The Best Houston Neighborhoods for Holiday Lights
Holiday decor starts to appear on store shelves shortly after the Halloween costumes and candy have been cleared out. By Thanksgiving, the seasonal light shows are in full swing, with several Houston neighborhoods taking top honors for making their streets merry and bright.
Here are the best neighborhoods for admiring holiday lights in Houston.
Galleria
The area owes its name to the shopping mall, the Galleria, the neighborhood’s major landmark and namesake. Over 2 million square feet of space contain 400 shops, restaurants, hotels, and office buildings with 13,000 parking spaces waiting to be filled.
However, these impressive statistics can’t compare to the 450,000 gleaming lights and 5,000 colorful ornaments trimming the 55-foot Christmas tree that’s an annual fixture of the mall’s ice rink. Larger-than-life ornaments located along various walkways in the mall make for an instant photo op while shopping.
Sleek high rises and mid-rises dominate much of the Galleria area and provide the best views for taking in the holiday lights. Condo dwellers can easily walk to the festive displays located along the retail-rich thoroughfares. As one of the largest business districts in the country, Galleria, also referred to as Uptown, offers short commutes for those who work, live, and shop for gifts here.
Many of the office towers contribute to the holiday atmosphere with decorations for residents to enjoy, including Four Oaks Place, where the property is done up with enormous candy canes and layers of lights on the plaza’s 90 oak trees.
Thanksgiving night starts the holiday lights season on boutique- and restaurant-laden Post Oak Boulevard. The Uptown Houston District hosts the annual event, which also features Santa Claus, musical performances, and fireworks.
From the West Loop to Richmond Avenue, spectators witness the wattage of 850 multi-colored lights hung on 300 custom-fabricated trees standing 20 feet tall. Also on view are the major improvements to the boulevard, including the planting of oak trees and express bus lanes with covered shelters.
Greater Heights
What started as a neighborhood gathering in historic Woodland Heights over 25 years ago, Lights in the Heights has now grown into one of Houston’s favorite holiday traditions. This year’s event takes place on Dec. 14 when the community will close Highland and Omar streets to traffic, creating a 14-block pedestrian-friendly route of bungalows, cottages, and prairie-style homes decked out in holiday cheer.
Merrymakers sporting ugly Christmas sweaters, elf costumes, and Santa suits will parade down the official route stopping along the way to enjoy carolers, bands, and hot cocoa provided by the local residents. Stick to the sidewalks on the nearby streets to see the glowing houses participating in the festivities. On Norhill Esplanade, stroll through the Jurassic display where the neighborhood’s beloved dinosaurs fashioned out of multi-colored Christmas lights enchant all ages.
While the street party takes place one night only, the festive light show, ranging from classic red and white bulbs to eclectic creations, remain on view throughout the holidays.
Tanglewood
The woodsy landscape and large lot sizes in this neighborhood make for a dramatic backdrop when covered in twinkling lights. Elegant cascading installations strung from canopies of trees adorn the mix of traditional and contemporary homes in the area. Illuminated sidewalks and rooflines allow passerby a glimpse of Christmas trees inside the residences of the neighborhood where former President George H.W. Bush and former first lady Barbara Bush, lived.
The Houstonian Hotel straddles the boundaries of Tanglewood and the Galleria area, but residents of both enjoy the nature-filled setting wrapped in lights for the holidays. Posing for family photos in the lobby is a yearly ritual thanks to the backdrop of Christmas trees and lit garlands. Visiting choirs add to the merriment along with complimentary cookies and hot chocolate. Just don’t be tempted to nibble on the elaborately iced gingerbread houses placed on the mantle.
St. Martin’s Episcopal Church is an architectural landmark with its Gothic exterior and spires rising 188 feet above the street. During the holidays, wreaths, greenery, and manger scenes are placed on the grounds by a retirement community who decorates the church’s campus every year. Stay warm and marvel at Cornelius Nursery where rows of poinsettias and lifelike Christmas trees are decked out in themes ranging from football teams to fairytale characters.
River Oaks
In the luxurious River Oaks neighborhood, professional crews undertake the laborious process of installing elaborate displays for the area’s stately mansions. The giant inflatables, live oaks wrapped from trunk to limb in lights, and mega-wattage decor make River Oaks a top destination for light viewing in the city.
Tune in to Houston’s official Christmas radio station while following the slow-moving traffic (standstill on busy weekend nights) through the grand boulevards with showstopper spectacles lining the streets, especially along River Oaks Boulevard, Inwood, and Del Monte drives.
The Santa House at 3404 Del Monte Dr. is outfitted in a six-figure light display along with over $60,000 in holiday statuary and Christmas trees. This all becomes a spectacular backdrop for Santa and his elves who visit every Friday and Saturday from Thanksgiving to Christmas. The free photo opportunity is a family tradition for thousands of Houstonians who line up around the block every year.
A winter wonderland awaits at Bayou Bend Christmas Village, where Ima Hogg’s historic mansion and 14-acre estate features a faux-snow sledding slide, reindeer games, Mrs. Claus’ Kitchen, and a model train circling a 15-foot ornamental tree. Rienzi offers Twilight Tours and special Boxing Day activities to view the garden, home, and galleries glitzed up for the season.
Highland Village, River Oaks Shopping Center, and the swanky River Oaks Shopping District all wrap their palm trees in lights for the holiday shoppers and diners and have calendars packed full of special events from holiday pop-up shops to carriage rides.