KC’s Best Christmas Lights
2021 Edition
Kansas City sparkles in holiday splendor with magnificent displays across the metro! These are our top picks for the best Christmas lights in KC!
Note: This is the 2021 guide, please click here for the 2022 Guide to the Best Christmas Lights in KC.
Most displays operate from Thanksgiving through Christmas, from sunset (5:30) to 10:00; however, there are a few exceptions. Check websites to verify times.
Tips to enjoy your drive-through Christmas Lights:
- Let the kids wear PJs during the trip. Bring cookies and cocoa in travel mugs.
- Play your favorite holiday songs and sing along in the car!
- Make sure you have a full gas tank and use the restroom BEFORE you head out on your adventure.
- Save your favorite light-sights in your GPS so you can visit them again easily!
- Share your experience on social media so your friends can also discover the best lights in town... link to our guide making it even easier!
NEW! Holiday Light and Magic near Legends Shopping Center Nov. 21 – Jan. 2, Located at: 12599 State Ave, Kansas City, KS. Holiday Light and Magic is an ALL-NEW Christmas lights experience out by Legends Shopping Center. The family-fun, holiday event will be held nightly from mid-November to the new year. Don't miss this opportunity to create memories that will last a lifetime! Tickets go on-sale October 10th at HolidayLightandMagic.com.
Winter Magic: Nov. 2 – Jan. 1, Located at 8400 Blue River Rd, Kansas City, Missouri 64132 Come one, come all, to Winter Magic - the most fantastic of drive-thru holiday events in Kansas City. Truly, a world of winter wonder awaits you! Now, don't worry about the cold, COVID-19, or Krampus - you'll be safe and warm in your car the whole time. Hey, wear your pajamas and bring your hot chocolate, if it pulls your sled. Drive-thru one mile of the most amazing, mesmerizing, WINTERrifically magical holiday light experiences you've ever laid your gazers on. Reserve your tickets today at WinterMagicKC.com!
Crown Center Mayor’s Christmas Tree: Crown Center Square (2450 Grand Blvd., Kansas City, MO, CrownCenter.com). The 100-foot-tall tree is adorned with 7,200 lights.
Liberty Light Show YOU'RE INVITED! Enjoy the 15-minute show featuring live performances of your Christmas favorites like jingle bells and little drummer boy from the comfort of your vehicle. Parking is first-come, first-served. Vehicles will be directed to enter at the north entrance and exit at the south entrance. Automated shows (without live musicians) will run Dec. 13-24 From 6-11pm each night. FREE DRIVE-IN CHRISTMAS LIGHT DISPLAY SYNCHRONIZED WITH MUSIC!
LIVE Music:
- Dec. 3 - 6pm to 9pm
- Dec. 4 - 6pm to 9pm
- Dec. 5 - 6pm to 9pm
- Dec. 10 - 6pm to 9pm
- Dec. 11 - 6pm to 9pm
- Dec. 12 - 6pm to 9pm
Automated Music:
- Dec. 13-24 from 6-11pm nightly.
Legendary Christmas: Legends Outlets Kansas City (1843 Village West Pkwy., Kansas City, KS, LegendsShopping.com). Unique lighting display on a 45-foot holiday tree created by a world-renowned technology-driven holiday lights team, all synchronized to music.
Festival of Lights: Thu.-Sun., Nov. 11- Dec. 30 at Powell Gardens (1609 NW U.S. Hwy. 50, Kingsville, MO). Festival-goers walk a mile-long path spread out over 25 acres through the gardens featuring a variety of immersive light displays.
Northern Lights at Zona Rosa (8640 N Dixson Ave, Kansas City, MO). Zona Rosa's magnificent display features Kansas City's historic holiday crowns and majestic 55' Christmas tree!
Christmas in the Park: Longview Lake Park (I-470 & View High Drive, Kansas City, MO, 816.503.4800) is open Thanksgiving Eve through Christmas, Sun.-Thu., 5:30-10:00; Fri.-Sat., 5:30-11:00) is open Thanksgiving Eve through Christmas, Sun.-Thu., 5:30-10:00; Fri.-Sat., 5:30-11:00. With more than 500,000 lights, 175 animated figures, and splashes of Christmas color, this enchanting drive-thru winter wonderland’s magic will delight the entire family.
Lee's Summit Magic Tree: Lee's Summit Magic Tree is located at I-470 & View High Drive. The tree is lit with more than 12,000 LED lights in every color of the rainbow.
Country Club Plaza Holiday Lights: Country Club Plaza (Info Center: 4745 Central, Kansas City, MO, CountryClubPlaza.com). Take in the lights from Thanksgiving through mid-January. Enjoy more than 80 miles of illuminated strings of bulbs.
