Where to see Christmas lights in Phoenix and Arizona in 2026
The two biggest Phoenix shows are ZooLights at the Phoenix Zoo (Nov. 25, 2026 – Jan. 15, 2027, 5 million lights, $35) and Las Noches de las Luminarias at the Desert Botanical Garden (Nov. 27 – Jan. 3). The biggest light count in the state is Christmas at the Princess in Scottsdale (17 million lights). The best free displays are Glendale Glitters, the Mesa Arizona Temple and Tucson’s Winterhaven Festival of Lights.
Below: all 50 Arizona holiday light displays I verified against each event’s official source on September 24, 2026, by city. 19 have confirmed 2026 dates; the rest show 2025 dates, clearly labeled, until organizers post 2026 details.
Arizona Christmas lights 2026 at a glance
I’ve lived in the Valley my whole life, and Arizona does Christmas lights differently. You’re walking past saguaros wrapped in LEDs in a T-shirt at 7 p.m., the Chandler tree is made of tumbleweeds, and the Desert Botanical Garden’s luminarias light the same paths you hike in March. This guide covers every major display from Tucson to Flagstaff: dates, hours, prices, parking and which ones are free.
Most listicles still show last year’s dates or events that have moved. Every entry here was checked against the organizer’s own page, and each card says whether its 2026 dates are confirmed. I’ll update this page as 2026 dates drop. Bookmark it.
The shows that sell out go on sale in October, weeks before anyone’s thinking about Christmas. Put these in your phone now:
- Thu., Oct. 1: ZooLights general admission and Desert Botanical Garden member tickets for Las Noches de las Luminarias.
- Fri., Oct. 16: Luminarias general admission.
- Mon., Oct. 26 at 8 a.m.: McCormick-Stillman Railroad Park Holiday Lights (sells out every year).
- Now: Christmas at the Princess early-bird pricing ($24.50 vs $35) and Desert Farm Lights early-bird ($17.95 vs $24.95).
Top ticketed light shows in Arizona, compared
If you’re only doing one ticketed show this year, start here. Prices are 2026 unless marked.
| Show | City | 2026 dates | Price | Type |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ZooLights | Phoenix | Nov. 25 – Jan. 15 | $35 ($30 members) | Walk, 2+ miles |
| Las Noches de las Luminarias | Phoenix | Select nights Nov. 27 – Jan. 3 | $39.95–$44.95 adult | Walk, luminarias |
| Christmas at the Princess | Scottsdale | TBA (2025: Nov. 21 – Jan. 3) | $35 ($24.50 early bird) | Resort walk, 17M lights |
| Jingle at JW Desert Ridge | North Phoenix | Nov. 18 – Jan. 3 | See resort | Resort walk + ICE! |
| McCormick-Stillman Holiday Lights | Scottsdale | Nov. 27 – Dec. 30 | $15, rides included | Walk + train |
| Desert Farm Lights | Surprise/Waddell | Nov. 20 – Dec. 27 | $17.95–$26.99 | Walk, ~1M lights |
| World of Illumination | Glendale & Tempe | Nov. 12/13 – Jan. 3 | From $39.99 per car | Drive-through |
| Christmas at Schnepf Farms | Queen Creek | Nov. 27 – Dec. 27 | $21.95–$27.95 | Walk + train |
| Valor Christmas | Gilbert | TBA | $34.95–$44.95 per car (2025) | Walk, 2M+ lights |
| LightsUp! | Tucson | Nov. 27 – Jan. 10 | About $25 adult | Walk, 1M+ lights |
Christmas lights in Phoenix
Phoenix’s two headline shows sit next to each other in Papago Park. ZooLights and the Desert Botanical Garden share Galvin Parkway, so you can do one and eat between them. North Phoenix has the best neighborhood displays in the Valley. Before you go, our Phoenix Zoo guide covers parking and what else is in the park, and things to do in Phoenix covers the rest of your weekend.
