Holiday lights with kids around Boston
The weeks between Thanksgiving and New Year's are Boston's brightest, and the two best things are free: Blink!, the Faneuil Hall light show set to Boston Pops holiday music every half hour, and the giant tree on Boston Common, shipped down from Nova Scotia each year, with the Frog Pond turned into an outdoor rink beside it.
Both downtown shows fit one Green Line trip, with Quincy Market to warm up in afterward. Among the ticketed shows, ZooLights at Stone Zoo is flat, 40 minutes around and has real reindeer, exactly toddler scale; Night Lights at Tower Hill lights the whole botanic garden, with warm greenhouses to duck into. The train fan's grand finale is the hour's drive to Edaville, riding a real narrow-gauge train through millions of lights strung over the cranberry bogs.
- 5 places
- 1 free
- 5 stroller-friendly
- closest is 20 min away
5 places
Drive times from Newton
Blink! light and sound show (Faneuil Hall)
4.0Boston · 25 min drive
1.5 h · stroller-friendly
Free · Parking: Orange/Green Line to Haymarket or Blue Line to Aquarium and a 3-minute walk; by car use the Parcel 7 garage
Boston Common Frog Pond skating and Christmas tree
3.0Boston · 20 min drive
2 h · stroller-friendly
$ · Parking: Green/Red Line to Park St puts you right there; by car use the Boston Common underground garage
ZooLights (Stone Zoo)
5.0Stoneham · 30 min drive
1.5 h · stroller-friendly · reservation needed
$$ · Parking: Free zoo lot, fills on weekend evenings
New England Botanic Garden at Tower Hill
5.0Boylston · 55 min drive
3 h · stroller-friendly
$$ · Parking: Free lot inside the garden; admission about $20 adults, about $8 kids, check the website
Edaville Christmas Festival of Lights
5.0Carver · 60 min drive
3 h · stroller-friendly · reservation needed
$$$ · Parking: Free lot inside the park
💡 Good to know
- ZooLights, Night Lights and Edaville are all timed tickets, and weekend slots sell out a week or two ahead; weeknights are far quieter.
- December nights in Boston are often below 30°F: snowsuits, hats and mittens, a blanket over the stroller, hot chocolate in a thermos, and expect a 2-year-old to last about 40 minutes outside.
- Edaville's operating dates have changed a lot in recent years; confirm on the official site before you drive down.