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Photo by S. Ramones for Visit Philadelphia

Wanamaker Light Show in Philly: Everything You Need to Know

The iconic attraction is on hiatus. Here's what to know — and more ways to celebrate the holidays in Philly ...

Photo by S. Ramones for Visit Philadelphia

Overview

Note: The Wanamaker Light Show is on hiatus for the 2026 and 2027 holiday seasons. The show is set to return for the 2028 holiday season.

For generations of Philadelphians, it’s just not the holidays without a trip to the Wanamaker Building (the site of America’s very first department store). 

For over 50 years, dancing snowflakes, snowmen and reindeer — brought to life by hundreds of thousands of twinkling lights and a festive soundtrack backed by the world-famous Wanamaker Organ — have brightened the days of holiday revelers during the Wanamaker Light Show.

La Wanamaker Building has been undergoing a multi-million-dollar renovation to convert the National Historic Landmark into a mixed-use space with offices, apartments, and reimagined retail on the ground floor. 

The massive reenvisioning of the historic space required the much-beloved holiday show to close for two years. The show returns for the 2028 holiday season. 

Location & Contact:
The Wanamaker Building
100 E. Penn Square
Philadelphia, PA 19107
View All Info

What’s the Wanamaker Light Show Experience Like?

The free display typically features twinkling snowflakes, dancing ballerinas and more, illuminated by 100,000 LED lights and synced to festive music and narration. The star of the show — the noted Wanamaker Organ — remains one of the largest and most famous pipe organs in the world.

In 2025, the attraction also added Dickens Village — a nostalgic animatronic retelling of A Christmas Carol — plus a vendor village and holiday pop-up restaurant.

Visitors gather inside a historic building to enjoy the annual holiday light show, featuring a towering glowing Christmas tree, surrounded by illuminated reindeer and festive decorations. Visitors gather inside a historic building to enjoy the annual holiday light show, featuring a towering glowing Christmas tree, surrounded by illuminated reindeer and festive decorations.

  — Photo by S. Ramones for Visit Philadelphia

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More Things to Do This Holiday Season

Philly knows how to do the holidays, which means there’s always a ton of other must-see holiday attractions to celebrate the spirit of the season. 

At LOVE Park and Philadelphia’s City Hall, Christmas Village in Philadelphia features a Ferris wheel, a double-decker carousel, tasty German treats and more than 120 vendors in rustic wooden cottages.

A crowd of people wearing jackets, hats and scarfs walk around and shop at the Christmas Village in Philadelphia. A Christmas tree and vendor huts can be seen in the background. A crowd of people wearing jackets, hats and scarfs walk around and shop at the Christmas Village in Philadelphia. A Christmas tree and vendor huts can be seen in the background.

Christmas Village in Philadelphia   — Photo courtesy Christmas Village

Also at City Hall, Winter at Dilworth Park offers four separate holiday attractions. Revelers can lace up and glide around the Rothman Orthopaedics Ice Rink; stroll the whimsical topiaries at the illuminated Wintergarden; shop local at the Made in Philadelphia Holiday Market; or enjoy seasonal drinks by the fire pits or inside the chalet-style Rothman Orthopedics Cabin.

Two people smile and lean against the barrier at the Rothman Orthopaedics Ice Rink as skaters glide across the ice under sparkling silver decorations. Two people smile and lean against the barrier at the Rothman Orthopaedics Ice Rink as skaters glide across the ice under sparkling silver decorations.

Winter at Dilworth Park   — Photo courtesy Center City District

For more holiday attractions in Greater Philadelphia, click the button below.

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