ZooLights at the Phoenix Zoo
The Valley’s best-known holiday light show, and the one out-of-town family always asks about. The zoo says 2026 brings 5 million lights across more than 2 miles of trail, plus a new 50-foot LED tree ringed by six 24-foot trees. General-admission tickets go on sale October 1 and are non-refundable, so pick your night carefully. There’s a separately ticketed sensory-friendly night on Dec. 8 and a one-night Cruise ZooLights drive-through on Jan. 17, 2027 for anyone who’d rather see it from the car.
Official info: phoenixzoo.org →
Las Noches de las Luminarias
If ZooLights is the loud one, Luminarias is the quiet one. Thousands of hand-lit paper luminarias line the garden trails. It’s the most Arizona-feeling holiday night in the Valley: saguaros, candlelight and cool desert air. Member tickets open Oct. 1 and general admission Oct. 16. Dinner at Gertrude’s inside the garden books through OpenTable and fills fast on Luminaria nights.
Official info: dbg.org →
Jingle at JW Desert Ridge (ICE! featuring Elf)
The resort’s holiday takeover pairs more than 3 million lights with ICE!, a walk-through of more than 2 million pounds of hand-carved ice themed to Elf this year. Bring a jacket for the ice building even if it’s 70 outside. Resort guests can bundle ICE! tickets with a stay using package code 1GC.
Official info: jwdesertridgechristmas.com →
North Phoenix Lights (“The Biggest Little Christmas in Phoenix”)
This one won its episode of ABC’s The Great Christmas Light Fight (Season 13, Episode 1, aired Dec. 4, 2025), so expect bigger crowds this year. Every dollar donated goes to Big Brothers Big Sisters of Central Arizona. The family’s directions: north on 2nd Ave. from Union Hills, then east on Rockwood Dr. Don’t block driveways; it’s their neighbors’ street too.
Official info: northphoenixlights.neocities.org →
Moon Valley holiday homes
Moon Valley is the classic Phoenix drive-around neighborhood. Local guides count more than 80 decorated homes in recent years, with a few synchronized to music on low-power FM. No one organizes it officially, so displays change year to year. Drive slowly and turn your headlights down to parking lights once you’re in.
Voltaire Avenue synchronized homes
More than 50 homes sync their lights to one radio station: tune to 98.1 FM as you roll down the block. It’s the best free music-synced display in Phoenix proper.
Christmas lights in Scottsdale
Scottsdale has the biggest resort show in the state and one of the cheapest tickets in the Valley. The Princess is the splurge; the railroad park is the one to book for toddlers. See our things to do in Scottsdale guide and check the Scottsdale weather before you pick a night; December evenings drop fast once the sun’s down.
Christmas at the Princess
The biggest light count in Arizona: the resort’s 2026 ticket page says 17 million lights. Early-bird prices are already live, which is the tell that it sells. It runs rain or shine with no refunds, and the village is closed Nov. 30, 2026 for a private event. Pair it with dinner from our best restaurants in Scottsdale guide, which has a North Scottsdale section.
Official info: 2026 ticket page →
Holiday Lights at McCormick-Stillman Railroad Park
The best-value ticket in the Valley for families with small kids. The $15 covers the lights plus the train and carousel. Tickets go on sale Monday, Oct. 26 at 8 a.m. through the city’s ActiveNet system, and the park says it sells out every year, so set a reminder.
Official info: therailroadpark.com →
Scottsdazzle
Scottsdale’s month-long downtown holiday program, anchored by the Jingle & Jazz tree lighting on kickoff night. Phoenix Magazine’s 2025 Arizona Travel Awards named it the best community event. Make a night of it: our Old Town Scottsdale restaurant guide and Scottsdale happy hour list are both within walking distance.
Official info: scottsdazzle.com →
Winter Wonderland Arizona
Running since 1987, this is one of the country’s original computer-controlled home light shows. Martha Stewart Living featured it in 1999, and it won The Great Christmas Light Fight in 2017. It’s a family’s home, so park legally, keep voices down and stay off the lawn.
Official info: winterwonderlandaz.com →
Grayhawk Christmas Street
A street-long display that doubles as a food drive for St. Mary’s Food Bank, with a cocoa hut on the block. ABC15 reported the tradition was already more than 20 years old in 2022. It’s one of the few neighborhood displays where walking is clearly the better option.
