The Boardwalk Holds Back the Ocean, So the Holiday Lights Moved to Owl Creek

For 31 holiday seasons, Virginia Beach's light show worked the same way. You paid $20 or $25 per vehicle, rolled onto the Boardwalk at Second Street, and crept north past hundreds of displays in the sand and on the fishing pier until the route ended at 33rd Street. Holiday Lights at the Beach started in 1995 and ran for about 47 days, opening in mid-November, according to The Virginian-Pilot.

The drive-through is over. On Friday, Nov. 20, the new BayPort Credit Union Holiday Trail of Lights opens on the Virginia Aquarium & Marine Science Center's nature trail at 717 General Booth Blvd. It runs through Sunday, Jan. 3, 2027. Visitors walk it, there are no cars, and admission is sold per person in timed slots. The city moved the show to protect the structure under the old route, and that reason explains most of what's different about holiday night this year.

What 21,000 cars were driving on

The Boardwalk sits on top of a seawall and a large stormwater pipe that protect the resort area from storm surge and hurricanes, as the Pilot reported in March.

During the 2025 season, 21,000 vehicles drove the light show route. The city said that traffic strained the Boardwalk and shortened its lifespan. When the Pilot covered the issue in January, damaged sections of concrete were visible on the Boardwalk. City officials asked the organizers at Beach Events, the city's entertainment contractor, to come up with a version of the show without vehicles. City spokesperson Ali Weatherton pointed to rising maintenance costs and Boardwalk damage.

Several options were on the table that winter. One was a much smaller free walking version on the Boardwalk. Another was themed "pods" near the Oceanfront parks. A third was a different site altogether, with the Virginia Aquarium named as a candidate. By March, the proposed city budget had picked the aquarium. Setup and new lights would cost more than $1 million from the tourism investment program fund, and the ongoing cost would be $210,000 a year.

At the time, Weatherton described the possible upside this way to the Pilot:

"If Holiday Lights at the Beach is reimagined, it could provide new opportunities for better displays, smoother operations and a more sustainable setup."

A marsh trail built to be walked from either end

The new site is a different kind of place. As the Pilot described it in September, the aquarium's nature trail winds through woods and salt marsh along Owl Creek. Every light display is choreographed to music, and mini-speakers along the trail fade the sound out as you approach the next zone. Beach Events lists the trail at 1.1 miles round-trip. It's flat and ADA accessible, and wheelchairs and mobility scooters are welcome.

The show was designed by James Bain of Mega Light Show and Ken MacMaster of Wired Watts. Their past work includes displays at the Brooklyn and Cincinnati zoos and the "Light of Christmas" show at the Chicago White Sox stadium. Beach Events director William Younce told the city's Resort Advisory Commission, in the Pilot's account, "This is going to be something that you walk into and you see it, and you hear it, and in some zones, you're actually going to feel it."

The trail has seven themed zones:

1. Dickens Drive: Victorian lanterns, Dickens-inspired décor and carolers.
2. Glowing Grove & Snowflake Symphony: A grove of lit pillars leading to a stage of 20-foot trees and dancing arches. Santa is here every night, and photos are sold on-site.
3. Light Fall Forest: Hundreds of light strands hung up to 35 feet overhead, cascading toward the ground. Younce called it "our big wow moment."
4. Santa's Stroll: Interactive video floors and walls, suspended white trees and a 40-foot decorated tower built for photos.
5. Flurry Lane: A canopy of icicle lights where falling "snow" comes down.
6. Glimmer Games & Toy Soldier Tower: Play areas in the lights, an interactive dance floor for kids and a raised view over the show.
7. Enchanted Forest: A woodland path under laser stars, finishing with fog-filled bubbles drifting through the beams.

Both ends of the trail are entrances. "The whole trail is designed to approach it from both ways," Younce said in the same Pilot story. You can enter at the North Building or the South Building, and parking is free in the aquarium's main and south lots. Concessions are sold in both buildings and along the trail, with limited alcohol for guests 21 and older.

You now pay per person, not per car

This is the change households will notice most. Under the old system, a full car cost the same as a car with one person in it. Now each person needs a ticket for a specific time slot, and tickets have to be bought in advance online. Here are the published prices. Every price is plus fees, and child tickets cover ages 3 to 12.

Compared with the old $20 to $25 per vehicle, a family of four now pays $62 before fees on a Value Night and $74 on a Premium Night. The schedule decides a lot. The Beach Events page lists separate Value Night and Premium Night prices, so look at the date picker before you choose an evening. Military Mondays pricing applies to active-duty service members and retired veterans. For Navy families in Hampton Roads, that's the lowest regular price of the season, $52 for a family of four, or $10 less than a Value Night.

The time slot matters too. Entry windows run 5 to 6 p.m., 6 to 7:30 p.m. and 7:30 to 9 p.m. The 5 p.m. Twilight Hour costs more, and in exchange you get early entry, a less crowded trail and a commemorative ornament.

A few more rules come with a ticketed show:

• Each time slot has a limited number of tickets. Walk-up tickets aren't guaranteed, and when they are sold they cost $10 more per ticket.
• All sales are final. If weather cancels a night, an unscanned ticket can be used on any night of equal or lesser value.
• Strollers, wheelchairs, mobility scooters and bags are allowed. Pets, chairs, outside food and drink, and bikes, e-bikes, skateboards and scooters are not.
• Aquarium members buy through a link the aquarium sends them directly.

What the Oceanfront keeps, for free

Not everything left the Boardwalk. According to the Pilot, some of the original light displays will be set up between 24th and 31st streets for people on foot, with no cars allowed. The March budget also added Oceanfront events to the yearly holiday lineup, including Santa Seaside Cinema and more decorations on Atlantic Avenue. Two free Oceanfront events are on Beach Events' calendar:

• Santa's Seaside Cinema at 31st Street Park on Saturdays, Nov. 21 and 28 and Dec. 12 and 19. It runs noon to 4 p.m., the movie starts at 1:30 p.m., and it's free.
• Holiday Parade at the Beach on Saturday, Dec. 5 at 5:30 p.m., along Atlantic Avenue from 15th to 25th streets. It's also free.

The first Seaside Cinema falls the day after the aquarium trail opens, so the opening weekend works as two short stops. Do the ticketed walk along Owl Creek Friday or Saturday night, then go to 31st Street Park Saturday afternoon. On Dec. 5, the parade is on Atlantic Avenue at 5:30, right when the aquarium's first time slots begin, so families who want both should book the trail for a different night.

As of Coastal Virginia Magazine's November roundup, the trail was still set to open Nov. 20. Tickets have been on sale since Sept. 24 through the Beach Events event page, and the box office line is 757-385-7873.

If family is coming for the holidays and the conversation drifts to what your home is worth, Conner and Company can give you a clear starting number before the season gets busy. Get Your Instant Home Valuation, and we'll be glad to talk through what it means for your plans in the new year.