Which neighborhoods in your area have the best outdoor Christmas and holiday lights? The kind where you can slowly cruise through the neighborhood listening to holiday tunes, dressed in your snowman pajamas while munching on doughnuts and sipping cocoa. Or spectacular single houses that go all-out, like the Osborne family in Little Rock, Arkansas, used to do before the city made them take down the "spectacle" and Disney World bought it.
A leisurely drive through megawatt neighborhoods at night is one of the most fun and memorable things to do during the holiday season, whether you have one passenger or a carload-full. Another perk? It's free.
Baltimore's Hampden Neighborhood
Photo by Laureen Miles Brunelli
The "Miracle on 34th Street" light display is a neighborhood of Baltimore, Maryland, rowhouses that string holiday lights across their street, which, appropriately, is named 34th Street.
One block in Hampden puts on a Christmas light display that is surely visible from space. Neighbors in this block of rowhouses string Christmas lights across 34th Street. Inflatable snowglobes, musical trains and blinking angels adorn homes. A few even allow visitors to peek inside.
The seasonal festivities include an annual New Year's Eve ball drop and running of Baby New Year.
Brooklyn's Dyker Heights
Photo by Heather Cross
Brooklyn's Dyker Heights section goes all-out with the holiday lights and even has a contest for the best light displays. If you're a fan of blow mold Christmas decorations, some homeowners have sizable collections that populate their front lawns and entryways. Limousine or van tours (some with food and drink) are a popular way to view the nightly light displays, as traffic can become an excruciatingly slow crawl.
California Christmas Lights
Photo courtesy of californiachristmaslights.com
The site has an interactive community feel, with a House of the Day featured, along with photos and information on lighting, decorations, set-up, computer light programs, etc. Addresses and maps are also included on the site.
Corpus Christi Candy Cane Lane
More than 200 homes participate in Corpus Christi's Candy Cane Lane. An annual parade and block party held in the evening benefits the local Ronald McDonald House charities.Dallas Neighborhood Lights
Photo © Angela Patterson
Two areas in Dallas have heavy participation in their neighborhood light displays: Interlochen and Kessler Park.
Interlochen hosts one of the largest holiday light displays in north Texas comes to life when more than 200 Interlochen homeowners dress up their homes and lawns with Christmas lights and an assortment of holiday-themed displays. Interlochen is in Dallas' Arlington section.
Another big attraction is the community effort of Dallas' Kessler Park neighborhood, which displays lights and other Christmas decorations throughout the season.
Little Rock Lights
Photo © Amanda Galiano
Louisville Holiday Lights
Which neighborhoods are worth checking out during the holidays in Louisville, Kentucky? This list reveals where they are, what you'll see, and other details.Milwaukee's Candy Cane Lane
Photo © Carrie Trousil
Oklahoma City Neighborhood Lights
Courtesy of Markwell Street
San Diego Light Displays
About.com Guide to San Diego Inigo Figuracion has researched cities and neighborhoods in and around San Diego for the tours that are worth the drive. Of course, there's a Candy Cane Lane in the bunch, and at least a couple of the neighborhoods' lights are synchronized to local radion stations that play holiday tunes throughout the season.