Official info: St. Mary’s Food Bank →
Christmas lights in Glendale, Surprise, Peoria & the West Valley
The West Valley is packed with free city events, and the tree lightings are genuinely good. Glendale Glitters is the anchor; Desert Farm Lights and the Camelback Ranch drive-through are the ticketed options.
Glendale Glitters
Downtown Glendale’s blocks around Murphy Park go wall-to-wall with lights, vendors and a Santa’s Village on weekends. It’s the Valley’s best-known free downtown display, and more people search for it than for any other event on this page. The city’s 2026 plan covers roughly 57th to 59th avenues between Glendale and Myrtle avenues, with 25–30 vendors.
Official info: glendaleaz.gov →
Desert Farm Lights
About a million lights on a working-farm setting out in the West Valley. The early-bird price saves you nine bucks over the gate. If online sales sell out for a night, the gate doesn’t sell either, so don’t drive out without a ticket on busy weekends. Groups can book an igloo or snow-globe for up to 15 people.
Official info: desertfarmlights.com →
World of Illumination: Candy Rush
A 20–30 minute drive-through show, candy-themed for 2026, at the Dodgers and White Sox spring training complex. One ticket covers the whole car, which makes it the cheapest per-head ticketed show here for a family of five. Online sales only. Heads up: the 2025 show was at Desert Diamond Casino, and some of the operator’s pages still reference it. Check the address on your ticket.
Official info: worldofillumination.com →
Sparkling Surprise
A free city light walk centered on a 30-foot tree with more than 18,000 lights and a 20-foot snowman. ABC15 described the display as spanning about 25 acres with more than 200,000 lights. It opens the same weekend as the Surprise Party (below).
Official info: surpriseaz.gov →
Surprise Party & Tree Lighting
A two-night kickoff with a hot-air balloon glow, drone light shows, fireworks and the tree lighting. It’s the best single-weekend West Valley event if your kids care more about balloons and drones than strings of lights.
Official info: surpriseaz.gov →
Peoria Holiday Festival & Tree Lighting
Old Town Peoria’s one-night festival: tree lighting, Nutcracker performers and a sensory trailer for kids who need a break from the crowd.
Official info: peoriaaz.gov →
Holidays on the Square
The tree lighting kicks off a month of free skating on The RinQ, a synthetic rink with free skate rental. Park free in the North Civic Square garage. Make it a West Valley night with a stop at the Buc-ee’s in Goodyear.
Official info: goodyearaz.gov →
Litchfield Park Holiday Lights Tour & Tree Lighting
Residents register their homes for a city map and compete for $100 prizes in four categories, so the map is your route. The Hometown Holiday Parade in mid-December is small-town Arizona at its best.
Official info: litchfieldpark.gov →
Christmas lights in Mesa
Mesa’s holiday season runs through downtown: the temple lights, Merry Main Street’s tree and ice rink, and light rail connecting them. Our things to do in Mesa guide has where to eat on Main Street.
Mesa Arizona Temple Christmas Lights
A decades-long Mesa tradition. Hundreds of thousands of lights cover the temple grounds (per Downtown Mesa), and the Visitors’ Center shows hundreds of nativity scenes from around the world. Park free at the Park and Ride lot at the northeast corner of Mesa Dr. & Main St., or take light rail: the stop is just west of the temple.
Official info: mesatemple.org →
Merry Main Street
Downtown Mesa’s 40-foot city tree plus the Winter Wonderland ice rink, a short walk from the temple lights. It’s the easiest two-for-one in the Valley: park once, see the temple, skate, eat on Main Street.
Official info: merrymainst.com →
Vertuccio Farms Christmas Fest
The farm’s own holiday festival, built around a 30-foot synchronized musical tree. Important: this is not the old Lights at the Farm show. That one moved to Gilbert (see Valor Christmas below).
Official info: vertucciofarms.com →
Christmas lights in Gilbert
Valor Christmas (formerly Lights at the Farm)
The show that used to run at Vertuccio Farms as Lights at the Farm now runs here: more than 2 million synchronized LED lights on 2.5 acres, per the Gilbert Sun News. You walk it, but you pay per carload, so it’s a strong deal for bigger families. Tickets are online only.
