On Saturday, November 14, Huntington Park in the Arena District gets used for something other than baseball. The Columbus Clippers are opening a new 43-night event there called Columbus Clippers Holiday Lights. It has more than one million lights along the concourse, a 30-foot "Grand Tree" near the left field entrance and a holiday train that runs around the warning track. The opening-night lineup includes Santa Claus, the Broadway Grinch, the team mascots and a drone show.
For about a week, the ballpark is the only big light show open in town. After that, nearly everything else opens in a single weekend, and December fills with events that each run one night. If you plan around those three stretches, you will see more for less money.
Five Nights With the Ballpark to Itself
The Clippers' Holiday Lights page calls the event "a BRAND NEW winter tradition." The Columbus Dispatch holiday guide lists it from Nov. 14 through Dec. 31. Hours are 6 to 9 p.m. Monday through Thursday and 5:30 to 9 p.m. Friday through Sunday. It is closed every Monday in November, on Thanksgiving Day and on Christmas Day.
With Monday, Nov. 16 dark, that leaves five open nights between the debut and the Zoo's opening on Nov. 20. After that, every other big light show in the county will be open too.
Ticket options for the ballpark:
- General admission: $12 in advance or $13 day of. Nightly tickets are limited, and everyone age 3 and up needs one.
- Flex voucher: $15. It lets you pick any night you want instead of committing to one date.
- Season pass: $75. It covers one admission on every date plus one free train ride per visit, and it can be transferred.
- Private igloos: $300 for groups of eight or more.
- Train ride: $5 per guest, bought on site.
The season pass is easy to work out. One night with a train ride costs $17 with an advance ticket, so the pass costs less than buying single nights once you go five times. The flex voucher costs $3 more than a dated ticket, and that $3 buys you the freedom to wait for good weather.
Clippers Curling has two lanes open nightly in the Right Field Plaza. A 300-drone light show from Vector Aerial Systems runs at 7:45 p.m. on 35 of the dates. A mechanical reindeer ride shows up only on Friday, Dec. 11 and Friday, Dec. 18.
Then Eight Openings Land in Three Days
Starting Friday, Nov. 20, the calendar fills up quickly.
| Day | Event | Where | Admission | New this year, per the organizer |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fri., Nov. 20 | Wildlights | Columbus Zoo and Aquarium, 4850 W. Powell Road | Included with Zoo admission | Starlight Safari, Bricktopia LEGO builds, Starlight Constellation Quest, included rides |
| Fri., Nov. 20 | Wanderlights | Columbus Commons, West Town Street, Scioto Mile Fountain | Free | New lighting on the Lazarus Building water tower |
| Sat., Nov. 21 | Conservatory Aglow | Franklin Park Conservatory, 1777 E. Broad St. | Ticketed | Whirly Tree by Tork Inc., life-sized Candyland |
| Sat., Nov. 21 | Holiday Blooms | Franklin Park Conservatory | Ticketed | "Reimagined in new spaces" |
| Sat., Nov. 21 | COSI Season of Celebrations | COSI, 333 W. Broad St. | Atrium free; rest of COSI requires general admission | Winter Chill Speakeasy |
| Sat., Nov. 21 | WinterFest | Dorrian Green, 50 S. Belle St. | Free | New date for 2026 |
| Sat., Nov. 21 | Christkindlmarkt Dublin | Riverside Crossing Park, Downtown Dublin | Free | First year |
| Sun., Nov. 22 | Holiday Lights Celebration | Creekside District, Gahanna | Free | Not specified |
Saturday is the busiest day of the three. The COSI tree lighting is at 11 a.m. in the atrium, which is free. WinterFest follows from noon to 4 p.m. on Dorrian Green, with local music, food trucks and seasonal craft beer and cocktails, presented by Columbus Recreation and Parks. COSI and WinterFest are on the same morning-to-afternoon schedule this year, so one downtown trip covers both. In the evening, Aglow opens at 5 p.m. on East Broad Street.
On Sunday, Gahanna's Holiday Lights Celebration runs from 3 to 6:30 p.m. in the Creekside District. It has train rides, a snow globe, Santa's tree lighting with fireworks, and a Creekside display of more than 300,000 lights.
What the Opening Weekend Costs
Prices vary widely across these events. Several are free, and of the paid ones, the Clippers charge less than the others.
