Categories: Things To Do

Niagara’s dazzling Winter Festival of Lights starts next month with bigger plans than ever

Photo via OPG

It’s about to get festive in Niagara Falls for the annual Winter Festival of Lights! Known as Canada’s biggest free outdoor light festival, the 8-km trail is returning in November with millions of lights on display for even longer than before.

This time around, the festival will run for 101 nights from November 13th all the way until the end of February, so you can enjoy the breathtaking twinkling lights well beyond the holidays.

The two-part event will feature holiday-themed displays until January 9th and will transform into a Winter Wonderland for the remainder of the festival, with a slightly different festival route and a focus on winter and love-themed installations.

Over 3 million lights will shine along the Niagara Parkway, Dufferin Islands, and across Niagara Falls. You’ll be able to drive and walk through the displays illuminating Niagara throughout the winter season.

This year’s schedule of weekend events will be announced closer to the festival’s start date. If you’re doing a walking tour, you’ll want to bundle up for your journey along the festival route.

Many hotels and restaurants around Niagara Falls also offer views of the lights, so you can even make a little weekend trip out of it. That way you’ll also have time to check out the Niagara Falls Christmas Market, which runs from November 13th to December 22nd.

The falls are especially breathtaking in the wintertime, especially when they freeze over. Although, according to Niagara Parks, the falls themselves don’t actually freeze. The mist and spray on top of the rushing water freezes and forms a crust, but the falls continue to rush underneath.

Needless to say, this is a beautiful time of year to visit the falls, and the best part is that the Winter Festival of Lights is free to attend. So you’ve got extra money to spend on handmade gifts and hot chocolate at the holiday market.