Drive-through Christmas lights near Vancouver, WA: 2026 dates, prices and drive times

Winter Wonderland at Portland International Raceway

It's the region's big drive-through and the closest to Clark County. Sunshine Division, a Portland hunger-relief nonprofit, runs it; the raceway is only the venue. The organizer says all proceeds go to hunger relief.

You pay per car, not per person. In 2025, standard vehicles paid $38 online Monday to Thursday, $45 on Sunday, $49 on Friday and Saturday and $50 on peak nights, with gate prices $4 to $5 higher. The 2026 pricing page shows the same table with peak nights moved to December 18 to 25, but tickets weren't on sale when we checked, so treat those prices as provisional.

Plan on about 35 minutes to drive the course once you're on the raceway. The organizer says waits can reach an hour on weekends and peak nights; to avoid them, arrive in the first hour after opening or after 9 p.m.

• Headlights off, a slow and steady pace, and no frequent stops. Everyone stays in the vehicle.
• No chains or studded tires, with no exceptions and no refunds. That catches Clark County drivers who run studs in icy weeks.
• Dogs can ride along inside the car; there are no pet potty areas.
• Use Google Maps, not Apple Maps: the organizer says Apple Maps shows the wrong location. The entrance is just north of the Delta Park/Vanport Park & Ride.
• Restrooms are in the main raceway lot, before the show entrance.

Sources [1][2][3][4][5]

Walk or bike Winter Wonderland instead

Special nights close the course to cars. In 2026, Bike the Lights is Sunday, November 29, and Lights & Leashes, a walking night open to anyone with or without a dog, is November 30 and December 1. Both run 4:15 to 9:30 p.m. Tickets are per person; the posted online prices are $16 for adults and $5 for kids.

Bike night is pedal power only (e-bikes with pedals are allowed), with a 10 mph limit and helmets required for riders 16 and under. On the dog-walk nights, dogs stay leashed; strollers are fine, but bikes, scooters and skates aren't.

One catch: the site's footer still lists 2025 dates for its car-free nights, so check which nights are closed to cars before you drive over.

Sources [1][6][7]

Winter Wonderland tickets and ways to pay less

• Buy online. In 2025, gate prices were $4 to $5 higher per car; the VIP fast lane cost the same either way.
• In 2025, a limited number of $35 tickets were sold at Safeway and Albertsons customer-service desks from Thanksgiving week, good on any drive-thru night, peak nights included.
• In 2025, admission was $15 at the gate on December 10 and 11 with proof of SNAP, Washington Quest, Oregon Health Plan, Apple Health, WIC or TANF benefits. The 2026 benefit nights are listed as TBA.
• We found no promo codes on the organizer's site.
• Cheaper still: Holiday Sparkles is free, Kelso asks a $5 donation per car, and several Portland neighborhood displays cost nothing to drive past (see below).

Sources [2][3][12][14]

Longview and Kelso: two smaller shows up I-5

GLO Light Experience started in 2025 inside the rodeo arena at the Cowlitz County Fairgrounds. For 2026 it runs December 4 to 6, 11 to 13 and 18 to 24, 6 to 9 p.m. (6 to 8 p.m. on Christmas Eve), for $25 per vehicle paid in person. Vehicles must be under 10 feet tall, everyone stays inside, and cars enter through the fairgrounds gates on Washington Street.

Kelso Rotary Lights in the Park winds through Tam O'Shanter Park with music on your car's FM radio; the station is posted on signs at the park. It asks a suggested $5 donation per vehicle. In 2025 it ran December 12 to 24, 5 to 9 p.m., and until 10 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays. Its site says the 2026 show starts December 10, but the same paragraph repeats older copy, so confirm before you go.

The two are less than 2 miles apart as the crow flies, so you can see both in one evening when their dates overlap. Kelso warns that its bright flashing lights may affect people with photosensitive epilepsy. It has no concessions, so bring your own hot drinks, and its vehicle limit is 12 feet tall and 8.5 feet wide.

Sources [8][9][10][11][12][13]

Holiday Sparkles: free, a little over an hour south

On December weekends, the museums at Powerland Heritage Park near Brooks decorate their buildings for a free drive-through, now in its seventh year. The 2026 nights are December 5 and 6, 11 to 13 and 18 to 20, 5 to 8 p.m., with the last car in at 8. You can stop partway to meet Santa, park for cocoa and cookies, and vote for your favorite museum's decorations. Donations are welcome.

Sources [14]

Watching from the car in Clark County

Clark County has no ticketed drive-through, but you can see plenty without leaving the car.

• Live Drive-Through Nativity, 11101 NE 119th St, Vancouver: a live nativity you watch from your car, with narration on FM radio in English, Spanish and Russian. It ran December 19 to 21, 2025, 6 to 8 p.m., free. The 2026 dates aren't announced.
• Ridgefield Lights of Sound, 16109 NE 33rd Ave, in the Mount Vista area north of Salmon Creek: a home show set to more than 40 songs, with the soundtrack on your car radio (FM 106.3 in the host's 2024 listing). The host listed nightly hours of 4:30 to 9 p.m. in 2025 and publishes the address for visitors.
• Christmas Lights on 96th Street, 15800 NE 96th St, Vancouver, across from Otto Brown Neighborhood Park: an animated home show synchronized to music. The owner's page lists shows every night from December 1 to January 1, 5 to 10 p.m.
• Battle Ground's Tour of Lights: the city's Battle of Lights decorating contest publishes a map of every registered home, so you can plan your own route. 2025 was the contest's fourth year; 2026 details aren't out.
• Holidays on Franklin in Vancouver can be seen from the car if you drive slowly and pull over rather than stop in the street. See our Holidays on Franklin guide.

For the rest of the county's home displays and tree lightings, with dates and directions, see our Clark County Christmas lights map.

Sources [16][19][20][21][22][23]

Free drive-by displays in Portland

• Christmas on the Campground, Apostolic Faith Church, 5414 SE Duke St: displays lit dusk to dawn every night from Thanksgiving weekend to the end of the year, with music from 4:30 to 9 p.m. Outside the open weekend you watch from the public streets and sidewalks. On December 12 and 13, 2026, 5 to 8 p.m., the gates open for train rides, a petting zoo and live nativity performances at 6 and 7 p.m. Free. About 30 to 40 minutes via the I-205 bridge.
• Starkwood Holiday Lights, off SE Stark St at SE 111th Ave: an HOA display along a street and its cul-de-sacs. In 2025 it ran December 13 to 31, 5 to 11 p.m., and the HOA mentions no admission charge. Dim your headlights, make no left turns and keep right until you exit back onto SE Stark. The 2026 dates aren't posted. About 25 to 30 minutes via the I-205 bridge.
• Peacock Lane in Southeast Portland: in 2025 cars could drive it from December 18 to 31, except on the pedestrian-only nights of December 19 and 20. Expect a line of 30 minutes or more to get on and 15 to 45 minutes to crawl its four blocks. Details are in our Portland Christmas lights guide.

Sources [24][25][26]

Getting across the river

• Take I-5 to Winter Wonderland and Peacock Lane. Take SR-14 to the I-205 bridge for East Portland displays like Starkwood and Christmas on the Campground. Longview and Kelso are straight up I-5.
• The I-5 Interstate Bridge can lift for river traffic in the evening. WSDOT restricts lifts only on weekdays from 6:30 to 9 a.m. and 2:30 to 6 p.m. (except federal holidays), so a lift can hold you up on a weekday evening or a weekend. Build in a buffer or use I-205.
• Weekday afternoons are the bridge's peak. Cross after the evening commute, or go on a weekend.

Sources [27][28][29]