The Best Dog-Friendly Holiday Light Shows Across the U.S.

The annual Galaxy of Lights is a fabulous way to see the Huntsville Botanical Garden decked out for the holiday season, and walking nights offer several opportunities to walk through with your pup. Along the route, you’ll spot classic Christmas scenes, twinkling holiday displays, faux snow and music, all complemented by the beautiful natural setting of the botanical garden. Some pups even come dressed up for the occasion!

With trees bedecked in their Christmas best, the snowy scenery of Anchorage’s Town Square Park becomes positively festive when the holiday season comes around. The trees are lit throughout the holidays, so you can take plenty of especially magical walks with your pup at your side.

The Winterhaven Festival of Lights is a crowd pleaser that’s also pet friendly. You’ll have the chance to walk with your dog through a cozy neighborhood to see some next-level decorations. Every year, home displays are awarded honors. There’s even an award for dogs’ favorite houses—the Pup’s Pick— ensuring all attendees have a little something to love. It’s a busy event, so well-behaved dogs who are comfortable around other people and pets are going to be the happiest here.

Lights of the Ozarks is a favorite among Northwest Arkansas residents. Doggos are welcome, and there are pet waste stations available. Take a photo with Santa himself, or snap a selfie with your best buddy with the lights as a beautiful backdrop.

At the Ruth Bancroft Garden, dogs on leashes are always welcome, and that includes their enchanting event Garden of D’Lights. With an impressive plant collection lit up in holiday hues, you can meander the 2.5 acres of pathways with your pup—just make sure you stick to the paths and not the beds!There are waste bags available at the entrance. Afterwards, head to the retail nursery with your dog and pick out a treat to eat.

As a favorite dog-walking destination among Connecticut natives, this time of year Light Point Park is aglow in holiday magic during Fantasy of Lights. Drive through the light displays with your pup in tow, then amble around the park so Fido can visit with his canine buddies. And the best part of all? Ticket proceeds will benefit Goodwill of Southern New England.

Sporting glimmering holiday lights set among tropical plants and flowers, Holiday Lights in the Garden, held at the Florida Botanical Gardens, is truly a sight to behold. As their largest event of the year, the Gardens openly welcome leashed pets in all outdoor areas, which means you can enjoy this beautiful experience with your pup right next to you.

Wonder, joy and of course, Santa Claus—they all await you and your pet at the award-winning Enchanted Garden of Lights. Leashed pets are welcome to stroll with you through this festive winter wonderland. Watch the lights twinkle in the ice-themed Arctic Kingdom display, or take a jaunt down the lighted corridor of Yule Town. And don’t miss the chance to swing by the Magic Forest to walk beneath the 43-foot-tall tree of lights.

Kauai’s seat of government, the Historic County Building and park, will be illuminated during the Kauai Festival of Lights. The large, grassy park in front of the building is perfect for dogs and pet parents to wander beneath tall, illuminated, wrapped coconut palms. Plus, on December 1, 8, 15 and 22, you can take a family photo with your pup. Just make sure your four-legged friend is leashed at all times.

Add some Christmas spirit to your nightly dog walk by visiting Winter Spirit in Locomotive Park. You’ll both get to roam the two acres of brightly colored trees, arches, animated displays and a lit-up antique steam-powered locomotive. Just be sure to keep your dog leashed at all times and use the provided waste bags to clean up after them.

With almost two miles of stunning lights to peruse, Willow Hill Lights is a Chicagoland light show that isn’t to be missed—by you or your pup. At Willow Hill Golf Course, 1 million lights, three drive-through tunnels and a 30-foot Christmas tree will surely catch your dog’s eye. Donations go toward a local nonprofit that supports young adults with developmental disabilities.

As southeast Iowa’s largest drive-through holiday light show, you and your dog will stare in wonder at the 140 sparkling displays over 1.6 miles at Festival of Lights. Held at the Midwest Old Threshers Campground, you’ll spy Christmas-y characters, like a gingerbread man and Santa Claus, along with lit-up tractors that nod to the country atmosphere. On special nights, you can visit with Santa as well.

