Inspiration
Follow the Lights to Holiday Cheer!
Holiday cheer is upon us in Connecticut! Get into the spirit by experiencing some of the brilliant holiday lights festivals and displays around the state. Enjoy a festive, magical, and memorable outing sure to delight audiences of all ages.
Find even more holiday events here.
Start a Family Tradition
A holiday experience for people of all ages. Enjoy Magic of Lights in East Hartford from the comfort of your own car as you wind through the sparkling path. At every turn, the magical route is overflowing with spectacular light displays that bring your favorite holiday themes and characters to life.
Glow Gardens
Join in on a fun, one-of-a-kind, family-friendly indoor festival of lights! Dazzling light gardens, glowing activities, delectable seasonal treats, and live entertainment are all in store for you at Glow Gardens.
Holiday Lights Spectacular
See Olde Mistick Village transformed into a holiday wonderland. Explore the Holiday Lights Spectacular with over a half-million lights that will decorate the square of shops and restaurants for families and holiday enthusiasts to enjoy. And don't miss Olde Mistick Village's Holiday Carnival on December 6!
Small Town Holiday Cheer
Kick off the holiday season with Trees in the Rigging Boat Parade in Essex. Watch a parade of vessels dressed up in holiday lights sail along the Connecticut River.
In the shoreline town of Niantic, families will enjoy the holiday festivities during the Niantic Light Parade. Meanwhile, the annual Torchlight Parade in Old Saybrook kicks off the holiday season with musicians, more than 20 floats, and marching groups for the entire family to enjoy.
Classic New England
The ever-popular Lantern Light Village returns this year to the Mystic Seaport Museum. Step back in time and experience a celebration of Christmas as it was in a 19th-century seafaring town.
In Old Wethersfield, enjoy caroling and a tree lighting at the Annual Holidays on Main event set in the heart of the historic town.
Ride Along with Santa and His Reindeer
The Connecticut Trolley Museum in East Windsor is offering its “Winterfest & Tunnel of Lights," a trolley ride that carries visitors into the festive season! Every Friday, Saturday, and Sunday night beginning November 28 and running through December 30, visitors can ride the open “electric sleigh” through the “Tunnel of Lights” accompanied by motormen singing traditional Christmas carols.
As the trains travel through the cold winter wilderness, passengers will be able to visit Santa and play with his Elves during the Santa Express at the Railroad Museum of New England in Thomaston.
All aboard the Snow Clipper at the Danbury Railway Museum! Take a ride in a vintage train through the historic railyard to visit Santa and Mrs. Claus.
Dine Among the Lights
Bask in the holiday spirit while enjoying a fantastic meal or cocktails surrounded by over-the-top décor. These Connecticut restaurants and bars go all-in on lights, trees, ornaments, and tinsel for the holiday season.
Cava Restaurant in Southington is known for its spectacular holiday decor, adorning each room in the restaurant with hundreds of thousands of lights, ornaments, garlands, and other special touches. Every year brings new designs, with no themes ever repeated. The restaurant has been featured on "The Today Show" for its sensational creativity.
Dockside Brewing in Milford has a winter experience like no other. Get ready to explore individual custom igloos in its outdoor waterfront biergarten, with themes like a Zen garden, a "Love Island"-inspired villa, and several holiday-inspired experiences, including "Grinch," "Elf," and "A Christmas Story."
At Gioia in New Haven, its rooftop space transforms into "JOY-AH for the Holidays" from early November to the end of December, a festive pop-up decked out with merry holiday cheer. Guests enjoy a special menu with holiday-themed cocktails and hearty winter food like mac and cheese, chicken and dumplings, and osso buco Milanese.
Miracle, a Christmas-themed pop-up cocktail bar concept, partners with restaurants and bars around the world to offer kitschy holiday decor and unique seasonal cocktails in holiday glassware. Connecticut partner locations in 2025 include Marker 37 in Chester, J. Law Kitchen & Bar in Danbury, Perfusion in Newtown, Riley's by the Seawall in Stratford, and Black Duck Cafe in Westport.
Restaurants like Lobster Shack in East Haven, Greenhouse Tavern in Burlington, Cedars Steaks & Oysters at Foxwoods, and Sign of the Whale in Stamford are known for dazzling holiday displays, lending extra-festive ambiance to the season.
Family Holiday Celebrations
Many family-friendly holiday events are popping up all over the state! Here are a few other events to add to your list:
Hanukkah Celebrations
Celebrate the Jewish "festival of lights" with menorah lightings and other festivities! Find Hanukkah happenings here.
Let There Be More Lights!
- Celebrate the season at Lighthouse Point Park in New Haven where you can drive through the “Fantasy of Lights,” an enchanting land of spectacular, sparkling light displays. You'll be bedazzled by more than 100,000 lights while seeing more than 60 attractions that include animated and LED light displays!
- Leaving under the cover of nightfall, experience magic as the lights inside and out of each car are lit, illuminating the entire train in a soft, cheerful glow. Upon departure, you will be taken directly to the North Pole, picking up Santa and Mrs. Claus for all to see during the Northern Lights in Thomaston.
- Covered in thousands of spectacular, glimmering lights, it's just not the holidays until you visit Holiday Lights at Lake Compounce in Bristol.
- There's also the Hebron Lion's Lights in Motion, a family-friendly drive-through with over one million lights digitally synchronized to music.
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