We track 30 displays in Indianapolis — the 2nd-densest city for lights in Indiana. 28 of them are free to visit.
When to go
Displays here switch on around sunset. In Indianapolis that means about 5:21 PM in early December and 5:21 PM by mid-month — the earliest sunsets of the year fall right in the middle of lights season. It is properly dark by about 5:51 PM, which is when the displays look their best. December nights in Indianapolis typically drop to around 24°F.
Date
Sunset
Fully dark
Dec 1
5:21 PM
5:50 PM
Dec 15
5:21 PM
5:51 PM
Dec 25
5:25 PM
5:56 PM
The Indianapolis lights loop — 30 stops
We ordered every display in Indianapolis into the shortest sensible driving loop: roughly 105 miles and 372 minutes of driving, before you count time spent parked and looking. Start wherever is closest to you and follow it round.
Driving estimate assumes a 25 mph average on residential streets plus four minutes stopped per display. Straight-line distances with a road-network allowance — treat it as a planning figure, not a satnav route.
November 22, 2025 - January 4, 2026, select evenings · Evenings
Freeattractionover one million lightsSanta's Magic CottageTropical Santa meet-and-greetsensory-friendly evenings December 3 and 17animals active after dark
The Indianapolis Zoo in White River State Park glows with more than a million lights on select evenings, and winter-hardy animals like seals, walruses and tigers stay visible after dark. Admission is included with regular zoo tickets, and 2025 added sensory-friendly nights with softened sound and lighting.
November 28, 2025 - January 12, 2026 · Lights on from 6 PM; lighting ceremony November 28 at 7 PM
FreeattractionSoldiers and Sailors Monument tree of lightslighting ceremony the day after ThanksgivingTV broadcast on WTHR Channel 13
Indianapolis's longest-running holiday tradition wraps the Soldiers and Sailors Monument on Monument Circle in strands of lights, presented by IBEW 481. The lighting ceremony draws crowds downtown the day after Thanksgiving and the display stays lit into January.
Indiana State Fairgrounds, 1202 E. 38th St. (enter Gate 3 at 1698 E. 42nd St.) · Indianapolis, Indiana
November 7 - December 31, 2025 · Evenings; final entry typically 10 PM
$38+ per cardrive-thru2-mile drive-thru routeover one million LED lightsmusic synced to your car radiolight tunnel
This two-mile drive-through at the Indiana State Fairgrounds runs over a million LED lights synchronized to music broadcast into visitors' car radios. Online reservations are required, with car passes starting at $38 for up to eight passengers.
An indoor Indianapolis holiday exhibition of roughly 50 elaborately themed trees decorated in friendly competition, with scavenger hunts and a sleigh for photos. It runs from mid-November into early January.
November 21, 2025 - January 4, 2026 · Timed evening entries
$25+attractionnearly 2 million lights set to musicTwinkling Traililluminated century-old treesthemed nightsStyled for the Season at Lilly House
Newfields drapes its gardens and hundred-year-old trees in nearly two million lights synchronized to music, with timed-entry tickets starting around $25. The 2025 season expanded themed evenings including Kwanzaa, Las Posadas, Dog Night and an indoor holiday experience at the Lilly House.
typically late Nov – early Jan (check before visiting) · typically dusk – 10 PM
Freeattractionover 20,000 synchronized lights
A display on Yellowstone Parkway in Indianapolis where more than 20,000 lights run in synchronization. It appears on the region's annual lights lists as a destination-scale show.