IllustrationChristmas lights · light trails · light festivals
Christmas Lights in NZ 2026: 34 Places in 17 Towns and Cities
From Auckland's Franklin Road and the MOTAT lights to Christchurch's NotEnoughLights, New Plymouth's TSB Festival of Lights and Hastings' Fiesta of Lights: 34 places across New Zealand with dates, prices, how to get there and tips.
📍 Find the nearestuntil Christmas
Christmas lights near you
We list light displays, trees, festivals and organised home trails from event organisers, councils, tourism and community sites. Dates are from the last confirmed season; 2026 dates are added when organisers publish them. Many NZ lights are home displays run by families and change every year, so check the current map before you go.
The most searched Christmas markets in 2026
Christmas lights by city
🧒 With kids
- Franklin Road Christmas Lights · Auckland
- MOTAT Christmas Lights · Auckland
- Te Manaaki, Auckland's Giant Christmas Tree · Auckland
- Glenbrook Vintage Railway: Christmas Lights Trains at Night · Auckland
- Ōtara Block Christmas Lights · Auckland
- Light Me Up Manurewa · Auckland
✨ Date night
- Franklin Road Christmas Lights · Auckland
- MOTAT Christmas Lights · Auckland
- Te Manaaki, Auckland's Giant Christmas Tree · Auckland
- Glenbrook Vintage Railway: Christmas Lights Trains at Night · Auckland
- Lights to Remember at Mercy Hospice · Auckland
- Sky Tower Christmas Lighting · Auckland
🎉 With friends
- Franklin Road Christmas Lights · Auckland
- MOTAT Christmas Lights · Auckland
- Te Manaaki, Auckland's Giant Christmas Tree · Auckland
- Ōtara Block Christmas Lights · Auckland
- Light Me Up Manurewa · Auckland
- Christmas Lightshow and Walkthrough at Eastgate · Auckland
Christmas lights in other cities
Dunedin
IllustrationChristmas tree · Dunedin
Dunedin Octagon Christmas Tree
The city's giant Christmas tree in the Octagon, decorated with baubles and fairy lights; the council bought it in 2019 and spends around $20,000 a year to install it.
🧒 With kids🎉 With friendsWhat's there
- Tree in the middle of the Octagon
- Civic lighting-of-the-tree event with a performance
- Santa follows the tree in November
Dunedin's one big lights landmark - combine it with a walk round the Octagon's cafes.
- Dates
- 2025: erected in the lower Octagon in November; tree stays up over the Christmas period
- Cost
- Free
Getting there and parking
- The Octagon is the city's central plaza, on foot from everywhere in the CBD.
Worth knowing
- A performer's event page lists the 2026 lighting for Saturday 28 November, with the show at 8.30pm - confirm with Dunedin City Council.
- Reported height varies by source (around 10 m).
Hastings
IllustrationLight festival · Hastings
Fiesta of Lights
A family light festival at the Tomoana Showgrounds: a tree-lined trail of illuminated displays, including Toyland and a searchlight, plus bubble performances and a glow-in-the-dark zone in the Exhibition Hall.
🧒 With kids🎉 With friendsWhat's there
- Light trail through tree-lined grounds (59 displays in 2022)
- Toyland display
- Glow-in-the-dark zone in the Exhibition Hall
- Open every night including Christmas Day
Hawke's Bay's paid light festival - cheap at $7 and runs over Christmas and New Year.
- 2026
- Saturday 12 December 2026 to Sunday 3 January 2027, including Christmas Day, 9pm-11pm nightly (official site)
- Last season
- 2025: 13 December 2025 to 4 January 2026 (Hastings District Council)
- Cost
- $7 per person; under 3s free
Getting there and parking
- Free parking at the showgrounds via Gate 3 (Kenilworth Road) or Gate 4 (Karamu Road/SH51). New Year's Eve parking for online ticket holders only, using Gate 1 with exit via Gate 13.
Worth knowing
- Book online or buy at the gate from 8.30pm nightly.
- Cash, EFTPOS, Paywave and credit cards are accepted without a surcharge; tickets can be shown on a screenshot.
Invercargill
IllustrationLight street or trail · Invercargill
Invercargill Christmas Lights Community Showcase
A map of homes that entered the Professionals Invercargill Christmas Lights Community Showcase, including addresses such as 295 Bay Road, 608 North Road (Lorneville) and 71 Harvey Street (Grasmere). Invercargill's council stopped its inner-city street lights in 2024 as a cost cut, so the homes are the main display.
🧒 With kids🎉 With friendsWhat's there
- Community-entered home displays across the city
- Map and winners listed on What's On Invers
Invercargill's lights are a drive around the entered houses - use the map.
- Dates
- December 2025 (map published 12 December; prizes announced 23 December)
- Cost
- Free self-guided trail
Getting there and parking
- Use the community showcase map; entrants are scattered around the city.
Worth knowing
- Addresses change each year - use the current map.
- A separate Southland Christmas Lights Facebook page also lists the houses.
