Copied to Clipboard
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.
The 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.
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.
— Photo by S. Ramones for Visit Philadelphia
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.
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.
Winter at Dilworth Park — Photo courtesy Center City District
For more holiday attractions in Greater Philadelphia, click the button below.
Exploring where to stay in Philly and looking for a hassle-free deal?
Take your Philadelphia trip to the next level with the Visit Philly Overnight Package, offering you free hotel parking for one- or two-night stays at nearly 40 participating hotels.
That can be worth up to $140 in value for a two-night stay in Center City Philadelphia. Why pay more?
EN 
ES 
FR 
PT 
HT