The best Christmas light displays in the Twin Cities

Put on winter gear and grab the hot chocolate: 'Tis the season for holiday light shows!

• Take a walk through your neighborhood or drive around town to check out these displays.

Paid shows

🍎 Winter Lights: Minnesota Landscape Arboretum's show features a giant walk-through apple, lit-up weeping willows and a s'mores station. Open Nov. 16-Dec. 31, $15.

🛝 GLOW: The fan-favorite festival at CHS Field has over 1 million lights, an enchanted forest, giant slide and a 60-foot-tall tree. Nov. 16-Dec. 31, $20+.

👋 Magic of Lights: The drive-thru festival at Viking Lakes in Eagan features over 2 million lights, including a 200-foot-long tunnel of lights and giant displays like a 32-foot-tall Christmas Barbie. Nov. 17-Dec. 31, $35+.

🚘 Sever's Holiday Lights: Drive through more than 2.5 million lights synced to holiday music in Shakopee, or get out to walk through a forest of glowing trees. Nov. 22-Dec. 31, $30+

🎅🏻 Sam's Christmas Village: On the Apple River in Somerset, Wis., it has 12 million nights, a European style Christmas market, food vendors and rentable cabins for warming. Nov. 24-Dec.31, $20 adults, $10 kids

Free shows

🏡 Schultz Family Lights: The home light show on York Avenue in St. Paul features over 90,000 lights in tune with a radio station. Bring canned goods for the drop box supporting Merrick Food Shelf. It's expected to open Nov. 24-Dec. 31.

🍬Candy Cane Lane: This Roseville house is decked out in holiday cheer, including a 180-foot lit-up walking path through the yard. It's expected to open later in November.

💡 What we're watching: Local guide-maker Mike Marcotte compiles an enormous list of under-the-radar houses within 50 miles of the Twin Cities (and beyond) every year. The map will go live on Nov. 21.

• Several suburbs also create maps of lit houses, including Chanhassen (releasing Dec. 2) and Bloomington (releasing Dec. 8).

Editor's note: This story was originally published December 2022 and updated November 2023.