GULFPORT, Miss. (WLOX) - The Harbor Lights Winter Festival at Jones Park in Gulfport opens on November 29. It is Mississippi’s largest Christmas light show, spanning 40 acres with over 1.5 million lights.
One of the main attractions is the ‘Dancing Trees.’ Multiple lighted Christmas trees are set up 6 inches apart, and play over two hours of different choreographed lights.
Gulfport Assistant Director of Leisure Services Billy Lehman said, “We have a computer program that controls them. An artist designed the pixels, the computer tells them what light to light up, and you get the images on the trees.”
This year’s display also includes a new addition to a holiday favorite.
The lighted octopus, Inky, now has two ‘octopus children.’
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“These are different from any other display we have,” said Lehman. “They are garland-wrapped, most of ours are just static 2-D dimensions. These are 3-D dimensional figurines wrapped in garland and something that we keep every year.”
The festival also includes carnival rides and a train to take families through a tour of the lights.
Santa’s Village is set up at the Barksdale Pavilion where you can see working elves and even take photos with Santa Claus. The village also includes warming stations and a gift shop.
The festival is open daily from 5:30 p.m. to 10:30 p.m. through New Year’s Eve. However, it will be closed on Christmas Eve.
Tickets are on sale at the Harbor Lights Winter Festival website. Around 3,500 tickets were sold before opening night.
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Rides, food, and other activities are not included in the cost of admission.
In 2017, Harbor Lights was the backdrop to a Lifetime movie called “Christmas in Mississippi.”
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