5 Free Holiday Displays in Cleveland
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Cleveland may not be home to the dazzling assortment of light displays you will find in big metros like NYC and Chicago, but you can find something fun, festive, & free no matter where you travel. I love holiday roadtrips and exploring unique traditions across the US. This year I am living in a suburb near Cleveland, so I have been exploring the city’s unique traditions.
I love everything about Christmas especially the festive light displays that communities and businesses spend so much time planning and organizing. These lights really help to brighten up a dark and often dreary time of the year. You do not always have to spend tons of money on an overpriced drive-through show to get into the holiday spirit. In this article, I will share some of my favorite displays that will cost you nothing.
Nela Park
- Location: East Cleveland (1975 Noble Rd)
- Highlight: 2024 marked the 100th anniversary
- 2025 Dates/times: Dec. 6th-Jan. 6th. Hours: 24/7
Nela Park is the world’s first industrial park. GE Lighting in East Cleveland puts on quite a festive display each season. 2024 marked the 100th anniversary celebration so there are more festive LED lights than ever before. A bit hard to photograph via driving as the lights are located along a fairly busy road, but a beautiful sight to see at least once nonetheless (and you can’t beat the free admission!).
It is considered to be one of the top lights displays in Northeastern Ohio. As a side note, the neighborhood is considered dangerous, but generally considered safe during the holiday season. Use common sense and consider driving as opposed to walking to see the lights, especially late at night.
Learn more about the history of this long running lights tradition. Enjoy a few pics I took during my visit. As you can see in my photos, this event is super colorful and nicely organized.
Crocker Park
- Location: Westlake (177 Market Street)
- Highlight: Nightly synchronized tree light show, easy access to shops/dining
- 2025 Dates/Times: Tree is lit Nov. 22nd at 6pm, with a Block Party from 4-8pm. Lights stay on until Jan 4th.
Westlake (a suburb 25 min outside of the city) is the place to go for typical suburban shopping and dining. Crocker Park is a popular outdoor mall which puts on a number of festive events each season. This is a great place to take a stroll and enjoy the colorful lights and displays, while also doing a bit of shopping and grabbing a bite to eat. I love all the wire present and ornament displays throughout the mall.
Highlights include a walk through ornament and snowflake light tunnel, photo opps in Santa’s sleigh, and a choreographed nightly show on the 50 foot tree. Entry to the opening night festival is free and the choreographed show (also free) is open throughout the month of December.
If you do feel like grabbing a bit to eat, there are plenty of great choices. I like Condado tacos – their a ala carte tacos are amazing and I love the Elote dip!
Also, check out the winter farmers market, taking place Saturdays from 9am-1pm.
Check out the full guide to holiday activities including times and dates and other special events.
Crown Point Parkway Festival of Lights
- Location: Strongsville (14335 Crown Point Parkway, but they ask you not to park on the Parkway).
- Highlight: Rated one of the top 5 in the country
- 2025 Dates/Times: Thanksgiving – New Year’s Day. Hours: 5:30-10pm (11 on weekends)
If you find yourself in Strongsville (perhaps to do a bit of Christmas shopping at SouthPark Mall), consider planning a quick stop at the Crown Point Parkway cul-de-sac to view the amazing light display. According to Crown’s Facebook page, this outlandish display is ranked as one of the top 5 light events in the country. This is one of the those really over-the-top displays that you often seen featured on the Travel Channel.
I could easily tell that a lot of work and money obviously went into orchestrating this event and taking in the cheer is a nice free way to brighten up the holiday season for local Clevelanders. You can walk or drive – I recommend visiting on a weekday to avoid the crowds. Santa visits on weekends. I love to stop by before hitting my favorite mall in the area (SouthPark).
What I like most about this event is that they collect donations each season and give the money to a local cause or child in need. It’s heartwarming to see something nice being done for the community – now that’s holiday spirit!
Holiday Lights at Carlisle Reservation
- Location: Carlisle Visitor Center in LaGrange (walk through-12882 Diagonal Rd.) and Equestrian Center (drive-through – 13630 Diagonal Rd)
- Highlight: Includes a festive walk through and drive-through
- 2025 Dates/Times: Nov. 28th-Dec. 21st (Wed-Sat). Hours: 5:30-9pm
It’s a bit of a drive from the city, but Lorain County Metro Parks puts on 2 festive events completely free to the public. This event is relatively uncrowded compared to most others in the metro especially during the week. We didn’t notice more than a handful of people which was nice.
The one mile drive through features dozens of festive LED wire displays. I recommend a short stroll along the Children’s Nature Trail which starts at the Visitor’s Center. This path takes you on a fun, albeit cheesy trek through holiday blow ups, tunnels, and wire displays. Santa visits on select nights (check website) and cocoa and popcorn for purchase at the Visitor Center.
Consider donating to the Wildlife Giving Tree (located at Visitor Center) to help animals in need.
Check out a few photos we took on both the driving and walking portion of the tour.
Rockefeller Gardens Poinsettia Display
- Location: Cleveland (750 E. 88th Street)
- Highlight: Annual Poinsettia Sale, held on Dec. 5th and 6th
- 2025 Dates/times: December 6th- January 3rd. Hours: 10am-4pm
This free gem was donated to the city by John D. Rockefeller in 1905. Today, you can view over a dozen indoor and outdoor gardens. Personally, I love the tropical and cacti gardens especially during the winter. You can visit the greenhouse all year-round and it serves as a nice cozy escape during the snowy months.
I have been to many gardens across the US that set up poinsettia displays each Christmas. Rockefeller Gardens annual display is small, yet nonetheless beautiful. It will not take much time to explore the festive grounds. After your stroll, I recommend enjoying a nice Italian lunch in Little Italy, conveniently located minutes away (I recommend Mamma Santa’s for their great pizza). Also, the world-class Museum of Art is minutes away.
The annual Poinsettia sale (held on Dec. 5th & 6th in 2025) is a great time to plan your visit. They sell huge Poinsettias in a variety of colors for just 5 bucks! What a great value! Other garden plants and additional vendors on-site.
Also, if you are looking for more to do over the holidays start with my winter travel guide which includes the best the city has to offer this time of year. And of course, you can’t miss out on iconic attractions like A Christmas Story house tour. You can read more about my experience here and at other city attractions like the zoo in my full holiday guide. Note some of these activities require an admission and/or parking fee.