Lights Under Louisville, a holiday light drive-through show, might take the cake for the most creative holiday light sightseeing experience. You and your pet can enjoy a 30-minute ride with 6.5 million points of light. But that isn't even the best part: This over one-mile drive takes you under Louisville on a wonder-filled exploration of the Louisville Mega Cavern, a former limestone mine. It’s the only fully underground holiday light show in the world.

Candy Cane Lane is a mile-long immersive Christmas light experience enjoyed by people and canines alike. Ride through over 1 million lights, featuring two tunnels, countless lighted displays and a portion of the park that's set to music. Pets are welcome in the drive-through, but both dogs and humans should remain in the vehicle.

Maine clothier L.L.Bean hosts a spectacular holiday event each year called Northern Lights. Between the Twinkle Light Tunnel and the shimmering Christmas tree, the flagship campus is all aglow during the holiday season. To enjoy this experience alongside your fur baby, attend the Paws with Claus events, where you can bring your dog for a special sitting with Santa—they’re held every Monday during Northern Lights, from 4 to 8 p.m.

The Merriweather Symphony of Lights has a drive-through option where you can bring your pup along—plus, on special “Tail Lights” evenings, you can take your dog on a walking experience, too. Complete with a whopping 300,000 bulbs of glittering lights, these events offer tasty puppy treats along with warm drinks for pet parents. You can walk this at your own pace, which is good news if you have a senior doggie or are leash training your puppy.

Can you imagine taking in 700,000 Christmas lights? Bright Nights at Forest Park makes this vision a reality with a three-mile drive that you can share with your fur baby. After the drive, stop at Santa’s Cottage, where there will be gifts and toys you can purchase for your pups. There are even two special nights when doggos can have their photos taken with Santa (December 1 and 15).

The Big, Bright Light Show is a festive way to ring in the holiday season for people and pups alike. Stroll down Rochester’s Main Street, stop in one of the many dog-friendly boutiques, and don’t forget to snap all those Christmas light selfies of you and your furry bestie.

Downtown Bozeman kicks off its holiday season with this annual Christmas event, which welcomes leashed fuzzy friends. Dogs can take part in the entire stroll as they walk Main Street with Santa (singing carols, of course!). There are green spaces along the route that can act as potty spots, like Soroptimist Park. Many vendors provide dog treats, and there’s even a Bernese Mountain Dog meetup as part of the event. Can't make it on December 2? Not to worry—the lights will stay up throughout the rest of the season.

You’ll definitely feel that Christmas spirit as soon as you hit the racetrack at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway. At Glittering Lights, those speedy cars are traded for millions of holiday lights that will delight you and your four-legged friend.

This picturesque New Hampshire town comes to life through its yearly Waterville Valley Winter Lights event, which runs beyond Christmas to keep the sparkle going all winter. The lights extend throughout Town Square, the Town Square Disc Golf Field and Corcoran Pond Beach—it’s a great way to soak up some holiday spirit while getting in your nightly walk with your pup. Along the way, stop at stores in town for free dog treats.

With over 1.5 million lights synced to everyone’s favorite holiday songs, Winter WonderLights at the Middlesex County Fair Grounds should be added to your Christmas itinerary. Staff love giving pats and milk bones to every furry guest (as long as the pup is game for it). Pups will love looking at the shimmering light displays, and you’ll rest easy knowing there’s a potty spot you can head to before driving in.

Featuring a drive-through light display and twinkling lights all around the city, the Village of Ruidoso Parks & Recreation Department hosts annual holiday festivities where your leashed dog is always welcome. On December 9, catch the holiday drone show at the White Mountain Sports Complex for a unique take on Christmas lights.

