I love this time of year. That magical month between Thanksgiving and New Years when I can hear Christmas music everywhere I go and the Christmas fun is endless! Buuuut some of this fun is expensive for a family of four, especially after Santa steals my debit card and goes nuts in the Target toy aisle. Happens every year. (WTF, Santa?! Control yourself!)
After the crazy popularity of my Good, Cheap Fun and Good, Cheap Getaway posts from last summer, I thought some FREE Christmas Fun would be much appreciated by my local followers. This post is about a little Christmas car ride you can take through Chicago’s west suburbs. We do this tour every year with the kids, and they love it! Plus it is a totally free night out with the whole family!
First things first, if you are going on a Christmas car adventure you need a few things:
- Candy canes
- Christmas cookies
- Obnoxiously large holiday bucket of popcorn
- Thermos full of hot chocolate
- 1 roll of paper towels (because somebody always spills their hot chocolate)
- Your favorite holiday music playlist
- GPS (because who tries to find random addresses without one anymore)
- Christmas cheer
Sooo…all packed up and ready to go have some free Christmas fun???
READ ON!
Stop #1: Candy Cane Canyon Trail
371 Canyon Trail, Carol Stream, IL 60188
This display is totally FREE. The lights are on 4:30 PM – 10:00 PM Sunday – Thursday and 4:30 PM – 11:00 PM Friday and Saturday through January 1st.
This house is literally a gingerbread house, and the evergreen trees sing! This is so cute and perfect for little kids to watch. You pull up and tune your radio to 101.5 FM, sit back and enjoy. They play a rotation of Christmas classics and even added “Let It Go” to the playlist this year. You can get out of the car and take a closer look, but keep in mind you can’t hear the music since it broadcasts to the car radio. My girls loved it.
Mom-to-mom notes: It can get a little congested on weekends. Plan to visit on a weeknight if you want to pull up to a good spot. There is no bathroom, so plan potty stops accordingly. You do not have to exit the car for anything unless you want to, so just pass out the snacks in the warm car and relax without the need for bundling up!
Stop #2: The Festival of Lights at Cosley Zoo
1356 North Gary Avenue, Wheaton, IL 60187
This event is FREE, however, optional donations are accepted. Lights are on from 3:00 PM – 9:00 PM through December 30th.
Adorable. Just adorable. I love this cute little zoo on a regular day, so seeing it decked out with the lights is just awesome! Walk through the zoo to check out all the light displays, stop in the barn to warm up and visit some animals, grab some hot chocolate by the gift shop and even pick out your Christmas tree to take home. There were Christmas carolers singing by the duck pond when we were there, and I loved every second of it. The kids were happy to stretch their legs and check out the animals.
Mom-to-mom notes: Bundle up! You will be getting out of the car and walking around outside to see the lights in the zoo. The paths are all stroller-friendly, and there are bathrooms for potty checks and diaper changes. Parking gets INSANE on weekends – plan to wait for a spot to open up. On a weeknight we were able to pull right up with no wait.
Stop #3: Aurora Festival of Lights at Philips Park
1000 Ray Moses Drive, Aurora, IL 60505
This event is FREE, but optional donations are collected at the exit. Lights are on from 5:00 PM – 9:00 PM Sunday – Thursday and from 5:00 PM – 10:00 PM Friday and Saturday through December 27th.
This is a drive-through display. No need to bundle up – Just pass out the snacks, crank up the Christmas music and enjoy! The kids absolutely love this. There are animated light displays of Christmas trains, Santa’s workshop, flying reindeer and more. Plus the woods are literally glowing with twinkling lights, icicles and snowflakes. It is a beautiful display! The whole family enjoys it every year!
Mom-to-mom notes: I didn’t time it, but if I had to guess I think it took us about 15-20 minutes to drive through the whole thing. There is no bathroom, so plan your potty stops accordingly. You cannot stop your car once you enter the display. We were able to drive right up on a weeknight, but last year we had a bit of a wait on a Saturday. Try to come on a weeknight if you want to avoid long wait times.
Ready for the grand finale?! Drum roll please……
Stop #4: Larsen’s Light Show
42W891 Beith Road, Elburn, IL 60119
Totally FREE, but there is a donation box at the entrance and exit of the parking area. Lights are on from 5:00 PM – 10:30 PM Sunday – Thursday and 5:00 PM – 12:00 AM Friday and Saturday through January 2nd.
You guys. This house. Amazes me. Tune your radio to 88.5 FM, pass out the last of the snacks and prepare to be blown away. Literally every tiny Christmas light bulb is synchronized to the music. This entire house comes to life. I am telling you it’s magical. In addition to some classic Christmas tunes, they play songs from the Frozen soundtrack and support the Blackhawks! CLICK HERE to view videos of this house in action. I promise it is worth the drive, and worth the wait! The kids go nuts over this display – and, clearly, so do I! 🙂
Mom-to-mom notes: Be prepared for long wait times, ESPECIALLY on weekends! You will still wait on a weeknight, but it won’t be as bad. I recommend pulling into the parking area so that everybody in your car can relax and watch the whole show. If you choose to stay on Beith Road, you must keep moving. Follow the posted traffic signs – police are enforcing them. There is a port-a-potty in the parking area, but it is pitch black and freezing inside… because it’s night… in winter. (You might think this is common sense, but I learned this the really hard way during a terrorizing potty emergency with my 3-year-old.) Bring a flashlight along if you think you might need to use this port-a-potty, or make a potty stop before you get here.
I hope your family has fun on this Clark Griswold adventure – I know we do! Happy holidays, everybody!
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