SEA LIFE Kansas City Aquarium will shimmer with winter holiday spirit this December with the Sea of Lights experience! Guests can explore the Sea of Lights event, the only underwater light spectacular in Kansas City. Visitors can, safely, prepare to be dazzled as they walk through thousands of twinkling holiday lights across SEA LIFE’s undersea wonderland for a one-of-a-kind holiday light extravaganza. Sea of Lights will feature Scuba Claus Dive shows on select days and times. The Sea of Lights Experience is included with General Admission tickets. VisitSeaLife.com
Holiday Lights on Farmstead Lane: At the Deanna Rose Children's Farmstead, 138th & Switzer in Overland Park. The display will run each night from 5:00-10:00, Thanksgiving through early January. The 38-minute show is synchronized with music.
Downtown Marriott Light Display: Downtown Marriott (200 W. 12th St., Kansas City, MO) The 20-story hotel provides an animated holiday display showing your favorite holiday characters and greetings featuring a synchronized display of 30,000 bulbs and 16.7 million colors.
ALTA Sciences Animated Lights: Alta Sciences (101st & Metcalf, Overland Park). From mid-November through Christmas, the 175,000-LED light display is beautifully choreographed to music for an animated light show your children will love!
Sar-Ko-Aglow Dec. 3-Jan. 17, Sar-Ko-Trails Park. Take a nighttime stroll around Rose's Pond to view the beautiful annual lights display in Sar-Ko-Par Trails Park throughout the holiday season. Lenexa.com
Stagecoach Park (1205 E. Kansas City Rd., Olathe). The show features 41,000 lights and more than 16 million color combinations.
Gardner's Christmas in the Park: Cornerstone Park (215 N. Center, Gardner, KS). Christmas lights decorate Cornerstone Park.
Christmas Acres: Christmas Acres will open in mid-November. 5pm- 10pm. Come out and join us for our 24th year of bringing Christmas to the country. Directions to the location in Knob Noster, MO.
BONUS: A Branson Christmas Light Extravaganza
Christmas at Silver Dollar City: This 1880s-style park’s “An Old Time Christmas” event features the largest concentration of lights in Branson … 6.5 million to be exact! Between November 6 and December 30, visitors can stroll among the incredible displays of twinkling lights while enjoying live holiday shows, eating seasonal foods, and checking out the wares of the park’s demonstrating craftsmen. The two-month-long holiday event boasts some impressive statistics such as over 6.5 million lights (that’s 680 miles of brilliance!), 1,000 decorated Christmas trees, 600wreaths, and over 3 miles of garland and ribbon. Christmas In Midtown bursts with the colors of 1.5 million LED lighted tunnels and displays up to 9 stories.
Lights of Joy: Christmastime in Branson isn’t complete without the traditional Christmas light sightseeing trip. At Lights of Joy, we make this festive occasion easier and better! Because we are Branson’s premier Christmas light drive-thru attraction, we not only provide a 1.5 long sparkling light trail, but we also provide you with ways to keep the festivities going and embrace your giving spirit! Lights of Joy Christmas Drive-Thru display is Branson’s traditional festival of lights, located at the intersection of Shepherd of the Hills Expressway and Expressway Lane, just behind Sight and Sound Theatre.
AMAZING STREETS / NEIGHBORHOODS:
Candy Cane Lane: Outlook & 79th Street in Prairie Village. This neighborhood decorates with amazing displays. See candy canes, giant Christmas trees and beautifully lit homes.
Christmas on Bradshaw: 13810 Bradshaw Street, Overland Park, KS. This entire street and cul-de-sac are decorated with amazing lights synchronized to a holiday soundtrack that broadcasts on 99.9FM. The entire neighborhood is beautifully lit. And, this is only a few miles from Deanna Rose Children's Farmstead.
Christmas Place: 8705 W 131st Place, Overland Park, KS. Over twenty homes in the Terrace Place subdivision are decorated and coordinated with the same festive theme. The kids especially love the Grinch display and Frosty, the Snowman!
69th Street off Ward Parkway: There are many streets in the 60s and 70s blocks along Ward Parkway that are entirely decorated with Christmas lights. This is a perfect addition to your visit to see the Country Club Plaza Lights.
Christmas Card Lane: Ridgeview & 151st Street in Olathe. This neighborhood decorates with beautiful Christmas lights and giant wooden Christmas cards.
Paulie's Penguin Playground: (16617 Indian Creek Pkwy., Olathe). This Penguin-themed Christmas display is an unforgettable explosion of holiday decor.
Animated Light Display Benefitting Children's Mercy (326 E 70th Terrace Kansas City, MO). The show is launch-able from a website (Swobodalights.com) and I’m also using that site to help fundraise for Children’s Mercy. Hoping people that enjoy the show may be willing to donate a few bucks (optional).
40+ Inflatables and Lights: 4903 W 155th Terrace Overland Park, KS. 40+ inflatable and then lights too!
Lane of Lights: The Lane of Lights is located along Lovers Lane in East Valley Park in Excelsior Springs, MO.
If you have an addition to our guide, please email kristina@kcparent.com.