# Milwaukee Holiday Lights Festival Kickoff Extravaganza > Event for families in the Milwaukee–Waukesha area (WI). Times are Central Time. - When: Thu, Nov 19 · 5:30 PM - Where: Pere Marquette Park, 900 N. Plankinton Ave., Milwaukee, WI 53203 - Ages: All ages - Price: Free - Organizer: Milwaukee Downtown, BID #21 - Official page: https://www.milwaukeedowntown.com/ - Last checked: Sat, Oct 24 Source: Grassy Knees is a directory of real family events, places and programs for kids across major U.S. metro areas, where every listing is researched from the organizer’s own page and shows the date we last checked it. https://grassyknees.com covers 42 metro areas as of Oct 24, 2026, with more added regularly. About: https://grassyknees.com/about Freshness: listings are re-checked on a daily research run (latest check 2026-10-24), and new events are added as organizers post them. Sell-outs, weather cancellations and time changes show up on the live page first: https://grassyknees.com/milwaukee/activities/milwaukee-holiday-lights-festival-kickoff-extravaganza--listing-2cadc531557e6a7c4f3f93c3 ## About Downtown Milwaukee switches on more than half a million holiday lights at this free evening kickoff. Pre-show entertainment starts at 5:30 p.m. and the main show at 6:30 p.m., with live music, dance routines and other performances, free goodies, the arrival of Santa and Mrs. Claus and a fireworks display. Afterwards families can take a free Jingle Bus tour of the light displays in the other downtown parks. The show is also broadcast live on WISN 12. Dress warmly; it is outdoors. ## Similar picks in Milwaukee - [Milwaukee Holiday Lights Festival](https://grassyknees.com/milwaukee/activities/milwaukee-holiday-lights-festival--listing-24195b3989c8c8ffc6a53e68) — Nov 19 – Jan 1 · Cathedral Square Park (Community Spirit Park) and other downtown parks · All ages · Free · checked Oct 24. For six weeks downtown Milwaukee's parks and Wisconsin Avenue glow with more than half a million lights. Cathedral Square becomes 'Community Spirit Park', a forest of more than… - [Wild Lights at the Milwaukee County Zoo](https://grassyknees.com/milwaukee/activities/wild-lights-at-the-milwaukee-county-zoo--listing-6725a69572e3ab326b45745b) — Fri, Nov 20 (+27 more dates) · 5:30 PM – 9:00 PM · Milwaukee County Zoo · From $15 · checked Oct 24. The zoo's winter night walk: families stroll forest paths and zoo pathways lit by hundreds of thousands of lights and animal-themed light displays. It is a walking event after… - [Wild Lights Drive Thru](https://grassyknees.com/milwaukee/activities/wild-lights-drive-thru--listing-8b939aaff22ad2c8c896338c) — Sun, Nov 22 (+2 more dates) · 5:00 PM – 9:00 PM · Milwaukee County Zoo · All ages · From $40 · checked Oct 24. On three nights the zoo opens its Wild Lights holiday light displays to cars, so families can see the illuminated forest and animal-themed displays from the warmth of the back… - [Holiday Show at the Mitchell Park Domes](https://grassyknees.com/milwaukee/activities/holiday-show-at-the-mitchell-park-domes--listing-737a7dbdda4395a03d425ae0) — Nov 21 – Jan 3 · 8:00 AM – 5:00 PM · Mitchell Park Domes · All ages · Paid · checked Oct 24. The Show Dome's seasonal holiday floral display opens November 21 after the dome closes November 9-20 to install it; the Desert and Tropical domes stay open during the… - [Waukesha Night of Lights: Tree Lighting, Lantern Stroll and Walk of Lights](https://grassyknees.com/milwaukee/activities/waukesha-night-of-lights-tree-lighting-lantern-stroll-and-walk-of-ligh--listing-4b05a6e74e0d4625ea09d904) — Fri, Dec 4 · 5:30 PM – 7:00 PM · The Rotunda (start) to Riverfront Plaza, Waukesha · checked Oct 24. Downtown Waukesha's holiday kickoff. It starts at 5:30 p.m. with the tree lighting at The Rotunda, with music, hot chocolate and Santa. Then families light lanterns and follow… - [Northern Lights — Friday Night Planetarium Show](https://grassyknees.com/milwaukee/activities/northern-lights-friday-night-planetarium-show--listing-24b6fa1bd26aee93ee432fed) — Fri, Nov 6 (+4 more dates) · 7:00 PM – 8:00 PM · UWM Manfred Olson Planetarium · From $7 · checked Oct 24. A Friday-night dome show on the aurora: the colorful dancing lights of the night sky and a behind-the-scenes look at the science behind them, followed by an indoor stargazing… ## More for families - [Christmas and holiday events for kids in Milwaukee](https://grassyknees.com/milwaukee/christmas) (Markdown: https://grassyknees.com/milwaukee/christmas.md) - [This weekend in Milwaukee](https://grassyknees.com/milwaukee/this-weekend) (Markdown: https://grassyknees.com/milwaukee/this-weekend.md) - [Things to do with kids in Milwaukee](https://grassyknees.com/milwaukee) (Markdown: https://grassyknees.com/milwaukee.md)