Official info: arizonachristmaslights.com →
Christmas on Comstock
A block of neighbors who sync to one radio station and won ABC’s The Great Christmas Light Fight. Local guides list about 15 homes and 110,000 lights on 88.1 FM. This is the answer when someone asks which Gilbert neighborhood has the Christmas lights.
Gilbert Water Tower Holiday Lighting
The Heritage District’s lighting ceremony at the renovated Water Tower Plaza. Grab dinner on Gilbert Road after; our things to do in Gilbert guide has the rest.
Official info: gilbertaz.gov →
Christmas lights in Chandler
Chandler’s two big holiday events share one Saturday. On Dec. 5 the Parade of Lights runs up Arizona Avenue and ends at the Tumbleweed Tree lighting. More in our things to do in Chandler guide.
Chandler Tumbleweed Tree Lighting
Only in Arizona: a Christmas tree built from about 1,200 tumbleweeds, roughly 33 feet tall, a Chandler tradition since 1957 (per Visit Chandler). The tree is lit right after the Parade of Lights, so you get both in one night. Bring a new toy for the Stuff the Truck drive on the east side of Arizona Ave.
Official info: chandleraz.gov →
Chandler Parade of Lights
About three-quarters of a mile of lit floats up Arizona Avenue, ending right where the Tumbleweed Tree gets lit. Grab a curb spot by 6 p.m.
Official info: chandleraz.gov →
Christmas lights in Tempe
Fantasy of Lights Boat Parade
Lit-up boats cruise Tempe Town Lake, then fireworks. Watch from Tempe Beach Park or the north bank. It runs a clear-bag policy, so pack accordingly. See our things to do in Tempe guide for dinner on Mill Ave.
Official info: downtowntempe.com →
World of Illumination: Reindeer Road
The East Valley’s drive-through show: about a mile of lights synced to music, done in 20–30 minutes from your car. Rain or shine, online tickets only.
Official info: worldofillumination.com →
Christmas lights in Queen Creek & San Tan Valley
Christmas at Schnepf Farms
The Illumination Express train rolls past more than a million lights synced to music, per the farm. Twilight entry after 7:30 saves $6 a head and works well with older kids.
Official info: schnepfchristmas.com →
QC Hometown Christmas
Queen Creek’s town tree lighting and daytime parade down Ellsworth Road.
Official info: visitqueencreekaz.com →
Loop of Lights
Resident volunteers have run this since 2007, and 80–90% of the loop’s roughly 110 homes decorate. Organizers ask you to park and walk rather than drive the loop.
Official info: loopoflightsstv.com →
Ahwatukee & Apache Junction
Ahwatukee’s Chandler Boulevard median lights
About a million lights on roughly a mile of median, a tradition Del Webb started in 1986 and the community revived in 1995. The Light Up Ahwatukee festival at Desert Foothills Park kicks off the season, traditionally the Saturday before Thanksgiving (that would be Nov. 21, 2026; not yet confirmed).
Official info: lightupahwatukee.org →
Apache Junction Holiday Event & Light Parade
A small-town light parade with the Superstitions behind it. 2025 was the 28th year.
Official info: apachejunctionaz.gov →
Christmas lights in Tucson & Marana
Down in Tucson the holidays mean Winterhaven, and it’s worth the drive from Phoenix at least once. Our things to do in Tucson guide and downtown Tucson wine-tasting list cover the rest of the trip.
Winterhaven Festival of Lights
Tucson’s signature holiday tradition, running since 1949 and confirmed for its 77th year. It’s a walking festival: there’s no street parking inside the neighborhood, and it’s enforced. Use the official lots at Winterhaven Square (3118 E. Fort Lowell), the Tucson Masonic Lodge (3590 N. Country Club) or the Lunewave Center (3438–44 N. Country Club). The festival’s food-drive goal is $60,000.
Official info: winterhavenfestival.org →
LightsUp! A Festival of Illumination
More than a million lights along a one-mile garden path; plan on 45–60 minutes. It replaced the gardens’ old Luminaria Nights, so if you’re searching that name, this is it now. Timed tickets sell out.
