Light shows are not just festive, but a much needed respite from darkness this time of year when the sun sets before 5:00pm. The LuminoCity Festival is a brand new addition to the DC area’s traditional lightshows and it is spectacular!
If you are used to visiting Roer’s Zoofari in Virginia in warm weather, you will be surprised by how different the park looks lit up!
What to See at LuminoCity Festival at Roer’s Zoofari
There is a LOT to see at LuminoCity!
Larger-than-life dinosaurs, peacocks, bison, giraffes and more have taken over Roer’s Zoofari for the winter.
While the Zoofari’s regular inhabitants move indoors and out of view to stay warm for the winter, these huge, bright animals have taken their place.
There are plenty of photo opportunities! You can walk into a giant, open dinosaur’s mouth, enter a hot air balloon and sit in Santa’s sleigh along the way.
There are also a couple of tunnels made of lights that my children loved running through. Another fun aspect to this light display is a series of light sculptures made of children’s drawings. Pictures of the drawings are placed in front of the light sculptures.
My family thought that the children’s drawings were replicated well considering how different the mediums used were from one another.
The exhibit’s setting is beautiful too! Be sure to stop by the Zoofari’s lake to take in the reflection of the lights in the water. Even my hard-to-impress kids thought that the sight was breathtaking.
We spent about 90 minutes at the LuminoCity but your visit may vary depending on how fast or slowly you go through the exhibit. Plan to spend at least an hour going through the entire exhibit.
Because the exhibit runs through the new year tickets would make a great holiday gift or a great outing during school breaks (get 25% off tickets here).
How Much are LuminoCity Festival Tickets?
Tickets are timed, as are parking passes. We recommend reserving your preferred time in advance as popular times may sell out.
Ticket prices vary. Adults are $32.00, kids are $22.00 and VIP tickets including parking, express access, gift shop discount and a souvenir are $66.00. And then there’s parking…
Parking at LuminoCity
You’ll need to pay for parking separately which costs $5.00. If, however, you have a VIP ticket which includes the price of parking.
Also keep in mind, there may be a short wait for parking during peak times, such as on Saturday nights.
LuminoCity Festival Discounts
We’ve found 2 places to get discounts on LuminoCity Festival tickets.
- On the LuminoCity website you’ll find a Black Friday sale for 15% when you visit the website. The deal goes until 12/1 and is good for 15% off your entire order using the promo code BF15.
- Groupon is currently offering a 25% off discount on tickets so grab those before the deal ends.
When to Go
LuminoCity runs from October 15th to January 2nd. Saturday evenings are typically the busiest of the week so going during the week is always good if you can. It is expected to be busy the weeks before and after traffic.
Good to Know about LuminoCity
- Hot chocolate is for sale in the gift shop near the entrance. On cold nights we highly recommend grabbing a cup to help keep you warm while you view the lights.
- Be sure you walk around the entire park. We almost missed a section down a path near the beginning!
- The entire park is stroller friendly.
- Most animals are hibernating for the winter! There are a few exceptions but you may want to let kids know in advance that they are going to the Zoofari to see the lights rather than animals! We did spot a baby deer and some other small animals but they are definitely not the main attraction.
- Plan on spending at least an hour to see all the lights.
- Because the lights are so bright it may be hard to get good photos in front of some of the very bright sculptures. You may want to bring a flash to help with this issue.
- LuminoCity runs through January 2nd.
By Jamie Davis Smith
