10 Best Places to See Christmas Lights in Adelaide
Christmas in the city of Adelaide glimmers! During the holiday season, the streets of Adelaide are adorned by many Christmas light displays that turn the dark night into a sparkling wonderland!
In this article, we have scoured the city and picked the best places to see the most beautiful Christmas light displays in Adelaide.
We based our selection on factors such as the displays’ featured events, the convenience of their location, and their overall beauty.
Continue reading and find out why the holidays are grander and brighter in this city!
The Festival Lights of Lobethal
| Why You Should See This: This festival of Christmas lights holds the title as the biggest Christmas light display in the entirety of the Southern Hemisphere. |
| Location | Lobethal, Adelaide Hills |
| Price | Free |
When a display of Christmas lights attracts more than 250,000 visitors yearly, you know that it’s truly special.
With over 700 homes and businesses adorned by dazzling Christmas lights and other colorful Christmas ornaments, Lights of Lobethal never fails to captivate the eyes.
This festival of Christmas lights also showcases nativity scenes reenacted twice per night, an exciting pageant on Christmas Eve, and caroling performances across the area.
The Lights of Lobethal is also historic, as it has 60 years of history behind its displays.
You can catch this annual festival lighting up the Adelaide Hills usually from the first week of December up to Christmas eve.
Disney Wishes on Chelmsford Street
| Why You Should See This: This is the perfect Christmas escapade because you won’t just be entertained by the Christmas light displays there, but you’ll also be helping a cause! |
| Location | Chelmsford Street, Craigmore |
| Price | Free |
This annual Christmas light display in the Craigmore suburb doesn’t just capture your eyes with glistening colors, it will also let you interact with Disney characters and superheroes.
There are also bubbles and balloons dancing in the air of this colorful place!
The true spirit of Christmas makes this event even brighter.
The proceeds that will be garnered from the raffle and the multiple food and toy stalls in this display will be donated to Make-A-Wish Australia.
They raised an amount of $2,286.55 last December of 2022!
The general light display of this event runs from December 1 up to December 30. Special events like the raffle and fairs take place on all the Fridays and Saturdays that lead up to Christmas.
Riverbank Christmas Display
| Why You Should See This: It has activities, spectacles, and stalls that are perfect for family bonding. |
| Location | Corner Port Road and Adam Street, Hindmarsh |
| Price | Free |
The Riverbank Christmas Display is so iconic that it is considered a South Australian family tradition. For over 60 years, this Christmas light display has embellished the River Torrens with festive lights and fascinating structures.
Some of the activities, spectacles, and stalls found in the Riverbank Christmas Display include clowns, donut shops, coffee stands, a teacup ride, and kiosks for merchandise. Families may also go for picnics by the shining riverbank.
This event will light up the River Torrens starting late November up to late December.
The Giant Christmas Tree of Adelaide
| Why You Should See This: With 13,616 individually programmable LED lights, this 25-meter tall iconic Christmas Tree is a scintillating sight to behold! |
| Location | Victoria Square/Tarntanyangga, Adelaide |
| Price | Free |
Speaking of iconic Christmas light displays, the Giant Christmas Tree of Adelaide is definitely considered one of them.
With a shimmering Christmas centerpiece surrounded by calming city lights and fountains, visiting this display has also become a family tradition.
The lighting loops of this massive Christmas tree are also noteworthy. These loops have colorful patterns that form Christmas characters, stars, snow animals, and treats like candies and cake!
The Giant Christmas Tree of Adelaide will light up the horizon starting November 18 up to January 4.
Ingle Farm’s Christmas House
| Why You Should See This: This Christmas home in Ingle Farm is perfect for those looking for a Christmas spot that isn’t overcrowded because this place is a lesser-known but equally captivating spectacle. |
| Location | Ingle Farm, Adelaide |
| Price | Free |
This home in Ingle farm is an underrated Christmas wonderland that flickers with over 50,000 Christmas lights. Inside, this home is also full of bright-colored Christmas decorations such as toys and figurines of Christmas characters!