Official info: tucsonbotanical.org →
ZooLights: Holiday Magic at Reid Park Zoo
Tucson’s zoo lights, anchored by a 33-foot color-changing tree. Bring a food donation for $1 off. Most animals are off exhibit at night, so go for the lights, not the animals.
Official info: reidparkzoo.org →
Holiday Nights at Tohono Chul
A smaller, calmer desert-garden light walk. Tickets are good only for the night you buy.
Official info: tohonochul.org →
Downtown Tucson Parade of Lights
The route moved for 2026. It no longer runs down 4th Ave. to Armory Park. Organizers point viewers to Jácome Plaza in El Presidio. 2025’s parade had more than 50 floats.
Official info: downtownparadeoflights.com →
Marana Holiday Festival & Tree Lighting
A 45-foot tree with 100,000 RGB lights running a 13-minute musical show. Take the free shuttle from Marana Middle School; the lot fills.
Official info: maranaaz.gov →
Prescott, Flagstaff, Williams, Sedona, Payson & Yuma
If you want a Christmas that feels like a Christmas card, drive north. Prescott, Flagstaff and Williams get cold, sometimes snowy Decembers and have small-town holiday traditions to match. Pack real layers.
Courthouse Lighting & Fireworks
Prescott bills itself as Arizona’s Christmas City, and this is the night that earns it: the whole courthouse square lights up, followed by fireworks. The 44th Prescott Christmas Parade runs downtown the same afternoon at 1 p.m. Use the free shuttle; downtown parking fills early.
Official info: prescott.org →
Prescott Holiday Light Parade
Prescott’s evening light parade, listed on the city’s official Christmas City calendar for Thanksgiving weekend.
Official info: experienceprescott.com →
Valley of Lights
A one-mile drive-through run by the Prescott Valley Chamber, and the cheapest drive-through on this list. There’s usually one walking “Stroll” night early in December.
Official info: pvchamber.org →
The Polar Express at Grand Canyon Railway
A roughly 90-minute round trip to a themed North Pole. Book early for December weekends; call 888-848-3511. Reservations made on or after Aug. 10, 2026 are fully refundable up to 14 days out.
Official info: thetrain.com →
Winter Wonderland & Tree Lighting
Downtown Flagstaff’s tree lighting, with cocoa and s’mores and a real chance of snow. The Holiday Parade of Lights follows a week later (2025: Sat., Dec. 13, 6 p.m.).
Official info: downtownflagstaff.org →
Holiday of Lights at Little America
The hotel strings “millions” of lights through its pine grounds. Walk it after dinner in the hotel’s restaurant if you’re up for a Flagstaff weekend.
Official info: flagstaff.littleamerica.com →
Christmas Twilight Tour at Riordan Mansion
Luminarias line the grounds of the 1904 Riordan mansion (weather permitting) for an evening tour of the decorated house. 2025 tickets went on sale Nov. 15 and are limited.
Official info: azstateparks.com →
Festival of Lights at Tlaquepaque
About 6,000 luminarias lit at dusk when the bell tolls, set against the red rocks. It’s one night only, and parking fills early.
Official info: visitsedona.com →
Winter Wonderland & Electric Light Parade
Rim Country’s light parade down Main Street.
Official info: Gila County calendar →
Dorothy Young Memorial Electric Light Parade
Yuma’s downtown light parade, with an America 250 theme for 2026.
Official info: visityuma.com →
Drive-through Christmas lights in Arizona
If you’ve got toddlers asleep in car seats or a grandparent who can’t walk two miles, these are the shows you can do without leaving the car:
- World of Illumination, Glendale at Camelback Ranch, Nov. 12 – Jan. 3, from $39.99 per car.
- World of Illumination, Tempe at Tempe Diablo Stadium, Nov. 13 – Jan. 3, from $39.99 per car.
- Valley of Lights, Prescott Valley: one mile through Fain Park for a $5 cash donation per car (2025).
- Ahwatukee’s Chandler Boulevard medians: about a million lights on a public road, free.
