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Ten Southern California favorites
Where to see holiday lights across Southern California in 2026
#1 · Large public festival
Mission Inn Festival of Lights
Downtown Riverside
View photo credit for Mission Inn Festival of Lights
The Mission Inn and surrounding downtown district create one of Southern California's largest walkable holiday environments, combining the illuminated hotel with decorations, photo opportunities, vendors and activities.
- Switch-on
- November 21, 2026 at 5:00 p.m.
- Display season
- November 22 through December 31, 2026
- Admission
- Public downtown viewing is free
What to expect
- Millions of lights across the hotel and downtown area
- Opening-night fireworks
- Downtown ice rink with one-hour skating sessions
- Walkable restaurants and downtown businesses
#2 · Immersive garden experience
Enchanted Forest of Light
Descanso Gardens in La Cañada Flintridge
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Enchanted is a roughly one-mile evening route through illuminated gardens, interactive installations and an ambient soundscape. It is a timed, ticketed experience rather than a drive-by display.
- Dates
- November 22, 2026 through January 9, 2027
- Hours
- 5:30 p.m. to 10:00 p.m.
- Tickets
- Date-based pricing with member discounts
What to expect
- One-mile accessible route
- Interactive light and sound installations
- Timed admission
- Hot drinks, treats and restrooms available
#3 · Historic community landmark
Christmas Tree Lane
Santa Rosa Avenue in Altadena
View photo credit for Christmas Tree Lane
Nearly a mile of historic deodar cedars is illuminated by the volunteer Christmas Tree Lane Association. The route is primarily designed to be viewed by car because the residential street does not have sidewalks.
- Lighting ceremony
- December 5, 2026 at 6:00 p.m.
- Winterfest
- December 5, 2026 from 3:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m.
- Admission
- Free
What to expect
- Tradition dating to 1920
- More than 20,000 lights listed for the ceremony
- Live community performances and Winterfest
- California State Historic Landmark
#4 · Large light-maze experience
Enchant Christmas
Santa Anita Park in Arcadia
View photo credit for Enchant Christmas
Photo courtesy of Navid Baraty and Enchant Christmas
Enchant Christmas LA at Santa Anita ParkEnchant returns to Santa Anita Park with a new story inside its large illuminated maze, plus seasonal food, drinks, entertainment and immersive photo moments. The event is a timed, ticketed experience with date-specific availability.
- Dates
- November 20 through December 27, 2026
- Tickets
- Choose and reserve a date before attending
- Format
- Ticketed light maze and festival
What to expect
- All-new illuminated maze story
- Immersive installations and photo moments
- Seasonal food, drinks and entertainment
- Flexible Golden Ticket date-selection option
#5 · Orange County winter festival
Winter Fest OC
OC Fair & Event Center in Costa Mesa
View photo credit for Winter Fest OC
Photo courtesy of Winter Fest OC
Winter Fest OC official photo galleryWinter Fest OC combines a walk-through holiday light trail, synchronized light shows, a nightly tree-lighting moment, snow play, live entertainment and optional rides at the OC Fair & Event Center.
- Dates
- November 27, 2026 through January 3, 2027 on select dates
- Tickets
- Date-specific admission is on sale
- Format
- Ticketed outdoor winter festival
What to expect
- Walk-through Holiday Light Trail
- Nightly tree lighting and Holiday House light show
- Snow play, live bands and seasonal food
- Optional ice skating, tubing and carnival rides
#6 · Theme-park holiday season
Holidays at the Disneyland Resort
Disneyland Park and Disney California Adventure in Anaheim
View photo credit for Holidays at the Disneyland Resort
Disneyland Resort begins its 2026 holiday season on November 18 with illuminated attractions, extensive seasonal décor, holiday entertainment, fireworks and Disney Festival of Holidays programming.
- Season begins
- November 18, 2026
- Admission
- Valid theme-park admission and reservation required
- Format
- Two theme parks with seasonal entertainment and lighting
What to expect
- Wintertime Enchantment at Sleeping Beauty's Winter Castle
- It's a small world Holiday façade and attraction
- Believe in Holiday Magic fireworks and snowfall effects
- Disney Festival of Holidays at California Adventure
#7 · Theme-park Christmas festival
Knott's Merry Farm
Knott's Berry Farm in Buena Park
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Knott's Merry Farm transforms the park with thousands of lights, miles of garland, live holiday productions, a nightly lighting moment, Santa visits and the Snow and Glow experience in Calico.