For the holiday season, Splish Splash Waterpark is transformed into a Christmas extravaganza that you and your dog can behold. At the Holiday Light Show, there are new displays to discover every year, dotted along a glittery one-mile route. With music synced to the lights, you and your pupper can stay cozy while enjoying the experience together.

As cars with pups drive into Coney Island’s Nights of Lights, each good dog receives a milk bone. As the region’s largest drive-through holiday show, Nights of Lights lets your family and doggos stay warm and dry as you gaze at more than 2 million lights that move to upbeat holiday tunes. The light tunnels and larger-than-life Christmas trees are truly sights to behold.

At Johnstone Park during Fantasy Land of Lights, the light displays switch on for a dog-friendly drive-through show featuring festive light displays paired with a dedicated radio station playing holiday hits.

Christmas Spirit Light Show at Clipper Magazine Stadium is a mile-long drive-through show with a glimmering tunnel and huge multihued Christmas tree. Dog treats are available at the entry booth for all canine visitors. This year, the event has added Wet Nose Wednesdays: Held December 6, 13 and 20, there will be special dog-focused activities at Christmas Tree Lane, the walking portion of the event.

Taking place at Confreda Farms, Holiday Light Show is a seasonal tradition for many locals, and you can make it a tradition with your pup, too. As you traverse the one-mile route, you’ll view several displays synchronized to merry music. Be sure to keep the volume down in case your dog is sensitive to loud sounds.

Anderson Christmas Lights is truly a festive event, since it starts on Thanksgiving and ends on Christmas. Found across from the Anderson Civic Center, this drive-through show is hard to miss with its 250 light displays. There’s also a village where people and their dogs can get out of their cars and walk. Leashed doggies can visit Santa, shop the store, visit vendors and listen to live music.

At the Williamson County Agricultural Center, FrankTown Festival of Lights features a half-mile of drive-through holiday lights. There are over 200 synchronized displays to admire while you listen to accompanying music on the radio. Every Wednesday, visitors can park their cars and take to a lighted route with their leashed pups. Remember to snap a pic by the enormous lit-up tree and snack on s’mores by the fire pit—and bring a pup treat, too!

Take a driving tour of the Texas Motor Speedway to see the dazzling displays of the Gift of Lights. This pet-friendly holiday drive-through display loves hosting four-legged friends, and you can cruise through the lighted tunnels with your pet cozied up in your car.

Does it get any more idyllic than twinkling holiday lights at a ski resort? The Lodge at Spruce Peak holds their annual Spruce Peak Lights Festival on December 16, although the lights will be up all winter. As a completely dog-friendly property, dogs are more than welcome at this event, featuring ice dancing performances, photos with Santa, and the official lighting of the tree and village. Treats are available at several locations in the village area.

There are literally millions of lights to behold at the Dominion Energy GardenFest of Lights, which graces the Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden every holiday season. At a special GardenFest for Fidos night on December 4, Richmond SPCA volunteers hand out doggy pick-up bags and make sure bowls throughout the Garden are full of fresh water. One vendor sells cookies made especially for pups.

At Christmas at the Fair, visitors are encouraged to bring the whole family, including their furry friends, to experience the joy of the holidays at the State Fair of West Virginia fairgrounds. This year’s event features over 1 million lights that play in sync to music on your radio. Complimentary treats will be available for dogs and their parents, and there are plenty of parking locations to let your pet go potty.

Overlooking Wisconsin’s lit-up state capitol building and skyline, you and your pup will love the view from Olin-Turville Park as you drive through Holiday Fantasy in Lights. You’ll spy over 50 light displays, including one of a puppy with a wagging tail. At the end of your ride, dog treats are handed out from the booths, along with candy canes for pet parents.

For a low-key way to enjoy the holidays in the midst of a wintry wonderland, take your dog for a walk in downtown Jackson Hole and head to the Jackson Town Square Lights. The lights will be on all through December, complete with the annual holiday tree illuminated in all its glory.