The Columbus Zoo has its own discount for county residents. Admission includes Wildlights, and the Zoo's posted online starting prices for ages 10 to 59 are $24.95 for Franklin County residents and $34.95 for everyone else. That $10 gap per adult adds up quickly if you bring visiting family. The Zoo also suggests arriving before dark to see the animals before they go in for the night.
Conservatory Aglow charges $28.35 for adults Sunday through Thursday. The price goes up to $30.45 on Fridays, Saturdays and Dec. 26 to 31, according to the Dispatch. Individual, Duo, Senior and Family memberships get 50% off. The Conservatory strongly recommends reservations. It is closed on Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, and Aglow is also closed Dec. 2 and 3 for a Cocktails at the Conservatory event. COSI general admission runs $30 for adults and $25 for ages 2 to 12.
Compared with those prices, the Clippers' $12 ticket is the cheapest paid light show this season. Four of the openings that weekend are free.
Dublin's New Market Is Built for Repeat Visits
Christkindlmarkt Dublin is the other new event this year. It works differently from the light shows, because it is designed for repeat visits. According to the market's launch announcement, it follows a 2022 feasibility study by the City of Dublin and a competitive selection process. Admission is free.
"Christkindlmarkt is more than a place to visit — it's a place people return to every year because of how it makes them feel."
Maria Adele Rosenfeld, CEO of Christkindlmarkt Dublin, LLC, said that in the same announcement. The market is starting a series of collectible Glühwein mugs with a new design each year, and each mug is sold only during its own season. The food listed includes German pretzels, sausages, schnitzel and Käsespätzle.
Check the hours before you go, because they don't follow a typical shopping week:
- Wednesday and Thursday, 4 to 9 p.m.
- Friday and Saturday, noon to 9 p.m.
- Sunday, noon to 8 p.m.
- Closed Monday and Tuesday, except Dec. 21 and 22, when it opens noon to 9 p.m.
- Closed Thanksgiving Day, and open noon to 4 p.m. on Christmas Eve, its last day
Parking is on the street and in the Downtown Dublin garages, including Bridge Park, Bridge Park West and the Rock Cress Parking Garage.
December Moves to One-Night Events
Once the season-long events are open, the rest of the calendar is mostly single nights. Most of them land on weekends, one after another:
- Sun., Nov. 29: Worthington's Holiday Open House runs noon to 5 p.m. The Tree Illumination is at 5:30 p.m. on the Village Green at SR 161 and High Street.
- Fri., Dec. 4: Yuletide on Gay runs 5 to 9 p.m. at Gay and High streets, with illuminated ice sculptures and an outdoor bar. The first Wander Night is the same evening.
- Sat., Dec. 5: The Short North Holiday Hop runs noon to 8 p.m. on High Street from W. 2nd Ave. to E. Russell St. It has a maker market with 150-plus vendors, live ice sculpting and a Hanukkah lighting at 6:30 p.m.
- Sun., Dec. 6: German Village Lights runs 4 to 8 p.m., with luminarias, food trucks and vendors.
- Fri. and Sat., Dec. 11 and 12: Holidays at Ohio Village runs 5:30 to 9 p.m. at 800 E. 17th Ave. in the newly renovated village. Adult tickets are $18. Public ticket sales open Nov. 16, nearly four weeks ahead of the event.
Wander Nights take place every Friday and Saturday from Dec. 4 through Dec. 19, from 5 to 9 p.m. A free covered trolley stops at Columbus Commons, Bicentennial Park and the Lazarus Building Galleria. Columbus Commons has complimentary hot chocolate and carousel rides, the Scioto Mile Fountain has fire pits, and Santa visits the Lazarus Building. On Dec. 11 and 18, the same nights as the ballpark's mechanical reindeer, the Arena District and downtown both have special programming.
After New Year's, Downtown Keeps the Lights On
The paid events close in quick succession. The Clippers end on Dec. 31. Wildlights, Conservatory Aglow and COSI's Season of Celebrations all end Jan. 3, 2027.
Wanderlights stays on from 5 to 10 p.m. every night through Feb. 14, 2027. That's about six weeks after the others close, and it's free. It has more than half a million lights across Columbus Commons, West Town Street and the Scioto Mile Fountain. The fountain gets more than 40 sculptural lights and 75 wrapped trees.
If guests this season ask what Franklin County is like the rest of the year, or the holidays have you thinking about your own next move, Anthony Rose Homes is glad to talk it through. Let's Connect.