Kāpiti Coast
- Illustration
Light street or trail · Kāpiti Coast
Kāpiti Christmas Lights Trail
Visit Kāpiti's official Christmas Lights Map, created with Kāpiti Castles: homes, businesses and community groups can register and be added to the map.
🧒 With kids🎉 With friendsWhat's there
- Official map for the whole coast
- Homes, businesses and events
The Kāpiti drive: use the official map.
- Dates
- 2025: Visit Kāpiti's official Christmas Lights Trail map
- Cost
- Free self-guided trail
Getting there and parking
- Use the Visit Kāpiti map for the current address list.
Worth knowing
- Registrations close before the trail opens each year.
Napier
IllustrationLight street or trail · Napier
Tremains Christmas Lights Trail
A self-guided trail of decorated homes and businesses in Napier and Taradale and in Hastings and Havelock North, with downloadable maps for each. Bus tours also run.
🧒 With kids🎉 With friendsWhat's there
- Separate maps for Napier/Taradale and Hastings/Havelock North
- Bus tours departing from Napier, Taradale, Hastings and Havelock North
The Hawke's Bay street-lights option - download the map and drive the loop, or take the bus tour.
- Dates
- 2025: on until 23 December (Tremains Real Estate)
- Cost
- Free self-guided trail
Getting there and parking
- Download the trail map from Tremains; each map covers one pair of towns.
Worth knowing
- Bus-tour tickets are sold on Eventbrite by Tremains.
Nelson
- Illustration
Christmas tree · Nelson
Nelson Cathedral Christmas Tree Festival
More than 70 decorated trees fill the cathedral with light and colour after a Light Up service on 26 November 2025.
✨ Date night🎉 With friendsWhat's there
- Over 70 trees inside the cathedral
- Light Up service to open the festival
A cosy indoor stop - Nelson's most visible Christmas lights.
- Dates
- 2025: Light Up Service Wednesday 26 November, 6pm-7pm; over 70 trees open to the public afterwards
- Cost
- Public viewing; price not stated in the source
Getting there and parking
- Nelson Cathedral, Trafalgar Square, at the top of Trafalgar Street.
Worth knowing
- Nelson Bay's Apex Park Christmas trees were lit on Monday 1 December 2025 from 5pm to 9.30pm (Instagram post).
New Plymouth
- Illustration
Light festival · New Plymouth
TSB Festival of Lights
New Zealand's best-known summer light festival: lighting installations in Pukekura Park together with live music, whanau entertainment, film and art over five weeks.
🧒 With kids✨ Date night🎉 With friendsWhat's there
- World-class lighting installations around the park lakes
- Live music and whanau-friendly entertainment
- Runs for five weeks over the summer holidays
- Free entry
The one worth a road trip: a free, park-wide light festival that runs from the week before Christmas into late January.
- 2026
- 19 December 2026 to 24 January 2027 (five weeks); full programme announced 23 November
- Last season
- 2025/26 season: 20 December 2025 to 24 January 2026, every night 8.30pm-11pm, rain or shine
- Cost
- Free
Getting there and parking
- Pukekura Park, New Plymouth city centre; check the festival site for parking and shuttle details.
Worth knowing
- The festival starts only a few days before Christmas, so it is not a pre-Christmas option.
- Entertainment line-up is published each year around late November.
Palmerston North
- Illustration
Light street or trail · Palmerston North
Christmas Lights On JFK
A volunteer-run street lights display on JFK Drive that celebrated 10 years of lighting up the Manawatu in 2025, with a piano turned into a lights feature in earlier years.
🧒 With kids🎉 With friendsWhat's there
- Ten-year community tradition
- Light displays all along the street
- Families walk or drive past
Palmerston North's best-known lights - but a short run of about a week, so check the dates.
- Dates
- 2025 (10th year): opening night 15 December, running to about 19-20 December
- Cost
- Free
Getting there and parking
- JFK Drive, Palmerston North; see the display's Facebook page.
Worth knowing
- The 2025 run was short (opening night 15 December and a final-night post around 19-20 December).
Pukekohe
- Illustration
Light street or trail · Pukekohe
Paerata Rise: Light Up the Town
A subdivision where homes put on epic light displays, with 12 days of events around them including candy cane hunts, Santa appearances and horse rides.
🧒 With kids🎉 With friendsWhat's there
- Epic home light displays
- Candy cane hunts and Santa appearances
- Horse rides in the 12-day programme
Worth the drive south if you want lights plus events for the kids.
- Dates
- 2025: from 12 December, nightly from 7pm, with 12 days of festive events
- Cost
- See paeratarise.co.nz
Getting there and parking
- Paerata Rise, Pukekohe - drive from Auckland; see the organisers' site for the schedule.
Worth knowing
- The full schedule of events is on paeratarise.co.nz.
Rotorua
- Illustration
Light street or trail · Rotorua
EVES Rotorua Christmas Lights Trail
A self-guided trail of 20 decorated properties across Rotorua, organised by EVES, with a map posted on its website.
