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Nov 2011  |  By Molly Gilbert  |  Comments

Light It Up

Spots that will put some twinkle in your holidays

Lincolnwood Towers
Lincolnwood 


Stroll the span of 20 blocks, along the square made up of Central, Cicero, Pratt and Devon Avenues. Though the neighborhood’s decorations are not sponsored by anyone, its residents take joy in participating in its holiday beautification. From the three-story Christmas tree and reindeer to Santa Claus and entire houses draped with colorful lights, the Lincolnwood Towers in December make for an unforgettable evening.

Stevens Park
Rosemont


At the corner of Higgins and Scott, this park is sure to deliver your holiday light fix. The park is transformed in to a one-and-a-half-block Christmas village, full of some of the most extraordinary decorations, including giant nutcrackers and Christmas figures, candy canes and lights of every color.

Rosemont Community Park
Rosemont


Turn back east on Higgins and drive three blocks to Willow Creek Drive; turn south on Willow Creek Drive for 1 1/2 blocks and continue until you come to Rosemont Community Park, which is decorated similarly to Stevens.

Zoo Lights at the Lincoln Park Zoo
Your favorite free zoo offers ice carving demonstrations, visits with Santa, warm drinks, cool crafts and more than two million beautiful lights—5-9 p.m., November 25 to 27, December 2 to 4, 9 to 11, and nightly from December 16 to January 1 (with the exception of December 24 and 25).

Chestnut, Ashland, Greenwood and Elmwood
Wilmette

These streets, running east-west in between Green Bay and Sheridan Roads, are known for their luminaries on Christmas Eve.

Also? The house at 1200 Cleveland Street in Wilmette is fast becoming legend on the North Shore.

Holiday Light Show at the Cuneo Mansion and Gardens
Vernon Hills

Enjoy the lights from your well-heated car. The Village of Vernon Hills in cooperation with the Cuneo Museum and gardens holds their annual drive-thru Holiday Light Show every night (with the exception of December 24 and 25) from 6 to 10 p.m. The cost for this event is $5 per car Monday through Thursday and $10 per car Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

Chicago Botanic Garden
Glencoe

Energy-efficient LED bulbs—a mere 750,000 of them—illuminate the large deciduous trees, the signature 40-foot spruce in the Esplanade, clusters of Christmas trees in containers, and much more at this impressive display of holiday lights. You'll also see sparkling yew hedges and seven red-and-white, lit Cornelian cherry dogwood trees lighting the way to the Wonderland Express exhibit.