While on a business trip in the Syracuse area, I looked up holiday activities and saw that the Lights on the Lake was very close. I also saw consisteng good-very good review on the internet and decided to give it a try. The Lights on the Lake is a series of lovely light displays set up around the perimeter of Onondaga Lake. Visitors are able to drive along the route while taking in some of these lovely displays. The fees are per vehicle and very reasonable, especially if you go earlier in the week. Tickets are only available in advance online, they CANNOT be purchased at the gate. The fees per car are $20 for Fri, Sat and Sun, $10 for Wed and Thurs and $6 for Mon and Tues. While I think the $20 is fair for a car full of people, the $10 and $6 early-midweek price is insane for the activity. I was riding solo, and went on a Monday, so after some nominal fees, I paid about $7.50...FYI I am from NYC, where similar holiday drive throughs in and around the area easily cost $30-40! There was no wait at around 7 PM on Monday night. Less cars also made it easier to pause and take photos without the pressure of holding up the traffic. While there are signs throughout the route that say "do not stop" in an effort not to hold up traffic, many cars were at least pausing for a few seconds, especially during the larger displays, to snap a few photos. You are also reminded to "stay in your vehicle" at all times. As an added bonus, there are perks on most nights, depending on different sponsors for the event. During my visit, after checking in, I was a given a voucher for a free car wash nearby (an $18 value), which I gladly redeemed the following day! Talk about a great deal.... $6 for the Lights on the Lake and a free $18 car wash! Overall I had a great time here. I would love to return again with the family. I highly recommend this activity for everyone, especially on the cheaper nights. read more

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Another magical trip to lights on the lake. This go, there was no wait! We arrived around 6pm. As the kids age they notice new things and this has become a favorite tradition for us. Definitely worth the visit. read more

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Lights on the Lake was a fun experience with my partner- neither of us had gone, and though we are in our 30s, it was fun to sip on hot cocoa we brought and look at the beautiful lights that were thoughtfully displayed in themed sections of the park. The downsides, however, are that the congestion in Liverpool getting onto the Parkway was absolutely insane on a Saturday night, took 20 minutes and a lot of honking around us (at other people), before we could even get into the line waiting. Then it took another 35 minutes just to get into the park. The person in front of us rode their brakes the entire time, despite being told not to use headlights, the red brake lights glaring in front of us definitely dampened the experience. Otherwise, it was a fun time. read more

Lights on the Lake - Local Flavor Near Me - Liverpool, New York

Updating my review, we have been to lights on the lake every holiday season since living in CNY and I feel like it continues to improve each year. There is now more to look at while waiting in line to enter, and the line moves more efficiently. They also continue to add new lights displays each year. My kids always have a great time. read more

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This is such a fun thing to do to get in the Christmas spirit. We have been going to this event for at least five years. Things to think about.. save money by going on a week day.. friday,Saturday and Sunday are more expensive and much more crowded. Typically speaking Monday and Tuesday do have special discounts with wegmans shoppers club. This year covid changed that and you had to buy tickets online but Monday and Tuesday were still cheaper. The weekday nights the lines aren't bad to get in and see the lights. They tell you by sign when you first enter to change your radio station so you can listen to Christmas music during the drive. read more

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Lights on the Lake is about 90 minutes away from Roc (in good weather). We did this event 3-4 times when the kids were tiny. Due to Covid-19, you must buy Tix ahead of time online. You can print or use a digital ticket on your phone. Prices are cheaper during the week than on weekends. This was not an event we were planning to do this year but since there is a Pandemic and we haven't driven anywhere, I decided to drag the family along for an adventure. This event is currently selling out so plan ahead for the night you want to go. They open the gates from 5pm-10pm. We went on a Wednesday night and the car line to get in was long and we waited a good 40 minutes. So, fill up your gas tank. Pack snacks. Put little kids in comfy PJs and let them watch a movie while you inch along in your car. There are port a potties at the entrance and exit. I will say they added some new lights over the past few years so that was fun to see. But they also have many of the same lights from years ago. I feel like this could be much more fun to go to each year if they changed things more often. But in 2020, it was a fun little distraction! read more