🧒 With kids🎉 With friendsWhat's there
- 20 properties across the city
- Self-guided, in your own car or on foot
- Map published on the EVES website
The easy Rotorua evening drive - download the map and go after dark.
- Dates
- 2025: 1-22 December, 7.30pm-10.30pm
- Cost
- Free self-guided trail
Getting there and parking
- Use the trail map on eves.co.nz/christmaslights.
Worth knowing
- Trail lights are on from 7.30pm to 10.30pm.
Stratford
- Illustration
Light street or trail · Stratford
Stratford Christmas Lights Trail
A district trail of decorated properties with a full list on the council's events page; Taranaki Media also keeps an interactive map of lit homes across Taranaki.
🧒 With kids🎉 With friendsWhat's there
- Council-listed trail
- Extended tour held on 22 December 2025
Combine it with the TSB Festival of Lights in New Plymouth.
- Dates
- 2025: 5-31 December
- Cost
- Free self-guided trail
Getting there and parking
- Use the full list on the Stratford District Council page.
Worth knowing
- An extended tour ran on 22 December 2025.
Wellington
- Illustration
Light street or trail · Wellington
Northern Suburbs Christmas Lights
A map of decorated homes across the northern suburbs, launched with a hot-chocolate drive-through at a Ray White office in Johnsonville (20 Moorefield Road) on 6 December 2025.
🧒 With kids🎉 With friendsWhat's there
- Interactive map of decorated homes
- Hot-chocolate drive-through launch in Johnsonville
What visitors say
A December 2025 r/Wellington thread asks where to see houses lit up in the city, and whether Wellington has anything like New Plymouth's Festival of Lights.
The best-organised home-lights map we found for Wellington; a fuller Wellington list is still to be checked.
- Dates
- 2025: map launched around 6 December
- Cost
- Free self-guided trail
Getting there and parking
- Use the map; drive the northern suburbs loop from Johnsonville.
Worth knowing
- Pick up the map via the Johnsonville Ray White office or its social pages.
Whangārei
- Illustration
Light street or trail · Whangārei
Whangārei Christmas Lights Trail
A Whangarei community group lists more than 140 decorated homes on a map, and a radio station plays a matching playlist; a Totara Parklands home display won the best Christmas Lights Challenge in 2025.
🧒 With kids🎉 With friendsWhat's there
- More than 140 listed displays
- Matching playlist on 88fm
- Totara Parklands display won the 2025 Christmas Lights Challenge
Whangarei's lights are a drive: pick a map and go after dark.
- 2026
- Whangārei Christmas Festival 28 November - 25 December 2026
- Last season
- 2026 Whangārei Christmas Festival runs from 28 November to 25 December 2026 across the district (Council)
- Cost
- Free self-guided trail
Getting there and parking
- Use the Facebook group's map.
Worth knowing
- Council's Christmas Festival runs 28 November to 25 December 2026.
Auckland: Franklin Road, MOTAT and the big tree
Franklin Road in Ponsonby is the classic free street of lights, on nightly in December. MOTAT is the big ticketed one: a million lights, a Light Tunnel and tram rides on 12 nights, and it sells out. Te Manaaki, an 18.4 m tree at Te Komititanga, is the CBD stop, and Ōtara and Manurewa have large community street displays.
Christchurch, Hamilton and the regions
Christchurch has the ticketed Shands Rd Xmas Experience and the free, music-synced NotEnoughLights in Hornby. Hamilton has the 27 m SkyCity tree and the free Temple View lights. New Plymouth's TSB Festival of Lights and Hastings' Fiesta of Lights run into January.
Light trails: drive-around maps
In Rotorua, Tauranga, Hawke's Bay, Whangārei, Kāpiti and Invercargill, real estate agents, councils and community groups publish maps of decorated homes. They are free and self-guided: park, walk and keep the noise down.
Questions
- Where are the best Christmas lights in Auckland?
- Franklin Road in Ponsonby is the most popular free option and was lit nightly from 1 to 24 December 2025. MOTAT Christmas Lights is the big ticketed night (2025: adults $10, children 5 to 15 $5), and Ōtara Block, Light Me Up Manurewa and Te Manaaki in the CBD are free.
- Do I need tickets for MOTAT Christmas Lights?
- Yes. In 2025 tickets were sold online only, with no door sales, and the event sold out. Under 5s are free but still need a booked ticket.
- Are there Christmas lights in Christchurch?
- Yes. NotEnoughLights in Hornby is free (donations welcome) and re-opens on 28 November 2026. Shands Rd Xmas Experience is ticketed ($15 adults, $5 children in 2025) and was open nightly from 29 November to 30 December.
- When is the TSB Festival of Lights?
- The 2026/27 season runs from 19 December 2026 to 24 January 2027 in Pukekura Park, New Plymouth, and entry is free.
- Are Christmas light trails free?
- Most home trails (Rotorua, Tauranga, Hawke's Bay, Whangārei, Kāpiti, Invercargill) are free and self-guided. Ticketed ones include MOTAT, Glenbrook Vintage Railway ($18 in 2025) and the Fiesta of Lights in Hastings ($7).