Tickets are now on sale for the Dominion Energy Garden of Lights at Norfolk Botanical Garden, with the holiday walking tour set to open November 6 and run through January 3. The show drew more than 100,000 guests last year, and organizers are already warning that many nights sold out in 2025.
According to WAVY.com, the display runs through much of the Norfolk Botanical Garden grounds and includes new additions for 2026. Among those new additions, per ThrillZing, are the Neon Fusion of Lights display, the Dancing Pixel Forest, laser elements, and an interactive RGB color-blend attraction. The full display spans a one-mile accessible walking loop made up of more than 1.5 million LED lights, and the same report notes that average guest visits last between 60 and 90 minutes.
The 2026 season runs on a tiered pricing structure. ThrillZing's ticket breakdown shows advance adult tickets ranging from $18 to $24 on Value Nights and $24 to $30 on Popular Nights, while anyone who waits to buy at the gate pays a $5 surcharge per ticket. Specific operating hours follow the same tiered pattern, with Value Nights running 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. and Popular Nights extending to 9 p.m., the outlet reports.
Family Traditions Return Alongside New Dining
Several returning favorites are back for families this year. WAVY.com reports that visitors can meet Santa's elves walking around the garden on Tuesday nights from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m., and that the Reeds Bistro is opening a new dining spot onsite at the gardens. Dog owners also have their own designated nights: Barks and Bulbs allows visitors to bring their dogs along, taking place Wednesday and Sunday evenings throughout the 2026 season, per the station's report.
For guests who need help covering the mile-long loop, a Merry Mobility shuttle runs every night during the Garden of Lights, though riders must register in advance, the same report notes. Those logistics have become part of the event's appeal for families and visitors with mobility needs who want to experience the full loop without walking the entire distance themselves.
A Landmark Season for the Garden's Expansion
This year's light show coincides with a bigger institutional milestone. The 2026 holiday display offers guests a first look at the garden's newly opened 26,000-square-foot Perry Conservatory, which debuted in September 2026, according to Dills Architects. The firm describes it as the largest expansion in the garden's history, housing tropical biomes alongside a permanent Dale Chihuly glass art collection.
The Garden of Lights itself is a flagship seasonal fundraiser for the non-profit Norfolk Botanical Garden, with proceeds supporting year-round horticultural and conservation programs at the site. The show also runs entirely on renewable power, according to Norfolk.gov. A 120-panel solar array installed on the garden's equipment storage building powers the propagation greenhouse.
Decades of National Recognition
The light show has built a national reputation over three decades. Per PublicGardens.org, it was voted the #2 Best Botanical Garden Holiday Lights display in the country in USA Today's 10Best Readers' Choice contest. The same organization notes that in May 2026, the garden's 2.5-acre Bristow Butterfly Garden and its permanent Butterfly House were voted the #1 Best Butterfly House in the United States for the second consecutive year.
The venue behind all of this traces back to the Great Depression. Norfolk Botanical Garden was originally founded in 1938 as a Works Progress Administration project, built by 220 African American laborers — 200 women and 20 men — who cleared swampland and planted the first 4,000 azaleas, according to the Master Gardeners of Northern Virginia. Today the non-profit garden spans 175 acres with more than 60 themed plant collections, bordered on three sides by water and sitting adjacent to Norfolk International Airport.
