PNC Festival of Lights at Cincinnati Zoo 2024-2025 in Midwest

The annual Cincinnati Zoo Festival of Lights is a dazzling way to get into the holiday spirit. Running since the 1980s, it starts in mid-November and ends in early January. With 3 million LED lights and several displays, The Cincinnati Zoo is transformed into a “wild wonderland.”

PNC Festival of Lights Highlights

Visitors can watch a puppet show, ride the Toyland Express, look for fairies in Fairyland, wander in Candy Cane Forest, and visit Frozen characters and a Gingerbread Village. Santa is available for visits every day from 4 p.m. The main highlight of the Park is a spectacular Wild Lights show on Swan Lake. This synchronized light‘n’music show is around a 21-foot-tall tree decorated with thousands of lights, a must-see for children and adults. Ride the North Polar Express Train and Conservation Carousel rides begins at 2:30 pm daily.

The Cincinnati Zoo also features a 4-D Special-FX Theater with high-definition, 3-D projection, and amazing sensory effects like wind, mist, and scents to tell a story about a boy's trip to the North Pole.

Festival Hours

The festival runs from Sunday to Thursday from 10 am to 9 pm, and on Friday and Saturday from 10 am to 10 pm. PNC Festival of Lights activities kicks off at 4 pm. Cincinnati Zoo opens at 10 am daily. You can come to the zoo early to see adorable animals and stay to see the lights in the evening. The Zoo doesn't operate on Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve, and Christmas Day.

Tickets

The PNC Festival of Lights is included with Zoo admission. Adult tickets (ages 13-61) range from $17 to $26, while child tickets (ages 3-12) range from $11 to $20. The Cincinnati Zoo also offers a variety of discounts for visitors.