- Cruise ZooLights: a one-night drive-through of the Phoenix Zoo on Jan. 17, 2027 (separate ticket).
Free Christmas lights in Phoenix and around Arizona
34 of the 50 displays on this page cost nothing to walk into. The best free ones, in my order:
- Glendale Glitters: downtown Glendale’s free display, Nov. 27 – Jan. 1.
- Mesa Arizona Temple Christmas Lights: free lights and nativities, with free parking and light rail.
- Winterhaven Festival of Lights in Tucson: a whole neighborhood, since 1949. Bring a food-bank donation.
- Chandler Tumbleweed Tree + Parade of Lights: Dec. 5, one of a kind.
- Prescott Courthouse Lighting & Fireworks: Dec. 5, Arizona’s Christmas City at its best.
- North Phoenix Lights, Christmas on Comstock and Voltaire Ave.: the best free music-synced neighborhood displays.
Six of the events on this page land on the same Saturday: the Chandler Parade of Lights and Tumbleweed Tree lighting, Tucson’s Downtown Parade of Lights, the Marana Holiday Festival, Prescott’s Courthouse Lighting & Fireworks and the Prescott Christmas Parade. If you’re doing one of them, leave early and expect full lots. If you want to avoid crowds, that’s the night to book a ticketed show instead.
What’s changed for 2026
If you went last year, check this list before you drive anywhere:
- Lights at the Farm moved to Gilbert. It now runs as Valor Christmas at Valor Christian Center on Warner Rd. Vertuccio Farms in Mesa runs its own smaller Christmas Fest.
- World of Illumination Glendale moved to Camelback Ranch from Desert Diamond Casino, with a new Candy Rush theme.
- Tucson’s Parade of Lights has a new route in El Presidio. It no longer uses 4th Ave. and Armory Park.
- Tucson Botanical Gardens’ Luminaria Nights is now LightsUp!, with more than a million lights.
- ZooLights adds a 50-foot LED tree and runs to Jan. 15, 2027.
- Sunshine Acres’ Drive-Thru Tour of Lights in Mesa hasn’t posted dates since 2023. Call (480) 832-2540 before you go.
How to visit neighborhood light displays without being that car
Several of the best displays on this list are people’s homes. The neighbors are the ones who deal with the traffic, so:
- Drop to parking lights once you’re on the street, and tune to the display’s FM station if it has one (98.1 on Voltaire, 88.1 on Comstock).
- Park legally and walk when you can. San Tan Valley’s Loop of Lights asks for it, and Winterhaven bans street parking outright.
- Never block a driveway, and stay off lawns.
- If there’s a donation box, use it. Grayhawk, North Phoenix Lights, Winterhaven and Christmas on Comstock all raise money for local charities.
Phoenix December nights usually drop into the 40s, and Flagstaff and Williams regularly hit the teens. Everyone who moved here from the Midwest shows up to ZooLights in a hoodie and leaves shivering. For the long walks (ZooLights alone is 2+ miles of trail), bring a real jacket and something for the kids’ hands. The ICE! building at JW Desert Ridge is kept below freezing on purpose, so bring a coat even on a warm night.
Want more December plans? Pair a light show with ice skating at the Fire ‘n’ Ice Arena in Phoenix, and bookmark our Arizona fireworks guide for New Year’s Eve and next Fourth of July. Browse more in Things to Do & Travel.
Arizona Christmas lights FAQ
Where is the best place to see Christmas lights in Arizona?
For the biggest show, go to Christmas at the Princess in Scottsdale: the resort’s 2026 ticket page lists 17 million lights. For a classic Phoenix night, ZooLights at the Phoenix Zoo has 5 million lights over 2+ miles of trail. For something only Arizona has, see Las Noches de las Luminarias at the Desert Botanical Garden or the Chandler Tumbleweed Tree. The best free options are Glendale Glitters, the Mesa Arizona Temple and Tucson’s Winterhaven Festival of Lights.
When does ZooLights start in 2026, and how much is it?
