Every December, as the sun dips early and the nights stretch long, something remarkable flickers to life across America. Ordinary places—neighborhoods, zoos, riverbanks—undergo a quiet transformation. Then boom—light. And not just any light. Swirling, blinking, cascading rivers of LEDs and incandescent memories. These holiday light displays aren’t just decorations. They’re destinations. Pilgrimages, even.

Here are five of the most jaw-dropping, memory-making, spirit-lifting displays in the U.S.—each with its own magic, and none of them subtle.

1. Dyker Heights – Brooklyn, New York

This isn’t a show. It’s a spectacle. A residential rebellion against December’s darkness.

Dyker Heights is where holiday dreams collide with over-the-top reality. Think inflatable Santas the size of delivery vans. Think animatronic choirs, twinkling reindeer battalions, and lawns so bright they cast shadows. Locals have been doing this since the ’80s—no sponsors, no city funds, just raw enthusiasm and the unspoken promise of outdoing your neighbor. Tour buses line up. Strangers stroll like it’s Rockefeller Center. You either embrace the madness or stand back in awe.

2. The Mission Inn Festival of Lights – Riverside, California

Warm air. Palm trees. And five million lights wrapping a Mission-style castle.

Yes, California does Christmas differently—and Riverside’s Mission Inn is the glowing, golden proof. Each year, this historic hotel becomes a luminous temple of joy: archways dripping in icicles (fake, but convincing), towers lit like lanterns, horse-drawn carriages gliding beneath fireworks. The crowd? Massive. The energy? Electric. The entire city seems to lean in closer when the lights switch on. It’s less a ceremony, more a collective exhale of wonder.

3. ZooLights – Lincoln Park Zoo, Chicago, Illinois

Where holiday spirit meets zoological surprise.

Nowhere else can you sip hot cider beneath a tunnel of synchronized lights, then turn a corner and find a glowing gorilla doing somersaults in LEDs. ZooLights fuses wild imagination with Midwest grit. You’ve got animated snowflakes falling on lion enclosures. Candy-colored trees that pulse with music. A Ferris wheel spins in the cold night air while carolers harmonize near a popcorn stand. Is it festive? Yes. Is it weird? Absolutely. That’s why it works.

4. Austin Trail of Lights – Austin, Texas

It starts as a walk. It ends somewhere between music festival and fever dream.

Wander through Zilker Park’s 1.25-mile trail, and you’ll pass through neon tunnels, towering Texas stars, and displays that feel more like digital art than Christmas kitsch. Local musicians strum from glowing stages. The scent of smoked brisket lingers in the air. People wear cowboy hats wrapped in string lights. It’s holiday celebration with Southern soul—equal parts tradition and technicolor chaos. Everything is big. Everything is bright. Everything says: "Only in Austin."

5. Bentleyville Tour of Lights – Duluth, Minnesota

Cold. Colder. Magic.

Along the frigid edge of Lake Superior, a town turns frozen darkness into a fairytale. Bentleyville is not just a walk-through display—it’s a glowing village in a snow globe. Five million lights blink across scenes of elves, trees, reindeer, and full-scale ships. A towering steel Christmas tree pulses in rhythmic patterns. Children roast marshmallows. Grown-ups clutch steaming cups of cocoa. The lake wind bites, but the atmosphere? Pure warmth.

Ready to Create Your Own Showstopper?

These displays didn’t happen by accident. They’re crafted—boldly, lovingly, obsessively. And while not everyone has five million lights or a vintage hotel to cover, everyone has the potential to create something spectacular.

If you're in Washington State and ready to bring your holiday vision to life—whether subtle or sky-high—Rusty’s Holiday Lights can help. We turn ordinary homes and businesses into glowing beacons of joy. Want to give America’s greatest holiday light displays a run for their money? Let’s talk. The magic starts with one light.