Lanier Islands Extends Holiday Light Show Route for 2026

Lanier Islands Resort in Buford, Georgia, will reopen its drive-through holiday show, Magical Nights of Lights, on November 20. Visitors follow a route of lights and animated displays in their own vehicles, with holiday music playing along the way. The show, sponsored by Coca-Cola, is open every night from 5 to 10 p.m. until January 3, 2027, and Santa and other holiday characters are due to appear on selected nights.

What is new this year

Resort president Matthew Bowling said this year's show will be larger than the last. More than a mile and a half of lights is being added to the 2025 route, together with several new holiday-themed vignettes, animated trees and decorations that span the road. The drive ends at the resort's Holiday Headquarters at Game Changer, a 23,000-square-foot indoor playground that will itself be covered in lights and where Clark's Holiday Pop-up Bar returns for another year. The resort is also planning special events during the season, among them the arrival of Santa Claus and his elves on a firetruck and Give Back Nights, when the first 100 cars on certain evenings receive gifts at the gate. Bowling said the response to last year's edition, which followed five years without a light show, made it clear that fans had missed it. He noted that North Georgia Living Magazine ranked it first among its Favorite Homegrown Holiday Light Displays and that Mommy Poppins listed it among the best holiday light shows in Atlanta.

Tickets, charity and overnight stays

Admission is charged per car and not per person. Prices start at $25 a vehicle and depend on the type of vehicle and the day of the week. Part of the gate proceeds will go to the Georgia Mountain Food Bank, a nonprofit that in 2025 supplied 88,000 people across five counties with 8.5 million meals.

For guests who want to stay overnight, Bowling points to the resort's Legacy Lodge, Villas and LakeHouses. Accommodation packages may include a bedtime story and tuck-in by an elf for small children, Breakfast with Santa on selected days and passes to License to Chill Snow Island, which is presented by Margaritaville at Lanier Islands. Holiday Headquarters will also host a Vendor Village through the season, and the resort is accepting applications from a limited number of local makers, artisans, boutiques and specialty retailers. Lanier Islands Resort lies 45 miles north of Atlanta.

Source: Lanier Islands Resort