The Garden of Lights
Winter Garden Walk at Brookside Gardens located in
Montgomery County, Maryland
Friday, November 25, 2011– Sunday, January 8, 2012
Open every night except closed on December 24 & 25, and January 2-5
Open New Year’s Eve until 10pm with last car admitted at 9:30pm
Hours:
Weekdays: 5:30 to 9:00pm, with last car admitted at 8:30pm
Weekends (Friday – Sunday) 5:30 to 10:00pm, with last car admitted at 9:30pm
Admission
NOTE: Pedestrians cannot be admitted due to safety regulations. Visitors must drive to the entrance gate. After paying at the gate, visitors drive into the parking lot, park their vehicle, and walk through the light show display.
Cars/Vans (Monday - Thursday): $20 (cash only)
Car/Vans (Friday - Sunday): $25 (cash only)
Advance Sale Tickets: $20 (available starting November 1). Tickets are good for any night and may be purchased in advance at the Conservatory or Visitors Center Gift Shops during posted gift shop hours, using cash, check or credit. Advanced ticket holders must enter the gardens after 5:30 p.m. with normal flow of traffic (no early admission.)
Buses & Limousines please register in advance at 301-962-1457. Limousines with 14 or fewer passengers will be charged regular admission.
Visualize close to one million twinkling colorful lights shaped in imaginative displays throughout the gardens. Enjoy the four seasons illuminated as giant summer sunflowers, autumn leaves, winter snowflakes, spring flowers, rain showers, and more. Walk along the easily accessible paths and you’ll see what sets this light show apart from others; it’s the hundreds of wrapped trees and shrubs, beautifully lighted gazebos, cascading fountains, and the individually formed displays in the shapes of blooming flowers and wild animals. Look for moving displays such as a flock of geese, or an 11 foot giraffe covered with 9,000 lights. This festive, secular light show, now in its 15th season, is a popular family tradition in the Washington, DC area drawing close to 40,000 visitors each winter.
Inside of the Conservatory, a winter display of holiday poinsettias, flowering
plants and evergreens are combined in bright and bold combinations, providing
a colorful landscape through which the garden railway trains travel.
The South Conservatory & Train Exhibit (free of charge 10:00am - 5:00pm daily.)
Schedule of musical performances Listen to local musicians perform in the Visitors Center Auditorium each night of the show from 6:30pm to 8:00pm through January 8. Light refreshments may be purchased and enjoyed during the entertainment. While you’re here, do a bit of holiday shopping at our gift shop, Marylandica.
Party On! at the New Year’s Eve Celebration – What better way to say goodbye to the old year and an early hello to 2011 than by bringing your family and friends to the Garden of Lights for an evening filled with lights, music, and memories. All for the same weekend rate of $25.00 per car or van.
Garden of Lights Information Line: 301-962-1453
Hours and Location
Brookside Gardens
1800 Glenallan Ave.
Wheaton, MD 20902
General Information: 301-962-1400
The grounds of Brookside Gardens are open every day of the year.
Gardens: Sunrise to Sunset.
Visitors Center: 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Conservatories: 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Visitors Center Gift Shop: 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday through Saturday, and Noon to 4 p.m. on Sunday
Conservatory Gift Shop Regular hours: Open 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday- Saturday, and Noon to 4 p.m. on Sunday
Horticultural Reference Library: 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., Monday through Friday, and during the Master Gardeners Plant Clinic hours (closed holidays)
Master Gardener Plant Clinics: Year round; Saturday 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., and Sunday 1 to 4 p.m. also Wednesdays and Thursdays, 1p.m. to 4p.m. beginning April 14 and running through October, 2010. (located in Brookside Gardens Library)
Barbara, This sounds like a great show.... I have read posts by Roy Kelly on Brookside Gardens and he shared his wonderful photo's. Great post and thanks for sharing!