The holiday season has arrived! As we look toward the holidays, you may be wondering which traditions to include this year. Drive-thru holiday light displays offer distant fun for the whole family. Happily, Cincinnati has a lot to choose from.
Here are 6 must-visit Drive Thru Holiday Lights in Cincinnati:
Christmas Nights of Lights at Coney Island
When: November 10, 2023 – January 2, 2024
Where: Coney Island
Tickets: Pricing for Nights of Lights is $30 per carload of 1-8 people, so gather a group of friends or family and make a night of it! For vehicles carrying 9-15 people, pricing is $50 Sundays through Thursdays or $100 on Fridays and Saturdays. For busloads of 16+ people, pricing is $75 Sundays through Thursdays or $150 Fridays and Saturdays. They accept cash or card, online or at the gate — your choice!
Christmas Nights of Lights consists of a two-and-a-half-mile light show synchronized to both traditional and rocking holiday music that is broadcast via car radios. Cincinnati’s largest synchronized holiday light show will awe guests of all ages with more than one million lights, larger-than-life trees, glowing snowflakes, dancing candy canes, and fantastic tunnels of lights. This year’s show will feature brand new lights and new music that can be enjoyed from the comfort of your car.
Land of Illusion Christmas Glow
When: November 22nd – December 30, closed Christmas Day.
Where: Land of Illusion, 8762 Thomas Road, Middletown, OH 45042
Tickets: Check website here.
Back for a fifth year, Land of Illusion’s Christmas Glow is Southwest Ohio’s largest drive-thru lights even. With over 3.8 million lights at the 2-mile long Christmas Around the World drive-thru experience, visit Santa at the Christmas Village Santa Workshop or just take in the majestic lights of the 45-foot Christmas Tree as you and yours warm by the gas fire pits.
Light Up Middletown
When: Open 6-10 pm nightly, November 23rd through Dec. 31.
Where: Smith Park, Tytus and Verity Parkway, 500 Tytus Avenue, Middletown, Ohio 45042
Tickets: Free — donations gladly accepted.
Tour the season’s fantasyland of holiday lights at Smith Park in Middletown. Your journey begins with a tunnel of lights. This driving tour has an abundance of themed areas. You’ll encounter a floating sea serpent in the lake, Santa’s workshop and sleigh, a penguin village and plenty more festive fun. Deer leap over the road and there are surprises around each sparkling turn. This admission by donation lights display runs from late November through the end of December annually.
Pyramid of Lights at Pyramid Hill
When: Nov. 17 – December 31, 2023 | Tues – Thurs 6:00- 9:00 pm, Fri – Sun 6:00- 10:00 pm, closed Mondays.
Where: Pyramid Hill Sculpture Park, 1763 Hamilton Cleves Road, Hamilton, OH.
Tickets: $25 carload for non-members, $15 carload for members. Maximum 9 seat per carload.
The 2023 “Journey” starts with glimmering trees and arches before winding through the blue-and-white glow of Jerusalem’s Hanukkah celebration and arriving to the park’s famed Swan Lake. Visitors will then travel through Germany’s Candy Cane Forest with more than 50 yarn-wrapped trees. Next, see if you can find two sneaky characters in Grinch’s Greenland. Then we celebrate Bethlehem’s birth of Jesus, and finally arriving at the North Pole. Before exiting, we have one last surprise provided by Brave Berlin (the creators of Blink): a spectacular transformation of the park’s Pavilion into a beautiful Winterland with video projection surprises behind every door!
Light Up The Fair
When: Nov. 10- December 30th, 2023 | Sun – Thurs 5:30 – 9:00 pm, Fri – Sat 5:30- 10:00 pm, closed Mondays.
Where: Boone County Fairgrounds, 5819 Idlewild Rd Burlington, KY
Tickets: $25 carload 4-8 people or $15 per couple.
Lighting up the Boone County skies again with over ONE MILLION Chritsmas Lights for you to enjoy, this year from the comforts of your vehicle along a now 2 mile path. This yearly family event has become tradition for quite a few of our visitors since its inception over the past 5 years. A quality LED show experience like no other, come navigate your family and friends through this year’s show that’s stocked full of favorites and … a few new surprises this year.
Worth the Drive: Shadrack’s Christmas Wonderland
When: November 17, 2023 – January 7, 2024 | M-F: 6-10pm, Sat-Sun: 6-10pm or later. Including Holidays (Rain or Shine)
Where: Center of Montgomery County | 645 Infirmary Rd, Dayton, OH 45417
Tickets: $29.95 (Purchase an express ticket for $20 to skip the line and go straight to the front)
If you’re ready for a big dose of Christmas cheer, check out Shadrack’s Christmas Wonderland, where cutting-edge technology and traditional holiday charm unite to offer an unforgettable experience. Immerse yourself in the magic of the season as you journey through custom-built light displays synchronized to the joyful melodies of Christmas from the comfort of your own car.
