Plenty of the best holiday displays around here charge nothing at the gate, and the free Christmas lights in Cleveland fall into two easy clusters. Downtown, Public Square, the Arcade and Playhouse Square sit within walking distance of each other along Euclid Avenue. In the southwest suburbs, Berea and Strongsville have three free displays a short drive apart.
The zoo, the Botanical Garden and the drive-through shows are all ticketed, and they are covered in the full Christmas lights guide. Everything below can be seen without buying a ticket.
Season dates and viewing times change from year to year, so check each display before you head out. Dress for the cold, too: most of these are outdoor walks, and the Arcade is the only one fully indoors.
No ticket needed
Free holiday lights downtown and in the suburbs
Downtown
WinterLand at Public Square
Best for: The biggest free display downtown
Public Square becomes the center of downtown’s holiday season, with a giant tree, light tunnels, an ice rink and animated shows projected onto Terminal Tower. Looking costs nothing, and the rink is the one part that needs a ticket.
Stand on the square long enough to catch the projections on the tower, then walk through the light tunnels. For a longer night out, pair it with dinner in Little Italy or a trip up to the Terminal Tower observation deck.
Downtown
The Arcade Cleveland
Best for: An indoor stop out of the cold
The glass-roofed Arcade on Euclid Avenue, built in 1890, hangs wreaths and garland from its balconies around a tall indoor tree. It is free to walk through and a few minutes from Public Square, which makes it the natural second stop on a downtown lights walk.
Because it is indoors, it is also the place to warm up between the outdoor displays.
Playhouse Square, Downtown
Playhouse Square holiday lights and theater lobbies
Best for: Lights and theater lobbies on Euclid Avenue
Playhouse Square’s theater district on Euclid Avenue adds holiday lights around its outdoor chandelier, and the ornate theater lobbies are decorated for the season’s shows. The street lights are free to see, and it is a short walk east from Public Square and the Arcade.
If you have tickets to a holiday show, arrive early and spend some time in the lobby before curtain.
Berea
Coe Lake Park Lights
Best for: Lakeside lights on foot
Berea’s Coe Lake Park lights its lakeside trails and a treehouse, and the displays reflect off the water. It is free and it draws a steady crowd.
This one is a walk, so wear boots and plan to loop the trails. Downtown Berea, the triangle of streets next to the Baldwin Wallace University campus, is close by if you want dinner before or after.
Strongsville
Crown Point Parkway Festival of Lights
Best for: A whole street of decorated houses
On Crown Point Parkway in Strongsville, nearly every home on the cul-de-sac decorates, and the street was featured on The Great Christmas Light Fight. You can walk it or drive it, Santa makes visits on some evenings, and donations collected there go to local families.
People live in these houses, so park where it is allowed, keep the noise down and keep to the sidewalk if you get out of the car.
Strongsville
Strongsville Winter Wonderland
Best for: A free light tunnel for young kids
Strongsville’s commons on Royalton Road turns into a North Pole scene with a light tunnel, a lit gazebo and a 40-foot tree. It is free and set in a park, which makes it an easy outing with small children who want the light tunnel experience without a ticketed show.
Crown Point Parkway is in the same city, so the two fit into one evening.
Plan an evening
A free downtown lights walk
Start at Public Square for the tree, the light tunnels and the projections on Terminal Tower. Walk east on Euclid Avenue to the Arcade and step inside to see the balconies and the indoor tree. Keep going east along Euclid to Playhouse Square for the lights around the outdoor chandelier.
The whole walk stays on one street, and the Arcade in the middle gives you a warm place to stop. Finish with dinner in Little Italy, a short drive east toward University Circle.
Southwest suburbs
Berea and Strongsville in one night
Coe Lake Park in Berea, the commons on Royalton Road in Strongsville and Crown Point Parkway in Strongsville are close enough to see in a single evening by car. Start with the walk around Coe Lake while you have the most energy, then drive south to Strongsville for the light tunnel on the commons and finish on Crown Point Parkway, where you can stay in the car if the kids are done walking. Bring a thermos of hot chocolate for the drive between stops.
Worth the ticket
When a ticketed show makes sense
Some of the larger shows are worth paying for. Wild Winter Lights at Cleveland Metroparks Zoo in Old Brooklyn has themed zones and costumed characters, on foot or on separate drive-through nights, and it is one of the most loved displays around. FROST at the Cleveland Botanical Garden in University Circle pairs outdoor lights with the warm tropical glasshouses. Country Lights at Lake Metroparks Farmpark in Kirtland sells tickets per carload in advance, and they tend to sell out.
All of them, plus the day-trip drive-throughs south of the city, are mapped in the full list of Christmas lights near Cleveland.
Good to know
Questions before you go.
Is the ice skating at Public Square free?
No. Viewing the tree, the light tunnels and the Terminal Tower shows is free, but skating on the rink is ticketed.
Are there free Christmas lights on the east side?
The free displays in this list are downtown and in the southwest suburbs. On the east side, FROST in University Circle and Country Lights in Kirtland are the larger shows, and both are ticketed. The full guide lists more displays across the region.
Is there a light show with a sensory-friendly night?
Wild Lights at the Akron Zoo sets aside a sensory-friendly night, and also offers golf-cart safari tours and visits with Santa and the Grinch. It is ticketed.
Every display on the map
See every Christmas light display near Cleveland
The full guide maps the free displays alongside the zoo shows, garden lights and drive-throughs around Northeast Ohio, with local details for each one.