From the top of the mountain to a night at the museum: 5 holiday light displays shine throughout Atlanta

Garden Lights, Holiday Nights

Returning for its 14th year, Garden Lights, Holiday Nights transforms Atlanta Botanical Gardens’ 60-acre property into a parade of festive decorations.

This year’s celebration, which lasts from Nov. 16 to Jan. 12, 2025, showcases nearly 2 million lightbulbs and 15,000 light strings, which took over 7,000 labor hours to assemble the full show display.

Several standouts include the returning “Nature’s Wonders” walkthrough featuring topiaries, trees and plants painted in colorful lighting throughout the property. Other reappearing favorites include giant plant-sized replicas from the classic story “Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland,” featuring the characters of Alice, the White Rabbit and the Cheshire Cat.

Holiday in the Park

For its 10th year, Six Flags Over Georgia opens its gates again for Holiday in the Park, with brand new entertainment and light shows for visitors to enjoy.

Opening on Nov. 25 and available on select days throughout Jan. 5, 2025, new additions to the seasonal celebration include concert showcase The Six Flags Holiday Spectacular, a puppet show featuring characters of the beloved Monster Mansion attraction and “Oh What Fun!,” described by the park as “an enchanting display of dancing LED lights, perfectly synchronized to your favorite holiday tunes.”

IllumiNights at the Zoo: A Chinese Lantern Festival

Zoo Atlanta leaps into the holiday spirit with the return of IllumiNights, open to visitors from Nov. 14 to Jan. 19.

This year’s theme places the spotlight on the art of Chinese lanterns, transforming the wildlife attraction into “a nighttime wonderland featuring hundreds of handcrafted lanterns celebrating the stunning biodiversity of our natural world,” as described in a recent social media post by the zoo.

The festival will showcase more than 100 lanterns designed with environmentally friendly LED lights. In addition, each lantern was specially crafted and hand-painted by Chinese artisans, representing thousands of hours of work and an authentic dedication to the craft.

Stone Mountain Christmas

A Stone Mountain Christmas returns with a mixture of new and fan-favorite attractions to visitors old and new to enjoy.

One of the park’s most popular returning attractions is The Magical Christmas Drone & Light Show. Performed in front of the mountain, the show features 250 color-changing drones, along with special effects, state-of-the-art projections and pyrotechnics to create a memorable grand finale.

Other favorites include the reappearance of Aurora, Princess of Light, a snow princess created specifically for Stone Mountain Christmas, and an annual holiday parade that fills Stone Mountain’s “Crossroads” area with music, lights and specialty crafted floats en route with the holiday spirit.

The event lasts from Nov. 9 to Jan. 5, 2025.

WildWoods: AGLOW at Fernbank Museum of Natural History

An outdoor nighttime experience featuring scenic light displays and original music compositions, WildWoods AGLOW returns to Fernbank from Nov. 8 to Feb. 23, 2025.

On their website, the museum describes the experience as one that “immerses visitors into the mesmerizing wonders of nature through a blend of the real environment and glowing displays, uniquely curated to highlight the native flora and fauna within WildWoods.”

Themed to “a wonderland of biodiversity,” popular attractions include projections of nocturnal nightlife, an interactive Tulip polar pod and, new this year, fluttering dragonflies and swarming bat light displays.

The holiday event will coincide with the museum’s adults-only nighttime event Fernbank After Dark on Nov. 8, Dec. 13, Jan. 10 and Feb. 14.