Because it’s less crowded, this Christmas lights display is also a more relaxing spot compared to the other displays on this list. With few people strolling around, this area is Christmas tranquility at its finest.
You can visit this enticing Christmas house at Ingle Farm during the holiday season. There’s no exact date when this house will turn into a colorful Christmas paradise, but it typically opens in early December.
Ninth Avenue
| Why You Should See This: Going to Ninth Avenue’s splendid Christmas light display is a fantastic experience because some houses on this street have mini carousels that play Christmas carols. |
| Location | Ninth Avenue, St Peters |
| Price | Free |
With over 70 houses gleaming with gorgeous Christmas lights, Ninth Avenue’s festive display shines with the holiday spirit.
The Christmas light display is also just a 5-minute drive east of Adelaide. We highly recommend seeing this one on foot because by doing so, you’ll fully appreciate the splendor of every single house.
All of the Christmas activities here will start on December 1 and will end on January 1.
The Christmas Home of Bond Street
| Why You Should See This: You shouldn’t miss Bond Street’s Christmas home because it has over 50,000 Christmas lights, interactive features, snow machines, and smoke machines! |
| Location | Bond Street, West Hindmarsh |
| Price | Free |
The Christmas home in Bond Street basks in all of Christmas’ colors—red, green, gold, blue, and white.
With cartoon characters and a beautiful replica of the Nativity scene, this home is a Christmas sanctuary! This display is ideal for those who are not satisfied by just looking around at the beautiful lights.
Here, you can play with snow machines and other interactive features—making it a fun Christmas experience!
There’s no specific date when this home gets lit up in the glamor of Christmas lights, but typically the display begins around December and ends in January.
Mix 102.3’s Christmas Lights Competition
| Why You Should See This: Mix 102.3’s Christmas Lights Competition is an exceptional Christmas adventure because you’ll get to visit multiple areas of Adelaide adorned by astonishing Christmas lights, holiday ornaments, and replicas of Christmas characters. |
Mix 102.3’s Christ Lights Competition is a contest that spans the entirety of Adelaide.
We advise bringing a car while checking out these areas. If you don’t own one, you can rent a car from any of these car rentals we can vouch for.
Mix 102.3’s competition typically begins in late November and ends in late December.
Rostrevor
| Why You Should See This: Rostrevor’s Christmas light display is a must-see attraction because it spans across different streets on the east side of Adelaide, and each street offers different themes and colors. |
| Locations | Redden CourtOrania AvenueLaurence Street |
| Price | Free |
Located on the east side of Adelaide, Rostrevor’s Christmas light display spans across different streets. With thousands of lights sparkling from home to home, this display encapsulates the overflowing joy of Christmas festivities!
What makes Rostrevor’s display of lights amazing is its variety. Given that numerous houses are involved in this annual festival, it’s safe to say that not all of them will look the same.
There are houses with light zoos, there are those decorated with cartoon and movie characters, and some are embellished with traditional Christmas decorations.
This event runs throughout the whole month of December.
Santa’s Wonderland
| Why You Should See This: Santa’s Wonderland does not only offer a magnificent display of Christmas lights and decorations, but it also has other Christmas activities like ice skating, story-telling, letter-writing, and interactive games that are perfect for families. |
| Location | Goodwood Rd, Wayville |
| Price | $40-$50 |
Santa’s Wonderland is a popular Christmas event wherein kids and their loved ones can bond on three brightly-lit Christmas zones that include an ice rink, a Christmas-themed playground, and a story-telling area.
In these areas, you’ll get to see Christmas decorations and lights that brighten up Christmas trees, arctic animals, Santa’s sleigh, and replicas of Christmas characters!
This is also one of the perfect places in Adelaide for birthdays that fall within the Christmas season and other types of parties!
This event traditionally runs from December 2 up to December 24 but can be extended depending on the demand.
