Zoo Lights Festivals

I'm not sure where the tradition of zoo lights began, but there are quite a few of these spectacular displays across the country each holiday season and I thought I'd take a moment to give you a quick roundup. The first is one I saw from the air as I flew into Portland last week:

The Oregon ZooLights Festival offers food, live music, a train ride and costumed characters each night. There are over 1 million lights and 200 sparking animal displays, but no actual live animals in the evening. Except for a very few, you have to visit during the day to see the critters who live at the zoo year-round.

The Denver ZooLights exhibit does feature live animal viewing opportunities as visitors walk through 35 brilliantly illuminated acres of lights. There are Kwanza and New Year's Eve festivities, as well as the opportunity for children to visit with Santa Claus.

The Calgary ZooLights display is the largest seasonal light display in Western Canada. There's hot chocolate, festive choirs and an extensive children's outdoor play area. They also sponsor a New Year's Eve event.

Here are a few more to explore, hopefully you'll discover one in your neck of the woods:

Phoenix ZooLights
Tuscon Zoological Society
The Zoo in Gulf Breeze, Florida
Toledo Zoo's Lights Before Christmas

Can you help us add to this list? What other ZooLights Festivals do you know of? Both in the US and at zoos around the world? Help us out if you can…

Filed under: Arts and Culture, Festivals and Events