ZooLights runs Nov. 25, 2026 to Jan. 15, 2027, 5:30–10:30 p.m. nightly at the Phoenix Zoo. General admission is $35, members pay $30, and Member Mondays are $10. Kids 2 and under are free. General-admission tickets go on sale Oct. 1, 2026 and are non-refundable.
Which neighborhood in Phoenix has the best Christmas lights?
Moon Valley in north Phoenix is the traditional drive-around neighborhood, with 80+ decorated homes in recent years. Nearby, North Phoenix Lights (near 1st Ave. and Union Hills) won its episode of ABC’s Great Christmas Light Fight in December 2025, and more than 50 homes on E. Voltaire Ave. near Tatum and Thunderbird sync their lights to 98.1 FM. In Scottsdale, the Grayhawk Christmas Street near 76th Way and Rose Garden Ln. doubles as a food drive.
Which neighborhood in Gilbert has Christmas lights?
Christmas on Comstock, on E. Comstock Dr. off Higley and Elliot, is Gilbert’s best-known display: about 15 homes synced to 88.1 FM, and a Great Christmas Light Fight winner. Donations go to Make-A-Wish Arizona. For a ticketed show in Gilbert, Valor Christmas (formerly Lights at the Farm) has more than 2 million lights on Warner Rd.
Is there a drive-through Christmas light show in Phoenix?
Yes. World of Illumination runs two in 2026: Camelback Ranch in Glendale (Nov. 12 – Jan. 3) and Tempe Diablo Stadium (Nov. 13 – Jan. 3), both from $39.99 per vehicle. The Phoenix Zoo also runs a one-night Cruise ZooLights drive-through on Jan. 17, 2027. Up north, Prescott Valley’s Valley of Lights is a one-mile drive-through for a $5 donation.
Is Winter Wonderland in Scottsdale free?
Winter Wonderland Arizona is a private home display on E. Valley Vista Dr. that you view from the street, and its official site lists no admission charge. It ran Dec. 5–28 in 2025, 6–10 p.m. Don’t confuse it with Christmas at the Princess, the ticketed resort show in North Scottsdale ($35 general admission in 2026).
Are there free Christmas lights in Phoenix?
Yes. 34 of the 50 displays in this guide are free. The best free ones in the Phoenix area are Glendale Glitters in downtown Glendale, the Mesa Arizona Temple Christmas Lights, Merry Main Street in Mesa, the Chandler Tumbleweed Tree and Parade of Lights (Dec. 5), Sparkling Surprise, the Tempe boat parade (Dec. 12) and the neighborhood displays in Moon Valley and on Voltaire Ave.
What is the most Christmassy town in Arizona?
Prescott, which bills itself as Arizona’s Christmas City. The 72nd annual Yavapai County Courthouse Lighting & Fireworks and the 44th Prescott Christmas Parade are both on Saturday, Dec. 5, 2026, and there’s an evening light parade on Nov. 28. Williams, with the Polar Express train, and Flagstaff are close behind.
Is Winterhaven Festival of Lights happening in 2026?
Yes. The festival’s official site confirms its 77th year, starting Dec. 12, 2026 and running through Christmas week, 6–10 p.m. nightly. It’s free, with a suggested donation to the Community Food Bank. It’s walking-only: there’s no street parking inside the neighborhood, so use the official lots on Fort Lowell and Country Club.
Hang holiday lights, run a holiday event, or feed the crowds?
Every December, Arizonans search for where to eat, park and stay before they head out to see the lights. AZ Charged is a hand-verified Arizona directory with zero pay-to-rank. Light installers, restaurants near the big shows, hotels in Prescott and Flagstaff, and event organizers: get in front of them before the season starts.
Get Listed on AZ Charged →How this list was verified: every event was checked on September 24, 2026 against the organizer’s official page, the host city’s website, or the named tourism bureau (Visit Phoenix, Experience Scottsdale, Visit Chandler, Visit Tucson, Experience Prescott, Discover Flagstaff, Visit Sedona, Visit Yuma), with ABC15, AZFamily, KTAR, KOLD, KGUN and the Gilbert Sun News for figures organizers don’t publish. Dates marked 2025 are last year’s and will be updated as organizers announce 2026. Events change; confirm with the organizer before you drive.
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