There’s a reason lights are a staple of many year-end holidays: They warm our spirits and remind us winter won’t last forever. Take a drive around Monmouth County this December to enjoy some of the best handmade, homemade and homespun holiday light displays.
Lights on Meredith
Hazlet homeowner Ryan Basile turns Meredith Way into a celebration of all things Disney with his own rendition of “Happily Ever After,” the nightly pyrotechnic and light show projected at Disney World’s Cinderella Castle. Crowds gather at 6 p.m. and 8 p.m. to watch Basile’s homage. Meredith Way will be blocked off, so expect to park a few streets away and walk. The projection runs at 6 p.m. and 8 p.m. Friday through Sunday, and the elaborate light setup—Disney inflatables and meticulously strung lights—shines all week.
Location: Meredith Way, Hazlet, New Jersey
The Cook’s Christmas Lights
Christmas begins in August for the Cook family of Jackson, who start drilling and building months in advance for their longstanding dancing-lights show. The Cooks boast more than 12,000 pixels synced to music; tune car radios to 100.9 FM for the full experience. Last year, the family raised $4,954 for the National Multiple Sclerosis Society, and attendees have donated a total of $65,508 since the first show in 2011. Lights are on most nights in December from 6 to 10 p.m.
Location: Carlson Court, Jackson, New Jersey
Powers Family Christmas Lights
This Hazlet display is a 360-degree walk-through experience. Visitors enter under a twinkling arch, follow the lights to the backyard and watch artificial snow blow from behind a towering inflatable Jack Frost. Don’t miss the front-yard tree swing strung with lights. The Powers family’s display was featured on Hallmark+’s “Ready, Set, Glow!” Lights are on until 10 p.m. on weekdays and 11 p.m. Friday and Saturday.
Location: Third Street, Hazlet, New Jersey
Liam’s Spectacular Christmas Display
In Middletown, Liam’s Spectacular Christmas Display returns with a grand lighting ceremony Nov. 29 at 7 p.m., when thousands of lights switch on at once—last year, Kris Kringle even made an appearance. Lights shine nightly from 5 p.m. to midnight through December. The family even allows parents to flip the switch on the house’s artificial snow machine when they’re not home. Look up to see plastic reindeer pulling Santa in his sleigh across the night sky.
Location: Garrett Place, Middletown, New Jersey