- Dates
- November 20, 2026 through January 3, 2027
- Admission
- Most lighting, shows and rides are included with park admission
- Format
- Theme-park holiday festival
What to expect
- Parkwide Holiday Lighting Moment
- Snow and Glow music and lighting experience
- Holiday stage shows and ice-skating production
- Christmas Crafts Village and Santa's Christmas Cabin
#8 · Long Beach waterfront tradition
Naples Island Holiday Lights and Boat Parade
Naples Island in Long Beach
View photo credit for Naples Island Holiday Lights and Boat Parade
Photo courtesy of Gondola Getaway and Visit Long Beach
See Long Beach Holiday Lights from the WaterNaples Island becomes a walkable waterfront light district as residents decorate homes along the canals and illuminated boats join the neighborhood's annual parade tradition. Long Beach has funded traffic control and cleanliness for the 2026 holiday-lights program, while the exact parade date is still awaiting publication.
- 2026 status
- Holiday-lights program funded; exact boat-parade date pending
- Experience
- Decorated canal homes, pedestrian viewing and illuminated boats
- Admission
- Free public neighborhood viewing
What to expect
- Canal-side homes decorated by residents
- Annual illuminated boat-parade tradition
- Walkable bridges and waterfront paths
- A distinctly Long Beach holiday experience
#9 · Orange County waterfront parade
Huntington Harbour Boat Parade
Huntington Harbour in Huntington Beach
View photo credit for Huntington Harbour Boat Parade
Photo courtesy of Huntington Harbour Boat Parade
Huntington Harbour Boat Parade official guideThe all-volunteer Huntington Harbour Boat Parade sends decorated boats through a waterfront neighborhood where participating homes add to the light display. The 64th annual parade is scheduled for two nights and the organizer warns that public viewing areas and parking fill quickly.
- Dates
- December 12 and December 13, 2026
- Theme
- America 250 Music, To The Moon & Back
- Admission
- Free public viewing areas with very limited parking
What to expect
- Two confirmed parade nights
- Decorated boats and waterfront homes
- Volunteer-run Orange County tradition
- Live route tracking offered by the organizer
#10 · Waterfront bonus
Newport Beach Christmas Boat Parade
Newport Harbor
View photo credit for Newport Beach Christmas Boat Parade
The parade turns the harbor into a moving light display with decorated yachts, boats, kayaks and canoes, supported by illuminated homes and businesses around the Ring of Lights.
- Dates
- December 16 through December 20, 2026
- Start
- Approximately 6:30 p.m. nightly
- Admission
- Free public viewing areas and paid dining or cruise options
What to expect
- Moving harbor procession
- Five consecutive parade nights
- Waterfront dining and public viewing options
- Ring of Lights displays around the harbor
Planning 01
Choose the experience before choosing the date
A two-hour garden walk, a theme-park day, a free tree-lighting ceremony and a moving boat parade solve very different plans. Start with the amount of time, walking and structure your group will enjoy. Then compare destinations inside that category.
Descanso and Enchant are useful when the light experience itself is the focus. Disneyland and Knott's work when the group wants a full day with holiday entertainment. Winter Fest OC combines lights with snow play and paid add-ons. Mission Inn and Christmas Tree Lane offer flexible public viewing, while the Naples, Huntington Harbour and Newport Beach waterfront experiences require more advance parking and viewing-area planning.
Planning 02
Build one realistic regional itinerary
Southern California traffic can turn a short distance into the longest part of the evening. Choose one anchor event, calculate the actual arrival window and add a second stop only when it stays in the same area and does not jeopardize a timed ticket or lighting ceremony.
An Arcadia and Altadena plan is more realistic than crossing from Riverside to Newport Beach. In Orange County, Disneyland, Knott's, Winter Fest OC, Huntington Harbour and Newport Beach are close enough to compare, but most are still too substantial to stack into one night. Naples should be treated as its own Long Beach waterfront evening.
Riverside
Choose the Mission Inn switch-on or a less crowded regular display night
Los Angeles and Altadena
Compare timed admission at Descanso or Enchant with the flexible Christmas Tree Lane route
Orange County
Choose one major park or festival, or build the evening around Huntington Harbour or Newport's parade
Long Beach
Walk the Naples canals on a regular December evening or plan around the boat parade once its exact 2026 date is published
Planning 03
Check tickets, transportation and access before leaving
Reopen the official link on the day of the visit. Confirm the operating date, entry time, admission inclusions, parking instructions, weather policy and accessibility information. Save the tickets and parking details somewhere every adult in the group can reach.
For free civic and neighborhood events, verify road closures and rain plans. For theme parks, check the daily entertainment schedule instead of assuming every holiday show runs every day. For each waterfront parade, select the exact viewing area before deciding where to park or dine.
Planning 04
Use the map links and respect every location
Every location listing now opens directly in Google Maps. Use that link to estimate the trip from the actual starting point, then follow the event's official parking or shuttle instructions when they differ from the general map route.
Christmas Tree Lane passes through a residential street without sidewalks. Drive north from Woodbury Avenue, remain in the traffic flow and never block a driveway for a photograph. At every public event, follow staff direction, supervise children, keep noise reasonable and remove everything brought into the space.