Winter Walk of Lights

LIGHTS! LIGHTS! AND MORE LIGHTS!

We have many of your favorite light displays returning this year, plus some new features!

• Kids (and adults) love to search for things in the light displays! Make sure to pick up a FUN SEARCH IN THE LIGHTS sheet at our Ticket Scanning Stations in the Visitor Center. Show your completed sheet at our exit gate to receive a cool sticker. 
• Flowers, flowers, and more flowers light up the night along with their friends – bees, birds, and butterflies. 
• Our new LOTUS POND features lotus flowers and pads and 15-foot koi fish – how serene. 
• Let your voice illuminate the SING-TO-ME TREE!
• Carolers and an ice pond with spry skaters. 
• Honey, I shrunk the Winter Walk visitors!  You’ll feel tiny when you are near our 12-foot flowers in the BOLD GARDEN. 
• Who loves carols? Sit and enjoy lively lights synchronized to five holiday tunes at LAKESIDE LIGHTS.
• Our STEP LIGHTS interactive feature is a perfect way to let the kids (big and small) use up some energy. Step on a tile to change its color.  Bright flowers have been added this year!
• How many different animals can you find in our Nature Walk? Squirrels, fish leaping from a stream, a mama fox with her sweet kits, (odor-free) skunks--just to name a few.
• Some rabbits are nibbling the carrots in MR. TOMLINSON’S GARDEN!

FOOD & BEVERAGE

• Mmmm…hot chocolate! coffee! Start your experience at the SIPS & SPARKLES shop for a hot (or cold) beverage, snacks, and light-up wearables and handheld toys to enjoy during your Winter Walk.
• Psst! Grownups (21+), turn your hot chocolate or coffee into an adult beverage with some Baileys, peppermint schnapps…also at SIPS & SPARKLES. Cheers!
• Get `em while they’re hot! Yummy hot pretzels and funnel cakes will be sold at the PARK EATS food truck at the Winter Walk’s halfway point.
• At the end of your Winter Walk, stop by the S’MORE SHACK to purchase your s`more kit and roast your marshmallows over our cozy fire.

• Become a part of sparkle of the Winter Walk of Lights. At the beginning of your walk, stop in the SIPS & SPARKLES shop for light up wands, necklaces, sabers, headbands, crowns, and other light up wearables and handhelds.
• Be sure to purchase this year’s Winter Walk of Lights brass ornament depicting the lights and reflections of Lake Caroline. Buy your ornaments in the Garden Center Gift Shop or the SIPS & SPARKLES Shop in the conservatory before they sell out.
• With its local vendors (honey, peanuts, jewelry, candles…), discovery toys, lovely home décor, apparel, and unique gifts, the Garden Gift Shop in the Visitor Center is the perfect place to shop for holiday gifts and for yourself! Shop during your Winter Walk of Lights visit or during the day from 10:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

FUN FACTS

• Did you know that this is the Meadowlark’s Winter Walk of Light’s twelfth year?  It has definitely become a wonderful holiday tradition for our region!
• It takes Meadowlark staff, NOVA Park coworkers, and contractors three months to install all of the lights and displays in the garden.  Staff works year-round on designing new displays, concessions selections, light repairs, and purchases.  A lot of hard work goes into preparing for this awesome show.
• The Fountains of Lights are unique light fountains animated with all types of cool colors and patterns.  Stop and watch all of the dazzling colors!
• Most of our light displays are one-of-a-kind pieces designed by our staff and hand crafted by a local artist. 
• Did you notice the frisky rabbits jumping across Mr. Tomlinson’s Garden?  Lovingly named after our retired Park Manager, Keith Tomlinson, there is a lot to see in the garden! 
• Make sure to come back again- each time you go through the Winter Walk of Lights, you will notice things you didn’t see before.  Be sure to bring your holiday guests, family and friends, too! 
• Besides the Winter Walk of Lights, NOVA Parks has two other festive light shows – Ice & Lights at Cameron Regional Park in Alexandria and the Festival of Lights at Bull Run Regional Park in Centreville.  Find all of the details at novaparks.com. 
• Guess how many hot beverages we sold during our Winter Walk season last year – more than 21,000!  All revenue from the Winter Walk funds our 35 Nova Parks properties and our conservation (preservation of 12,000 acres), recreation, and education efforts. So keep sipping on those hot beverages!