Light up the night with incredible outdoor Christmas light displays! My family loves spending winter nights during the holidays driving around the Chicago suburbs viewing the beautiful displays put on by local neighbors and this year marks the 15th annual list of the Best Christmas Lights Displays! It brings us so much joy to continue our relationships with all of the wonderful homeowners creating holiday cheer.
So, pile in the car with a thermos of hot chocolate and a tin of Christmas cookies to see the beautiful displays our local families have created with our planned out driving routes, including photos, the best viewing hours, and details about the displays that you aren’t going to want to miss.
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You are going to love our driving routes because we use an amazing and professional system to determine the most efficient route to minimize driving time. So your family can see all the displays with the least amount of driving time in-between!
Want to submit your house for consideration? Click on the button below and fill out the form. We are accepting submissions now through December 15, 2025.
If you are looking for drive-through and walk-through displays hosted by organizations and businesses, we have that too! Click here to be taken to the list of park district, town, shopping center, and business-created light displays.
Need Help? Tap/Click Here to Open the Instructions
- Scroll to the overall map below.
- Zoom in on the area you are interested in.
- Tap on any of the map markers for the route you want to take.
- Tap on the route name in the pop-up and it will jump directly to the driving route
- Keep the route open on your phone as you go. Simply tap on the address heading and your map app will open to show you directions.
You can preview the houses before you go to the next one or just keep scrolling down, tapping on the address heading of each house, and enjoy the whole route! They are all in order so you minimize driving time and maximize fun!
Map: Best Christmas Lights Near Me
Are you searching for “the best Christmas lights near me”? Check out this map! The locations are color coded by driving route so you can choose a house in the area you are interested in, then click or tap on the link to the route it’s on to be taken down to that section. Or scroll through all of the routes! Each route is optimized to be in the best order so you can minimize driving time and maximize fun! Simply tap on the address in the heading for the home and your phone will take you to driving directions to get there. Then come back to this guide to go to the next display.
Try the nearest route near you, or try them all throughout the season. Happy Holidays!
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Driving Routes for the Best Christmas Lights in the Chicago Suburbs
We prepared routes for you so you can take lights tours of different areas across the Chicago suburbs! We encourage you to keep this guide open on your phone and tap on the next address heading – your map app will open to take you to the next decorated house. They are all in order to maximize your enjoyment and minimize driving time.
The musical note symbol 🎶 denotes houses that have a musical component, including lights set to music playing outside or on the radio so you can tune in when you get there.
In general, these houses will be lit at dusk, but please note that most of the houses have given us starting dates, hours, guidelines, charities they are supporting, and descriptions, which are listed for each display.
As always, please be mindful of these residential neighborhoods. Drive safely, pick up your trash, and respect the neighboring houses as well.
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1➡️ Want to submit your house for consideration? Click on the button below and fill out the form. We are accepting submissions now through December 15, 2025.
Looking for more holiday or winter fun? You’ll want to check out our Winter Activities Guide and Holiday Fun Guide!
4 Comments. Leave new
Thank you so much for the effort. It means a lot to those of us who are young at heart.
Oh my God! This takes so much research! Amazing compilation Nicole. Kudos! Double Kudos!
Nicole, this is amazing! We take family “Light Rides” every year and have used your site the last two years. We used to make our own “tours” but now we just follow yours! Thank you so much! Merry Christmas!
Kidlist never disappoints us anytime with their massive collection of ideas. Every effort spent by Team Kidlist and specially Nicole deserves a big THANK YOU and APPRECIATION from our Family! Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!!