Garden of Lights (Brookside Gardens)

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Garden of Lights (Brookside Gardens)

Photo: IndyTaylor · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons

🎃 Seasonal · Wheaton

1.5 hours · $$ · Reservation required

age fit
0–1 yr
★ 4.0
1–3 yrs
★ 5.0
3–5 yrs
★ 5.0
5–10 yrs
★ 5.0
  • 🚗
    About 15 min drive
    From Rockville · Parking: About $30–35/car (more on weekends), reserve a time slot online, park inside the gardens
  • 🍼
    Stroller-friendly
    Flat surfaces — bring the stroller
  • 🌳
    Some shade
    Fine on cold days · Good on cool days
  • ⏱️
    Typical visit: 1.5 hours
    Best seasons: Winter

Brookside Gardens strings up more than a million lights shaped into flowers, animals, and reflections on the ponds; the loop along the paved paths takes 40 minutes, exactly a 2-year-old's limit in the cold. The conservatory is heated and full of flowers, and there are hot drinks and a model train at the exit.

💡 Tips
After Thanksgiving to early January, priced per car, so a full car is the best deal; weekend time slots sell out weeks ahead, so buy early. Dress warm and pack a blanket in the stroller. Parking at Wheaton Regional Park next door is free but means a walk.

What this place offers

✓holiday lights
✓garden
✓stroller friendly
✓40-minute loop
✓conservatory
✓hot drinks
✓restrooms

Featured in these guides

This weekend's weather in Wheaton

Forecast at the destination itself (coast and hills often differ from home)

🌦️
Sat 10/17
Showers · 44–59°F · 48% rain
☀️
Sun 10/18
Sunny · 41–61°F · 3% rain

Location

Wheaton, Maryland

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