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Good place to take our little ones to see lots of holiday lights while staying warm. We went on a Saturday night around 6pm and the line was backed up along the street before entering the park. There were police at the entrance directing regular traffic and event traffic. It took us at least an hour from the street to the entrance where we had to pay. Rates are $20/car on Fri-Sun, open every night. I posted a pic of the various pricing. Santa and a panda greeted us with a wave as we drove in. There were multiple themes like Land of Oz, sports, animals, and of course, holiday. The drive felt like a good length, maybe 2 miles long. The displays were sparse at first and gradually got better. I wish they had more than one tunnel display though. Overall, a good display. A few tips: 》CASH ONLY. 》Once you're in line, there is no turning back. 》Expect a wait. Make sure everyone can handle a snail-paced crawl before even getting into the entrance for the lights. 》Luckily for us, Google Maps guided us so that we would take a right into the park entrance. Seems like the folks taking a left in had a longer wait than us. 》Turn off your headlights after you pay. 》Give some space between you and the car in front so you're not riding them and breaking at the folks behind you. 》 Take your time. We spent more time waiting to get in, so we wanted to enjoy everything! read more

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Surprised the kids with tickets and light sabers and they loved it! I recommend for anyone who hasn't gone before, and I would put it at the top of must do (at least once) Christmas festivities! read more

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We really enjoyed this exhibit. We went after Christmas, before New Years so it was a busy night. Even though it was a week night at 6pm, we still waiting in line about 35 minutes. Overall it was very organized, they had plenty of people to direct traffic. We had a voucher to get in but we got coupons for a car wash when we arrived. The light display was actually pretty long and very well done. They have a number of displays that are working and nice to look at. Also nice to have the lake along side of you as you ride. Definitely worth it! read more

I was so excited because my husband & I went with our husky when they had the dog walk through. Granted it was freezing! Ton's of dogs & people of course. Fee was a suggested donation & they gave milk bones to your puppers. I wish that since we were not in a car they would have had the music playing. I think that would have been kind of nice. Please if you come to this when it is the pet walk don't bring your dog if it does not like other dogs or people. Doing this is just wrong & dangerous. I was not a fan also that not all the lights were turned on or they were burned out. Staff that was walking around didn't seem to care about this at all. I'm guessing if you go when you drive through I would get there early because it doesn't seem as busy then. We arrived at 5 & left at 7 & it was super busy we were leaving. Next time I will be sure to bundle up more! read more

Let me break it down for you. If you love Christmas and love all the decorations that go with it, then come here. If you don't, then this is not the activity for you. I have read some of the previous reviews and let me clarify that there are NO lights that are burnt out. The pricing is also different when you go. If you go on the weekend its 17, during the week its 10, and if you go on Monday or Tuesday its only 6 bucks with your Wegmans card. The lights are absolutely amazing. They start out smaller at the start, but as you go further in they get better and better! I'm not sure what everyone expects when it comes to pacing. You are driving your vehicle into a mile track and are meant to check out all the amazing lights. If the place was empty would you just drive 20 miles an hour and blast through it? No, you would still go the same snail speed because you are looking at the lights. If that isn't the case, you probably aren't into this kind of activity and should avoid ones like it. I highly recommend coming here. You can turn on radio and tune it to their partner station and hear xmas music the whole time as well. A great activity for the family! read more

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I felt as if I paid money to be stuck in traffic for an hour. I couldn't get out! I felt so trapped when I went to Lights on the Lake. That is not to say this is a bad activity if you have kids or you love sitting through one hour of Christmas decorations, but to be frank it's just not something I enjoyed. To be fair though, I went by myself and I could see this being an activity you enjoy if you go with someone, turn on some Christmas music and prepare yourself for an hour or so of traffic, but it was just not something I was mentally prepared for. In fact, I didn't really know what I was getting myself into. I lived in Syracuse for years and constantly saw and heard people talking about Lights on the Lake, but have never had a chance to go. On the drive home one day, I popped in, paid the $5 or 10 and found myself in memorable pain for the next hour. Let's back track a little. What is Lights on the Lake? It's a Syracuse tradition of decorating the heck out of Onondaga Lake and letting cars drive through this 2-mile stretch (for a fee, of course). It runs from November 11th to January 3rd every year from about 5 to 10pm. (Really, people go to this AFTER Christmas too??). Driving through a bunch of lights with no exit in sight at a turtle's pace was just not my idea of fun, but it might be yours. I would have preferred to walk the two miles of lights, I could see myself enjoying that (because I can always escape!), but driving?! No thank you. Tldr; you drive through a bunch of Christmas decorations at a snails pace for about 2 miles along the lake (for a fee). I got the feeling that I paid money only to be stuck in traffic. Take my review with a grain of salt, as I did this on my own and you might have fun with family, friends or lovers. I don't mean to be Mr. Grinch here, but that was my experience. read more

