerce is able to provide.
ENCHANTED: FOREST OF LIGHTS at DESCANSO GARDENS
November 20, 2022 through January 8, 2023. Price: $34–$40
1418 Descano Dr, La Cañada Flintridge, CA 91011
Descanso Gardens’ light-up experience ditches the kitsch aesthetic typical at other venues in favor of a whimsical, wondrous, curiosity-driven display that’s among L.A.’s most stunning and, more importantly, most fun. The interactive, nighttime program sets up illuminated installations around the botanical garden grounds, from luminescent forests to free-standing hands-on art pieces.
Each year, the botanical garden’s nighttime experience masterfully mixes hands-on art installations with atmospheric, luminescent forests, all against a background of uplit trees and shimmery sound effects.
Christmas Tree Lane
Usually takes place the second Saturday in December, Price: Free
Santa Rosa Ave, between Woodbury Rd and Altadena Dr (Altadena)
While L.A. might lure in visitors with breezy palm trees, the region is no slouch when it comes to conifers. Case in point: This grand, mile-long driveway of cedars in Altadena becomes blanketed in lights each holiday as it transforms into Christmas Tree Lane. Take a majestic cruise down the hill after it lights up (the lighting ceremony ). And we do suggest going down: Traffic can get pretty gridlocked during peak holiday season, but it moves a bit better if you start at the top and head south (or just visit later in the evening, before the lights flick off at 10pm).
MARINA DEL REY BOAT PARADE (Fisherman’s Village)
December 11th Opening Hours: Fireworks 5:55pm; Parade 6-8pm
13737 Fiji Way Los Angeles CA 90292,
Feel as though you’ve escaped to a small-town fishing village during the Marina Del Rey Boat Parade—well, you know, minus the massive crowds. Bring a blanket and gather around Fisherman’s Village or Burton Chace Park to watch as 70 boats glide through the marina with holiday lights and decorations in competition. Categories include Best Theme, Best Animation, Best Band, Best Lights and more.
LA ZOO LIGHTS
November 18th to January 22nd Opening hours: 6–10pm. Price: $34–$39, children 2–12 $27–$32
5333 Zoo Dr, Los Angeles CA,
The on-foot successor to the old DWP Holiday Lights, many of the displays here are inspired by the zoo’s wild residents (elephants, giraffes, koalas and condors, among them), and that appears to be the case even more so than before with the event’s new “Animals Aglow” tagline. The zoo touts this year’s event as a “reimagined” display that seems to lean in to oversized animal-shaped lanterns.
Tip: Buy your timed tickets (available in three sessions nightly) in advance to avoid the worst of the entry lines, and stick to the “value” nights if you want to save $5 on admission. Also, wear comfortable shoes; the lights only cover about a third of the zoo grounds, but you’ll be walking slightly uphill for most of the way.
Sleepy Hollow Christmas Lights Extravaganza (The Mission Inn Hotel & Spa)
November 25th to Jan 6th
3649 Mission Inn Ave, Riverside CA 92501 Price: Free
Robert Rd, off of the Pacific Coast Hwy, and surrounding streets (Torrance)
Sometimes you simply want to see as many lights as possible, and Torrance’s Seaside neighborhood (sometimes referred to as Sleepy Hollow) surely delivers. Follow the stream of brake lights overflowing from Robert Road for a trek through this visual overload. Starting in early December, seemingly every tree, house and lawn becomes blanketed in an electric bill-dizzying degree. The displays typically run every night from 6 to 10pm, up until New Year’s. There’s typically no parking on the street during those times, so you’ll have to walk the few blocks (park on PCH, Calle Mayor or Prospect Avenue).
Riverside’s stunningly beautiful Mission Inn is bathed in 4.5 million twinkly lights during the annual Festival of Lights. The free six-week-long holiday tradition begins the day after Thanksgiving and typically features more than 400 animated figures.
Venice Canals Holiday Boat Parade Intersection of Eastern and Carroll Canals.
December 3, 2022 Price: Free
Intersection of Eastern and Carroll Canals.
The Venice Canals are an idyllic slice of L.A. living made all the more charming by the Christmas lights that line its bridges each year. Leave your car a few blocks away to avoid the narrow, one-way Dell Avenue, and take a stroll through the shimmering neighborhood. The long-running and gleefully irreverent boat parade typical floats along the first or Dell Ave (Venice)
HOLIDAY ROAD (King Gillette Ranch)
26800 W Mulholland Hwy Calabasas CA 91302 Price: $30–$45
Stroll across the grounds of King Gillette Ranch as the Santa Monica Mountains hideaway is illuminated during Holiday Road, which returns with a nearly mile-long walking trail. The event, which comes from the same team as Nights of the Jack, includes festive decor like a treetop canopy of icicle lights, a small Christmas village, freestanding oversized decorations and archways of lights. Look out for food trucks and a holiday bar while you’re there.
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