POWELL, Ohio — Wildlights, the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium’s holiday light display, returns for its 38th year on Friday, November 20, 2026, and runs through January 3, 2027, the Zoo announced this week. The Powell attraction will again cover the grounds in millions of LED lights, with festivities beginning nightly at 5 p.m. — running until 9 p.m. Sundays through Thursdays and 10 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays — and admission included with regular Zoo admission or membership, according to the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium.
The Zoo opens at noon during Wildlights season, giving families time to see animals before the evening displays switch on, the Zoo said. Wildlights will not operate on Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Eve, or Christmas Day. The event is powered by Ohio Power Company, and the Zoo notes its energy-efficient LED lighting reflects a conservation commitment behind its mission of empowering people and saving wildlife.
Two attractions headline what is new this year, according to the Zoo. Starlight Safari will fill Adventure Cove with seven larger-than-life, three-dimensional illuminated animal displays — a polar bear, an Asian elephant and calf, a Florida manatee, a western lowland gorilla arriving in December, a Masai giraffe, a red kangaroo, and a California sea lion — each representing one of the Zoo’s regions. Nearby, the returning Pixel Passage offers a walk through a 200-foot illuminated tunnel of 32,000 pixels of light.
Also new is Bricktopia, a walk-through display inside the interpretive center in the Asia Quest region created with OhioLUG, a recognized LEGO fan community. The Zoo said the exhibit includes nine mosaics of its character ambassadors, a brick-built train display, a holiday animal village, and a life-sized polar bear cub sculpture built from more than 24,000 bricks. The train ride, the Yule Tide Dino Island Boat Ride, and the Grand Carousel are also included with admission this year, the Zoo said.
Returning favorites include the animated musical light displays on Conservation Lake, the Oak Ridge Bears Jingle Jamboree in Polar Frontier, Jingle Jam in the Shores region, and the Santa Experience, also in Polar Frontier, according to the Zoo. From January 1 through January 3, the lake show adds a Centennial-themed display marking the start of the Zoo’s 100th anniversary year in 2027.
Several special evenings are scheduled before and during the run, the Zoo said. A sensory-friendly Light Stroll is set for November 17 from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m., with smaller crowds, reduced background sound, sensory kits, and a calming room; it is free for members with advance registration. Members get their own preview night on November 19, an adults-only Brew Lights follows on November 28, and a sensory-friendly Santa experience is planned for December 6.
The Zoo encourages guests to buy tickets online in advance, arrive early to see animals before they settle in for the night, and allow extra travel time on weekends, when Wildlights traffic around Powell is heaviest. Full hours, tickets, and reservations for the Wildlights VIP Tour and Reindeer Experience are on the Zoo’s Wildlights page at columbuszoo.org.