I went with a minivan full of excited kids tonight. I felt like $15 was a bit spendy. We turned on the Christmas music and cruised on through. About halfway through we got stuck behind some cars that kept stopping so we had to keep braking. I felt bad that the people behind me kept getting my brake lights in their face but nothing I could do. Plus some people driving through didn't bother to turn their lights off and the attendant at the entrance didn't remind me either but luckily I paid attention to the sign. Overall I would say it is fun if you go with a car full of little ones, or on a less busy night. read more

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The main reason we visited was for my 2 year old to take in the sights. We've been going to Lights on the Lake for the past couple years. We visited on a Wednesday night and paid $10 for admission. If you go on Monday or Tuesday and show your shopper club card you pay $6 per car. I find the Friday and weekend price of $20 per car to be really steep. Also, they only take cash! We had to go find a nearby atm because we were a buck short of the admission price. The line to get in moved quickly and took only a few minutes to enter. On the weekend expect to wait a long time as traffic tends to be backed up on the parkway. The displays were nice and virtually all in working order. My toddler loved the animal light section. Please make sure to turn off your headlights per the admittance signs. It would be great if they changed things up a bit as it seems to be the same thing year after year. It's a nice attraction to get into the holiday spirit. read more

Lights on the lake is either going to be your worst nightmare or one of the most memorable experiences of the holidays but I think it all depends on who you're in the car with. By my review, I think you can tell we had a blast. A few things to note, if you're going on Friday or the weekend, price is $5 more. Also it will be busy and it will take a little over an hour to get through the lights on the lake. If you don't have the time, don't do it. Once you're in line, you are stuck. We went on a Friday night and thought it didn't look too busy until we got into the crowd of cars. Double lines going in, there are a lot of people. Before you even get to pay to go through, you see about 100 annoying advertisements for local businesses. We thought that it was a little much but I guess you have to make some money somehow. After about 10 minutes we were greater by santa and a gingerbread man waving to us at the car. We got our tickets, they advertised a radio station playing all Christmas music and we were on our way. The lights were ok. I think we liked looking at the large houses on the right side more, but we sat in the car, laughed, sang Christmas carols and had a ton of fun. We joked about how low it was and how one of us had to go to the bathroom but it was a very memorable experience. I think we may have to make this a tradition. read more

My boyfriend and I every year go here, we love it. The prices have been getting higher than normal, it's very pricey. I still enjoy it because it's so pretty, but last night when we went, the people in front of us had their headlights on the whole time, and kept stopping almost every 3 seconds, it was getting really annoying. It was almost a waste of $10, I am very unhappy with the way it turned out, I felt like we couldn't even see anything besides the break lights in front of us. read more

Many of the lights are already burnt out. Traffic was extremely slow even though there are signs that tell you not to stop and just continue driving through. The car in front and behind us had their headlights on - obviously couldn't see the "Please turn off your headlights" sign in the dark. Made it quite annoying when the environment was so dark. A good trip to see some lights if you have nothing better to do. At $15 per car it's one of the cheaper Christmas light shows read more

We have not been in 4 years. We always waited for snow to feel the full Christmassy effect, and well, despite being the snowiest city in NY, November, December, and early January can be somewhat disappointing for snow filled events. Made a family decision to go on a discounted Monday night and loved the LED lighting and expanded displays! Definitely fun in groups and enjoyable way to spend time with family. Youngest one in our crowd is 22, oldest 78, and one crammed into the back of my Outlander Sport so all 6 of us could ride together. Would be great if there were a night of window busses to ride so we could expand our group size! read more

I've been to Disneyland at Christmas and found them to be way then you and they charge different on the weekend. You guys are ripping people off and where does the money go? read more

It was okay, I wouldn't pay 10-15$ to see it again. Insane traffic, people stopping, and not enough interesting lights to keep you entertained. It was pretty for the first few minutes but it got rather boring quick. Not worth 15$ plus the drive up. Edit: If you have kids, I'm sure hey would enjoy it but otherwise don't bother! read more

Very fun experience. Drove an hour and half for it and was enjoyable. Just have patience and be cheerful to see what comes is all. yes the line is long, yes it's slow moving but we are all here for the same thing and not to be in a rush or we wouldn't enjoy it. read more