LuminoCity Turns Five at Eisenhower Park, and Its Season Has Two Calendars

The holiday lights come back to Eisenhower Park on Wednesday, November 11, and stay through Sunday, January 3, 2027. That is a 54-day run, but the festival is open on only 43 of those nights. For the first five weeks it opens Wednesday through Sunday only, with Thanksgiving off. After that it opens every night, apart from Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. An East Meadow household that knows which week it's in can plan the season around the lights, the park, and Hempstead Turnpike.

This is LuminoCity's fifth year at the park, and it is again billed as a 14-acre walk-through. It has four themed areas: Magical Wonderwood, Dino Safari, Holidayville, and Tundra Twilight. There are more than 100 lit and animatronic creatures and a 40-foot Christmas tree, according to the organizer's October 8, 2026 announcement. The displays matter less to a nearby household than the schedule, though, because the schedule changes partway through the season.

The season splits on December 14

The festival's event page says the festival is closed every Monday and Tuesday before December 14, 2026. It is also closed on Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve, and Christmas Day. Here's how that plays out by week:

The first five weeks hold 24 open nights. The last three hold 19. Close to half the season is packed into the three weeks around school break and the holidays, and that is also when the Monday and Tuesday nights first open up.

Hours are the same in both stretches. On Sunday through Thursday the gates run 4:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m., with last entry at 9. On Friday and Saturday they stay open until 10 p.m., with last entry at 9:30. The weekday hours make an after-dinner visit easy on a school night, as long as the date falls after December 13 or on a Wednesday or Thursday before then.

Three Saturdays with a theme

All three of this year's theme nights land on a Saturday, which means they also get the later 10 p.m. close:

• Saturday, Nov. 21: Lumi & Me Night
• Saturday, Dec. 5: Cosplay Under the Lights
• Saturday, Dec. 19: Ugly Sweater Night

The organizer says theme nights bring dress-up, live music, and limited-edition merchandise giveaways while supplies last. Two of the three come before December 14, during the Wednesday-to-Sunday weeks. Ugly Sweater Night is the only one in the nightly stretch.

What's new in year five

The headline addition is the Lumi Express. LuminoCity calls it Eisenhower Park's first holiday train ride, and it runs through the lit grounds. Spots on the train are limited each day. Children 3 and under ride free but must be with a paying adult. The organizer says some attractions need separate add-on tickets, and add-ons can be bought after the main ticket through the booking confirmation's customer portal.

The other new pieces are aimed at younger visitors:

• Happy Holidays Hop: a 20-foot-tall Santa inflatable that children can bounce inside
• Triceratops Bounce Nest: a second bounce attraction, listed in the 2026 announcement
• Santa pop-up appearances: on select weekends
• More themed photo spots: placed throughout the four areas

One feature has a local tie. Lumi's Utopia, LuminoCity's children's art program run with the Long Island Children's Museum, is in its sixth year. Winning drawings from this year's "Dino Friends" contest are turned into handmade light sculptures. Master Lantern Artisans Huang Xingxiu and Jiang Lei will also give a sensory-friendly demonstration.

The calendar itself has moved too. Nassau County Tourism's 2025 guide listed last year's run as November 7, 2025 through January 1, 2026. This year opens four days later and closes two days later, so the run now reaches the first weekend of January. The county's 2026 listing has the November 11 to January 3 dates.

How tickets work for a quick local trip

Prices depend on the date. General admission is $29 off-peak and $33 at peak. A child's ticket for ages 4 to 12 is $22 or $26, and VIP admission is $56 or $58. Taxes and fees are extra. The organizer says peak and off-peak pricing changes with the date and availability, so the booking calendar has the current price for any given night. Children 3 and under get in free.

Living a few minutes away doesn't change a few rules:

1. All tickets are sold online. There are no paper tickets at the gate. Anyone who shows up without one has to buy it on a phone before going in, if space is still available.
2. Entry is by time slot. There are six 45-minute windows, from 4:30–5:15 p.m. through 8:15–9 p.m. You can arrive any time during your window and stay as long as you like.
3. Once you leave, you can't come back in. That matters for anyone thinking of stepping out to the car for a warmer coat.
4. Plan on one to two hours. That's how long the organizer says most visitors spend.
5. Parking is free. You reach it from Salisbury Park Drive, the main road through the park. The closest cross streets are Hempstead-Bethpage Turnpike on the south side and Merrick Avenue on the west.
6. Leave some things at home. Dogs can't come; only registered service animals are allowed. Large bags, backpacks, tripods, selfie sticks, bikes, and scooters are also on the prohibited list.

The festival has heated restrooms along with portable ones. It's also stroller- and wagon-friendly, though it doesn't rent either.

What's on when the lights are closed

The dark Mondays and Tuesdays, plus the weekend before opening, are full of other things to do in East Meadow.

Nov. 7 and 8, before the lights open. Field 8, at Merrick Avenue and Stewart Avenue, hosts the Christmas Craft & Gift Vendor Fair from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. both days. LongIsland.com lists the fair as free. On Sunday morning, the United Veterans Organization holds its annual Veterans Day Ceremony at 10 a.m. at the Eisenhower Park Veterans Memorial Plaza.

Nov. 11, opening day. The festival opens on Veterans Day. Earlier that day, the Northwell Health Ice Center has a public skate scheduled from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Admission is $16 and skate rental is $7, and the rink notes that its schedule can change.

Monday, Dec. 7, a closed night. The East Meadow Public Library has its Holiday Plants program that day. The library's December calendar also lists a Winter Card Craft and a Snowman Family Portrait activity.

Weekends from Dec. 5 to Dec. 20. Stew Leonard's East Meadow store offers free weekend Santa photos. Its Brunch with Santa runs Saturday, December 12 and Sunday, December 13, with seatings at 9 and 11 a.m. A family could do brunch on the morning of the 13th and the lights that evening. December 13 is also the last Sunday before the festival starts opening seven nights a week.

Dinner on Hempstead Turnpike

The festival allows outside snacks and drinks on the grounds, but not inside the add-on attractions. A food and drink vendor is on site, and alcohol isn't allowed. Many visitors will eat before or after instead, and this year the closest burger choices changed.

On October 21, Shake Shack opened at 1902 Hempstead Turnpike in The Meadows. The same stretch of road carries the park's 1899 Hempstead Turnpike address. Long Island Business News reported that the 3,437-square-foot restaurant has a drive-thru with two ordering lanes. It's open 10 a.m. to midnight Sunday through Thursday and until 1 a.m. on Friday and Saturday. Those hours run well past the festival's last entry on any night of the week.

The new Shake Shack sits right next to Burger City, a locally owned spot. Newsday reported that this is the chain's ninth Long Island location and that it set off a community conversation. The paper described a steady line at Burger City around lunchtime after the opening, often reaching into the parking lot. Newsday also noted that Burger City opened in 2015 in a former Rita's Ice and was designed to look like a 1960s burger shack, with a sparkly sign and American flags on the roof. The center also has a pet supply store, a dentist, and a slice shop.

Our team lives and works in these communities, and we follow the calendar here the same way you do. If a December move or a spring listing is coming up, The Kim Holland Homes Team can build your timeline around the holidays, so you still get your night under the lights at Eisenhower Park. Get In Touch.