While many tourists flock to Rockefeller Center to enjoy the tree, they overlook some of the impressive displays in the other boroughs. The Bronx is home to several holiday light displays that are worth a look, ranging from the famous Bronx Zoo holiday lights exhibit to a home decorated in a way that would inspire Liberace.
Bronx Zoo
Each year the Bronx Zoo creates a beautiful light exhibit that encompasses thousands of lights and over 150 lighted sculptures. This year the holiday light display opens the weekend after Thanksgiving and extends until after New Years. It is closed Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.
The Bronx Zoo offers story telling, dancers, and other street performers to create a unique holiday experience. The Bronx Zoo Holiday exhibit is open 5:00 pm to 9:00 pm.
The cost of attending the Bronx Zoo’s Holiday Lights is $14 for adult tickets and $10 for children’s tickets. The exhibit is requires a ticket to view, but Amtrak is offering two dollars off admission to the Bronx Zoo holiday lights exhibit if you buy an Amtrak ticket over the holiday season.
New York Botanical Garden
The New York Botanical Garden hosts a lovely holiday lights display each year. Beginning on November 23 and extending until January 13, the Holiday Train Show features beautifully lit holiday displays and carolers.
The Holiday Train Show is unique because it features scaled figures of famous New York City buildings made out of natural foods. Motorized trains weave through a land made of nuts, leaves, and fruits. Favorite landmarks include the Empire State Building, Yankee Stadium, and the Brooklyn Bridge.
The special evening hours make the New York Botanical Garden a particularly wonderful place to visit during the bleak winter months. Consider stopping by for your own quick dose of the holiday spirit. Adult tickets are $20 apiece, while children’s tickets are only $7.
Barabedian Home
At 1601 Pelham Parkway, each year since 1973, the Barabedian family has decorated their home for the holidays. Each year, their yard and home are covered with fiberglass figures of almost every important holiday figure. Although the style is definitely kitschy, many people enjoy the over the top display that would make Liberace proud.
Some people leave small tips on the red carpet in the yard of the home in appreciation of the display, but otherwise the house is free to view from the street. Like most people, the Barabedians put their lights out after Thanksgiving and take them down after New Years.
